Draught horses are the energy of the village, ploughing the earth that has never known any chemicals, pulling huge carts of hay on steep snowy slopes or hauling very long logs... Thanks to the horses, and despite that the mines have closed down, the inhabitants of Botiza do not depend on the outside world to get their own food or clothing, not even on the quotation of oil.
We have been amazed to discover a place in the heart of the Romanian Carpathian Mountains where people live as we used to live in the Alps, the Jura or Emmental not so long ago. We took our time to undertake this strange journey into the past alongside four families. Taking part in their activities and emotions, we also felt what it once was to live without modern comfort: working hard of course, but also having the pleasure to meet other villagers in the street and have a chat, to play cards, making the violin or the flute sound wildly with gnarled fingers.
