It looks like I got to Romania just in time. In Bucovina where I live, there is a cathedral which has been under construction for roughly ten years, and this Sunday, my second Sunday back in the country, was its official dedication and opening service.

My favorite moment is this one, in which the bells began to ring at the entrance of the bishops into the church for its dedication.

Church bells represent the voice of God, and let me tell you, standing underneath that enormous bell tower and hearing their enormous clatter, that’s certainly what it sounded like.

I have pictures, taken on my small and rather inadequate phone. But I got early enough to get close to the front, so I had a good view.

After going to the opening of the cathedral, my family and I headed back home where we had a lunch of sarmale (cabbage rolls stuffed with rice and meat) before heading out into the forest preserve near where we live. We swatted around a birdie with badminton rackets and went on a walk through the woods, collecting wild apples, walnuts, and acorns along the way.

And that evening we went to an open-air market with local products, where we ate mici, a Romanian specialty sausage made from a mixture of beef and pork, and bought two kinds of cheese: cașcaval afumat, a sort of smoked cheddar, and brânză burduf.

And now we’re home, and exhausted, and happy, the perfect end to a lovely Sunday.