rhsglobalstudies
  • Home
  • Global Blog
  • Global Citizenship
  • Potential Capstone Topics
  • Global Service

Skiing in the shadow of Vlad the Impaler

4/2/2016

18 Comments

 
Picture
Chloe Levins is a senior at Rutland High School and enrolled in the Global Studies Concentration at the school.  Recently, her participation in a sport called biathlon took her across the Atlantic Ocean for international competitions.  Biathlon, the most popular winter sport in Europe, consists of shooting a .22 caliber rifle and cross-country skiing. This is her fourth year competing in biathlon and her second winter of international biathlon competitions. Below she describes her experiences in Romania.

​This past week, 13 young Americans from across the U.S.A. and myself competed at the Youth/Junior World Championships in Cheile Gradistei, Romania.  We stayed in a newly developed resort nestled in the heart of the Transylvanian Alps.  Being less than 10 kilometers from Castle Bran, also known as Dracula’s Castle, and within walking distance of the racing venue allowed us to have the perfect proximal balance of culture and racing.  

Romania, a former member of the Eastern Bloc, was under varying degrees of Soviet influence until the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.  Now, Romania is an democratic Eastern European country.  It is a member of the European Union, but is not currently on the Euro.  Instead, it’s currency is called the Romanian “lei”.  About 1 American dollar is worth 4 lei.  Travel tip: find a currency exchange in the airport upon your arrival to your destination country!
Romanian, unlike the languages of other Eastern European countries, is a Romance language.  “Romania” itself means “Land of the Romans”.  Obviously, the language was still very foreign to us, but some parallels between Spanish and Romanian were tangible.  Some overlapping words that I was exposed to consisted mostly of greetings and numbers.  Travel tip: try to learn some native words before you leave the U.S.!  Being polite is important, and if you can use your manners in a language that local citizens understand, it’s even better!

Based on my experience in Belarus last year and this year in Romania, Eastern European food is similar across the board.  Every meal consisted of some form of potatoes: cubed, whole, mashed, baked, roasted, etc..  Other than potatoes, meat cutlets and soup were frequent occurrences at mealtime.  At the resort where we stayed, they also offered croissants and traditional dessert cakes from other Eastern European countries such as Lithuania.  These cakes were not as sweet as the cakes we eat for birthday celebrations in the U.S..  For example, the Lithuanian cake was made of white batter and a cheese filling with raisins.  On occasion the resort staff would make pizza and ice cream which was always a big hit among the Americans!
​On the second day in Romania, the youth girls and myself took a cab to one of the most famous tourist attractions in Romania: Dracula’s Castle.  Originally built as a structural protection for the mountain pass in the 13th century, the Castle Bran was home to many Romanian monarchs through the 17th century.  The most famous one, Vlad Dracul, influenced many books and Hollywood movies with the brutality of his torture tactics.  Vlad Dracul, also known as Vlad the Impaler, signed his name on documents as “Dracula”.  Although he was not a literal vampire, the vampire legend developed from the idea that he was “blood thirsty”.  Whether he actually drank people’s blood or not is undetermined.  

The castle itself is now a museum.  Most of the rooms were preserved and open for us to tour.  Nearly every room had a beautifully constructed fireplace lined with blue and white tiles.  Crowns, staffs, armor, and clothing was also on display.  One of the most interesting rooms, however, was the torture chamber.  In this room, there was a large chair with what looked like pointy wooden dowels on every inch of it’s surface.  Apparently, Dracula would weigh women on a scale compared to a bundle of rocks.  If the woman weighed less than the random assortment of rocks, Dracula deemed that the devil lived inside of her and she should be punished. 

In general, the accommodations and people at the resort made this trip very enjoyable for us.  Every morning, I woke up to the sun rising over beautiful mountains, similar looking to the Colorado Rockies. Although it was above freezing nearly every day, the race organizers did an excellent job of preserving the race track for us.  Not to mention, this was the most successful Youth/Junior Biathlon World Championships the United States has ever had!  We had one World Championship victory, three podiums, six top tens, and seven top twenties! There are only good memories left from my experience in Romania.
18 Comments
Tiles Polishing Service in Dubai link
29/8/2016 06:09:47 am

Nice information providing by your article and I would really like to thank for your article it’s really helpful. Regards <a href="http://superbrightdubai.com/tiles-grout-cleaning-dubai/">Tiles Polishing Service in Dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles grout deep cleaning in dubai link
24/9/2018 04:30:41 am

Thanks a lot for sharing kind of information. Your article provide such a great information with good knowledge. Here we would like to inform you as we are professional cleaning & painting service providers in Dubai! Regards <a href="http://www.smarttouchcleaningdubai.com/tile-grout-deep-cleaning.html"> Tiles grout deep cleaning in dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles grout cleaning Dubai link
2/3/2019 03:30:37 am

It's such an amazing information, thanks a lot for sharing kind of information. Your Webpage gives the best and the most interesting information. Thanks a ton once again, Regards, <a href="http://www.smartbmuae.com/tile-and-grout-cleaning.html">Tiles grout cleaning dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles grout cleaning dubai link
15/10/2019 02:54:19 pm

Awesome article with great information provided by your article, here I would like to thank you guys for sharing such a fantastic blog. Regards <a href="http://accleaningdubai.com/professional-tile-grout-cleaning-in-dubai/"> Tiles grout cleaning dubai </a>

Reply
Tiles grout cleaning dubai link
25/11/2019 05:27:06 am

Your article provide such a great information with good knowledge. Here we would like to inform you as we are professional cleaning & painting service providers in Dubai! Regards <a href="http://www.smarttouchcleaningdubai.com/floor-cleaning-and-polishing-services-in-dubai/">Tiles grout cleaning dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles grout cleaning dubai link
16/12/2019 01:40:23 pm

Amazing and very decent blog. I am extremely glad to visit your blog. I check your blog regularly and attempt to take in something from your blog. Much obliged to you and sitting tight for your new post. Regards <a href="http://paintersinuae.com/tiles-grout-cleaning-polishing-dubai/">Tiles grout cleaning dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles grout cleaning dubai link
26/12/2019 01:49:20 pm

Your article provides such a great information with good knowledge. Here we would like to inform you as we are professional cleaning & painting service providers in Dubai! Regards <a href="http://www.smarttouchcleaningdubai.com/professional-cleaning-services-dubai/tile-grout-cleaning/">Tiles grout cleaning dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles grout cleaning dubai link
2/1/2020 08:17:05 am

Wonderful information, thanks a lot for sharing kind of information. Your website gives the best and the most interesting information. Thanks a ton once again, Regards, <a href="http://www.smartbmuae.com/floor-polishing/tiles-grout-cleaning-dubai/">Tiles grout cleaning dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles grout cleaning dubai link
31/1/2020 09:57:06 pm

Wonderful information, thanks a lot for sharing kind of information. Your website gives the best and the most interesting information. Thanks a ton once again, Regards, <a href="http://www.smartbmuae.com/tiles-grout-cleaning-and-sealing-dubai/">Tiles grout cleaning dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles polishing company in dubai link
28/3/2020 12:33:23 am

Incredible blog you have guys! I very happy to your blog as it has many ideas with lots of knowledge which can be used. Look forward for more and more blog of yours. You guys are amazing. Warm regards <a href="http://cleanerdubai.com/tiles-grout-cleaning-service-in-dubai/">Tiles polishing company in dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles grout cleaning dubai link
1/4/2020 04:32:56 am

Thanks a lot for sharing kind of information. Your article provide such a great information with good knowledge. Here we would like to inform you as we are professional cleaning & painting service providers in Dubai! Regards <a href="">Tiles grout cleaning dubai</a>

Reply
Escorts Service In Mumbai link
1/4/2020 09:17:56 am

Our website is the best Escorts in Mumbai.Female Mumbai Escorts Service sexual fantasies to life! 100% Highest standards VIP Independent Mumbai Escort! Call now http://www.escortgirlinmumbai.com/

Reply
Tiles floor polishing dubai link
17/6/2020 07:55:56 am

Fantastic blog guys! Very happy to read your blog as it has many ideas with lots of knowledge which can be used. Look forward for more and more blog of yours. You guys are amazing. Warm regards<a href="http://cleanerdubai.com/floor-polishing-dubai/">Tiles floor polishing dubai</a>

Reply
Floor polishing dubai link
11/8/2020 07:39:59 am

I very happy to your blog as it has many ideas with lots of knowledge which can be used. Look forward for more and more blog of yours. You guys are amazing. Warm regards<a href="http://cleanerdubai.com/floor-polishing-service-company-in-dubai/">Floor polishing dubai</a>

Reply
Floor tiles polishing service in dubai link
14/9/2020 03:07:16 am

Amazing work! Such an amazing blog with lots of great information. Thank you so much for posting this blog. Looking forward for more blogs. Best Regards <a href="http://accleaningdubai.com/floor-tiles-polishing-services-in-dubai/">Floor tiles polishing service in dubai</a>

Reply
Floor tiles polishing dubai link
27/9/2020 04:23:01 am

Awesome article with great information provided by your article, here I would like to thank you guys for sharing such a fantastic blog. Regards <a href="http://accleaningdubai.com/floor-tiles-polishing-services-in-dubai/">Floor tiles polishing dubai</a>

Reply
Tiles cleaning company in Dubai link
8/8/2021 12:22:11 am

Awesome article with great information provided by your article, here I would like to thank you guys for sharing such a fantastic blog. Regards <a href=""> Tiles cleaning company in dubai</a>

Reply
Wooden hard floor cleaning dubai link
21/8/2021 12:01:17 am

You have really amazing blog. thanks a lot for sharing kind of information. Your website gives the best and the most interesting information. Thanks a ton once again, Regards, <a href="http://www.smartbmuae.com/wooden-sanding-floor-polishing-dubai/">Wooden hard floor cleaning dubai</a>

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    April 2016
    February 2016
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015

    Contributors

    RHS students, faculty, and alumni with global experiences to share with the community.

    This blog is not an official U.S. Department of State blog. The views and information presented are the grantee’s own and do not represent the Teachers for Global Classrooms Program, IREX, or the U.S. Department of State. 

    Categories

    All
    Alumni
    Balkans
    Cassel
    Gender
    Germany
    GIN Conference
    Global Studies
    Great Britain
    History
    India
    Italy
    Japan
    Marsh
    Middle East
    Myers
    Pont De Suert
    Remsen
    RISE
    Romania
    Science
    South Korea
    Spain
    Students
    Superintendent
    Wallstrom
    World Language

    RSS Feed

    Subscribe to Rutland Global Blog by Email
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.