This entry is one which I am reluctantly writing. Of all the journeys I have taken in my short four months in Romania, this one is by far the most difficult and in some ways I regret I had gone. We departed Deveselu at 0900 on Friday, 12 July. Our destination was a three day fun-filled escape to the Danube Delta, about 6 hours away. We loaded up the two vans with 15 sailors, civilians, and MWR personnel and away we went. Our first stop was at a gas station on the highway near Bucharest so we could pick up our wonderful Romanian guides, Nico and Felix. This is where I took over driving the trail van. Next stop - Tulcea, the Black Sea, the Danube Delta, and the Enisala ruins.
The Enisala Fortress is the only medieval fortress in Dobrogea which survived the Turkish-Russian wars of the 19th century and the Ottoman Empire. The history of these ruins tell a story covering hundreds of years of the time during which the powerful Italian Genovese merchants controlled the maritime commerce of the entire Black Sea.
For some understanding of the history of the region - the Republic of Genoa (Italy) was a de facto independent state from 1005 to 1797 on the northwestern Italian coast, incorporating numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean and Black Seas. It ended when it was conquered by the French First Republic under Napoleon and was ultimately annexed by the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1815.
This fortress was built in the 14th century and held an important position during the 14th and 15th centuries. When the silt and sand from the Danube blocked this portion of the river and created the largest lake in Romania, Lacul Razim, the sandbanks blocked access of the fortress’ gulf to the sea. This cut off the commercial importance of the fortress. It was abandoned during the 16th century. With no access to the sea, this trading post was obsolete.
*Note: Some of the pictures are of differing quality as I am experimenting on a DSLR Nikon camera body with new lenses (actually expensive old manual SLR Canon lenses I bought back in the 80s when I lived in Italy). Therefore, I have to adjust the f-stops, aperture, ISO settings, and shutter speeds manually - I have to practice A LOT.
It's incredible, almost indescribable, walking in the footsteps of countless soldiers, merchants, and sailors who traversed these very walkways over 600 years ago; over three hundred years before the birth of our own nation.
After leaving the fortress, we set out driving to a local, nationally recognized vineyard by the name of "La Sapata". Romania is a country with a long tradition of wine production. It has its own fascinating history and an unrivaled landscape. Nature in the Danube Delta has a magical quality of its own. It is a region where the bond between man, the soil, the vineyard, and the countryside have achieved a balance which is very unique.
Driving into the vineyard, the first thing you see are the hectares and hectares (20 total or about 50 acres) of well-maintained vines.
The grapes are not ready for picking yet.
The owner of the vineyard greeted us and gave us a tour of his winery. Roberto Pieroni is an Italian who settled in Romania after a time in France studying agriculture; he became a true wine-enthusiast. Although an agricultural entrepreneur in another field he was excited by the prospect of producing quality wines in his second Homeland and came to the Danube Delta. We learned the soil is not rich by nature, but rather poor and sandy. It has been revitalized by the wild plants that have proliferated due to years of neglect. This makes it ideal for a low yield of high quality. Because the land has lain fallow and uncultivated for many decades, the plants which have grown here spontaneously enriched the soil in a natural way. All wines produced at La Sapata are totally organic.
Roberto explained they produced in excess of 60,000 bottles of wine last year as well as a huge quantity of "boxed" wines. They ferment 10 different types of wine, from multiple grape varieties. The grapes cultivated are: Feteasca, Rkatitel, Riesling, Sauvignon, Moscato Ottonel (for white wines) Merlot, Babesca, Blauer, and Sangiovese (for red wines).
Our host set a table meant for royalty.
Smoked salmon, pickled sardines, steamed pike, ham, olives, goat and cow cheese adorned the table.
Did I mention the caviar? And the bruschetta?
We tasted five different varieties of wine and ate heartily before we had to leave because some young people had a problem differentiating "wine tasting" and "wine guzzling". I may just be old but I think rudeness extends beyond cultural boundaries and age. I would have enjoyed the rest of the wines as he was saving his best for last. I left, apologizing profusely, and carrying two bottles home with me. I met two wonderful young people there, a couple from Munich who came here on "holiday". She was from Bucharest originally but moved to Munich where she met her husband. They had their beautiful little boy with them.
This machine places the plastic wrap around the top of the bottle covering the cork and installs the label. I was imagining 60,000+ bottles passing through this contraption then being bold by hand to be shipped around the world.
Though our wine tasting excursion was cut short and caused yet another "ugly American" scene, the wine was good, the knowledge I learned was great, and people I met there were fantastic.
We left the vineyard and headed to the hotel, Stânca Dunării so we could eat dinner and hopefully put the children to bed. Approaching the hotel, we saw this beautiful rainbow but the most amazing aspect was that we were able to see FOUR rainbows simultaneously on the road here. I also saw the end of the rainbow in a field. Unfortunately, I saw no Leprechauns or Pot of Gold.
The hotel was directly on the Danube River and I was amazed at the beauty as I walked around the grounds.
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