For now, an article/entry I wrote for 365 Day's of Peace and Friendship, a program run by PCV's to promote Peace Corps mission (world peace and friendship...). It gives PCV's a forum to share stories from their service.
 |
During March in Moldova, the cold grips of winter steadily give way to the stirrings of spring. The coming of spring slowly brings physical transformation – snow melts, grass grows, birds sing, and the sun seems a bit brighter each day. For Moldovans, spring brings work, but it also brings fresh food, bonfires and fishing. Moldovans view the struggle of spring in March as a time for celebration, after what has usually been a long and cold winter.
Most Moldovan’s celebrate the season on the first of March, or Mărţişor. The village of Cenac in southern Moldova, my home for the past year and a half and my permanent site as a Peace Corps Volunteer, goes a step further. Every two years, drawing on several hundred years of tradition, Cenac celebrates winter giving way to spring during a festival known as Festivalul Maştilor, or the Festival of Masks. Unique to Cenac, it is a day of song, dance and wine with guests from all over the country. I attended this years’ festival and invited several other volunteers from the Peace Corps, along with a group from the European Voluntary Service to join in on the festivities.
While the opening ceremony began at 10 AM, the day started long before that. Early in the morning, children from all over the village donned traditional masks and costumes and combed the village, ‘inviting’ people to attend (a refusal is met with a handful of flour, so attendance is encouraged!). After the short opening ceremony in the center of town, a procession, including all participants, guests and onlookers and led by costumed performers, went on the move. From house to house throughout the village, musicians, singers and dancers performed for residents, who provided wine and snacks for the parade. This continued for the better part of an hour, after which we made our way back to the center and danced the Hora. Villagers dressed as skeletons, symbolizing winter, surprised the mayor, distracted as he was by the celebrations, and put him into a mock coffin, throwing it into the air.
Following the parade, we watched several performances – dances, songs and the occasional skit. The festival’s official end came in the form of a bonfire, which represented the passing of winter and the coming of spring. I and the other volunteers then attended a masa (meal) and discussed the festival and its traditional roots with the mayor.
Cenac is immensely proud of Festivalul Măştilor, and its residents relished the opportunity to share their unique tradition, for the first time, with guests from the United States, France and Germany. It’s a vivid example of how a simple action like attending a traditional festival can go a long way towards building world peace and friendship.
