My walk began along a ridge of mixed grassland and trees with views of the surrounding hills and valleys. The smattering of wooden huts were now mostly in decay although one was equipped with a veranda and bench. I continued into a lengthy stretch through woodland on a forestry track. Where it had seen little recent use it was covered with hornbeam seeds, however, there were long sections of mud with the scars left by trees being dragged down the track. Deep pools of opaque brown water collected at low points, in which a few tiny frogs swam. The track frequently bifurcated as vehicles tried to avoid the deepply rutted, ponded areas. At times it was difficult to know if a track was forking off to avoid the muddy main trail, and therefore suitable for me to follow, or heading off to a different destination. There were a few ups and downs but overall I was descending into another major valley. In front of me the lumpy looking mountains of the Apuseni Range spread across the horizon, mountains I will soon be crossing. As I left the trees, on a grassy track, tiny grasshoppers jumped out of my way.
I rejoined civilisation at the village of Tebea, where the dogs were noisy but lazy in the midday heat, not bothering to annoy me too much. The water in the wells here is quite shallow allowing the use of a bucket balanced by a counterweight on the other end of an arm to lift the water.
Where I joined the main road there was a church and café/bar where I bought a coffee. The church entrance and much else was drapped in the Romanian colours of blue, yellow and red. Curious I stepped into the surrounding graveyard where I found a lady selling tickets. Without asking my age she sold me one at "pensionari" rate (evidence I no longer look young)! She explained in French what there was too see, and I used Google Translate's clever camera feature to read the information boards. The gaps in my understanding I filled in later from Wikipedia. In summary there have been three Romanian uprising. The first in 1784 when the peasants rebelled against the feudal system, wanting to abolish serfdom. Fighting took place on this area and one of the leaders, called "Horea", rallied the peasants at an oak tree that stood by the church. The tree is no more but the stump of the large tree was wrapped in concrete, and this concrete shell, suitably decorated, now remains Although the rebellion was defeated, serfdom was subsequently abolished, only to return in another form in the 19th century.
The second revolution was in 1848 when Hungary was seeking independence from the Austrian Hapsburg empire, in which they were unsuccessful. At the time, this part of what is now Romania was under Hungarian control, the Romanians were a lower peasant class and the aristocrats were Hungarian. Avram Iancu, who is buried in the churchyard, rallied the peasants to the Austrian cause while seeking additional rights for Romanians.
The third rebellion was in 1907, and was another peasant revolt against the society's inequalities. It was suppressed with many casualties although was not represented at the church today.
Inside the church, the walls, ceilings and iconostasis were completely covered with scenes from the Bible, saints and holy figures, embellished with gold. Unlike many churches there were also the colours of the Romanian flag worked into the designs.
I continued on the E3 beside a rusty railway line, before turning off and walking towards Brad and my "Pensuinea" for the next two nights. Once checked in I walked into town to a patisserie where I had more success than my disappointing choice in Ilia, and enjoyed a "Baba" type cake with cream and a latte.
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