Religion- Sikhism

Sikhism was founded by Guru Nanok in  1500 A.D in Punjab, India. There is roughly about 23 million followers of this religion. They believe in one god and they call him Onkar,Nam. Basically their beliefs are just like the Buddhist and how they should align themselves in righteousness. Their afterlife is reincarnation until karma is resolved and you are merged with god. They usually pray to their god and do multiple charities. 

Trajan

    My predacessor, who was Nerva, started a time of great peace for Rome. These times were named the times of the Five Good Emperors. The best thing this that Nerva did for Rome is adopt me and name me the next emperor. I was actually the first non- Italian emperorer to rule Rome. I had some major exploits that earned me a little respect and honor for Rome.
      I was usually out on the field on wild campaigns and adventures of war. These were my livelihood and what I did to preoccupy my time for I was never a good politician. Although I did make sure that every citizen had a fair ways with the laws. I even gave the Christians an anonymous sentencing, who were always despised. My values of fairness got me some enemies in the Senate but so did my wars so what did I care, I'm ruler and can do what I please. This is about as political as I usually got for the whole Senate thing gave me headaches just thinking about them.                                            
       My most famous and highly expensive campaigns was against the Daciens. These troublemakers were highly aggravating and hard to conquer. I had to pull out all the stops and organize the largest number of legions in all of Roman history. With thirty legions breathing down his neck Dacian king, Decebalus committed suicide and with that Dacie become one of our provinces. We mined some great riches from their mines which practically payed for the war and made Rome even more powerful. The year after this amazing victory I made a celebration that lasted for 123 days that was the biggest gladiator games ever. 
     You can not imagine how delighted I felt when the citizens made a whole column of me. This column explained in very fine detail my whole campaign in Dacie. This thirty meter high column is placed in my own Forum with a statue standing beneath it. These carvings wrap around the column and are even painted with delicate hands. I mean what else could an emperor ask for than this, right?
      In all I'm pretty sure I did good as an emperor and need respect for that. I conquered more land and almost payed for the war that I started, which is half the political battle. I made sure that the laws were honored for all types of citizens and collected some enemies in the Senate. The people of Rome made me a thirty meter column of my exploits only with a statue of me at the base, which shows how much they loved me. Measure all that together and you have an amazing ruler who contributed the good for the citizens of Rome.

Ancient Roman Menu

  Included in all these meals is honey wine.

      First Coarse : a rough appetizer with some oysters ,from Sicily, parsnips, and lupins.

     Second Coarse : some usual pork raised just outside the city and mushrooms on the side with some dressing.

     Third Coarse : some lucanica that was made for the generals so they can be strong with some cabbage and some delectable olives. 

     Fourth Coarse: just for the special occasion the cooks have cooked up some swan for you and topped it off with some of their finest sauces. 

         Fifth Coarse: Next is strictly a salad so the generals stay healthy and fit. Mixed vegetables that include chick peas, radishes, cauliflower and cooked snails.

      Sixth Coarse: Then you have your own mullus "swimming" in garno,or fish sauce, with it's bright red scales shining away and next to that is some lettuce.

      Seventh Coarse: Next is some honey soaked wheat to top of this delightful dinner. Among this are sweet fruits like pomegranates, figs, and dates. 

Roman Party Theme :)

      The theme for my party is very similar to a war council. Draped against the walls like curtains are the flags of different legions. These and decorations of armor and weaponry encompass the halls. They give off that very serious and strategic feeling that is enhanced by the big board of lands conquered and unconquered. Conversations vary from battle plans to joking with your friends about those awful barbarians and their women. For entertainment are dancers from all over the empire and multiple instruments introduced by different provinces. The seating arrangements are so: couches for the high general and low tables for the lower generals.

Ancient Roman Party Invites!

      #1 Guest of Honor: Gnaaeus Hill
       #2 Pilny Hawkins
         #3 Octavia Gregg
          #4 Publius Poling
               #5 Felix Ware
                  #6 Balbina Cline'
                    #7 Cervius Stuart
                       #8 Caecila Blake
                        #9 Manenus Swick
                          #10 Spartacus Scott

England's school system!

     The English school system is very similar to America. School is free for students ages 5-16 and this is provided by state funds. The school years run from September to July with mild holidays like we have. Primary schools are for children 5 and above where secondary schools are for 11 year olds to 16. For most areas they split the school year into six terms. At the age of 16 they take the GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) the studying for this starts when you are 14 and 15. England has sent up a National Curriculum that all kids from ages 5 to 16 must be taught. Some core subjects are English, Science, Design and Technology,History, Geography, Art and Design, Music, Phys Ed, and Information and Communication Technology for Stages 1 and 2 which is basically 5 to 11 year olds. By stage 3 ,or 11 to 16 year olds,  Citizenship, Modern Foreign Language, Careers education, Religious Education, and Sex Ed is added. Throughout these years they monitor students through Standard Asessment Tests which is similar to Westests but a lot harder. At the end of their education and after they have taken the GCSE about one third go into higher education at age 18 with roughly 1.8 million students enrolling. This is the English school system that is similar to ours but much more condensed and thorough.

Christmas Recipe

Ingredients

300 g. sugar (1 ½ c.) 1 kg. flour (5 c.) 1 T. vanilla 6 eggs ½ t. salt 200 g. butter (¾ c.) 2-3 T. oil nut filling: 250 g. walnuts (2 c.) ½ c. rum flavoring ¾ c. milk 1 t. vanilla 1 c. sugar

Directions

Preparing the dough: Begin by separating the eggs, reserving both the egg yolks and the egg whites. In a small pan, warm the milk over a medium flame. When the milk is warm, remove 3 tablespoons and continue heating the milk. Place 3 tablespoons of milk in a small bowl or container. Add the yeast, 1 teaspoon of sugar and a little flour. Mix until it is the consistency of a thick cream to proof the yeast (See YEAST in TIPS). Cover and set aside for about 5 minutes.
Once the milk on the stove comes to a boil, remove it from the flame. Add the vanilla and mix well. Set aside. In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, egg yolks and salt. Slowly stir the warm milk mixture into the sugar mixture and mix well. Then stir in the yeast mixture and 3 egg whites. Gradually add the remaining flour until it forms a dough, using all the flour.

Transfer the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead. In a small pan, begin melting the butter over a medium flame and stir in the oil. Once melted, remove the butter mixture from the flame. Slowly add the mixture of warm butter and oil until the dough forms bubbles and easily comes off the hands (about ½ hour). Cover bowl with a towel and let rise in a warm, draft free place until it has doubled or tripled in bulk.
Generously grease a loaf or baking pan(s). Once the dough has risen, about 1 ½-2 hours, form the dough to the shape of the loaf pan. (This is the point where you would add a filling if desired, see nut or chocolate fillings below.) Allow the dough to rise for at least ½ hour. Before baking, brush the top of the dough with some of the remaining egg whites (or beat one extra egg and glaze with the beaten egg). Bake in a medium high temperature oven for 30-45 minutes. When cooked through, remove the cozonac from the pan and let cool on a wire rack.

For nut filling: Begin by grinding or grating the walnuts. In a small pan, heat the sugar, milk and vanilla over a medium flame until the sugar has dissolved. Add the ground nuts while mixing to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. The consistency should be similar to a paste. Remove the pan from the heat. Add rum flavoring. Once the mixture has cooled, roll out the cozonac dough and spread the nut mixture over the surface. Roll the dough back up and shape it to the size of the baking pan. Bake as directed above.

Makes 2 standard loaves or 1 long thin (think french bread) loaf. Serving size is based on 2 loaves cut into 16 slices.

Number of Servings: 32

Romanian Christmas

 

Goat is the "groundhog.

Celebrated from December 24 to January 7.

Make stars made out of glossy papers.

Ignat Day is on December 20th

Celebrate Christmas, New Years, and Epiphant

Map of My Trip

I'm not too good with paint but here is my trip in Romania

Prices

BinderBubi hotel day one: 73$ Dinner: 53.25$
Day two hotel Ana Aslan: 79$ Dinner 63.84$ Casino money 35,000$
Day Three hotel: 75$ Dinner 54.65$
Day Four hotel:150$ Dinner free
Day Five hotel 110$ Room Service 54$
Day Six Hotel 44$ Dinner 15.50$
Day Seven Hotel Onix 95$ Dinner 65.13$
Museums were mostly free but some charged around 15$ or so.

Day 7 August 9th The Last day in Romania Phew!

      A short trip of 190 miles northeast we arrived at the city called Cluj Napoca for our last destination in this beautiful land. This city had Saint Micheal's Church which was erected between 1350 and 1487. It is considered one of the most beautiful Gothic monuments in Transylvania and has an alter that was built in 1390 and a star-shaped vault. Then we went to the most representative examples of baroque style building in Transylvania, Banffy Palace. This building was built for the current governor at the time, Banffy Gyorgy, but is now the Cluj National Art Museum. Another splendorous and beautiful church that we saw is the St. Peter and Paul Church named after those two apostles. In the main entrance is Archangel Micheal, to his left is John the Baptist and on his right is John the Evangelist. Schenbauer Antal's sculpture of Saint Mary that was moved from her former location between Kogalniceanu and Universitatii Street, we saw in the backyard of the church. The last church we went to is also the oldest and is named The Franciscan Monastery and Church and was built in the 15th century. It lies on the southern end of the monastery complex and was a gift to the  Franciscans that restored it to a baroque style in 1728. Our tummies started to grumble so we went to Camino and had our last taste of Romanian cuisine. We book a room at the Onix hotel we have one final night in a Romanian bed and try and get some rest for the trip home. We all agree that Romania is a beautiful place that offers a variety of different activities and hope to come back soon!

Day 6 August 8th

     We took a short cab ride to Timisoara to look at some more practical things. After getting out of the cab our tour guide took us first to Victory Square to gaze at the numerous baroque era buildings. At the south end of the square we found the focal point, the Romanian Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral. The green and red roof tiles were for mosaic design were constructed between 1936 and 1946. There is a memorial that honors people that lost their lives in the 1989 revolution that overthrow communism. We moved onto to Union Square and directly went to the east side to see the Roman Catholic Cathedral. This building was designed by Fisher von Erlach in the years of 1736 and 1754.  Then we walked from Freedom Square to Victory Square and looked at a variety of Secessionist architecture in Piata Libertatii. Our guide told us that when the Banat region was under Turkish control Austrian-Habsburg Prince Eugene de Savoy built a seven star-shaped bastion and gate-towers. The last destination we headed to was the Memorial Museum of the 1989 Revolution. This museum exhibits different military uniforms and testimonies of witnesses and participants. After that daunting place we decided it was time to try and find a place to eat lunch and settle down in a hotel. We have some pizza at Pizza La Maria that reminded us a little of home and how our trip was about to end soon. The hotel we choose to settle down at was called Roma that was just a little two star that accommodated us well.

Day 5 August 7th

     We decided it was time to go to the capital of Romania, Bucharest. The streets were a change from the narrow cart roads of most cities in Romania and has earned the nickname of “Little Paris." The first thing we went to see is the Arc of Triumph that was initially built of wood in honor of Romanian soldier that fought in World War I. It stands about 85 feet and was designed by Petre Antonescu and was finished in 1936. The next tourist attraction we went to is the Royal Palace. This magnificant palace was erected between 1927 and 1937 with neoclassical style. At age 18 in the halls of this very palace King Mihai led a group of soldiers the pro-Nazi government and got on the Allies side. Then we went to see Albert Galleron's architecture of the Romanian Athenaeum with it's beautiful ceiling. This is the ceiling in the lobby and is decorated in gold leaf and curved balconies that cascade in a ringlet of a spiral staircase. Another day of walking in musuem and we get exhasted so we settled down at the Casa Capsa in an imperial suite and ate food service.

Day 4 August 6th

     After a while on our feet we decided to stay in the same general area. This day we went to the Danube Delta to see the beautiful wildlife. Our tour guide told us that this river flows from the Black Forest in Germany all the way down here to the Black Sea and is 1,788 miles long. We took a small boat over to Lake Fortuna to take a little fishing day. The air had scent of wild flowers native to this land and seemed like an excellant day to fish for some pike. The owner of the small boat was very kind and patience while we tried to catch.  There was no law against keeping so we put the multiple fish that we caught into our little cooler. For noon till around three in the afternoon we fished and talked and hung out. Then the dark thunderheads started to form and we reeled our lines and went back to Tulcea and settled at the Egreta Alba Pension.

Day 3: August 5th

    The wonderful relaxing time at the spa reinvigorated us to take on a new bright day in Romania. This time we moved up north to Tulcea. This day was dedicated to seeing the older museums that are in Romania. Tulcea has been an important harbor since 7th century and has seven hills like Rome. The first museum that we visited is the art museum which houses over 700 collections of glass and wooden icons. To add to this it has plenty of vanguard paintings of some of Romanian's best painter's that include Ion Jalea, Oscar Han, Victor Brauner and many more. Then we walked over to the History & Archeology Museum that presents northern Dobrogea region from medieval age all the way back to ancient times. There are around 90,000 archeological items and or documents on display that include ceramics, epigraphic pieces, jewels and paleo-Christian objects. After touring some museums we decided to go to Hotel Delta for a nice dinner and to head in for the night while we watched the sun set over the Danube.

Day 2: August 4th

   After being well rested at the wonderful bed and breakfast we got ready to take on another day in Romania. We wanted to have a relaxing walk on the beaches of the Black Sea. We arrived at Constanta at midday ready to go have a good time with our pockets full of money for the casino and bathing suits on. Our tour guide said it was the oldest city in the county and was built on and around a bluff that shields ships from storms. It has been a seaport since 6th century B.C and the foundations were built on the ruins of ancient Greek settlement called Tomis. She also told us that it has been a rumored site for the legend of Jason and the Argonauts. Together we went down to Tomis Boulevard and shopped till we literally were about to drop. Then our tour guide saved us with taking us to Eforie Nord which had an amazing spa called Ana Aslan.This was 14 km form Constanta. The last thing that we did before crawling into bed is go to the Blue Dolphin Eforie Nord Restuarant to have a lovely dinner.

Day One! :D August 3rd

     We arrived in Romania at Brasov airport ready to see the medieval castles. First we went to the castle in Brasov! This is just three hours north of Bucharest, and the Renaissance culture is abundant. Our tour guide brought us to the Black Church first, which is largest Gothic church east of Viena, thus called so by it's black interior which has survived a fire. Then we waltzed over to Prejmer which is the biggest fortified church in southeastern Europe. Our next destination is Sighisoara which gives off an eerie and dark feeling for this is where Vlad the Impaler's castle stands. There is also burgher houses and small cobbled street with narrow passageways.  Plus the Church of the  Dominican Monastery which is renowned for it's Transylvanian Renaissance altarpiece, baroque painted pulpit, and the 17th century organ. Our last location is Medias with it's narrow winding lanes and large pedestrian area adds a certain charm about the place. Here is St. Margaret Evangelical Church which is a very fortified church that has been built on the ruins of a Roman basilica. There are two rows of wall and multiple defensive towers, one of which served as a holding cell for Vlad the Impaler. Highly exhausted and tired, we found a bed and breakfast called the BinderBubi and had a late dinner at Unglerus Medieval Restaurant to taste some of the Romanian cuisine early. 

Romanian Vegetable Dish

ROMANIAN CORN SALAD

1 (17 oz.) can corn, drained 1 (6 1/8 oz.) can tuna, drained 5 tbsp. mayonnaise 4 hard-boiled eggs, diced 1 (4 oz.) can mushrooms, drained Paprika to taste Fresh parsley to taste Salt and pepper to taste White vinegar to taste Mix mayonnaise with paprika, salt, pepper, parsley, and vinegar. Sauce should taste sharp, will mellow after chilling. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well. Chill 4 hours to overnight.

http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1728,155166-253203,00.html

Witness Account

      I had just put my youngest son, Peter, into bed for I never got to see my children much being a sailor and all. Then I went to talk to my wife since my ship was leaving early in the afternoon and make sure she had enough money to last till I came back. We talked for about five minutes then the end began to start. Mrs. Cranny was shrieking at the top of her eighty year old lungs and waddling her short round physique down the street. I peered out our small two- story wooden house and went back twenty years to my childhood remembering tales of dragons. A roaring inferno was consuming every inch of the markets and merchant houses, with the speed of a messenger grabbing my children out of bed and ushering my wife to come with me to my ship. Truly I wasn't sure of the rest of the crew would come to the ship but I wasn't about to get roasted alive without giving some effort to escape. About half my crew came to the ship and we set sail at once. As soon as we were out of the reach of the flames we anchored and sent rowboats to anyone that was at the port. The better part of six days you could hear the blood curdling screams of the people, and smell the burning flesh of my fellow Roman's. During those terrible days, throughout the screaming, you could hear this sinister laugh while a lyre was being played. We asked our emperor if he had anything to do with this but he said no and instead he blamed the Christians and burned thousands at the stake. The only good accomplishment of this terrible day is that the debris filled the marshes right outside of Rome that had plagued us for generations.

First Assignment

  He rose to power from being adopted by his uncle,Claudius. Considered to be one of the meanest Roman emperors, mostly because he persecuted the Christians. Also he is called popular and very jealous for he built his own palace out of the ashes of Rome. Though he was greedy he did have some appreciating for the art since he played a lyre and attended many plays. This also backfired on him for people say that as Rome was burning he was playing his lyre in the courtyard and laughing while the people wept and shrieked. This is the legacy that Nero has left for his role as emperor of Rome

New to this

Hey guys, I'm sorta this job so could you help me when I ask for it. Thanks. :D