By Ann Daly.
The Golden Jubilee (1965-2015) of the l’Amitié-Club of The Hague is being celebrated this year. For decades, internationally minded French speaking men and women informally met as the “Amitie-Club de la Haye.” In order to promote the French language and culture to a wider audience, the club was officially registered as a foundation in 2012. With the exception of December, the Amitié-Club currently meets monthly on Mondays, from September through June from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm, at the Muzee Scheveningen. Coffee hour is available from 10:00-10:30 am and the lectures begin promptly at 10:30 am. Everyone is invited to attend monthly lectures, which are presented in French. Register, via the website, to receive monthly updates of the club’s activities or contact the club president, Dominique Peters, directly.
A comprehensive listing of the cultural programs, such as the “Romanian Traditions Day” presented this past March and various museum tours, excursions and city trips which the club has organized in the past, are available for review on the “Archive” page of the club’s website. l’Amitié-Club is especially grateful for the support it receives from the cultural affairs office of the Embassy of France, as well as from other French speaking associations and societies in the community.
For the spring cultural program, Mr. Maruis Boránescu, Deputy Chief of Mission and Minister-Counselor for the Embassy of Romania, invited the audience to “explore the Carpathian garden. ” He briefly introduced Romania’s nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites to the audience and emphasized the Danube Delta. The delta flows into the Black Sea and is recognized as Europe’s largest and “best preserved” delta and home to some 300 species of birds. Boránescu’s presentation delighted the group–inspiring many to visit Brasov, Cluj-Napoca, or Bucovina sometime soon!
Boránescu also introduced the audience to Constanta, Europe’s fourth largest port and Romania’s longest continuously inhabited city, which was founded in 700 BC and first documented in 300 BC. According to ancient myths, Jason and the Argonauts, after having found the “golden fleece”, landed in Tomis, the name of city in the ancient world. Centuries later, it was conquered by the Romans and renamed Constantiana by the Roman Emperor Constantine, in honor of his sister. Today, the bustling port city, on the Black Sea, serves as a gateway to the region’s many waterfront resort communities.
The cultural program also featured a Romanian Easter Egg decoration demonstration by skilled craftswomen, Ms. Cristina Timu and Ms. Maria Zinici, who wore traditional dress from Romania’s Moldavia region, which is famous for eight fresco churches, built from the late 15th Century to the late 16th Century. The churches feature “murals of blue” and seven of the eight have been classified as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. “Churches of Moldavia,” include the uniquely decorated Sucevita Monastery and the Church of St. George at the former Voronet Monastery.
The day’s cultural program concluded with a lively music performance by the internationally acclaimed pan flutist Nicolae Pîrvu.
Bucharest, the nation’s capital, is known as “little Paris” due to the city’s elegant architecture and cosmopolitan atmosphere, is just a little more than a flight of two hours from Amsterdam and is the easiest gateway to the country for tourists flying from the Netherlands. Visit the official website for Romania’s Tourism Offices for inspiration and begin making plans for a city break or extended summer holiday!
