16 things Russians, Moldovans (and most other people from Ex-Soviet countries) do that Americans might find weird

1. Dressing up to go to the store.

Imax Tree / Via stylebistro.com

Russians, especially Russians living in cities, love dressing up. For example, a nice dress and some heels are perfect attire for a casual walk.

2. Sitting down for a minute before heading on a trip.

artistryofman.blogspot.com

Once the suitcase is packed, most Russians will typically pause and sit quietly for a minute before leaving.

3. Making really long and complicated toasts.

New Line Cinema / Via google.com

Only the laziest of the laziest of Russians will make a toast of “To health” or something short like that. Seriously. Expect to hear anecdotes and too much reading into them.

4. Telling anecdotes as often as possible.

They might be in the middle of telling a story and then say, with relish, “And, you know, this reminds me of an anecdote…” and then proceed to tell it, even if it’s completely irrelevant.

5. Congratulating one another on getting out of a shower or sauna.

NBC / Via funnyjunk.com

They say, “S lyogkim parom!” (Basically, “Congratulations on a light steam.”)

6. Answering “how are you?” honestly and fully.

How are you?” in Russian demands an actual answer, not just “Great, thanks!”

7. Not smiling at strangers.

Smiling at people you randomly make eye contact with is not a thing. Smiles are supposed to be genuine, to be shared with friends.

8. Celebrating New Year’s more enthusiastically than Christmas.

Via trevorabroad.com

The tree is for New Year’s. Presents are for New Year’s. Forget Christmas. New Year’s is THE winter holiday.

9. Constantly rewatching old Soviet cartoons.

Felix Kandel / Via cartoonsdb.blogspot.com

“Nu, Pogodi!” (the Russian version of Tom and Jerry), “Bremenskiye Muzykanty” (The Musicians From Bremen), and “Snezhnaya Koroleva” (The Snow Queen), are among Russia’s favorites.

10. Calling all females “girl”.

If you want to call your female waitress, you yell, “girl!” If you want to address a fifty-year-old woman, you can call her “girl.” If you want to address an actual girl, you call her “girl.” Any woman short of a babushka (grandmother) is “girl.”

11. Sitting down at the table for a meal and staying there for hours.

When groups of Russians get together for dinner, they will sit down, have dinner, and talk. Then they will talk some more.

12. Always keeping your bags.

hobbygradina.ro / Via industrytap.com

Seriously, Russians never, ever, ever throw away any bags, just ‘cause you never know when you might need one.

13. Preparing way more food than is necessary for when friends come over.

competitiveeaters.com / Via supersizedmeals.com

And most of it will have tons of mayo.

14. Living with their parents.

Paramount Pictures / Via lilyincanada.wordpress.com

It is often that an entire Russian family - parents, children, grandparents - will live together in one apartment.

15. Meeting complete strangers and then becoming friends with them immediately.

Kino International Corp. / Via kino-teatr.ru

And then inviting them over for some tea after only 10 minutes of conversation.

16. And never showing up to someone’s house without a gift in hand.

Via perros.facilisimo.com

It can be a dessert or a wine if it’s dinner, or it can be chocolates or flowers (so long as it’s not an even number of them). It’s not really important what it is, as long as you bring something.

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Ukrainian Wedding Traditions

Talking here about wedding traditions in Moldova, I consider very important to mention also Ukrainian wedding traditions. First of all because there are many Ukrainians living in Moldova and a lot of weddings held in Moldova are typical Ukrainian weddings. Moreover, traditional Moldovan wedding comprises many elements of Ukrainian, Romanian and other traditional weddings. That is why the ceremonies and traditions of Moldovan and Ukrainian wedding are very common and I am sure, for those who are interested in Moldovan wedding traditions it will be interesting to know more about  Ukrainian ones.

Traditional Ukrainian wedding customs are made up of various ceremonial stages sealing the union of the groom and bride. Younger generations are in some cases following Western wedding customs, however, those from more traditional families or couples in villages still observe the wedding customs of Ukraine. A wedding in Ukraine is a solemn occasion involving important religious rituals, but it is also a time of great joy and fun-filled parties.

Asking her Father
The Ukrainian wedding begins with the formal engagement when the groom approaches the bride's parents along with some older married men (starosty) to ask if he may marry her. This is the first and many would say most dangerous marriage tradition. This isn’t simply a man-to-man chat as it is in many parts of Western Europe. In Ukraine this is a very serious business. Not only the bridegroom, but his parents and friends as well all make the journey to the bride’s parents’ house with a beautifully decorated round Ukrainian loaf as a present. A bottle of horilka is presented by the groom and the bride will drape a rushnyky around the starosty. They then exchange a loaf of bread. Luckily for the groom, he does not ask the question himself, but his father and friends do it for him. Usually the bride’s father will ask his daughter whether she wants to marry the man or not, and will give his answer depending on hers. If the answer is yes then both sets of parents discuss the time and place. But if the answer is no then the poor jilted man is traditionally given a pumpkin! The period of engagement may differ but is a minimum of one week.

That is how "Rushnyk" looks like:

Before wedding in the village
On the Thursday or on the Friday before the wedding a korovai bread is baked. The following day the groom and bride along with a friend will carry a shyshka bread through the village to call to their wedding guests. On Friday evening a party is held for the bride to say good-bye. On this night they also make a ritual tree called a hiltse for the wedding table. The civil marriage contract is then signed on the Saturday. If they are to have a religious service, this takes place on Sunday.

Traveling to the Wedding
Unlike in many other countries, it is not considered back luck here for the groom to see the bride before the wedding ceremony itself. In fact, it is traditional in Ukraine that he picks her up from her parents’ house. The wedding car, no matter how grand or humble, will be barely visible under a plethora of flowers, balloons and ribbons. The groom travels in the wedding car and is usually followed convoy-style by all his friends and family, driving through the streets of the city blasting their horns. Upon arriving at the bride’s residence the horn-tooting becomes a cacophony letting her, her family and her friends know that it is time to go. The bridegroom collects the bride from the house and as they leave together the bride’s mother throws seeds (a symbol of well-being), rose petals (for prosperity and health) and coins (a symbol of financial stability) onto their heads.

The Soviet Ceremony
The first part of the marriage proceeding does not take place at the church but at the registry office where the official registration ceremony takes place. This is where the bride and groom will officially become man and wife, whether a church ceremony takes place afterwards or not, so it is a crucial part of the proceedings, and thanks to seventy years of Soviet atheism has become as traditional here as church services are elsewhere in the world. The ceremony begins with a fanfare, and a Ukrainian embroidered towel is spread on the floor for the young couple to stand on. The wedding vows are exchanged at this point, and then the happy couple will be congratulated by both sets of parents.

A Crowned and Holy Union
After the official registration comes the church ceremony, and it is now that the maid of honour and the best man will be wishing they hadn’t been such good friends with the bride and groom, for it is their duty to hold crowns over the heads of the bride and groom throughout the long service, which can lead to very sore arms! During the ceremony the priest blesses the couple for happiness, health, luck, faithfulness, understanding, love and respect for one another. There is a very strange superstition surrounding the church wedding ceremony: with all the candles around it is considered very bad luck for the future of the marriage if the bride’s dress catches fire! It would of course be tremendously unfortunate for the bride to end up in the burns unit on her wedding day, but that aside it is a frantic time for her mother who is on tenterhooks throughout making sure she and her dress don’t stray too close to a naked flame.
 

Essential Photo Opportunities
Now comes the time for the newly married couple to have their photograph taken, and it has become a tradition that this is done using one of the many Kyiv landmarks as a backdrop. Everyone in the wedding party piles back into their cars and heads off to St. Sofia or St Michaels, The Golden Gate or that viking-style boat monument by the river where the wedding photographer captures the joy of the new husband and wife and their friends and family on film.

Let’s Get the Party Started!
With the hard part now over it’s time to party! The wedding celebration usually takes place in a restaurant or at the home of the bride or groom, but regardless of the location the important thing is to drink, dance and have fun! All the guests bring presents which in Ukraine will be simple things the new family will need to set up home: kitchen utensils, linen, home appliances and the like. There is no stigma in Ukraine to giving money, and many will offer up mafia-style envelopes stuffed with cash. There is usually a meal and then speeches and toasts. After each toast the guests shout, “Gorko! Gorko! Gorko!” which translates somewhat strangely as bitter, but in this context it means everyone wants to see the couple kiss. As some grooms have pointed out, the number of kisses at the wedding celebration often exceeds to the total received throughout the whole dating period. Kissing should continue until the chanting dies down, but the bride and groom should be ready to kiss at any moment. Tongues are not considered essential, but neither are they entirely frowned upon.
 

The Best Man and the Maid of Honor
After shouting "Gorko" to the bride and groom, the guests will then shout it at the best man and the maid of honor meaning they now want to see them kiss, which can lead to all sorts of hilarity and alcohol-fueled misbehavior. On one occasion the Best Man did not speak Russian and was completely unaware of this tradition so while the chant rose in volume he innocently continued with his meal. When someone explained what was expected of him, he went a deep shade of red and gave the rather beautiful bridesmaid a peck. Later, however, no doubt fueled by copious amounts of vodka, he kept insisting the guests shout "Gorko" at them again!
 
The mother-in-law
During the celebration the groom must prove his devotion, not only to his new bride but to her mother also. With all the guests as witnesses, he must declare that he will be kind and caring towards his mother-in-law. As a sign of his attention, and a mark of respect, he presents her with a new pair of boots which he then places on her feet.

Stealing the Bride
At some point during the proceedings, the bride will inevitably be ‘stolen’ by the guests who then demand a ransom for her safe return. The groom will be asked to pay a few hundred hriyvna for her shoes, and a much larger sum for the bride herself. This in actuality is a rather underhand tactic on the part of the bride, as any money he pays for her goes not to the guests but in her own pocket, and she judges the level of his love for her on the amount of money he is prepared to pay! An additional part of this drawn-out tradition is the drinking of champagne from the bride’s elegant high heeled shoes, which usually takes place when the shoes are returned. Alternatively, instead of simply paying a ransom the groom’s Best Man may well be asked to perform a series of suggestive or embarrassing acts in order to win back the stolen bride.

Who Will be the Breadwinner?
Who is going to be the most dominant personality in any newly married couple is a question wedding guests everywhere ask themselves, and Ukraine is no different, but here they have even devised a test that takes place on the wedding day. During the party the couple are presented with traditional bread off of which they are each asked to break a chunk, using only their thumb and forefingers. According to tradition the one left holding the larger piece will be the head of the family. While this may seem a piece of idle fun, it often turns out to be true!

From Bride to Wife!
The party is coming to a close, and everyone has had a great time, but there is still one last thing to be done: the custom of turning the bride into a wife. The bride and all the young unmarried girls will dance a waltz which signifies that every young woman has a right to love, happiness and a family. The bride then throws her bouquet over her left shoulder and the girl who catches it will be the next to be married. The bride then says a symbolic goodbye to the unmarried girls at which point the bride’s mother presents her with a round loaf and lifts her bridal veil from her face. A traditional Ukrainian kerchief is placed on her head and the young bride has turned into a married woman! The official part of the wedding is now over! Time for the really hard to part to begin…

Source: www.whatson-kiev.com

Moldovan wedding traditions (Part 3)

The practice of weddings includes the moments when young people separate from their social groups. Additionally, there is the separation of the bride from her parents which is followed by her joining the bridegroom's family. Lastly, there is the union of the two young people and the integration of the bride into her new family. (Prior to the marriage is the betrothal which is followed by a long process of acceptance towards the prospective couple by the existing group of those who are already married.)

The wedding is a performance with well-established rituals. Poetry, song, dance and ceremonial costumes all have a detailed role in the wedding ceremony. This ceremony begins when the spokesman of the bridegroom comes to the bride's home to woo her. During this time, the best men go throughout the village inviting the relative and friends to the wedding. Then, before the closed gates guarded by the bride's relatives, the bridegroom's best man tells a story. It is the story of a young emperor who gathered a great army and went hunting. While hunting, he saw a fairy and sent his warriors to look for her. Following the fairy's trail, they arrive at the bride's house. They have been told that there is a certain flower in the garden. This flower cannot bear fruit because of the unsuitable soil in which it grows. The warriors came to pick the flower and plant it in the young emperor's garden. There, the soil was known to be good and provide the nutrients enabling the flower to bear fruit.

The dress and hairdressing of the bride is also important. She wears a ceremonial costume and flowers in her hair. In some parts of Moldova, the bridegroom must pass a test of cleverness. He must solve a series of riddles in order to prove that he is able to be part of the married community. The entrance of the bride into the community of married women is marked by a change of her hair style, and the covering of her head with a scarf. The scarf is a symbol of the married women. This ceremony is also accompanied by a song. Just as for a medieval meal, the wedding meal provides an opportunity for singing, dancing and listening to epic hero songs. Dance forms, especially for the young people, are an essential part of the wedding, as well as the birth ceremonies. One dance, called a "hora" marks the decisive moments of the ceremonial. It is a seal of the marriage contract. The above wedding ceremonials in Moldova last for three days. The final day ends with a "dance of masks."

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How to propose a drink in Russian and how to say a toast in Moldova (in Moldova, Georgian and Russian traditions).

When you will be invited to the wedding or to the party in Moldova you will most probably become a part of "drinking ceremony" and will hear a lot of toasts. In Moldova, as you know, many people speak both Romanian and Russian languages, so you will probably hear some toasts in Russian and would like to say something on your own. The following article will help you to learn how to do it and to avoid common mistakes the foreigners do when trying to propose a drink in Russian.  

First of all and the most important: In Russian, "Na Zdorovie" is not a toast. Vodka or Not, Russians Never Toast Their Drinks with Na Zdorovie

Na zdorovie! This snappy expression is arguably the most well-known Russian phrase outside Russia. And still, no matter how much it may surprise you, the phrase Na zdorovie! is not a Russian toast and cannot be used to toast anything at all.

Na zdorovie is in fact a very old Russian phrase meaning "You're welcome" or "Enjoy it". Most commonly, it's said by the hostess when the guests praise her culinary skills, but it can be used in response to any words of gratitude, just as we say "You're welcome". If you attempt to toast with Na zdorovie! around native Russians, their reactions will vary from an awkward pause to hearty laughter (at your expense).

Incidentally, the name of the new hot St Petersburg restaurant, Na Zdorovie, means exactly that: "Enjoy your meal". Admittedly it creates a lovely play on words, considering most Westerners do believe this phrase to be a toast.

Za Vas! -- How to Toast Your Drink in Russian

This is how you can say it if you want to do it right:

Zdorovie means "health" in Russian, so naturally there are toasts featuring this word, even though Na zdorovie is not one of them. You can say, Za vashe zdorovie (zah VAH-she zda-ROH-vye) -- "Here's to your health", when you speak to several people or formally address one older or respected person.

If you toast one person who is also a friend or relative, you can say informally, Za tvoyo zdorovie (zah tvah-YOH zda-ROH-vye). The shortest and easiest version is simply saying "Za vas!" (zah VAHS) -- "Here's to you!" In any case, the first word should always be "Za" and never (ever, ever) "Na".

If Na Zdorovie is not a Russian Toast, Then What is It?

The confusion stems from two other Slavic languages: Polish and West Ukrainian. In Polish, indeed, "Na zdrowie!" is a toast meaning "To your health!" Don't forget though that Russian and Polish are two entirely different languages and use different prepositions in order to say the same thing.

The West Ukrainian language is very similar to Polish, but many Western Ukrainians are also bilingual Russian speakers. As with many bilingual people, the two languages often get confused in speech, resulting in some funny or ungrammatical expressions. Thus, Western Ukrainians do toast with "Na zdorovie!" in Russian, but only because they confuse the Russian "Za vashe zdorovie" with the same phrase in their own language.

No Drink Without a Toast in Russia

Russian traditions demand that every drink is accompanied by a toast. In the Soviet times, this habit was influenced even further by the Caucasian custom where toasting makes an important part of oral culture. As Caucasian wines, especially Georgian ones, were considered the best in the iron-curtain Russia, the Georgian tradition of flowery parable-like toasts made its way into the country.
 
Usually, they are ad-libbed by the tamada (tah-mah-DAH) - a Georgian toastmaster. Russian parties, too, usually have a tamada - either a hired one or just one of the revelers -- whose responsibility is to make sure the guests have fun: a tamada organizes dances and party games, acts as a party cheerleader, and says toasts.

Russian toasts are usually less ornate and more to the point. But, as the Russians say, "Only alcoholics don't toast their drinks".

(The most part of this article is from -  Copyright Irene Woodhead - Na Zdorovie: The Truth Behind Russian Toasts and Drinking Customs - http://suite101.com/article/na-zdorovie-the-truth-about-russian-toasts-and-drinking-customs-a313468#ixzz2KE2YzXwe)

How much do Moldovans drink? 
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In which countries people wear their wedding ring on their right hand and where on the left hand

Where you wear your wedding ring (on what hand and what finger) does on many occasions depend on your geographical location or even religion. Here is an article you may find interesting on wedding ring history. It gives some example of places where the wedding ring is worn on the left and right hand, it also gives some background information on the reasons for it and why we wear wedding rings.

Around the world, wearing a wedding ring sets the tone for the commitment of marriage, as it is a public symbol of one’s wedding vows. The traditional practice of exchanging of rings and wearing them on the fourth finger has a history and significance that has changed over thousands of years. Depending on people’s country of residence and religion, they may wear their engagement and wedding rings on the left hand or the right.

People wear wedding rings on their left hands in many Western countries, such as the United States, Mexico, Chile, Slovenia, Iran, and European nations including the UK, Italy, and France. In Asian countries, people also tend to wear the band on the left hand.

In Northern and Eastern European countries, including Denmark, Norway, Russia, Poland, and Bulgaria, it is more common to wear the wedding ring on the fourth finger of the right hand. In Portugal, Spain, and Greece, this is also the custom. Swedish brides wear unique wedding ring sets of three: the engagement ring, the wedding band, and the ring of motherhood.

Traditional Indian practice is to wear the wedding ring on the right hand, because the left hand is considered unclean. However, modern Indians may wear the ring on the left hand to match the custom in countries such as the United States. Orthodox Greeks also wear the wedding ring on the right hand, in accordance with Roman tradition; the word “left” in Latin means “sinister,” whereas the word for right is “dexter,” the root of “dexterity.”

In Brazil, the fianc and fiance wear plain bands as engagement rings on their right hands, and upon saying their vows, they switch the rings to the left hand. It is common in Germany and Netherlands to do the opposite: that is, to wear engagement rings on the left hand and wedding rings on the right.

In the Jewish tradition, the groom slips the ring on the index finger of the bride because it is the most prominent finger. Today, the bride typically moves the band to her ring finger after the ceremony.

Whether one wears engagement and wedding rings on the left hand or right varies by country and religion. However, there are wedding ring sets to suit any tradition, and the customer service staff at My Trio Rings is more than happy to help find the set for you.

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Traditions in Moldova (Part 6 - Winter holydays)

The calendar-based holidays are divided by the four seasons. Winter is designated as the season of rest, gatherings and spiritual expressions. Spring represents the rejuvenation of nature and the beginning of the farming season. It is the season of birth and blooming. Summer is dominated by the busy farming season. Fall is the season of wealth, the harvest and beginning preparations for the long winter ahead.

Among all of the religious holidays, Christmas and Easter are the most beloved. The Christmas celebration starts with a six-week fast prior to the holiday. The orthodox fasting pattern excludes from the diet any animal product such as meat, eggs, fish, milk or cheese. The celebration of the Christening of Jesus occurs on January 6--a date commonly considered to be the coldest day of the year.

Another important date is December 6, when St. Nicholas brings small gifts to the young children who have polished their shoes and placed them in front of a window in their home. Christmas carols, traditional foods and decorated trees are part of the Christmas traditions. Children start to sing carols during a ceremony in which a white newborn lamb is carried by a child, thus symbolizing religious faith and purity. Three days before Christmas, one may detect a heavy aroma of freshly baked walnut and raisin cakes. Two days prior to the celebration, the main cooking activities begin. Pigs-in-the-blanket and beef salad are two favorite dishes. Christmas Eve is reserved for decorating the tree, to be followed by the Christmas Eve dinner. This dinner is usually celebrated within the family. Christmas carols are sung and Santa is expected to leave presents under the tree; families with small children are likely to receive a visit from Santa in person. Christmas Day is celebrated among friends and family. In Moldova, the Christmas and New Year celebrations become merged, and elements of the Christian faith are blended with hopes for a prosperous New Year. Some of the many traditions or symbols include: the singing of carols as organized by young men or children; the plow; the skin-covered barrel through which a tuft of hair is pulled, thereby imitating a bull's roar; the sheep's skin or the goat dances; the mask plays; the walking of the star; folk theater.

Regarding the traditions and symbols listed above, the carol singers arrive during the afternoon of and evening on Christmas Eve. The well-wishers are expected during the afternoon of New Year's Eve--these are groups who extend wishes for a happy life, prosperity and fertility in the coming year. The children, who symbolize purity and hope, usually receive apples, nuts and home-baked bread. The old fertility rite is a poem describing, in a mythical manner, the labors to be performed by the plowman--ranging from seeding to bread making, and including reaping of the harvest.

New Year's Eve is one holiday that is celebrated throughout the country. It is an occasion for night-long parties. On this night, the traditional turkey is served. It is believed that no person should spend the night alone, as it is the night when the new year, represented by a baby, is born--and the old year, represented by the tired old man, is replaced. The first day of the new year is celebrated through songs and dances. The songs mostly symbolize the desire for a prosperous new year as characterized by fair weather, good crops, health and happiness. Some of the above traditions also involve the use of masks and costumes. Wheat often appears as a symbol of wealth and prosperity. One particular folk tale suggests that during the New Year's night, the sky opens for an instant. At that moment, God is visible to observers as he oversees all below the heavens.

During the long winter nights, young girls and women will gather at a certain house in order to sit together, spin or embroider--as they are known to do with extraordinary talent. In Moldova, however, an important part of the population celebrate the Christmas and the New Year according to the old-style Calendar, therefore one can see a duplication of the holidays, although, Moldovans explain this inevitable luxury of the year as a sign of prosperity.

Moldovan traditions (part 4 - Funeral customs)

In addition to the focus on ceremonies, the popular faith encompasses a belief that for each man, there exists a star and a tree. The falling of the star marks the death of a person. The fir, the tree of life, is placed at the head on the grave of a deceased person. The fir is brought from the forest by a group of young men. They are met at the entrance of the village by a group of women. The women sing a song about the link of the man with the tree of life. The song talks about the grief of the fir as it becomes obliged to dry and to rot near its brother, the deceased person.

Another funeral custom is the dawn song, or the Great Song (bocetul). It is sung by a group of appointed old women at the dawn of the two days between a death and a funeral.This song advises the dead person and describes the journey that he or she will make into the land of the dead ancestors. It is a song of a poetic metaphor of the myth of the great transition.

Also expressed is a wish for the sun to rise later in the day, so that the family of the deceased have more time to prepare for the ceremonies. The preparation of the funeral consists of greeting the relatives, making the funeral objects, such as the coffin, the vial that will cover the body, the funeral candle and the carriage with bulls, as well as the preparation of the food to be served to relatives and friends during the meal after the funeral. During all of the funeral proceedings, there is a wake organized for the deceased. A body is never left alone, and those present at the wake tell stories about the deceased. A group o old women mourn the body as well.

Customs of Moldova (Part 2 - From death till birth)

Customs of Moldova can be divided generally into: family customs, calendar-based customs and religious customs. They represent a "triptych" marked by the three major life changes: birth, marriage and death.

Customarily, death represents the transition from the material life to the spiritual life of one's ancestors. Marriage is considered mainly as the transition from youth to adulthood. Birth signifies the establishment of a new biological life. A birth signifies its own customs, related to the mother and to the baby. During a pregnancy, a prospective mother must observe some interdictions that will protect the baby from supposed evil spirits. The birth itself represents the transition from the unknown to the known world--or from the "blackness" to the "whiteness."

The ceremony of the "first bath" is one of the most important Moldovan rituals. Only the women can assist in the bathing of the newborn child, and the oldest woman related to the father of the baby is in charge of the event. Fresh, clean water enriched with flowers, money, honey and milk are thought to purify and join the newborn to the family. The elder woman gives the cleansed baby to the mother with wishes for the child's moral, spiritual and physical integrity. She wishes for the child to marry, to be good-looking and healthy, to be respectful of his or her parents and to be a patient person. She wishes that the child thrives, grows to maturity, becomes hardworking and experiences good luck in life.

The second important moment related to birth is the Christening of the child, a ceremony in which the child is named. In the Eastern Orthodox church, the spiritual, or "God-parents" of the child have an important ceremonial function. Usually, the child will be named after the God-father, or after a close family member. Later, the God-parents will play an important role in the wedding ceremony of the child.

Traditions in Moldova (part 1)

Many wedding traditions in the Republic of Moldova are common with those in Romania. The Moldovan folklore developed within the borders of the two great regions of European civilization--the west and the southeast. Over the centuries, the Moldovan people crystallized their own popular culture. This culture expresses the need for communication between man and nature, between man and man, and among different human groups. The customs have also been an instrument in the exchange of goods, services and information. Matrimonial ceremonies exemplify the customs in a specific way.

The Romanian practice of faith and spirituality have been in synchrony and in harmony with aspects of popular trades and facets of regional geography. Therefore, Moldovan holidays, while diversified by regional traditions, have common threads running through them. The same unity can be found in the traditions and customs throughout the country. They include Christian and non-Christian holidays, which can ba traced back to a pre-Christian period of history. Since Moldovan is mainly and Eastern Orthodox country, this form of Christianity permeates the spirit of the holidays, with other themes such as the seasons or common trades being blended within religious themes.

Two main groups of people appear in the expression of popular customs: those who are living and the ancestors who receded them. Moldova culture carefully preserves the memory of ancestral peoples. The focus of the popular spirituality is found in each village. The trades of the villages were mainly agricultural. Moldovans traditionally were farmers who worked the land, kept vineyards, raised cattle or lived as shepherds.

Spring and summer were known as the time to work the land. Autumn represented the harvest and winter was dedicated to the formation of artistic creativity or spiritual growth. Delicate, graceful and sober--the popular art of Moldova was preserved by the village. Village leaders assumed the tasks of guarding the originality, individuality and permanency of artisans' work. The nature of the village was driven to be in strict harmony with the natural environment of the entire country. Today, traveling throughout Moldova and the neigboring Romania, one can be pleasantly surprised when observing the extent to which one village differs from another village in terms of their general outlook. These differences underscore not only the cultural influences of a location, but also the specific details of the land surrounding a village...

to be continued in the next post