Curtea de Arges Poetry Festival 2017: installment 2

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Curtea de Arges Poetry Festival 2017: installment 2

Day one, Wednesday, 12, July 2017-The 21^st Curtea de Arges  International Poetry Festival

 Meeting at the airport in Bucharest

We had received invitations to be guests poets at the Curtea des Arges International Poetry Festival six months or a year ago. Today, we had arrived at the Henri Coanda (Otopeni) airport in Bucharest. Exiting the arrival hall, we could immediately see people holding up signs with our names on them and waiting to greet us. For me, it was a great sign of relief. 

Poets waiting for buses to arrive

We were taken to the side where other poets, who had arrived earlier, waited. Some sat and some stood chatting and drinking water or coffee. Most of us had appeared by now. Later arrivals would be fetched and brought to Hotel Posada. We had come from all over the world, the largest contingent coming from Latin America (Bolivia, Colombia, El Salvador, Argentina, Ecuador, Brazil, Aruba) and Turkey. Poets had come from the USA, The Netherlands, England, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus,  Venezuela, Spain, and Portugal. 

Diti Ronen, Israel-Hungary

Some poets, like myself, represented their birth home (Antigua and Barbuda) but lived, and worked in other countries or had dual citizenship. In my case, my present home is Switzerland.  Another poet represented Hungary and Israel, for example.

On our two to three hour drive from Bucharest to Curtea de Arges, we would chat and get acquainted with each other and learn about our specific interest. We would learn that one poet was also a publisher or another also a playwright. Many played dual roles as poets and academicians or educators.

After arriving at Hotel Posada at 7:00 p.m., and checking into our rooms, we met again at 9:00 p.m. for dinner.  It offered us a chance to chat with others we had not met yet.

Quito Nicolaas (Aruba) and  Evelyn Halloway (Austria - Great Britain)

Dinner was very lively, filled with animated conversations. It is here we were introduced to some Romanian poets who had traveled from other parts of the country to be in Curtea de Arges.

We learned that despite our large number, around thirty-four, there had been some cancellations: Poets from Hong Kong, India, Serbia, Puerto Rico, Finland, Peru and Taiwan.

We were given our programs and we could see that we had a busy day ahead of us.















Thursday, July 13, 2017, Day Two, Curtea de Arges 21st International Poetry Festival

Thursday, July 13, 2017

09,00h:   - Breakfast (Posada Hotel, Curtea de Argeş)

10,30 h - Opening of the Exhibition of the painter Yasmina

             Moscovici (Venezuela)

place:     The Lobby of Posada Hotel (Curtea de Argeș)

12,00h: -  BOOK EXHIBITION OF INTERNATIONAL   ACADEMY ORIENT-   

                       OCCIDENT PUBLISHING HOUSE

              - BOOKS LAUNCHING * Poetry Recital

place:    - Culture and Arts Centre  «George Topîrceanu »

             Curtea de Argeş

15,00h:  - Lunch (Posada Hotel, Curtea de Argeş)

18,00h: - GUESTS’ WELCOMING by the Mayor of Curtea de

              Argeș, CONSTANTIN PANȚURESCU

18,30 h: - MERIDIANS - International Poetry Recital

                 - ANNIVERSARY TIME - THE WRITER

                   DUMITRU M. ION TO 70 YEAR-OLD

- EXTRAORDINARY CONCERT IN HONOR OF   

                  GUESTS - THE MASTER OF PANPIPE, IONUȚ CÎRSTEA

place:  - The Great Hall,  Municipality of Curtea  de Argeş

22,00h:  - Dinner (Posada Hotel, Curtea de Argeş

.

At breakfast, I met Arif Kudairi,  an Egyptian poet, whom I had met at the 20th International Poetry Festival in Medellin in 2010 and whom I had spent some time with at the aiport when departing. He was wheelchair bound and I had volunteered to assist him in getting around.  Here, in the Posada Hotel, he was accompanied by his daughter.

Ana Unhold (Argentina) and  Jorge Antonia Eucinas Cladera (Bolivia)

Prior to the art exhibition, there was another opportunity to meet and chat and take photos with many poets whom we would bond with as the week went by.

We had been asked to bring along three books (our own publications) and three things that represented our country. I had brought three copies of my last publication, If Only the Dust Would Settle, a map and flag of Antigua and Barbuda, a copy of Antigua and Barbuda Review of Books, and a leather wallet bearing the name Antigua.

After we handed our gifts over, we were introduced to the organizers of the 21st Curtea de Arges International Poetry Festival, Dumitru Ion and his wife, Carolina Llica for the first time.

(Yasmina Moscovici, Curtea de Arges official, George Topîrceanu, Dumitru Ion and his wife, Carolina Llica

Following a speech by Dimitru Ion, we were called up one by one to receive our anthologies, Poezys 21: Antologia Festivalului International, Noptile de Poezie De La Curtea De Arges 2017, volumes I and II and saw our work in print.

Next, we were introduced to the painter, Yasmina Moscovici, (formerly of Venezuela, now Romanian by marriage) and her paintings that were exhibited on the walls in Hotel Posada’s lobby.

Paintings by Yasmina Moscovici

Poets Maria Clara Gonzalez de Urbina (Colombia), Hilal Karahan (Turkey) and Immaculada Gacia Haro (Spain)

We were also presented with a Curtea de Arges newspaper which features some of our poems translated into the Romanian language.

After the exhibition and more mingling, we were escorted to the Culture and Arts Center, where we were welcomed by its director, George Topirceanu.

The book launch began of books, by invited poets, published by International Academy Orient Publishing House. Each poet whose book was launched on that day read their poems in their Mother Tongue and English or Romanian translations followed.

Ali Al Hazmi (Saudi Arabia)

Among the poets whose books were launched on the first day were Ali Al Hazmi (Saudi Arabia), Maria Estela Guedes (Portugal).

Maria Estela Guedes (Portugal)

After the first book launch, we returned to Hotel Posada for lunch and a short break. Some took this time to go sightseeing; others took the time to relax, contact family and friends, or take a siesta.

In the evening around 6:00 p.m., we were welcomed by the mayor, Constantine Panturescu to the Great Hall Municipality of Curtea de Arges. There we had our first poetry recitals and were later entertained by musicians.

Each of these meetings afforded us the opportunity to learn more about our hosts, Dumitru Ion and his wife Carolina Llica, their work as poets, publishers, artists, academics and as philanthropists. In addition, we began the celebration of Dumitru 70th birthday. It was a celebration that would be continued until the end of the festival.

We walked back to Hotel Posada after that and dinner was served at 10:00 p.m.

Day Three- Curtea de Arges 21st. International Poetry Festival

Friday, July 14, 2017

08,00h:  - Breakfast (Posada Hotel, Curtea de Argeş).

10,00h:  - Opening of Art Exhibition

10,30h - BOOKS LAUNCHING and Poetical Recitals

place:   - Culture and Arts Centre  «George Topîrceanu »  

            Curtea de Argeş

13,00h: - VISIT TO PRINCELY CHURCH (14th century)

14,30h: - Lunch (Posada Hotel, Curtea de Argeş

18,00h: - Opening of Art Exhibition: CAROLINA ILICA

              *   THE BOOKS OF VIDRA * CRYING OF 

               SO MUCH  BEAUTY

18,30h: - OPENING CEREMONY OF THE  21^th    

              INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL  CURTEA DE   

              ARGEŞ   POETRY NIGHTS“

            - Messages of Mr. Dumitru M. Ion, President and Mrs.   

           Carolina  Ilica, Artistic Director of the International 

           Academy Orient-Occident.

           - National and International messages

           - Guests’ introduction * POETICAL RECITAL *  

           RELEASE OF THE FESTIVAL’S  ANTHOLOGY   

           POESYS 21

           - ANNIVERSARY TIME - THE WRITER

            DUMITRU M. ION TO 70 YEAR-OLD

-       RECITAL OF ROMANIAN MUSIC * ADINA BADEA    

           (Mezosopran)

place:  - Bassarab’ s Hall of Municipal Muzeum, Curtea de Argeş

22.30h:  - Dinner (Posada Hotel, Curtea de Argeş)

Once again, breakfast was followed by a walk to the Culture and Arts Center. As we walked we took in our surroundings and took photos of things we found interesting.

 At the Cultural and Art center (Photo), we viewed the work of a local artist and witnessed the launching of more published books. The launch was again followed by the authors reading poems from their work.

From there, we walked to the site of a 14th-century church (The Princely Church ) where we visited the grounds and were given a guided tour inside and outside the premises. We appreciated these frequent walks as we were having three meals a day.

The Princely Church in Curtea de Arges was first built by Romans during the 13th Century. The church, also known as St. Nicolas Church, was built under the rule of Basarab I( 1310-1352).

The tower and yard walls were erected in the 16th century. Most of the frescos in the church are original. In it is a rare painting of Mary dating back to 1370. The church also holds twenty-one burial tombs including that of an early ruler, Vladislav I Vlaicu (1377).

Later that evening, Carolina Llica opened the exhibition of her art work entitled, The Books of Vidra- Crying of much beauty.

Poet and artist, Carolina Llica and our interpreter, Alina Baiasu.

The exhibition was followed by more poetry recitals and a musical recital by Adina Badea, a mezzo-soprano.

 After a leisurely walk back to our hotel, we had dinner at 10:30 p.m.  We ate birthday cake in celebration of  Dumitru M. Ion and danced to salsa music until 2:00 a.m.

After a full day, our bed was definitely a welcoming place.

Next, the third and last installment.

21st Curtea de Arges International. Poetry Festival, 
Installment 3

15 July -18th July