Travel to Europe to backpack, study, intern, volunteer, work,

or live as a digital nomad, expat or emigrant?

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 Europe

Intro

Backpacking or traveling in Europe?

  • Backpacking: Europe is the region where you can best get your first backpacking experience as a backpacker, island hopping, interraveling, hitchhiking or flixbusing.
  • Travel: perhaps the most versatile travel area with a wide variety of culture, impressive architecture, varied nature and diverse climates.
  • Checking: all the countries of Europe
  • Activity spotting: hiking in one of the many beautiful mountain ranges such as the Alps, Pyrenees, Dolomites, take pictures in tulip fields, discover Roman, Ottoman and Greek history, drink the most delicious wines and live the Burgundian life, relax on the Mediterranean beaches, visit pubs and listen to Celtic music, admire medieval castles, ski and climb in the wilderness of Scandinavia, behold the northern lights, discover Eastern European culture and hospitality etc...  
  • Animal spotting: brown bear, Iberian wolf, lynx, dolphins, flamingos, basking shark, wisents, wild cats, reindeer.... 

Studying in Europe?

  • In Europe you will find a huge choice of studies, with renowned universities and educational institutions scattered across the continent. Because of the Bologna system, it is easy to compare and transfer studies and qualifications.  
  • You can study anywhere in Europe. In general, the quality of education is better in the richer countries (Western Europe and Northern Europe). For example, if you want a good technical education, look in Germany. Studying here is also free in many cases. England has some of the most famous universities in the world. There is a big focus on research and humanities, law, medicine and business studies are particularly popular. Then again, the cost is incredibly high. 
  • The Netherlands is known for studies in water management, environmental sciences, international relations and design. The focus is on research and international programs. Costs are average (and relatively high for foreign students). 
  • In France, you can go for art, fashion, literature, philosophy, as well as business administration! The quality is good and there are many historical institutions, especially in Paris. Also, studying does not cost much. 
  • Sweden and Denmark are known for innovation, sustainable development and design. Universities have a progressive and innovative approach. Education for EU students is free! 
  • Italy, of course, is known for fashion, design, art history and architecture. Costs are reasonably low, as is living expenses. 
  • Eastern Europe has good universities with growing reputations. Often with international programs as well. Tuition and living costs are low, making it popular for budget-conscious students. 

Internship in Europe?

  • There are an awful lot of options. Some sector-specific options are: 
  • Germany for IT, engineering and the automotive industry, the UK for finance, marketing, media, consulting, the Netherlands for internships in water management, environmental and sustainability projects, France and Italy for fashion, art, culture and the culinary sector, Scandinavia for sustainable development, tech and design. 
  • Language: depends on the country - in the UK and Ireland it can of course be in English. In countries like Spain, Italy, and France, mastering the local language can increase the chances of getting an internship placement, especially in customer-facing sectors. In countries like Belgium, Luxembourg, and Switzerland, internships may require you to speak multiple languages, depending on the region.
  • Formal Culture: In Germany and Switzerland, the work culture is often formal and structured, with clear expectations and procedures.
  • Informal Culture: Scandinavian countries and the Netherlands have a more informal work culture, with a focus on work-life balance and open communication.

Volunteering in Europe?

  • Volunteering in nature parks, forest management, and biodiversity projects is popular in countries such as Spain, Italy, and the Nordic countries. Projects can range from protecting endangered species to restoring natural areas.
  • In many European countries, you can volunteer to work with children and youth, for example by teaching English, organizing youth activities, or being a mentor in after-school programs.
  • In countries such as Germany, France, and the Netherlands, there are many opportunities to work with vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, refugees, or people with disabilities, often in cooperation with NGOs and local organizations.
  • Volunteering in museums, cultural festivals, or in restoration projects of historical heritage is an option in countries rich in history such as Greece and France.
  • Language: in tourist and international cities, such as Amsterdam, Berlin, or Barcelona, there are many volunteer opportunities that require only English. For volunteering in more remote or small-scale communities, it may be helpful to speak or be prepared to learn the local language, especially in social care or education projects.

Working in Europe?

  • You can find jobs all over Europe in all sectors. 
  • Countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, and France have strong economies with diverse industries, including automotive, finance, technology, and engineering. 
  • Scandinavian countries like Sweden and Denmark are known for their focus on technology, sustainability, and design, and offer many opportunities in these innovative sectors. 
  • In cities such as Paris, Milan, and Barcelona, there are numerous opportunities in the fashion, art, and cultural sectors. 
  • Southern European countries such as Spain, Italy, and Greece have large tourism sectors, with many employment opportunities in hospitality, recreation, and tourism. 
  • In Eastern Europe, it can be more difficult to find work because of the weaker economy. 
  • Work culture: Work cultures vary widely across Europe. Germany and Switzerland tend to have more formal work cultures with a strong emphasis on punctuality and efficiency. In contrast, countries such as the Netherlands and Sweden have a more informal and egalitarian work atmosphere, with a focus on work-life balance. Many Eastern European countries have a relatively hierarchical work culture, where respect for authority and clear structures are important. Employees are expected to follow the instructions of their superiors without much contradiction.
  • Working conditions: Europe generally has good labor laws that protect workers, such as legal vacation days, parental leave, and health insurance. Working conditions are often well regulated with clear rights and obligations for employees.

Working as a digital nomad in Europe?

  • Europe is an incredibly comfortable continent for digital nomads. You have all the comforts, the Internet is excellent, the climate wonderful (depending on the country, of course) and there are many travelers, expats and locals to make friends with. It can be quite pricey, though, depending on where you are. 
  • Favorite locations: Lisbon, Barcelona, Tallinn, Budapest, Prague, Amsterdam, Krakow, Tbilisi, Berlin, Valencia. 

Living in Europe?

  • Language: almost every country in Europe has its own language or accent. When you want to integrate you will have to learn about the local language and culture.
  • Living environment: countries that score high with expats and emigrants are (varying) in order: Spain, Portugal, Finland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Sweden, and Greece.
  • Healthcare: the quality of healthcare in most countries is good.
  • Health care costs: once you start working in another country, your local health insurance often expires, then you will have to insure locally. Seek advice on insurances that provide sufficient coverage for proper care and also repatriation in case of emergency.

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Latest

Latest blogs, jobs, projects, organizations, and tips tagged with: Europe

Hoorcollege 4 Psychopathologie 23 Universiteit Utrecht

Hoorcollege 4: Netwerkmodellen

Bij psychopathologie is kritisch nadenken belangrijk omdat er sprake is van een hoge prevalentie, de etiologie is onbekend, er een beperkte effectiviteit van behandelingen is

DSM-5: 7 classificaties (1880) → 419 classificaties (2012). Is van belang voor orde scheppen in de chaos, door eenduidigheid te scheppen in symptomen. Waardoor we beter evidence based behandelingen kunnen onderzoeken en gebruiken
kritiek: iedere patiënt heeft een unieke set aan symptomen en vaak is er ook sprake van comorbiditeit, heeft het dus eigenlijk wel nut om te classificeren? vb een groep van 3703 patiënten met unipolaire depressie bleken 1030 unieke combinaties van symptomen te hebben

kritiek op classificeren

  • classificaties zijn heterogeen
  • grenzen tussen classificaties zijn vaag
  • hoge comorbiditeit: komt grotendeels door overlappende symptomen
  • doet geen recht aan de diversiteit van psychopathologie

Voorbeeld netwerktheorie van groep opstellen: 840 patiënten met unipolaire depressie → Quick Inventory of Depressieve

.........Read more
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Hoorcollege 3 Psychopathologie 23 Universiteit Utrecht

Hoorcollege 3: Depressie

Criteria voor Depressie

  • Symptomen veroorzaken lijden/beperkingen in het dagelijks leven
  • Symptomen niet toegeschreven aan een middle/somatische aandoening
  • Symptomen niet verklaard door psychotische stoornis
  • Geen manie/hypomanie

Lastige zaken omtrent depressie

  • heterogeniteit: verschillende neurologische paden, uitingsvormen, symptomen, onder/overdiagnose. Studie die keek naar 3703 patienten ondervonden hierbinnen 1030 unieke symptoom profielen. Grote mate van heterogeniteit dus
  • Hoge comorbiditeit: er is een hoge overlap tussen depressie en oa angststoornissen (65%), persoonlijkheidsstoornissen (45%), alcoholmisbruik (12 tot 30%), somatische stoornissen (20 tot 60%)
  • Vaak is er een slechtere prognose (behandeluitkomst), mede door deze comorbiditeit. Comorbiditeit bij persoonlijkheidsstoornissen heeft dit geen negatief effect op het behandelresultaat

Multifactoriële ontstaan Depressie

  • Biologische factoren: genetische factoren, hersenen, HPA-as, immunologie
  • Sociale factoren: Life events, stress. Jeugdtrauma: met name emotionele verwaarlozing en mishandeling is geassocieerd met depressie, maar dit leidt niet tot slechtere behandeluitkomsten
  • Psychologische factoren: theorie van Lewinsohn, cognitieve theorie over depressie
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Hoorcollege 3 Klinische Neuropsychologie 2023 Universiteit Utrecht

Hoorcollege 3: De kunst van herinneren en vergeten

Definities van geheugen

  • geheugen is de bewuste of onbewuste evocatie van dingen uit het verleden (Webster, 1966)
  • geheugen verwijst naar de effecten van ervaring die zich op een later tijdstip manifesteren(squire, 1987)
  • geheugen is de faculteit die ons in staat stelt om de kennis die we verwerven te koesteren en te bewaren voor toekomstig gebruik (von finagle, 1812)
  • neuropsychologisch perspectief: vermogen om informatie op te slaan (encoderen), te bewaren (retentie) en later weer toe te passen, zowel bij herkenning (recognitie) als bij reproductie (recall)

Onderdelen van het geheugen

  • (release of) habituatie: simpel nonassociatief leren, verminderde responsiviteit op herhaalde neutrale stimuli. Zodat je beter kunt leren op nieuwheid te reageren.
  • Klassieke conditionering: simpel associatief leren, vormen van nieuwe connecties tussen stimuli en stimuli en responsen. Zorgt voor een verwachte samenhang
  • Procedureel leren: percepto-motor en cognitieve vaardigheden (complexe sequenties van
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Hoorcollege 1 Psychopathologie 2023 Universiteit Utrecht

Hoorcollege 1- introductie psychopathologie

DSM geschiedenis:

  • 1880: 7 diagnoses: manie, melancholie, monomanie, paresis, dementie, dipsomanie, en epilepsie 
  • 1911 DSM 1: 106 diagnoses 
  • DSM 2: 182 diagnoses 
  • DSM 3: 265 diagnoses 
  • DSM 4: 374 diagnoses 2013
  • DSM 5: 491 diagnoses

stromingen binnen psychologie:

  • psychodynamische stroming
  • behaviorism
  • humanistische stroming
  • cognitieve stroming
  • biologische stroming

taken therapeuten

  • orde te scheppen in symptomen
  • te begrijpen waarom (luxerende en instandhoudende factoren)
  • te bepalen waar de nood zit en wat beste aangrijpingspunt is

DSM classificaties: labels om symptomen te ordenen

  • persoonskenmerk → symptoom=uitingsvorm → label
  • vb controlegedrag→ dwangmatig controleren, behoefte aan orde etc → bvb label: OCS. 
  • Een bepaald persoonskenmerk hoeft niet altijd negatief te zijn, zo kan bijvoorbeeld controlegedrag ook leiden tot beter presteren

DSM limitaties

  • comorbiditeit
  • afbakening onduidelijk omdat er veel overlap is
  • versnippering
  • puur gericht op symptomen en niet op onderliggende aetiologie

DSM

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Hoorcollege 1 Klinische Neuropsychologie 2023 Universiteit Utrecht

Hoorcollege 1: introductie klinische neuropsychologie

Historische geschiedenis:

  • Het is een vrij jong vakgebied (jaren 70’ vorige eeuw). Echte stamt het nadenken over de hersenen en mentale functies als uit de klassieke oudheid, een aantal opvattingen waren:
  • Hippocrates: hersenen spelen belangrijkste rol 
  • Artisoteles: hart is zetel van de ziel 
  • Celtheorie 
  • Decartes (1596-1650): ziel in pijnappelklier/epifyse

Na verloop van tijd werd er meer aan lokalisatie en gevalsbeschrijving gedaan:

  • Gall (1785-1828): de buitenzijde van de hersenen (cortex). Hij maakte hiervan als het ware een map, waarop hij verschillende functies aan verschillende delen van de cortex toewees.
  • Phineas Gage (1848): had een beschadiging aan de prefrontale cortex, wat leidde tot problematiek omtrent impulsiviteit en emotieregulatie. 
  • Broca (1828-1880): Beschreef patiënt Tan die een beschadiging had in het broca gebied, hierdoor had hij geen spraakproductie (kon alleen Tan zeggen), maar had wel taalbegrip
  • Wernicke (1848): beschreef een patiënt met een beschadiging
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aantekeningen lecture 2 Academic Research Methods and Statistics (ARMS) module 6 Unuasal data-sets 22/23 Universiteit Utrecht

steps for Single case statistics using norm data:
  • Raw score: score the test using test manual/instructions. For example what are the requirements to score a 8 on a test. 
  • Look up the norm data. For example people usually score a 6
  • Standardize based on norm data: Compute adjusted score considering age, sex, and/or education OR compare to norm group matched on age, sex, and/or education. You do this by using the Adjusted score calculation underneath the table of the norm data. Here you will fill in the information about your patient, this will give you their adjusted score. Get scaled score, percentile, and/or z-score (depending on the norm data), for this you can look at the tables (Equivalent score=your computed adjusted score). Then look at your scale to percentille z-scores, to computed your z-score. z = NORMSINV(percentile of your score example 0.50) = ....
  • Interpret:
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Ben jij een sneeuwsportfanaat en wil je ski- of snowboardleraar worden? Kom dan naar de informatiemiddag van Snowminds en leer alles hierover! Snowminds is een jarenlange expert in het opleiden van ski- en snowboardleraren in onder andere Oostenrijk, Canada, Japan en Nieuw-Zeeland. Hun ervaring...

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On account of the elections of the European Parliament this event will discuss views on European Integration within the EU member states. The focus of the event will be on developping master narratives which co-occur with and support the independent countries in their route into and position wi...

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This concert will take place in honor of the departure of Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Dinglinger. Of course, you would like to watch and listen to this concert! There will be music from C.P.E. Bach, Possin, Fasch and Mendelssohn. Wolfgang already has a long experience in music; until&nbsp...

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Voel jij je geroepen door een buitenlands avontuur dat op je wacht? Bezoek dan komende zaterdag het Travel Active Event in Arnhem en laat je helpen bij het plannen van je buitenlandse reis! Die reis kan bestaan uit vrijwilligerswerk, backpacken of werken als au pair; wat je maar wilt. Op dit ev...

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Tijdens de Haagse culturele parade wordt inclusiviteit van de gemeenschap benadrukt. Diversiteit, verbinding, plezier en leren van elkaar staan centraal. Al voor de tiende keer vindt dit evenement plaats, dit jaar met het thema 'integratie'. Wat je te zien krijgt? Een geweldige stoet met veel kleure...

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De COTAN beoordeeld tests op zeven criteria. Dit zijn:

  • Uitganspunten van testconstructie Wat is de meetpretentie van de test Wat zijn de theoretische achtergrond en operationalisatie?
  • Kwaliteit van het testmateriaal Zijn de items en ander materiaal van voldoende kwaliteit?

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Vluchtelingen

Het is de laatste tijd volop in het nieuws, vluchtelingen uit Afrika die in kleine bootjes de Middellandse zee oversteken in de hoop dat ze in Europa een beter leven kunnen opbouwen. Als ik artikelen over dit probleem langs zie komen dan wil ik ze altijd graag even lezen. Wat ik dan wel extreem scho...

Volunteering 'voedselbank' Utrecht

Each wednesday afternoon people who cant afford to buy groceries at the supermakket can pick up a package with some food, like meat, potatoes, bread and vegetables at a local church in Utrecht. Volunteers prepare the packages and distribute them along the 55 families in the neighbourhood. It is Nice...

Kusuma moet blijven, 9 juli actie!!

Ik ken echt niemand en vooral geen leerling die niet onder de indruk is van kusuma's muzikale talent. Hij draagt een hele grote bijdragen, juist ook aan de samenleving. Volgens mij is Nederland even corrupt als welk land dan ook, alleen spelen zij niet met open kaarten. kusuma onze muziekleraar word...

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Happiness quotes & statements from Europe

Happiness quotes & statements from Europe

Are you lost? A caterpillar in your hand will show you the way - Happiness quotes & statements from Spain
Give someone a bouquet of nine sorts of flowers and grasses. You will bring luck to the other person - Finland
Save the cork of a champagne bottle on New Year’s Eve. You will have the whole year of luck - Happiness quotes & statements from Italy

Save the cork of a champagne bottle on New Year’s Eve. You will have the whole year of luck - Happiness quotes & statements from Italy

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Save the cork of a champagne bottle on New Year’s Eve. You will have the whole year of luck.

When red underwear is gifted to you and you wear it on New Year’s Eve, it will bring luck the whole new year - Italy

You may make a wish when you see four identical numbers on a digital clock - Happiness quotes & statements of Denmark
You may make three wishes if you eat twelve grapes or twelve raisins at twelve o 'clock on New Year's eve. - Portugal
If you sit between two people who have the same name, you may make a wish - Russia
Happiness quotes and statements from around the world - WorldSupporter Theme
Recipes from Europe or with a local twist by WorldSupporters- Bundle

Recipes from Europe or with a local twist by WorldSupporters- Bundle

Hungarian Street Food: Lángos

Hungarian Street Food: Lángos

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This deep fried flatbread is a common street food in Hungary where it is served warm with sour cream and grated cheese, rubbed with garlic or garlic butter, or doused with garlic water.

Instructions

  1. In a mug dissolve the salt in the water. In a bowl combine the sifted flour with the yeast. Add salty water to it and stir through (if it’s very sticky, add a little bit more flour). Work the dough with a wooden spoon or with your hands until the dough comes off the bowl and gets smooth. Leave the dough in the bowl, cover with a clean cloth and let it rise for 30-40 minutes or until it has doubled in bulk.
  2. Once it is rested, carefully tip out the dough onto a floured surface, stretch out into a square and cut out about 10 cm (3,93 inch) round shapes with a big glass (big cookie cutter also good). Stretch out each piece with your fingers into a rund shape with the centre being thinner than the edges. Let the pieces rest for another 30 minutes on the floured surface.
  3. In a saucepan heat sunflower oil. Place lángos into the hot oil, fry it on one side until golden brown then turn. Repeat with the remaining lángos dough.
  4. Serve while it’s hot. You can eat it simple or sprinkle with chopped garlic or douse with garlic water and top with grated cheese and sour cream.
  5. Enjoy!

Ready In: 55 min.

Ingredients:

  • 300 g all-purpose flour
  • 7 g dried (instant) yeast
  • 250 ml water
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • sunflower oil for frying
  • toppings: sour cream, grated cheese, garlic
Polish potato pancakes

Polish potato pancakes

placki - polish pancake

Using the coarse side of a box grater, grate the potatoes and place them into a sieve or colander over a bowl. Using the finer side of the grater, grate the onion and add it to the potato. Using the back of a spoon, or even your hands, squeeze out any excess water/juice from the potatoes and onion. Discard the liquid, and then put the onions and potatoes into the bowl. Add the egg, two tablespoons of flour and season with sea salt and pepper, then stir everything together – the mixture should be quite thick.

Heat a little vegetable oil in a large, flat frying pan. Drop three or four mounds of the mixture into hot oil, and flatten to make small pancakes.

Fry for 2-3 minutes per side, turning once, until golden brown. Transfer the pancakes to a plate lined with a paper towel. Repeat until all the potato mixture is used, adding a little fresh oil if necessary. You can serve the pancakes immediately, or keep them warm, wrapped in tin foil in a low oven.

To make a quick mushroom sauce to serve with the pancakes, heat a little oil in a clean frying pan. Fry the chopped onion on a low heat for ten minutes until golden and soft. Add the mushrooms and cook for a further few minutes, until soft. Pour in the stock and simmer for one minute, then pour in the double cream and stir in the sour cream. Allow to bubble and simmer, then serve with the potato pancakes, along with some fresh dill and extra sour cream on the side.

Smacznego!

Ready In: 25 min.

Ingredients:

  • Ingredients:
  • 6-8 medium-sized potatoes, peeled
  • 1 onion, peeled
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 2 tablespoons plain flour
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Oil for shallow frying
  • For the mushroom sauce:
  • 1 onion, peeled, finely chopped
  • 250g chestnut mushrooms
  • 125ml/½ cup vegetable stock
  • 125ml/½ cup double or heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon sour cream
  • Extra sour cream to serve
  • Fresh dill to garnish
Sarmale Recipe - Romania

Sarmale Recipe - Romania

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Recipe for Sarmale (Stuffed cabage rolls)

Ingredients:

  • 800g of minced pork and beef (mixed well together)
  • 3 big onions
  • 2 tablespoons of oil (vegetable or sunflower)
  • 100g of rice
  • 150g of smoked meat (preferable pig but beef is also fine)
  • 100ml of tomato juice
  • 2 tablespoons of dill
  • 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
  • Thyme, salt and pepper
  • Pickled cabbage leaves

How to prepare:

  1. Finely chop the onions and cook them until see trough with 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the tomato paste and cook for another 2-3 minutes, while stirring. Now add the onion and tomato paste mix to the minced meats, then add salt, pepper, thyme, the washed rice and the very fine chopped dill.

 

  1. Remove the leaves from the cabbage very carefully, now divide the leaf in two parts. Fill the leaves with the meat component and roll them until completely closed. Now fold the sides, of the roll, in so the sarmale is done. Now continue until all of the sarmale are rolled. Now moving to the pan you will cook the sarmale in, before putting in all the delicious rolls you just prepared we will have to make a bed for the rolls. We will do this by laying pickled cabbage leaves on the bottom of the pan or even chopped pickled cabbage can be used instead.

 

  1. Now lay your sarmale in the pan, do this by following a spiral form and make sure the sarmale are put together with not too much space in between them. After you finished one spiral row you can lay another bed of pickled cabbage on top before continuing with sarmale. When all the cabbage rolls are laying in the pan, Fill the pan with the tomato juice until it reaches the upper sarmale. You can ad additional pickled cabbage on top and put the smoked meat also dispersed in the pan. Now its time to turn on the fire and let your sarmale simmer for about 3 to 4 hours. Make sure to keep the lit

Tips:

  • Optionally you can decide to make the sarmale in the oven in a cooking pot if you own one.
  • To be sure that the sarmale are cooked well you can taste some of the pickled cabbage.
  • You can use more rice and less meat if you desire, or you could even go for fully rice with chopped paprika and mushrooms to make the dish fully vegan.

Ready In: 350 min.

Romanian Traditions & Foods

Romanian Traditions & Foods

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Holidays & religion
Romania is a country where most of the population is following the orthodox-christian religion. The orthodox religion is derived from Christianity but is much stricter in some ways like fasting without any animal product (milk, eggs, butter), church service takes about 4 hours on a Sunday instead of the hour and a half like in the catholic church. Romania knows multiple holidays that are comparable with the western holidays and some that are just celebrated by Romanians.

New Years eve (Revelion)
New years eve or Revelion as it is known in Romania is a very important holiday and is the first holiday celebrated in Romania. The celebration of new years eve dates back to 2000 years before Christ. During the celebration the Romanian people give each other symbolic gifts, like sweets and honey as a sign of peace, money and gold as a sign of welfare or a lantern for a year full of light.

New Years day (Anul nou)
In the cities New Years day is being celebrated by having people over at home or go out to bars, pubs and continue the party that New Years Eve offered. However the date of New Years day corresponds with the celebration of saint Vasile the great (Sfantul Vasile). In the countryside this is being celebrated on the first day of the year. On this day children will go out caroling a carol called Socrova. With the carol they wish everyone a rich, fruitfull year.

Christmas (Craciun)
During Christmas the Romanians prepare the Christmas tree with beautiful ornaments, just like in most countries Christmas day is spent with family and friends. The celebration is in name of Jesus Christ who was born on Christmas. In addition to the usual tree ornamenting, gifting to others and gathering of friends and family the Romanians also go door to door and carol for sweets, fruit or money. This is mostly being done by children who have been practicing weeks beforehand to impress the people.

Martisor
In Romania on the first of march there is a celebration named Martisor (literally translated; small march). The men give woman a gift consisting of a red and white thread or a more expensive version is a piece of jewellery with the red and white thread involved in the appearance. After the woman received the gift from a man they will wear this accessory until the end of March. This tradition symbolizes the beginning of spring and it is believed to bring strength and health during the coming year. Image

Easter (Pastele)
Easter is being celebrated on a different date than when the Christens and Catholics are celebrating the rise of Christ. Eastern is being celebrated after ‘the seven weeks of fasting’. During this time it is prohibited to eat any animal related food. This includes butter, milk, eggs and fish. During the last night of fasting everybody wakes up around midnight, washes themselves put on clean (usually new cloths) and heads towards the church. At the church there will be a ceremony where the priest will, with a cross and a lit candle in his hands, come out of the church followed by all the believers. The priest will then shout:
‘’Christos a inviat’’, meaning christ has risen, To which everybody will respond with: ‘’Adevarat a inviat’’, meaning he really has. The fire from the candle the priest brought out is being used to light everyones candles. After which everyone will return to there homes with the lit up candle by the church its flames. When arriving home instead of going to sleep, everybody sits down at the table and has the first meal in seven weeks that consists of animal products.

Bear parade
When winter is nearing its end there is another unique tradition exclusive to Romania known as the bear parade. During this period there will be a parade of dancing bears which stand for bringing luck . The participants dress themselves with real bear hides and go door-to-door while growling and accompanied by percussion and singing to wear off all the evil.Image

 

Romanian traditional foods
Cozonac
This type of cake has been made for years and is a very old tradition in Romania. It is being said that the Cozonac is originated from ancient Egypt and then taken over by the Greek. Eventually it found its way to Romania. It is being made for special occasions like Christmas or easter but its also being enjoyed on a wedding day. Its made by using flower, eggs, milk, butter, salt and sugar. Optional ingredients that are used quite often are: resins, orange or lemon zest, walnuts, vanilla or rum extract, cocoa powder and poppy seeds.

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Mamaliga
Mamaliga is a often made supplementary dish by Romanians. The dish consists of a type of corn porridge that is eaten with some type of meat (usually pig) and cheese mixed with yoghurt. Mamaliga was is known to be a replacement for bread for people who could not afford bread. During the passing of time it changed to a nostalgic food for many Romanians and is being eaten on the regular by all Romanians.

Mici (Mititei)
Mici are meat rolls usually consisting of a mix from pig-, cow- and chicken meat. This is a tradition Romanian dish that is made on a barbeque and is mostly eaten with a piece of bead and some mustard.

Sarmale
Sarmale is arguably the most iconic Romanian dish. The dish can be described as cabbage rolls stuffed with different types of meat or rice. In addition to the meat or the rice there are herbs added, onions and in some cases traditional (smoked) bacon (usually with rice). The dish is often served with mamaliga (corn porridge) and yoghurt to bring down the intensity of the overpowering flavour given by the sarmale. The dish is being eaten on all the holidays and on wedding days. Sarmale is a delicious dish especially when it is home cooked with the right ingredients. Many Romanians prepare for the winter by pickling cabbages so it can be used during the winter to make Sarmale.

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Scotch Eggs

Scotch Eggs

Scotch Egg

Hello everyone,

On my trip to great England i had the one of the best pub foods. Pub food is fast easy, simple and doesn't require to much effort. Today i wan't to share my version of scotch eggs, i've been making them since i left England and the are delicious.

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook time: 15 mins

Instructions

  1. Boil all your eggs for 2-4 mins (Depening on the heat). You wan't the eggs to be cooked on the outside and liquid in the center (Yellow). Once you're eggs are done take them out and pout cold water over them for 20 seconds. This is to stop the egg from cooking any further.

  2. Preheat your deep fryer to 350.

  3. Meanwhile wrap your hard boiled eggs in your pork sausage.

  4. In 3 separate bowls add your eggs, flour and bread crumbs,

  5. Dredge your wrapped eggs first into the flour, then eggs then bread crumbs.

  6. Fry 2 at a time in deep fryer for about 5-6 minutes or until internal temperature is 160.

  7. Remove cooked eggs and serve

  8. Serve with honey mustard or your favorite dipping sauce (Mayo, Ketchup, BBQ hot sauce) or make ur own.

Ready In: 20 min.

Ingredients:

  • 1 kilo of pork sausage or any other sausage type.
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 2 eggs beaten
  • 4 soft boiled eggs peeled

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