Shepherds? Festival and Sheep Scattering
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In the area of Bran ? Moeciu, the traditions related to sheep breeding and moving of flocks are preserved for thousands of years. Different shepherds? events like the Shepherds? Fest and Sheep Scattering are organised every year at the beginning of the fall. The two events took place simultaneously in Tohanul Nou ? Zărneşti and Bran, where fairs with traditional products were organized.
This year the Shepherds? Festival was organized by the County Council Brasov, the County Centre for Preservation and Promotion of Traditional Culture Brasov, together with the ?Mountain Sheep from Romania? Federation, the Association of Ovine and Equine Breeders from the county of Brasov, the Association of Bovine Breeders, the branch form Brasov, the City Hall from Zarnesti and the County Council for Agriculture Counselling from Brasov.
Traditional Products Fair
During the three festival days, there were organized exhibitions and sales for traditional meat and milk products, prize awarding and sale exhibitions of animals, dog exhibition with Romanian breeds: the Romanian Black Shepherd and the Romanian Mioritic Shepherd, an exhibition and sale for hand-made products, but also a folk show with CRISTIAN POMOHACI as special guest. From the program: Dumbrăviţa Ensemble, ?Nelu Luca? Gypsy Dances Group from Râşnov and Floare de Castan Ensemble from Hălchiu.
Dracula?s Mask
Both in Bran, where the Sheep Scattering took place, and in Tohanul Nou, on the occasion of the Shepherds? Festival, the traders competed in selling some Dracula myth-related symbols: Dracula?s mask, witches and demons? masks, amulets and various other souvenirs. The two events were attended by big numbers of tourists from the country and from abroad, who wanted to taste the specific products: sheep pastrami, cheese in fir bark, ewe cheese, bulz (Romanian traditional meal with polenta, ewe cheese and sour cream), mutton and wild-boar sausages, other lamb and mutton products.
Unforgettable memories
The tourists wanted to take pictures with the shepherds dressed in their traditional sheepskin coats, stay close to the shepherds while cooking polenta in cast-iron kettles, heat at the wood fire and listen to the Romanian traditional folk music. Many of them wanted to learn a few steps from the dances in this area: ?brâul?, ?sârba?, etc.