Margina - a journey into the village life of Timiș

Situated in a picturesque landscape, 7 km east of Făget, on the Begheiului valley, Margina commune has a rich tourist, natural and cultural heritage. The name itself is suggestive because the locality is actually on the edge of Banat, before crossing over to Transylvania.

Margina Fortress is documentary mentioned in 1365, but there is information that it dates back to 1288 when it belonged to the Icuş domain and was led by the rulers of Severin, Mihai and Velici.

Margina hosts the ”Sorin Titel” Memorial House, "Villa Rodica" belonging to the writer and publicist Ion Clopoţel, Sinteşti Village Museum, and some of the most famous wooden churches in Făgetului Land.

Tourists can enjoy fishing and hunting in the area. Through the nearby forests, on the hills and meadows, stags, deer, boars, wolves, rabbits, foxes and pheasants can be hunted, all this under the law. The fishing can be practiced on the Bega River. The fish species that live here are: trout, carp, bream.

The Village Museum in Sinteşti, Margina presents over 100 exhibits, being founded by the teacher Emil Mert.

The collection includes furniture and working tools from the former farmhouse, clay pots, folk costumes, traditional towels, old musical instruments, photographs, medals, books.

All this contributes to shaping the image of the traditional Banat village.

The wooden churches in Margina are declared historical monuments, along with other wooden churches in Făgetului Land.

The wooden church with the patron saint "Cuvioasa Paraschiva" is documentary attested in 1737.
It is found today in the middle of the cemetery in the northern end of the village of Margina. According to the local tradition, the church was originally built in the place called "Ocolitura lui Ilișoni" and, with the systematization that took place at the end of the eighteenth century, it was brought to the present hearth.

The church in Bulza village, dedicated to "St. John the Theologian", was built in 1820 by the master Groza Dumitru of Breazova. The church was not painted. It was initially covered with shingle, which was then replaced with tin.

The church in Coșevița, dedicated to the "Apostles Peter and Paul", was erected in 1776.
The particularity of the church in Coșevița is the extension of the roof above the entrance, on the west side, making it a simple veranda.

The wooden church in Groși has the patronage of the Assumption of the Holy Virgin, dating back to 1741. It is one of the traveling churches, being brought from the valley of Mureș, from Căpâlnaş village, and raised on the current place in 1826.

The wooden church in Nemeșeşti is dedicated to "Saint Nichita Romanul" and was built in 1798. It is remarkable that the exterior is covered in a white-painted plaster, which features a simple decoration in plaster relief, imagining a solar motif.

Representatives of the Margina Tourist Information Center have introduced to the tourist program what they simply called "Breakfast at Margina".

The locals welcome you with delicious traditional dishes: homemade sausages, bacon, meat, eggs, milk, yoghurt, fresh cheese, homemade bread with lard, taped with hot pepper, honey and jam, and delicious poppy or walnut pies.

The half-day trip starts at the Tourist Information Center. The tourists go from here in waggons on a route including: the Margina wooden churches, the Sintești Village Museum, the Liman Valley or Lake Surduc, the Zorani Traditional House. They can stop at Ovidiu Crisan's sheepfold, for a lunch consisting of polenta with lamb stew, cheese and plum brandy. The tourists will return to the Margina Tourist Information Center.

This short trip into the rural life of Timiș County can only be made on a programming basis.

The "Breakfast at Margina" project is being carried out in collaboration with the Association for Tourism Promotion and Development in Timiș (APDT) and Margina City Hall.