Newsletter Autumn 2001
Pat's Diary | Charity Golf | Jenny's
Bit | Harvest Appeal | Christmas Cards
EXTRACTS FROM PAT ROBSON'S DIARY
Sunday 26 August 2001
11 o'clock (ish) Hungarian time. (1 hour ahead of BST)
In 10 minutes I will arrive in Budapest, courtesy of British Airways. The
seat belt sign has just come on & the Captain has told us that ground
temperature is 280 C. I knew it was going to be hot & I try not to travel
to Romania during August because of the unbearable heat, but papers have to
be signed & I have no choice. All the same, it will be a very short trip.
Today is Sunday & I return on Wednesday. I have decided to try & keep
a diary of this trip so that you can share the experiences with me.
I came up from Cornwall yesterday as the whole world, it seemed, was stuck
on the West bound side of the Bodmin by-pass waiting to get to holiday destinations.
Last night I stayed in a hotel near the airport which, very thankfully, had
air conditioning as London was very hot. I finished the book I was reading
& had to buy a new one at WH Smith's this morning & on the plane just
now I've written the eulogy for a funeral I have to do when I get back. Now
I'm feeling ready for a few days of doing something different. The wheels
have just gone down & I can see Budapest through a haze below us. The
River Danube snakes between the twin cities of Buda & Pest & modern
tower blocks circling the older central buildings are standing in serried
ranks surrounded by trees. We've just landed on a very bumpy runway
8.00pm Romanian time (2 hours ahead of BST)
Stepping out of the plane into the heat of the day was somewhat of a shock
&, after checking through immigration & waiting for my luggage to
appear on the carousel, I was thankful that Josif was waiting to meet me with
an air conditioned car.
The car drive through Hungary was uneventful & I dozed a lot of the way.
The road is very straight & the heat haze turned the way ahead into a
shimmering river, edged by a lime-washed avenue of trees. The land is very
flat & this year maize appears to be the favoured crop. Last year's sunflowers
were obviously a commercial failure & mile upon mile of corn on the cob
now stretch as far as the eye can see.
Three & a half hours later we entered Romania. The scenery changed abruptly.
Tiny little Romanian style houses edged the roads with their vine covered
courtyards hidden behind high walls & high metal gates. Although the road
is much improved it is still necessary to avoid hay-laden horse-drawn carts
& to give a family of geese the right of way across the road. Old people,
dressed in black, sat on benches under heavily laden plum trees & the
youngsters, dressed in fluorescent nylon shell suits & huge Adidas trainers,
were doing what youngsters do the world over - just hanging around!
I arrived in really good time at the priest's house in Beznea &, after
a wonderful meal of the statutory pork & chips, I was driven up the bumpy
road to my house in the hills. On the way I noticed that the horses in the
fields were missing &, in particular, a beautiful Lippizaner that belonged
to the farm next door. I was told that Italians had come & offered everyone
good money for their horses & all had sold & were using the money
to buy tractors. The horses were to be killed for horsemeat. I felt sick at
the thought.
Now, as I write this, Popa has returned home & I am alone. It is quiet
& beautiful sitting on my garden bench with the sun going down & a
pale white moon appearing in the sky overhead. The temperature in the village
today, apparently, reached 320C but up here at my house the air is clear &
it feels pleasantly cool. It is so quiet & still that I can hear children
playing in the village over a mile away. The birds have stopped singing &
soon the stars will appear.
My house is called 'Casa de lãnga stele', the house near the stars.
I only manage to get here two or three times a year for a couple of days at
a time. It is a house that cost me very little but has given me much. It is
a place where I have nothing but bedding & a very few essentials but where
I have all I need. It is the quietness that makes it so special. A few moments
ago I walked through a field of wild flowers to the edge of the hillside where
I can see the village church with its silver onioned cupolas in the hazy distance.
The hill is covered with scabious, knapweed, sanfoil, vetches, cowslip &
wild roses. It is difficult to know where to tread. I must remember more often
that, despite the greed & barbarity of human beings, such places of beauty
& peace exist, & when I am rushing & stressed the flowers are
growing unseen on these hills & the air is clean & still & all
is quiet.
Now, however, it is getting dark & the book I bought at the airport this
morning is waiting inside for me, so Noapte Buna - Good Night.
Monday 27 August
I woke this morning to the sound of my neighbour's dog barking. Vasile, my
translator, had arrived from Baia Mare. It was 7.30 & he had left home
at 4.30am. it was good to see him. He has been my assistant ever since we
began the White Cross & he came to Truro on a scholarship then aged just
17. He is now married to Adina, has a lovely baby son named Vlad & is
a struggling but successful businessman. The day was hot even before the sun
rose above the trees. As the car bounced down the path towards the valley
the heat enveloped us & our clothes became sticky & uncomfortable.
For 3 hours this morning we sat in a crowded Notary's office & when we
left, the papers we needed to sign were still not finished & we were told
to come back tomorrow. About 20 people at a time were waiting to do business.
They waited patiently & in absolute silence. I'm never sure if its fear
or resignation that reduces Romanians to such profound silence. No doubt most
of them will also be told to return tomorrow & we will be waiting with
the same people all over again.
We left the Notary & drove to Gheghe on the main Oradea to Cluj road
for a delicious bowl of bean soup & some pear nectar at a roadside café.
I commented that the café was a lot smarter now & the priest told
me that the previous owner had been declared bankrupt & new people had
taken over. He then pointed to a dirty old shack next door & said that
the owner had been reluctant to move away & had set up business again
next door & his loyal customers continued to go to him for their coffee
& pizza.
After lunch we drove through Suncuius to Bratca. It was the hottest time
of the day & the air coming in through the window of the car was as hot
& fierce as a hair dryer. The houses we passed were surrounded by rows
of pink & red zinnias, hollyhocks & nasturtiums. There was nobody
on the streets but, out in the fields, we saw people working in the hot sun.
Young women in bikinis & old men in braces worked side by side scything
& raking the long grass into stooks. It looked backbreaking work.
We drove on to Casa Trandafir where 6 children from the orphanages are now
happily living & are being cared for by the White Cross. The children
from Casa Sfîntul Nicolae were also there. They had come on the train
from Suncuius & had climbed the hill so that they could all work together
in picking the plums. When we arrived all the mothers & the children were
out in the orchard & full sacks of plums were already stacked against
the trunks of the trees. The children's hands were stained purple & they
were all glad to stop & join us on the veranda for an orange juice &
biscuits. Livia proudly showed me the house with its new floor tiles &
newly painted woodwork. She aslo took me outside and gave me a red rose for
the people of the Roseland as a thank you for all the work they had done on
behalf of the children.
Afterwards we drove the children and their plums back to Suncuius & went
on to have a supper of pork & chips with the boys at Casa David at Balnaca.
Gusti & Cosmin had gone back to Cadea to see their friends so all seemed
very quiet & organised at the house. I hadn't realised just how noisy
those two were!
It was dark when we got back to my house & I went straight to bed. I
found it hard to sleep. It may have been the pork & chips but, of one
thing I'm sure, I shall never again drive past my neighbour's field without
seeing the ghost of that beautiful white horse.
Tuesday 28 August
Today we are having preferential treatment. Instead of sitting in a crowded
office we are sitting in the courtyard of the Notary's home, shaded by vines
heavy with grapes & elegantly sipping sweet, black coffee. His son is
producing the documents we need on his computer. We have been here for two
hours already, but who cares? Its not so hot today. Last night it rained a
little & we woke this morning to a thick mist covering hills & valleys
alike. A cup of English tea & fresh bread with butter & Marmite brought
from home & we're ready to sit here all day if necessary. I go home tomorrow
so it must be finished today.
What we are trying to do is to create a new charity & split the responsibility
of the care of the homes between two local charities, each to be concerned
with the houses in their separate areas. There is a lot of paperwork required.
The documents we are dealing with today have to have 7 copies sent to 7 different
departments.
There are times when it is good not to understand Romanian too well! If I
were able to say what I was thinking at times we would probably have lost
all our friends! As it is, I have learned to become resigned to everything
taking for ever & so, right now, instead of joining in the gesticulating
& arguing I'm calmly sitting here writing this diary!
8.00pm
It is now evening & the documents are signed. There is still a lot to
do in order to get the new charity started but they don't need me.
After the signing we went with Vasile to a glass factory. It was truly fascinating!
The factory is made up of 3 garages built end to end. 160 men are employed
in 3 shifts & every process is carried out in this restricted space. I
watched each process in turn. One man blew molten glass into a mould to make
the bowl of a wine glass, another lifted it out & a third man blew a piece
of glass to make the stem & base & a fourth fused the two together.
Then it was passed to the next man who took it with tongs & put it on
a machine which spun the glass round & cut off any excess glass. Then
the goblet was put into a kiln which was built down the middle of the shed.
I walked to the other end of the kiln & watched a man carefully take out
the baked glasses. Then a man took the goblet & briskly ran it over a
whirling metal plate in order to grind all the edges smooth before passing
it on to the 2 engravers, who deftly cut a couple of leaves & a flower
on to the bowl before passing it on to a woman who was washing the finished
glasses & passing them to 2 women who were wrapping & packing them
into boxes. It was amazingly efficient. I'm now planning to put in an order
with a Celtic design to see if we can sell them in Cornwall. They might make
good Christmas presents. We'll let you know!
After this we went to a nearby restaurant for lunch. The menu looked appetising
but, when we came to order, everything was 'off' except, you've guessed it,
pork & chips!
This afternoon I was introduced to an English businessman who is Director
of a cement works near Alesd. He was charming & helpful &, after a
tour of Casa Sfîntul Petru & a visit with the children, he agreed
to donate some cement for our building projects at Suncuius. It was good to
chatter away in English. I think he will be a good contact & a good friend
to us all.
Before we left we sat down to another meal. This time it was pork & mashed
potatoes. What a wonderful change!
Now at last I'm alone at my house. Vasile has driven off to go back to Baia
Mare. I immediately grabbed my book & a rug & climbed the hill &
sat on my favourite spot & watched the sun sink below the horizon. It's
been much cooler today & everybody has been muttering darkly about the
approach of winter, but I've found it a welcome relief & as I sat on the
hill it was definitely cool enough to put on a jumper.
The book I bought at the airport is a new one entitled 'Father Frank' by
Paul Burke. It is about a young Irish priest in London & is cleverly written
& very amusing but I found it impossible to read when I had such wonderful
scenery to look at. In the end I gave up trying & just sat & looked.
Now I'm inside & it's getting dark again so I'll be able to give my book
my undivided attention. It was too hot to sleep properly last night so I have
high hopes of making up for lost sleep tonight. Noapte Buna!
Wednesday 29 August
My hopes were cruelly dashed! The night was silent & still but my house
is under a large plum tree. Every time I began to drift into sleep I was awakened
by a ripe plum dropping from the branches on to the red tiled roof! Because
it wasn't a regular occurrence, every time a plum dropped it made me start
& I would lie awake just waiting for the next one!
I got up at 4.00am & made a cup of tea &, because I had finished
'Father Frank' yesterday evening I started a new book. I dropped asleep at
5.00am & slept till 9.00am. Decided to have plums for breakfast!
It's a holy day today but I have forgotten to ask which saint is being venerated.
The church bells were ringing when I woke & Popa has a 3 hour service
ahead of him, so I shan't see him before I leave.
Miti, the housefather at Trandafir, came in the Land Rover to take me down
to the village &, as we drove down, I saw for the first time the tatty
old Mercedes truck that has replaced the beautiful Lippizaner. What price
progress?
Josif came at 11.00am to pick me up & we are now hurtling through the
Romanian countryside to the border. Josif is always disappointed that I choose
to sit in the back but, if I sit in the front, I'm usually scared witless
by the risks he takes & the speed he drives. In the back I can look sideways
at the countryside & ignore the danger.
1.00pm
The wind was blowing off the Hungarian Plains as we reached Oradea. It's a
sunny day but the wind is cool. Leaves have started to whirl off the trees
lining the city streets. On the plains themselves the reeds alongside the
ditches are bent double & the wild flowers are being buffeted & blown
about. Perhaps they are right & this is indeed the end of summer. Still,
for me, the wind is a welcome relief, reminding me of Cornwall!
There are not too many lorries on the road today & the border crossing
was quite quick. I shall probably reach the airport far too early.
5.15pm
I did! Still, it gave me the chance to finish the last book & now I'm
on board our British Airways flight with a draught of icy cold air filling
the cabin. The hostesses are on their way with trays of airline food. It's
a long time since the Marmite sandwiches & plums I had for breakfast.
I'm really feeling hungry!
Half an hour later
I've just glanced at the business section of my neighbour's Telegraph &
see that the forecast for BA is not good for the coming financial year. Simultaneously
my neighbour & I shared the same thought. 'it must be the appalling in-flight
food that is creating the problem!' I shall have to stop at Gordano on the
way home for a top-up!
Midnight (although my body clock tells me it's 2am)
I had a good drive home & arrived half an hour ago. Thank goodness there
are no plum trees overhanging the Rectory! Good night & thank you for
travelling with me.
Pat
CHARITY OPEN GOLF COMPETITION
Thank you to all who helped make our very first White Cross Golf Competition
such a success. A wonderful day was had by players and sponsors alike. A huge
Thank You To Ian Stirling who so kindly spent the day chatting to competitors
and presented the prizes after supper at the 19th hole. £961.00 was
raised to help support our seven family farm homes in Romania.
Thank you to Ron Watson for organising the event and to Delta Plumbing &
Heating Supplies of St Austell who were our major sponsor. Thank you, too,
to all the local businesses and individuals who donated such magnificent prizes.
First prize of a round of golf for 3 on the Jack Niklaus course at St Mellion
Golf Club donated by the club, was won by 'The Mafia'.
Truro Golf Club has already been booked for next year's competition. So all
you golfers put 21 June 2002 in your diaries now.
JENNY'S BIT
If Pat thought that it was hot in Romania in August, she should have been
there with me in July - it reached 40°C in Oradea! My skin leaked permanently!
After a hectic four days with the children in the houses & a flying visit
to Spital Remeti I was able to spend the week-end with Dr Monica Platon in
Oradea, even managing a dip in the thermal waters at Baila Felix. As in previous
summers we employed an Educator to work with the children at Spital 6 so that
the continuity of their treatment & education was not interrupted.
I was also, finally, able to see that the plaque was erected on the new building
at Topa de Cris and hand it over for use as a kindergarten. At last the people
of Paignton, Devon can heave a sigh of relief. The Mayor of Vadu Crisului
and the villagers of Topa de Cris are very grateful to all those who donated
money via the Paignton Romania Appeal to enable this project to be completed.
Next week Jeff and I will be taking a maintenance crew, by road, to Remeti,
Bratca & Bocicoiu Mare. They will service the boilers in the school and
hospital at Remeti, the hospital at Bratca and the orphanage at Bocicoiu Mare.
We will be taking out the dental surgery and, if we have found them by then,
the drills to go with it and the crew will install it on the ground floor
of Casa Anoushka. There will also be living accommodation on this floor so
that any dentists who wish to go out to use this surgery will not have to
worry about accommodation.
We still intend to convert the first floor to a small apartment and are ever
hopeful of getting more children out of the institutions.
We must say a huge thank you to the Redruth and Camborne Friends Group who
throughout the year have been selling tickets for their Grand Draw. This culminated
in a Coffee Morning at the Penventon Hotel last Friday when Dr Mariana Andro
drew the winning ticket for the first prize of a colour television. Over £900.00
was raised.
Dr Mariana had spent two weeks here in Cornwall as a guest of the White Cross.
I think she had a good rest, although we did manage to ensure that she had
a very full programme. Thank you to all who came to the Bar-B-Q at St Enoder,
it was her first day and I think seeing so many familiar faces made her feel
at home.
I took her back to Heathrow on Friday & settled her into the Ibis Hotel
as her flight was early Saturday morning. I suspect that she didn't sleep
as she was afraid of missing the alarm at 5.00am!
HARVEST APPEAL
We desperately need to purchase a further 2 hectares of land at each house,
in order to support the cows, at a total cost of £8000. Can
your church, school or organisation help us with this? No donation too
small!
This will be the focus of our fund-raising in the coming year.
CHRISTMAS CARDS
Will be available from the office from 7 November and from The White Cross
Shop in Truro (personal callers only, price - £2.50) from 22 October.
Alternatively you can write to us with the following information:
Name:
Address:
Post Code:
Please send packs of Christmas Cards @ £3.20 per pack to include
postage & packing.
Total enclosed £
Please make cheques payable to The White Cross Mission & send to 52 Gwel-an-nans,
Probus, Cornwall TR2 4ND
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