A Walk Through Downtown Craiova

     Since I've been here, I've traveled to Craiova several times.  I started with the Electroputere Parc (mall) for two weeks. Then I ventured out from the mall drop off point and went to the McDonalds. The next week I went further and walked from the mall to the outskirts of "downtown" and visited the stores there.

    Today, I volunteered to drive to the other mall (Mercur Center) in the downtown area because a group of the SF (and my ET2) wanted to go to the movies to see the Avengers but no one knew how to drive a stick shift.  So off we went.  I took them to the mall and dropped them off while I went shopping at the many street vendors who were out on the day before Easter, trying to find buyers for their wares - and here I was!  This mall is five floors tall and is more "upscale" than the first mall I went to but I wasn't there for THAT kind of shopping!

A Man's gotta eat!  Chicken cutlet panini and fries.

     The guys all went to watch RAZBUNATORII and said it was awesome.  The tickets for first run movies are 20 Lei or less than $5.00.  Since nearly everyone in Romania speaks English, the movies are released in English with Romanian subtitles - it makes it easy for us.  Which reminds me, I have met VERY FEW Romanians who DO NOT smoke!  It's crazy but it is so much more prevalent here.

     Anyway, after parking the van, I started my walking in search of Easter bargains. The very first encounter was totally unexpected - I found a Kürtőskalács vendor! I didn't think I was going to see one of these so soon, kinda like a Yeti to me. You may be asking, what the heck is a Kürtőskalács - I guess anyone would. Kürtőskalács is a traditional food typically found in the south-eastern region of Transylvania. After the fall of communism regime, the Kürtőskalács experienced a grand expansion throughout the ret of Romania. I thought I wouldn't see them until I went to Transylvania next month. I was happily mistaken. With the spreading of their popularity, many Transylvanian chefs who know the secret of this culinary tradition opened their own businesses and many more opened stands at fairs and festivals. For many, just hearing the funny name of these or seeing the pictures makes you curious, how could you not seek out a place to buy one? I saw these before I arrived and wanted to find one to try during my adventures. The name comes from old Hungarian origins; kürtős means chimney and kalács refers to the intertwined dough. To prepare Kürtőskalács, the ingredients are few: flour, sugar, yeast, and walnuts. I remember when I first read about these, in my usual way I said "I can make these!" Although there are recipes available on-line which therefore give you the impression you can prepare this treat at home. Unfortunately, after watching the artisan prepare this for me, DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME! To make Kürtőskalács properly, you need a special cylindrical form because the dough is spread very thin and cut into strips and then rolled on the cylinder. Then you have to bake it carefully over a coal fired heat, rolling it constantly to get it evenly cooked. If you are not part of a family who treasures the tradition of Kürtőskalács and has been making it for years, do not think to make this dessert at home. In recent years, culinary authorities in Transylvania have been promoting this traditional treat more intensely and last year, for St. George Day, they held the very first Kürtőskalács competition. The event was held on May 9, which is Europe Day and was attended by fifteen teams of chefs. I'm researching where this years contest will be and if I'll be able to go. In the meantime, I found this prize today and brought one home for breakfast tomorrow (actually three days in a row).

DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!!! 

   

     Enough about Kürtőskalács. I stopped at another stand in the square in front of the mall.

Craiova Center Square

      That's A LOT of foil covered chocolate eggs!! 15 Lei/kilo or $4 for 2.2 pounds (I got 1/2 kilo).

Romanian Pink Flamingo Yard Decorations?

A beautiful statue of Michael the Brave in the Craiova Square.

     Michael the Brave (Romanian: Mihai Viteazul) was a Hungarian-born warrior who lived from 1558 until 9 August 1601.  He was the Prince of Wallachia (as Michael II, 1593–1601), Prince of Moldavia (1600) and de facto ruler of Transylvania (1599–1600). He is considered one of Romania's greatest national heroes.  His rise to power was very interesting reading as he fought the Ottoman's but was eventually assassinated in 1601.

     The city of Craiova takes great care of their square and it is beautiful to walk through the green grass, tall trees, and wonderful flowers.

     In the square is a nice small monastery where there was a bustle of people preparing for tonight and tomorrow's Easter festivities as I was leaving.  If you look carefully at the top of the monastery walls around the entire building, there are hand-painted frescos of Romanian Orthodox saints.  They are wonderfully preserved.

     In front is another beautifully carved/minted statue.

     The movie finally ended so my adventure was over and we had to begin the journey back to the base.  Before I left though, I took a photograph of one last statue in the rotary in front of the Craiova Opera House.  Now this statue of King Carol I is creepy looking to me and is weird in a cartoonish way.  What do you think?  Definitely not the same artist as the others I've seen.

     It was a fun day exploring the city 45 minutes from my Romanian home.  I'll be back soon!