Cornatel - Water Tower Repaired
L
ong before services stopped
running in 2001 the unique water
tower at Cornatel was out of use
with large hole in the roof. Following the
final closure and a subsequent ten years
of neglect the building was in danger of
imminent collapse. Last year the roof
the roof had fallen in, the doors and
windows had vanished and the entire
structure was being stolen brick by brick.
‘The Friends’ found this to be totally
unacceptable and so set themselves the
task of restoring it. Mihai and his
colleagues made an appeal for funds.
They were able to raise sufficient cash,
including a £500 donation from SARUK
after an appeal, to finish the job. Our
heartiest congratulations to them on a fine
effort. The pictures show the progress.
The newly restored building stands today
both as a monument to show what can be
done and as a symbol of the
determination of ‘The Friends’ and
ourselves to ensure that this vital part of
Romania’s railway heritage will be
restored.
Left hand images show the gradual destruction of
the tower and the right hand pictures shows its
reconstruction
(Photos : Bill Parker & Mihai Blotor)
Next Stop?
from Agnita which could possibly be a
more realistic target .
T
he first stage of the restored
railway might possibly be to
Altina, some 18 km from
Agnita. The station remains, but is
derelict (see photograph, right) and the
Mayor of Altina, although a member
of the Consortium, is less enthusiastic
than the Mayor of Agnita.
Embassy Visit
The Romanian Embassy in
London has been advised of the
establishment of the SAR UK
Supporter’s Group.
A meeting has been arranged with
the Embassy later this month
which Stephen Wiggs and David
Allan will attend on behalf of the
Group.
However there is an intermediate
station at Benesti some 10 km distant
Narrow gauge railway preservation in Romania
1
Next Steps?
The Friends had managed to buy a large
covered goods shed on the outskirts of
Agnita which is presently being
dismantled. It is planned to re-erect it
either on railway land should it be
possible to buy a piece, or on non-railway
land, but adjacent to the track for easy rail
access.
Visit to Agnita
In September
I
Friends’ have possession of
four carriages from the line
and these need desperately to
be stored under cover. The
locomotive too, when
acquired, will also need
covered accommodation. And
of course some sort of
workshop will be required to
house the human ‘stock’ as
they work on restoration and
maintenance.
F
ollowing an ‘electronic’ committee
meeting the question was asked
“What next…………?” - the
unanimous response was “get something
running”. However that begs a series of
other questions like “Where to…..?” and
“What with…..?” and if a “What with”
was available where would it be stored?
A locomotive is obviously urgently
required, and enquiries continue. ‘The
Bill Parker, Stephen Wiggs and David
Allan had at a meeting in London on the
28th June. Bill was able to give a
progress report on the situation in Agnita.
Due to Mihai’s wedding and Radu’
becoming a father things had slowed
down a little but he left the meeting in no
doubt that covered accommodation was
an urgent requirement and that’s where
efforts should be focused.
The four SAR carriages
now in possession of The
Friends
t is hoped to arrange a visit to
Agnita in mid to late September.
Mihai is organising a working party
to re-align about 100 metres of track at
the Bargis ‘swamp area’ about 2 km
outside Agnita station and he hopes that
some of us might like to help. Stephen
Wiggs and David Allan are planning to
meet the Mayor of Agnita, who is not
only very supportive, but whose idea
the reconstruction of the line was in the
first place.
The cost of the return flight at the
moment via Whizz Air from Luton to
Tg Mures is less than £100. On top of
that we will have to arrange travel to
the Agnita region by hiring a mini bus
and we will need to make transport
plans whilst we’re in Agnita. Last year
we stayed in some from very pleasant
accommodation in the delightful village
of Biertan in restored buildings run by
the Mihai Eminescu Trust. Given its
proximity to Agnita that might be a
sensible place to stay again, but Mihai
has also suggested that there is a
recently opened B & B in Agnita that
may be able to accommodate us.
Besides the working party and the
socialising with ‘The Friends’ I hope
that we can discuss their problems and
look at ways in which we might be able
to contribute. On personal note I
would very much like to explore as
much of the line as possible and spend
more time in the museum in Sibiu gricing!
If you would like to go on this trip
please let me know by email as soon as
possible so that we can get a rough idea
of numbers and can start making
arrangements.
Send an email to:[email protected] or give
me a ring on 0151 327 3576
Narrow gauge railway preservation in Romania
2
Level Crossing
Saved
C
ornatel was again in the news, but
not for the water tower. The
level crossing that carries the
branch line from Cornatel to Vurpar over
a main road was in danger of being
tarmaced over as a result of EU
sponsored road improvements. The
photograph, taken in May by Bill Parker,
shows the danger only too clearly.
However, following an intervention by
the Mayor of Agnita, who reminded the
authorities that the line was a legal
‘National Monument’, ensured that the
crossing remains undisturbed by the road
improvements. The newly laid tarmac is
laid up to and between the rails, so
Vurpar remains connected by rail to the
system. See the photograph taken on the
9th July by Mihai
This timely action once shows the
determination of ‘The Friends’ to defend
their railway and we congratulate them
on their efforts.
Sibiu Tram to Close?
M
any of us who visited Sibiu last
September will remember with
affection the delightful journey
that we enjoyed on the Sibiu to Rasinari
tram. Sad to report, though hardly
unexpected, is the news gleaned from the
minutes of a ‘Friends’ committee meeting
that it is highly likely that the tram line
will close.
Sadly, we can’t save everything, but the
Friends have asked Sibiu Council that
should this happen could they please have
some of the track for re-use on the SAR.
Above - enjoying the trip - SARUK members
from left to right, Alasdair Stuart, Stephen
Wiggs (standing) Graham Farr and Frank
Cooper
Left - the terminus of the tram at Rasinari where
a triangular is used to turn the vehicle.
Photos September 2010
Narrow gauge railway preservation in Romania
3
Mihai Marries Ioana
T
ogether with a Hungarian friend,
Edit, I was invited to Mihai Blotor’s wedding in June in the Museum of Traditional Folk Civilisation in
Sibiu, Romania.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASTRA_Nat
ional_Museum_Complex#Museum_of_Tr
ansylvanian_Civilisation).
Sibiu is an old Saxon town where both
Mihai and his bride, Ioana, live and work.
It is an eight hour drive from Budapest:
two hours on Hungarian motorways and
six hours on Romanian roads, so we arrived the evening before as darkness fell to
find the happy couple rehearsing their
wedding dances with the married couple
who were to become their “wedding godparents”. This is traditional in orthodox
weddings – the godparents are essentially
the bride & groom’s second pair of parents, becoming their spiritual role models
as they enter marriage, and they play an
active part in the wedding ceremony, of
which more later.
Bill Parker captures the
traditions & atmosphere
of a Romanian Wedding
as Mihai Blotor president of the ‘The
Friends’ - marries his
lovely bride, Ioana
clearly very popular as there were already
many visitors wondering around wherever
we went.
The ceremony itself took place after noon
in a tiny but wonderful barrel-vaulted Orthodox church, built of wood and marvellously painted, again moved to the
museum site for preservation, and evidently very popular! As the bride and groom
posed for pictures outside before the ceremony started a column of schoolchildren
walked past who spontaneously started
We stayed in a Victorian inn in the museum, that had been moved and rebuilt, although using (very) modern materials in a
way that would have surprised English
Heritage. However as soon as we stepped
outside the following morning we were in
another world – old windmills and watermills all around us, and men scything the
long grass and putting it into stooks. The
sight of a fine agricultural engine, built in
Budapest around the turn of the last century, was especially reassuring – all it needed was a fire lighting in it! The museum is
Narrow gauge railway preservation in Romania
4
singing ‘Happy Birthday’, which was truly haps political
touching.
correctness is
finding its
The service itself was most impressive –
way into Roand generally making sense to us from an- mania. Anyother tradition. At least the bride and
way, his
groom exchanged rings, but they didn’t
captors deget to say “I do”. They did get crowns
manded that
placed upon their heads at the climax of
the Godmoththe ceremony - apparently they are emer and the
blematic of fruitfulness, and “the glory
bride write a
and honour which crowns the newly mar- poem but they
ried couple” - I just hope the Queen alwere handed
lows the King plenty of time off for the
a list of ten
SAR!
words, which
had to be inOnce married, Mihai and Ioana left the
cluded – and
church in an open carriage, followed by
yes, they
another with the Godparents, my friend
were all to do with the railway! Imagine
and myself, and Ioana’s grandmother up
having to write verse featuring “platform”,
with the coachman. It’s remarkable how
“ticket”, “railway hat” and the like! Unforbeing in a carriage, just as on a horse, puts tunately we could not understand the reyou ‘above’ everyone else – something
sultant poem but it caused much
lost in even the fanciest modern car! We
merriment among the guests so we can
then headed back to the marquee, with the safely assume that the ladies
principals breaking glasses on the ground rose to the challenge.
before going in and standing to receive the
guests, while serenaded by a string quarMeanwhile the eating and
tet.
dancing continued, finally ending in the cutting of the cake
Once everyone had arrived, we all sat
(in the shape of a railwayman’s
down to a plate of food, described as a
hat!) close to midnight, by
‘starter’, but containing all kinds of meats which time I was past my best.
and cheeses – more than a full meal in itBut, to my surprise, although
self. And best of all, the white wine had
there were proud parents, and
been made by Ioana’s grandmother! Hav- the wonderful range of people
ing survived the starter, the afternoon went old and young, fat and thin,
on with alternate periods of dancing and
pretty and very pretty that you
eating. At some point, however, we noget at any wedding anywhere,
there were no speeches! I can’t
say I was disappointed, as I
wouldn’t have understood a
word , but I was surprised. Also, wedding presents are generally money, not objects, which
in this case was placed in a
splendid model freight wagon
suitably adapted for the occasion. However I
can assure the
ticed that the bride had disappeared, just to friends that their
be told that she had been kidnapped! Apwedding present
parently this too is a traditional feature of was hand delivered
Romanian weddings, and there was much to the happy couple
excitement until the groom was contacted the morning after!
and his bride was finally returned to him,
although not until he and the Godfather
It was a great honsung a specific song chosen by the kidnap- our to represent
pers (good friends of the couple, of
SARUK at the
course) and Mihai declared his eternal
wedding, and if my
love for Ioana. Then a little later the
efforts to get the
groom disappeared too – also kidnapped!
railway up and runApparently this is not traditional so perning haven’t been
too fruitful so far, being present at such a
special occasion certainly made up for it.
Hopefully the pictures give a flavour of
the event!
Narrow gauge railway preservation in Romania
5
And a Son for Radu
Unathorised ‘Removal’ of SAR locos
from Sibiu Shed
W
e were disappointed to learn that without consultation with ‘The Friends’
the SFT (Romanian Tourist Railway Authority) had entered into a contract
to rent two of the SAR’s narrow gauge locos and some of the rolling stock
stored in Sibiu shed to another preserved line at Tg Mures.
To make matters worse the contractors removed all of the rolling stock, including
another steam loco as well as three additional wagons without either authority or
paperwork. To compound this ‘unauthorised removal’ the three wagons were then
sold at auction by the SAAF (The Railway Assets Administering Co.) without ‘The
Friends’ being advised.
Earlier this year Mihai and his co-preservationists were given a well-deserved award
by the CFT (Romanian National Railways) for their efforts in preserving the SAR for
tourism. How they think that they can do this, which has potential economic benefits
for the whole of the Hartibaciu Valley, whilst flogging off the ‘family silver’ is more
than baffling.
Congratulation to Radu Popa on the birth
of his son, Voicu
The SFT have now offered ‘The Friends’ the rent of the newly empty sheds at Sibiu
for 200 euros a month (£180). This is far too much and reflects neither their
dilapidated condition nor their potential value to tourism. The SFT needs to think
again.
It was Radu who took us on a guided tour
of the railway museum at Sibiu last
September and who accompanied us on
the several coach trips that we made.
Radu is also treasurer of ‘The Friends’
Above : The now empty narrow gauge shed at Sibiu
Bottom left : One of the SAR locos in the shed at Sibiu in
September 2010
Below : Another loco and a wagon outside the shed
Published and produced by SARUK. Edited by : David Allan, 132 Eastham Village Road, Eastham, Wirral, UK.
Tel 0151 327 3576. Email : [email protected]
SARUK Committee : John Keylock, Derek Buckles, Stuart McNair, David Allan
Narrow gauge railway preservation in Romania
6