Category: Romania

We left Brașov a few weeks ago, and I miss it. The city was charming, the surrounding mountains were lush, and it had just about everything we needed within walking distance; multiple markets, restaurants, and paths to hike and run.

The Black Church (above).

Logan hiking up Tampa mountain.

View of the city from Tampa.

Above and below are photos of our hike to Poiana Brașov. The kids were worried as we started off that we were going on one of our ‘forced family death marches.’ These usually involve a plan for a quick hike without bringing enough food or water, and end up with us trying to see ‘just one more trail’ while starving and dehydrated. I assured them that it was only 4 miles to Poiana Brașov where we would have lunch and catch a bus back. Unexpectedly, this was one of two days a year where the road is closed for a car race, so we did hike back. I wonder why they don’t trust us.

Early in the hike, we passed this quartet. Odd, but quite nice.

But one of the hardest parts of leaving Brașov was saying goodbye to ‘Dog-O.’ He lived next door but was banished to a small bit of concrete day and night. Just about everyone who knows us is aware that we do not like dogs. However, this one was so sweet that I not only bought him treats, but I even pet his head (which he preferred to treats). When we walked by his yard for the last time with our luggage, he went nuts barking and banging himself against the door. He knew we were leaving. And for the first time in my life, I was sad to leave a dog.

While in  Brașov we took the train to Bucharest for a long weekend. We loved Kiev and hoped we would feel the same about Bucharest. We enjoyed some tours but the ambiance was lacking. From Uber drivers to tour guides to the extremely lonely security guard in the grocery store, we heard stories of how hard life was without hope that it would improve.

We took two tours during our stay. The guide above is from the free walking tour. She told us about Vlad Dracula, a.k.a. Vlad the Impaler, whose name is the inspiration for Count Dracula. His statue is behind her.

Our guide vividly described with specific detail how Vlad impaled his enemies. Maybe it was the heat, or that I was hungry, but as she explained the step by step instruction to impaling, along with the process of dying over the next two days, I had to sit as I was uncertain if I was about to pass out or vomit.

Our second tour was a Communism tour. So far this year, we have been on Communism tours in Munich, Ljubljana and Hanoi.

Above is the Central Committee building where Ceaușescu gave his last speech on the balcony on December 21, 1989. It is worth watching on youtube because the look on his face when he realizes that he has lost the support of the crowd is priceless.

Ceaușescu knocked down much of Bucharest with the goal of rebuilding it in a Communist style. The Palace of the Parliment, which he started (above), is the second largest administrative building in the world, including its nine stories underground. The last is a bomb shelter to survive a nuclear war. The combination of communist-era buildings beside empty lots that were destroyed and not rebuilt left the city feeling piecemeal.

Ceaușescu didn’t mind razing churches and destroyed many. However, architects convinced his wife to allow relocation of a number of them. They built train tracks and hoisted the churches up, then rolled them to new locations out of the path of destruction.

Our lunch spot above, and more churches below.

Above is a monument to those who died in the over throw of Ceaușescu. We recalled the uprising as coming from the people.  However, both tour guides said the story now seems more complicated and that it was more likely a coup from within. Per our tour guide, the design of the monument was not popular, and the construction was marred by corruption. It seemed nothing had a happy ending in Bucharest.

Bran Castle is a short trip from Brașov. We were in the process of taking an Uber to the bus station when our driver offered to be our guide for the day. So we headed off with a new itinerary and, once again, stressed to the kids that later in life they should not accept rides into the countryside with strangers.

Per the official website for the castle, “Because Bran Castle is the only castle in all of Transylvania that actually fits Bram Stoker’s description of Dracula’s Castle, it is known throughout the world as Dracula’s Castle.” I think “throughout the world” may be an exaggeration but is does have plenty of Dracula memorabilia.

Its labyrinth of rooms and neat features, like the claustrophobic staircase below, make it an apt site for a Halloween party which, of course, it hosts yearly.

Below is the view from the castle.

In the village surrounding the castle.

Because the Uber driver ended up as our tour guide, we went to see a bear santuary that he highly recommended. Oddly, we have already seen a number of bear santuaries this year, but can you really visit too many?

Our last stop was at Râșnov Citadel.

Below are the houses inside the Citadel.

View from Râșnov Citadel.

As an aside… it is part of our social studies curriculum to learn about the lives of strangers in other countries. Our Uber driver said he makes 400 Euro a month working as an Engineer; therefore, he drives Uber on weekends. He was upset about how Europeans view Romanians, confusing them with Roma (to which he felt they were superior). But he was quite happy to disparage every other immigrant group in both the USA (where he has spent some time) and Europe.

From our observations, he is correct that many Europeans dislike Roma. We have been warned to look out for “them” many times this year. Our favorite was in Rome when we were told that we wouldn’t ever see them pickpocket our valuables, but somehow, once we noticed we had been robbed, we could be sure that it was a Roma who was responsible.

On one of our day trips from Brașov, we took the train to Sinaia to see Peleș Castle. It is quite new by European standards (built between 1873 and 1914), and it was unbelievably crowded. Yet still, the tour was worth the wait and the worry that if a fire broke out, we would all be killed in a stampede.

It had a number of fun staircases and secret passages.

The decor was impressive, even though I am not one who is particularly interested in decor

Ethan’s favorite part was the floor to ceiling mirrors.

We walked through the woods/craft stands heading back down to the train station.

We planned to stop at the monastery (above) on the way down. We didn’t plan to hang out there for an hour or so, but we did. It poured… for a long time. And, as usual, we didn’t bring our umbrellas. We finally made a mad dash across the street to a cafe to have hot chocolate and warm up while they called us a cab to take us back to the train station.

We arrived in Brașov, Romania a week ago. It is located in the region of Transylvania, which sounds cooler. In route to Romania, we had a week of vacation split between Beijing and Kiev (blogs on China and Kiev still to come).

After 6 months in Asia, it felt a bit odd walking around Europe. Every car stops at the crosswalks, which somehow confuses us and makes us crash into each other as we attempt to cross the street.

Our first day in town, as we passed the 5th bakery and 3rd ice cream shop within a few blocks, Ethan and Logan were bouncing up and down and screaming that they loved Europe. However, when I pointed out that we won’t get to eat Asian food daily, their faces changed to sadness.

We love free walking tours and take them every chance we get. Below is our free walking tour group in Brașov.

Our tour guide led us to the major sites in Brașov while attempting to entertain us. Below is The Black Church (15th century).

Below is a statue of Honterus (1498 – 1549). According to our guide, he published the first map of Transylvania, founded the local elementary, middle and high schools, brought the first printing press to the area, authored books, and founded the first library in town.  He also became a priest, changing The Black Church and those surrounding to Lutheranism. He died at age 51, making me feel like a bit of an underachiever.

Below is “Rope Street,” built in the 15th century for firefighting brigades after a fire had destroyed much of town. I guess there are not that many sites to see in Brasov, because this makes all the tour itineraries. It is the 3rd narrowest street in Europe, and, well, quite narrow.

St. Nicholas church, a Romanian Orthodox church built around 1500 AD, has remains from frescos on the exterior walls.

Below is our house in Brașov. There is a sweet dog living next door that puts his head to our window and tries to open it when we eat. Yes, you read that correctly. I did just say something nice about a dog. I might even buy him a doggie biscuit and open the window… but I haven’t gone quite that mad just yet.

And the nearby park.