View from Biserica de lemn din Ieud Deal, wooden church completed in the seventeenth century. "We came to understand that the locals’ zest for life and love for nature are fuelled by a strong connection to the spiritual world. Spirituality is of utmost importance to the people of Maramureş and the many wooden churches situated all over this region stand as evidence to this end. There are many special churches and they are all beautiful in their own way, but the one in Ieud is exquisite. We arrived on a calm summer’s evening and we were greeted by the smell of handmade soap and by the smiles on the villagers’ faces. The hill on which the church stands has in itself a feel of ‘solemn’, which turns into humbleness before the impressive frescoes. We decided to climb the old and squeaky wooden stairs leading to the church’s tower and the view revealed the surrounding hills framing the village – a small Eden, undisturbed and dateless! This place breathes history through all of its pores, as we were standing in the exact spot where the first document written in Romanian – ‘The Ieud Codex’ (1391) – was found. I wondered - doesn’t this add a feel of ‘majesty’ to it all?"

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