Terra Banatica: almost 300 kilometers from Via Transilvanica, through Caras-Severin. On the road with Prince Nicolae
1,400 kilometers of Romania, which a hiker can cover in a few weeks. It's Via Transilvanica, a project initiated three years ago by Alin Ușeriu and the team from Tășuleasa Social, a road from Putna to Drobeta Turnu Severin, which you can cross on foot or by bike. Three years later, about 1,000 kilometers were marked.
I crossed one of the routes in Terra Banatica, from Gărâna to Văliug, together with Prince Nicolae, ambassador of this project. In the turbulent times we live in now, such a hike somehow puts your thoughts in order. You don't have to be a big mountaineer, you just need good mood and the right shoes. The road passes through a dense forest, in summer, you can hide from the heat here. The light filtered by the dense branches seems out of this world and is an almost total silence.
Prince Nicolae was in the summer in Gărâna, when the arrangement of Terra Banatica began. He is convinced that Via Transilvanica hides surprises for all travelers and this story is a great gain for Romania: "It is indirectly a kind of promotion for Romania, when a traveler chooses to take a few steps on this route will begin to discover our country, our true country, not our country through cities and culture. Here you will discover everything that history means, everything that nature means, everything that Romanians mean to the soul. You will find people who will open their doors, maybe with a brandy, maybe with food, maybe, simply, with a big heart. I know that a small entrance to the county was planned. After Alin Ușeriu and his team started to discover exactly what is here, what a wonder it is in this county, it was not very difficult to make a decision, ready, we go further, above, it is full of history, of good people, of nature. That's what I think we need more in our lives".
Our hike with Prince Nicolae ended symbolically, near the landmark depicting his grandfather, King Mihai. It is located in the canton of Berzăvița, very close to Vila Klaus, the place where King Mihai spent a year of school, with the palatine class.
I asked Prince Nicolae, a volunteer at Tășuleasa Social since 2008, how he sees Via Transilvanica in five years. He says: "In five years I see thousands of travelers, I see more small businesses that will help the local economy. It is very important for the peasants to start developing, for the farmers to develop, with cheese, milk, beekeepers, honey… there are many opportunities for each community. I think they will become much more united. We develop from below, areas that did not have many investments, with this we can slowly rebuild Romania. And the "car" for this, so to speak, is Via Transilvanica. We will definitely see a big change in the future".
Terra Banatica_ aproape 300 de kilometri de Via Transilvanica, prin Caraș-Severin. Pe drum cu principele Nicolae _ RFI România_ Actualitate, informaţii, ştiri în direct
It seems that Nicolae and Alina-Maria have been in Brussels
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