Folk Costumes & Tradition

It's been almost 2 months since I visited the Transylvanian Crafts Festival and thinking back, I miss the atmosphere and the good weather as well. It's not that the weather is bad now as temperatures are mostly between 1 and 10C, but days are shorter and light is gone by 5pm.

Folk Costumes & Tradition.jpg

Anyway, I still have my photos and memories, so today I can share a snippet of the festival with you, show you some traditional folk costumes among others, that are on their way of disappearance, as people are only dressing them up during festivals and events. It's a natural process, no one is wearing such outfit in their daily life, we have better and more comfortable clothes to wear, but it's nice to keep the tradition going, even if just for a day or two.

This was the first folk costume I spotted and unfortunately, till I took out my camera to get ready to capture the lady, she passed by me and could only capture her from behind. She had a simple costume, adequate for her age. This may seem strange, but back in those day, costumes were defined according to age, marital status and God knows what other criteria. Once I visited a folk costume exhibition and there was a lot of info in this regard. If the lady was respecting the dress code of the age, then I can say, she's not a window as they were obliged to wear black. Imagine the depressing feeling, to be sentenced to wear black all your life, just because you lost your husband.

Then there was this guy, dressed in a costume I don't recognize. Not that I'm an expert, but should be able to tell if it's a Hungarian or Romanian costume. My guess is, it's Romanian, but I'm not 100% sure. The funny thing was, to see the guy with a mobile phone in his hand. Why funny? Because back in those days there were no phones at all, let alone mobile phones.

These girls were wearing some unusual, but really beautiful costumes. When I say unusual, I mean not the traditional ones you see in this region. I love both by the way.

There was a stage nearby and they were getting ready to perform. There sere several groups presenting traditional dances.

Waiting to get on the stage ...

I was a bit late for the show as I didn't know when it started, so I managed to sneak closer to the stage, but could still not get a better spot. I could have, if I would have been cheeky, but those proud parents who came to see their kids didn't deserve to be deprived of a good spot, so I stood where I was and did my best.

These teenagers were not only dancing, but singing as well, which is a difficult task. Trust me, I had my share in elementary school and know how tiring is to sing and dance at the same time for 10 minutes, but they did well.

Then there was this little guy, who stepped in, in front of my lens, so I took the opportunity and took a photo of him.

I really appreciate the effort of these kids as I know first hand how many months they have spent rehearsing.

Then I caught this group at the exit. They were chatting and enjoying the sunshine as their performance was over. I love this photo due to the bright red costumes. It reminds me of my costume in elementary school, handmade by my grandmother as there were no embroidery machines back then, so she made part of it by a non electric sewing machine and the rest by hand. She was working day and night, to finish my dress till I had my performance. I will never forget that.

If you're a newbie, you may want to check out these guides: