Intertale/Eutopia Stop 10: Slânic-Moldova
Gmünd-Spittal-Vienna-Budapest-Sicolini-Saline …
After some 32 or so hours on the train we reached Slânic-Moldova. The sleeper from Budapest is worth the trip in itself, especially the 50ies deco dining room with plenty of food and plenty of wine.
Slânic is a tourist resort known for its mineral springs. At the height of the summer, the population of 5200 inhabitants (many of those absent and living abroad) can quadruple, to find fresh air and healing from the variety of medicinal waters. Intersected with Soviet style mammoth hotels, the many turreted buildings remind of former belle epoque glory. Come September the tourism slows down and apart from the weekends the hotels stand empty and can give a ghostly feel to the place.
Tucked deep into a highly forested valley in the Moldavian region of the country, it is also the hometown of artist Alina Teodorescu. Here, in the former electric works, she set up the Incontext Club back in 2017. Having lived, studied and worked in many places across Europe her ambition is to address the climate challenge through the involvement of contemporary artists. When Covid hit, the initial public funding ceased. She and colleague/friend Gina had to have a rethink. Their aim was to find new ways of income generation, while bringing more local people into the space.
As a result, they are now building up La Centrala, a programme involving local people in the upcycling of furniture, clothing and other things. Both a learning programme, as well as the basis for sustainable income, this pilot has already born some fruit. Particularly noteworthy is the harnessing of business interest coming from local hotels and guesthouses. Dated chairs and other furniture are being upholstered and given a new lick of paint by the local artisans, combining Centrala’s aim for earned income through waste reductive learning activity. Time will show whether the business model can sustain itself and the original aim of making Slânic-Moldova a place where artists, ideas and local folks can meet.
During my ‘town is the venue’ presentation we talked about collaboration with artists and local people, and how in a place like Slânic this can go beyond the immediate tourist offer. The issues are manifold, and the team is thinking hard what and where similarities with other places as well as the specific interests of local folks lie.
But art and tourism is not the only thing that Slânic has on offer. My interest was of course in the densely wooded walking trails. Bears share their home here with us, and one’s walking becomes bear-conscious. We learned to talk loudly and shout a lot to deter their interest in us. Our equinox walk with the little InContext team was well equipped with bear whistle and bear spray in the pockets. But I can’t deny the little excitement that came about with the first paw print and nearby bear poo.
Thank you Alina, Gina and Carmen for the conversations, the walks and the lovely meal with carp, beetroot and other local delicacies as well as the great pancakes from Alina’s mum’s kitchen. It was also a great honour to meet Gheorghe Baciu, the mayor of Slanič who provided me with a lot of insight about the challenges of a place largely dependent on seasonal tourism.
