The childhood games at Golesti

The courtyard and the park of the Goleşti Manor witnessed numerous generations of one of the most important and proud families in the history of Romania. The childhood at Golesti was lived in nature and accompanied by many pets, loyal and playful friends – puppies, cats and horses. Dolls, wooden constructions and sand castles, various games and mischief, jack-o’-lanterns (carved pumpkins), and potatoes baked in the improvised hearth at the playground made the delight and the amusement of the children and the adults of the family. In 1861, Ana Racovita, the niece of Dinicu and Zinca Golescu, married a young French doctor named Carol Davila, who came to our country with the mission of reforming the sanitary system. The two had four children: Alexander, Carol, Elena and Zoe. Their childhood was spent between two landmarks: the old residence of Golesti and the house in Cotroceni, one Bucharest’s district. We published today a fragment from Elena Perticari Davila’s book which mentions the games and toys with which the Davila children spent their summer holidays here, in Golesti, in their ancestral home. At the same time, we invite you to come to Golesti and feel the magic of this place among the roses and secular trees, to enjoy the green of the nature and the happy voices of the new generations of children who brought the joy of living in this place.

Elena Perticari Davila, Amintiri din copilărie, desene de Maria C. Davila, Șt. Constantinescu și Al. Moscu, Editura Casei Școalelor, București, 1940, p. 14-18.