THE INFAMOUS BABA ANUJKA

 

Baba Anujka (AHN--nooya-ka) or Granny Anujka as she was known then and now, was an accomplished amateur chemist and convicted killer hailing from the village of Vladimirovac, about an hour's drive from Belgrade. She was born in 1838 and lived to be 100.

I can't believe I have lived here for 45 years and never heard of her.  PLEASE take the time to read about her by CLICKING RIGHT HERE. Nearly unbelievable.  

The first photo is of course not mine. A friend and I drove out to Vladimirovac a few days ago. Naturally, someone of her reputation is still a stain on the village, but we managed to find the Romanian graveyard (many people in this area are of Romanian descent, as was she).  We were fairly certain we would  not find her grave, if indeed she is there, since I can only imagine no one wanted her buried there. However, we did find these two graves, the photos upon which I have enlarged for you.

Sad story. This newly-married, very young couple, Maria and Titu Vakaresku (16 and 18), were returning from a village fair one warm summer evening. They passed by Baba's house where she was sitting on the front steps. She offered them some refreshing lemonade. They died one week later. These two young people were thought to be her first victims.