Back to ... civilisation

This wkd was for outdoor activities. After attending so many "indoor" events where our main occupation was eating, drinking and socializing we decided to get our noses out in the nature, especially that it had been snowing heavily the last weeks. We planned one-day trip nearby Cluj, and our first thought was to go near Tarnita Lake and climb the hills for a great panoramic view of the area. Well, Sunday at noon, together with our extreme outdoor partners, The Mishes, we packed some apples, water and some sweets and we drove into the wild.

As Mishu cried out for some snow, our driver (Peter), made us all a surprise and keept on driving long way after we passed through Tarnita Lake.

This is one of the dam's views

The road soon started to turn into a sinouos and snow-covered one. But our "race car", winter equipped, didn't let us down and we could soon reach the top of the hills and enjoy the great Marisel area.

Even if in Cluj there's no sight of snow here we could play with lots of it. The snow layer was about 20-30 cm thick. Enough to have a snow fight me and Peter and then me and Peter against Mishu...which of course Mishu lost! Anyway the Mishes were not in the mood for snow fighting...but will have plenty of time to "educate" them in that spirit as we booked our New Year's Eve with them in Slovakia...hehehehe. Hopefully they won't read this, so will clearly have an advantage with that!

Up there on the top of the hills we discovered again the quietness and peace of the old Romanian villages. Unfortunatelly, lately the Ro villages have turned into a strange mixture of old and new, a kitch, trying to be modern but at the same time keeping some old traditions. Here at first sight we felt like time stopped and that the village remained as I used to know it in my childhood.

We walked for aprox. an hour on the plateau on a terrible freezing wind but it was worth it to see people:

Make new friends:

This cute puppy (yes! he's a puppy from an interesting Romanian dog-race "ciobanesc" meaning the dog that watches for the sheep herd). This kind of dosgs can be very dangerous if you step on their territory, but this one was like a doll. Despite his fierce name "Ursu" (en. bear) he was very calm and friendly. I must underline that I guessed by mistake his name...hehehhe. Here, in this picture, he's having his siestaafter eating like crazy the cake we gave him. Anyway I would like to have a house with a yard and a dog like this one. I love dogs they are so dedicated and faithfull animals.This one came with us for a long way...well I think he had other reasons than just friendship..he was for sure thinkink of those cakes!

We admired the nature's agony...the last moments of life before complete burrial beneath the snow! The light was not so good for pictures!

This is the most normal picture Peter could take with the "author". He's always playing!

Anyway it was a nice trip...which ended with a feast at Motel Gilau and then a nice dessert home-made to which all the four protagonists took part in. We also played scrrable game. It doesn't matter who won, does it?! :)

Teambuilding

The news that "I MUST" participate to the company's teambuilding "adventure" next wkd pissed me off! We are supposed to go to a fancy hotel in Vartop, near Arieseni, visit the places and do team extreme (hahaha) sports and play other team games. Well, besides the fact that I have seen the area and did all the "extreme" sports already, they're planning for us to leave Cluj on Friday morning and come back on Sunday afternoon...Imagine 3 days of staying nose-to-ose with my colleagues. Good God! I know that that's the spirit but I rather stay at home with my darling and get bored in front of the TV (which won't be the case) than get bored with other 30 "team players". And, imagine that if you try to skip the extraordinary meeting you'll be seen FOREVER like the black sheep of the company. Shitty thing!

The Romanians have a very wrong ideea about teambuilding meetings. They saw/heard smth like that happening in the Wild Wild West at big companies, and BUM! they copy-paste the thing and think they are adventurous and extrem....alow me to HA-HA!

I understand for example a maximum 2-day teambuilding, but 3 days out of which one is just eating breakfast and way back home is stupid! And the ideea is that you do climbing on a rope and other silly things and you're supposed to feel like climbing the Himalaya Mts.

Well I think I'm so nervous is because I already know some of the guys who will show us the adventure (the pros), I've already done almost all the stuff they're going to do, I've seen the area (and seen it 2 months ago) and eveywhere in RO there's snow on the slopes and besdides all these: my dear husband is not allowed at the meeting and I have to stay away from all of that...Why???? Because I have to be a "Team PLAYER".

The truth is that some of "OUR" are so mean and so lack team spirit that they actually need to spend a month in teambuilding.

Yucks!

See here the site of our team leaders or whatever the extreme future-teachers: http://www.adventureinc.ro/

Here just a small view of what will do.

If they try to paint our faces I'm OUT.

It's winter time

One morning we woke up and our car looked like that:

We looked attentively around and all was covered in snow...it was Monday morning..so the week seemed to start quite GOOD. We talked to my parents (as all the tempting ski slopes are near Baia MAre - my home town) and they said in Baia Mare the snow layer is 15-20 cm thick. WOW! Soon to look foe the ski equipment somewhere deep in the cupboard.

In RO It's snowing like crazy and the temperature is getting lower and lower in our parts. It' s clear winter came a bit early this year. Anyway I hate winter when I have to spend it in a town like Cluj, where the snow is poor and always melting down. It seems more like rainning! But love the Christmas Eve and can't wait for the presents. I like to buy as much as I like to open mine.:) So I'm waiting.

Usually we spend Christmas with all the family, near the fire listening to everybody's stories. And when outside looks like this is even more pleasant:

as I said I hate winter in the city but love snow where I am in nature, It' slike time stopped for hours:

I must admit that all the pictures above are stollen (hopefully the real author won't notice!;). When I'll get out of this damn! office I promise to post my own. Anyway You know that my pictures are better then these...hahahah!

See ya on the slopes of Suior and Cavnic...God hepl us and keep the snow coming!

ERATA

Sorry foll all the letters eating and other grammar mistakes from my posts...but I'm always in a hurry when writing them and I'm AT WORK trying to hide from my curious coleagues.