Sumedrus FireMoeciu village 26th of October St.Dimitrie This festival with a pronounced funeral atmosphere is being held in Moeciu every year. Adults and children dressed up in specific clothes according to their region dance sacred dances around a huge bonfire set up on the highest hill, offering an unique show to the tourists.The locals urge everyone to get closer by shouting:May you come to Sumedru s Fire!Meanwhile ,the women dole beverages, apples, nuts and bagels. At the end of the ceremony, the participants tale home burning pieces of coal which will be used to fertilize their garden and orchards.The fire is lighten up to heat the eartly spirits that appear in this period.Sumedru or Simedru , the Romanian Pantenon God burnt in this nocturnal ceremony took the name and the day of celebration from St. Dimitrie.St.Dimitrie is the protector and the living fire of all shepherds who purify the sheep flocks. The Sheep Scattering orThe Festival of Cheese and PastramiBran, From first to third of October Its a Romanian traditional feast that symbolize the ending of the pastoral year.Being held at Bran, it grasps the returning of the shepherds with the flocks from the mountains and the sheep scatter so that every animal owner receives his animals and different types of cheese, established for a while with the sheepfold administrator Visitors can join the dances, sing and taste traditional products such like bulz , cheese, sheep pastrami, products from the locals household. There will be organized an exhibition where are displayed animals and products, a shepherds dog parade. Craftsmen from all over the country will display traditional objects like :ceramics, Romanian traditional clothes, handmade fabrics, fur clothes , sculptures.ST. Andrews FeastCelebrated on 30th of Novemberall over Romania in the honor of St. Andrew , the apostle that preached the Gospel in our country. The great historian Eusebio of Cezara said that he and the other apostles had drew of lots and St. Andrew obtained the lands of Thrace, Scythia and todays Dobrogea. He preached the Gospel through these regions , but his memory was barely kept alive by some stories of Romanians that were speaking about his cave and stream. Nowadays , he is celebrated in all churches, some of them built under his protection and children are baptized with his name. Even the mass-media celebrates his feast through special shows on 30th of November. Considered to be the master of all wolves , a wolf headed him appears in some old traditional icons. The night before his feast is renowned under the name The Night of Wandering Ghosts .It is said that in this night the ghosts fight at the borderline and crossroads and can attack people. To protect themselves and their families , people smear the doors and the windows with garlic souce or eat garlic. In some parts of Moldova, a beverage called COVASA is consumed in order to protect them. It is prepared from corn hominy mixed with water and then it is put to ferment until St. Andrews Feast. The youth used to throw a big party that night, at the guarding of the garlic. One or two women guard the garlic brought by the girls so that boys might not steal it. This garlic is said to have healing powers, to help in long journeys and to chase ghosts. Another type of custom that was preserved is the divination ones. The girl try to find their chosen ones by looking naked into a well , into the mirror, into a cup of water where was sunk a wedding ring or by eating a salty pastry product named TURTA , believing that their chosen one will bring them water Another custom kept those days is about sawing grain on St. Andrews day and let it spring. It is said that the way the grain looks at Christmas, so the crops will look the fallowing year. Winter Sezatori The season of the sezatori starts after the Christmas Lasatul Secului. Back then , the sezatoare means a meeting of all age women in one of them s house to help spinning the herm and wool or to spin their own materials. The sezatori were organised after dark in workdays at one of the participants house. For a household to be the joint of the meeting, the hostess had to announce himself for some time, to clean the house, to prepare food and beverage, to announce the boys in case they had forgotten to inform about the schedule of the sezatoare. After dark, the women made tracks with the distaffs to the joint house. In case there was a helping meeting, the hostess break down the material they had to spin that night into equal parts and give it to the participants to spin , but if it was an communal meeting, everybody spin their own material. The sezatoari were also organized to help at wool teasing , feathers teasing ,etc. but never with the purpose of shirt sewing, an activity that had to be done by ever women or girl alone at their house. After the participants had received their part, they were served with a traditional beverage called tuica , usually sweetened with honey. Once the meeting had started, the participants were exchanging information, gossiping about the most important events from the village and from the surroundings. Then puzzles, stories, proverbs and ballads, folkloric jewels were told and songs were sung. Through this way the traditions , customs, legends, fairytales, song have been kept alive for hundreds of years and the girls of the old times learnt how to become true women by archiving practical and spiritual habits.