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Tag Archives: food

Discover my beautiful country Romania and its traditions Part II: Winter Holiday Traditions

27 Saturday Feb 2016

Posted by Mami și Zâna in beauty, home, lifestyle

≈ 53 Comments

Tags

#proud, #proudromanian, dancing, food, rebirth of Nature, romania, singing, winter traditions

If you are still wondering whether to visit Romania or not, I would definitely give you more than enough reasons in this blog post to book a full trip asap!

I mean… Just look how beautiful my country looks when she’s all dressed in white!

  img_0239img_0242

And if you are still wondering when it’s the best time to do it, my advice would be: late Autumn and Winter! This is the best time to do it simply because at this time of the year we have the best traditions! Remember my previous post on my beautiful Romania and St. Andrew’s celebrations? – if not you can still read it here – take that and multiply it by 100. That’s a little closer to what Christmas and New Year means to us Romanian.

I still have to refer to our ancestors and be grateful to them for everything that happens around this time of the year in our Romania. I know that we’re not the first to sing Christmas carols ( the first known Christmas hymns may be traced to fourth century Rome, read more here ), but we sure have some of the best on the entire Earth! So soothing and calming… And merry and joyful at the same time! Joyful would be the right word to describe them!

This one is by far my favourite:

Here in Romania, mostly children go carolling since they’re believed to be the purest amongst us and their voices reach God’s ears easier…

Here they are…

image img_0261 – children singing Christmas songs in church, on Christmas day

They sing about the birth of our Jesus and they thank God for sending His Son to save our souls! In exchange they receive hot drinks, pretzels, fruits and nuts and sometimes money.

It is also said the the house that doesn’t receive them isn’t blessed for the following year! It is also said that if you’re a young family and you want children, the first Christmas carols singers you receive will help you determine the gender of your next child.

From our Christmas dinner there can’t be absent what we call “turte”. It’s a traditional sweet made out of thin cooked dough leaves ( cooked on a traditional hot owen taste the best ), softened in sweet warm water which contains honey or sugar and that they’re layered carefully on a plate. Between the layers there’s a whole lot of grounded nuts and it tastes delicious! Nothing too difficult, a simple sweet with a lot of meaning, since our “turte” represent the sheets/napkins our Baby Jesus was wrapped in when He was born.

imageimage

And since we’ve touched the topic Food, take a look at our winter specialties…

img_0293

… home made bread, which smells divine…

img_0290

… and so many goodies all home made, with fresh ingredients!

And this is what I put on my table this winter, made by yours truly!

annie's beauty... Romanian traditions

 Leaving Christmas behind the next best thing in winter is the New Year’s Eve!… And not only because it’s my birthday! Haha! That too, but around this time of the year we have other beautiful traditions as well!

In certain areas of the country, you can find actual rituals of passing… for the old year, of course! These are supposed to make way for the birth of the new year! Again, there’s lots of singing and dancing involved containing happy lyrics but also incantations, for well-being , prosperity, happiness and protection from evil and its deeds.

Two traditional dances are important now, especially in my region, Moldavia – the Dance of the Goat and the Dance of the Bear.

Here you have the Dance of the Goat

Why the goat? Because our ancestors believed that the goat was the animal able to tell whether they’ll have good weather or bad weather. Of course, this wasn’t the actual occult, empiric meaning of it! Back in the day, everything had to do with the ritual of the dead… Well especially the undead I was telling you about in my St. Andrew’s blog post! Our ancestors were wearing masks ( of goats, bears, horses, etc. ) to protect themselves from evil spirits! Nowadays we kept this tradition alive without necessarily believe in its meaning… But it sure is a spectacle to look at every time!

Also, in our pre-Christian culture the bear was a sacred animal… So sacred that even the god of our Geto-Dacians ancestors wore its name: Zamolxis ( zamo = skin, olxis = bear ). So the bear was a totemic animal, feared and equally appreciated in our ancient culture! Same as the wolf!

The bear, more than any other animal is the main character of so many legends… He was supposed to hold the pillars of the Universe on its shoulders… Our version of Atlas, the Titan that did the same – if you like. The two constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, the same as in the Greek mythology, they’re linked to the ritual of passing and the transformation of the soul in the afterlife in our culture as well.

The Dance of the Bear has the meaning of the death and the rebirth of Nature, its whole choreography and the lyrics of the song that accompanies the dance express just that.

Also, by extension, it is believed that when the bear comes out of its hibernation spring will come without a doubt.

img_0285 img_0286img_0288 img_0249

It is a lovely show to look at!

Good food, entertainment, beautiful places to see, the most warm, welcoming and funny people to spend some quality time with… What else can you ask for?!

So next year I’m expecting you here, in Romania to celebrate winter holidays together, Romanian style!

I hope you’ll enjoy this post, which is different from what I have you used with! Please feel free to comment and to let me know what are your favourite winter tradition of your country…

See you soon, Beautiful!

xx, Annie

 

And some more pictures of my beautiful country, in winter time…

image image image imageimg_0310

[ Images found on Pinterest, Videos found on YouTube. All rights belong to their rightful owners ]

 

 

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#HEALTH: Some of annie’s beauty… healthy meals and snacks…

04 Thursday Jun 2015

Posted by Mami și Zâna in beauty, health, lifestyle

≈ 85 Comments

Tags

food, healthy, ingredients, natural, natural ingredients, natural products, personal experience, recipes, tricks and tips

DISCLAIMER: I am not a nutritionist or a health expert in any way. This is my personal experience and what I’ve learned from it!

I’ve always been a little nervous to add anything related to my fitness routine or my diet to my blog, but here I am braving myself and doing just that!

With my food, I always try to keep a certain balance! I got used to a healthy eating even before that was actually “a thing”! So this new “trend” that got everyone these past couple of years, for me was actually a life style long before.

I’m not saying that I was juicing or living on salads all the time, but I definitely still can hear my Mom’s voice in my inner ear telling me to eat all my veggies, not only my meat!

Due to the whole access to information we have nowadays, I can say that my meals have now a good variation of courses to choose from, keeping the same healthy and nutritious properties.

One more thing I need to throw in!… I’m small ( read tiny ), but very energetic and I really need nutritious food in my system periodically! Plus I go to the gym almost everyday(!?) – “not very good to your body!” some may say. I don’t care! It’s my body that allows me to do that and I sure listen to its signals! Plus being active helps me with my other issues, like insomnia.


 I would love to write a separate post where to share my gym programme, and all the exercises I do to “spend” my energy! Would you like to read about that?


So here you have some of those healthy meals I love! But first…

image – Pinterest

Aliments you’ll always find on my table:

– meat ( chicken, beef ), fish ( salmon, tuna, cod, etc. ) and lots of eggs ( main supplier: my own Granny )

– milk: natural whole fat milk, fat Greek yogurt and vegetal milk: almond and coconut milk, plus cheese: cottage cheese, mozzarella, feta, etc.


  I know, right!? Outrageous!!! I loooove milk… From the good old cows! The same one our parents and grand parents grew up with! Those who think it’s not a necessity for the body, will crucify me for sure! Well, I love it! And I don’t have any allergic reaction to it! I’ve heard lots of snobs saying that “we’re the only species that drinks milk from other species!”. So what?! It’s what we’ve done for ages now! It’s the world we live in! And why not make the best of whatever nature has to offer!?


– vegetables: salads ( lettuce, ruccola/rocket, baby spinach ), broccoli, brussel sprouts, pees, pods, carrots, zucchini, mushrooms and potatoes ( sweet potatoes too ), cucumbers, spring onions and garlic

image – Pinterest

– fruits: avocado, bananas, mangoes, apples, strawberries, oranges, limes and lemon and whatever seasonal fruits I find at the market… But I live on bananas, like a little monkey! Haha!

– dry fruits: apricots, grape, figs, dates, coconut

– seeds and nuts: sunflower, pumpkin, chia, flax seed, sesame, peanuts, walnuts, almonds all eaten raw!

– spices: olive oil, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, oyster sauce, honey, chili powder, basil, oregano and anything that makes your food taste good

– guilty pleasures: peanut butter… Crunchy!, and rye flour biscuits. YUUUM!!!

image – Pinterest

MEALS

Breakfast options:

1. Yogurt with fruits, nuts and honey

2. Poached eggs on rice biscuit with avocado

3. Fruit smoothie

4. Banana pancakes with fruits

Snacking options:

Rye flour biscuits, banana + seeds and nuts

Lunch options:

1. Stir fry

2. Rice pasta with meat and veggies

3. Eggs with greenery + salad

4. Vegetables simply boiled in hot water with salt, chili flakes and soy/oyster sauce or cooked, steamed in the oven with a bit of olive oil and some spices

2nd Snacking:

mainly nuts and maybe one banana

Supper:

1. Salad: Caesar Salad, Caprese, whatever recipe you come up with…

2. Steak and veggies, either steamed or cooked in the oven with a bit of olive oil and some spices, or simply boiled in hot water with salt, chili flakes and soy/oyster sauce

3. Fish and veggies, either steamed or cooked in the oven with a bit of olive oil and some spices, or simply boiled in hot water with salt, chili flakes and soy/oyster sauce

imageimageimageimage

I hope you’ve enjoyed this post, a bit different than the usual makeup/beauty reviews! Should I continue with the whole HEALTH thing and make it a mini-series? I really need your opinion on this one…

Thanks for reading!

See you soon, beautiful!

xx, Annie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PERSONAL OBSERVATIONS, INTERESTING FACTS and some TRICKS:

  • I really don’t get it how some say that a smoothie in the morning can be so “satiable” and “fulfilling”, when I , if I don’t get to “chew” on something consistent so that my brain gets the idea that I’m actually eating , I turn berserker in less than 2 hours. Therefore a smoothie, although it’s an important part of my diet, will almost always accompany a main course from my Breakfast or Lunch, or it will be a Snack in between .
  • remember to eat your fruits/drink your juices or smoothies in the first part of the day to benefit 100% from their nutritious and energetic power! If you drink them at night, you might find yourself bloated, and without any will to sleep, which will cause a long night, therefore a zombie-like portrait when you look in the mirror the following morning!
  • for a better digestion, don’t drink water 30 minutes before and after your meals and by any mean, DON’T drink any water WHILE you’re eating!
  • the good, old, plain water is your best friend, so drink as much as you can!
  • eat in small portions, you can always come back for more
  • your body/mind will usually give you signals before you finish everything in your plate… THAT is when you HAVE to stop! Remember, you can eat/snack later!
  • try to eat your foods as freshly prepared as possible

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Mami și Zâna

Mami și Zâna

... life with a Fairy A new beginning... And so the magical adventure begins! xx, Annie

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