We've all watched those bone chilling, terrifying movies in which you are introduced to these demonic, blood sucking creatures more commonly known as vampires. Hower, not many people know where those stories come from. You'll sure feel dizzy once you try the traditional drink- virgin blood... uhm, I mean Tsuika. With a smile dripping with blood, i introduce you to Transylvania.
Being the traveling type it only took two sips of Bloody Mary to come up with the idea for a trip to Romania. Perhaps watching too much gory and disturbing movies had an effect on my traveling decisions and i was sure that the home of the Vampyr, as well as the infamous Count Dracula would be my next destination. After booking the tickets we carefully mapped out our adventure making sure to visit the monumental sites, of which Castle Bran made us shiver with excitement. After that followed three months filled with anticipation and counting the days till the trip.
BUS PARTY (not literally)
On 5th of March our bus departed carrying fifty eager passengers keen on seeing the wondrous beauty of Romania. I was travelling with my two close friends Klara and Dzole, and a backpack full of pita and ajvar hahaha. So we headed to Bucharest through Bulgaria making stops at gas stations because we shared the bus with couple of people that had bladder like a squirrel (literally). So among the many bumps and holes on our way we found out lots of dieting strategies (completely unrelated to the trip nor wanted) as well as boring elderly stories. We somehow managed to survive the 10 hour trip with a strong headache and constipation from all the food we gorged ourselves on along the way, finally arriving at our destination.
BUS PARTY (not literally)
On 5th of March our bus departed carrying fifty eager passengers keen on seeing the wondrous beauty of Romania. I was travelling with my two close friends Klara and Dzole, and a backpack full of pita and ajvar hahaha. So we headed to Bucharest through Bulgaria making stops at gas stations because we shared the bus with couple of people that had bladder like a squirrel (literally). So among the many bumps and holes on our way we found out lots of dieting strategies (completely unrelated to the trip nor wanted) as well as boring elderly stories. We somehow managed to survive the 10 hour trip with a strong headache and constipation from all the food we gorged ourselves on along the way, finally arriving at our destination.
BUCHAREST ALL THE WAY
So, we were travelling with a travel agency called STAFF, they made sure to drop us at the hotel that we were staying. After couple of minutes unpacking and freshening up we headed to explore the beautiful city of Bucharest. It was around 6 o'clock pm when we got out of the hotel and went to McDonalds to eat something. After that we started wandering the empty streets and admiring the great gothic architecture. After 2 hours walking we arrived at Hard Rock Cafe but unfortunately they couldn't seat us because there were out of empty tables. With our tales down we were thinking where we should go next, so we went to eat AGAIN because we run out of ideas. With a KFC bucket we returned to our hotel room. We stayed in a great 3 - star hotel called Hotel Andy, situated close to the city center. The rooms were clean, renovated and our room had a balcony with a view over the whole city. In front of the hotel there was a small market that sold us a bottle of vodka (that time we were under 18 so it was a big deal), so i would say i am glad we stayed at that hotel.
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The next morning we went on sightseeing with a local guide. We visited the Piața Victoriei, and the buildings located in that area such as Headquarters of the Romanian Government named Victoria Palace after the square, Grigore Antipa - Bucharest Natural History Museum, Bucharest Tower center and BRD tower etc..
After that they took us to a shopping center called Unirea. The good side about that was that we bought some new clothes and the bad side was that we lost each other somehow. Anyway after couple of hours we managed to find ourselves and we headed off to see one of the greatest church in Bucharest, we took some photos looked around and then we returned to our hotel.
THE WORLD SECOND LARGEST ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDING
The next day we went to see the Palace of the Parliament which took us one hour to see the whole building because it was enormous. Our guide told us everything about the history of this place such as when it was build, renovated etc.. It took 20,000 workers and 700 architects to build this massive structure that boasts 12 stories, 1,100 rooms, a 350-ft.-long lobby and four underground levels, including an enormous nuclear bunker.
TRANSYLVANIA
Our next stop was Sinaia, a small town located in the center of a great forest in Transylvania. We arrived there and went to see the famous Neo-Renaissance Castle in the Carpathian mountains called Peles.
The magnificent Peles Castles, with its fairytale turrets and pointed towers rising above acres of green meadows sprinkled with haystacks, was built as a summer residence by Romania's longest serving monarch, King Carol I, who died and was buried here in 1914, just months after the castle’s completion.
We took a 1 hour tour with a local guide to explore this gorgeous castle from the inside. First we saw the Holul De Onoare (The Honor Hall) then we headed to see the beautiful apartments such as the Imperial suite. The Grand Armory, Turkish Parlor and The Music Room left us speechless, they were enormous and great with details. The Turkish Parlor-a room full of Turkish Izmir rugs and copperware from Anatolia and Persia. It was used as a smoking room for the gentlemen. One thing that caught our eyes was the library where there was a hidden door in one of the bookshelves and it was connected with one of the rooms on the second floor (it isn't a castle without any secret passages). After seeing the inside of the castle we went on the terrace to take some photos.
We had a free time that day so we decided to visit a city which is ringed by the Carpathian Mountains called Brasov. It's known for its medieval Saxon walls and bastions, the towering Gothic style Black Church and lively cafes.
We saw the Biserica Neagră or The Black Church situated in the city center. It was built by the German community of the city and stands as the main Gothic style monument in the country. Next to the church there was a square with a lot of cozy cafes and museums, and around that a street with some old houses with creepy architecture. After exploring this small town we went to our hotel which was in Predeal.
We stayed in a 4 star hotel called The Andy Hotel Predeal. The hotel was clean, the staff was nice, beautiful rooms and the food was excellent.
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We had a small party on the porch before the dinner. They offered us to try their traditional alcohol called Tsuika. After that dinner was served in the restaurant. We were so exhausted that we ate as fast as we could and went to our room to sleep.
The plan for the next day was to visit Bran Castle a.k.a Dracula's Castle. So we packed our bags and headed off to Bran. I was excited and impatient to see this part of Romania. The guide told us couple of stories about Vlad III Dracula and his unique torture techniques. All those bloody stories sent shiver down my spine and to top it all off the tour guide made us watch the Dracula movie. The atmosphere was set for us to arrive and fully experience the blood-chilling Transylvania.
The plan for the next day was to visit Bran Castle a.k.a Dracula's Castle. So we packed our bags and headed off to Bran. I was excited and impatient to see this part of Romania. The guide told us couple of stories about Vlad III Dracula and his unique torture techniques. All those bloody stories sent shiver down my spine and to top it all off the tour guide made us watch the Dracula movie. The atmosphere was set for us to arrive and fully experience the blood-chilling Transylvania.
We bought our tickets and wandered up the steep tree lined pathway to reach the entrance to the castle. Once there, we made our way inside, handed over our tickets, and climbed the stairs to the first viewing room. The inside of the castle is cozy with small hallways and lots of round staircases. The best views were found overlooking the courtyard and there are a range of placards with the history (and myths) of the castle and Vlad the Impaler on the walls of the viewing rooms.
We explore almost every room in the castle such as: the large drawing room, music room, playroom, the dungeon, the secret tunnel, King Ferdinand's dining room, torture room etc. In the center of the courtyard there was a wishing well and next to it was the signing book for the guests. On our way out we bought some souvenirs from the markets around the castle and headed back home.
I enjoyed every moment of this trip and i would recommend it to everyone. Also i learned so many things about the history of Romania and i am glad i journeyed all this way too see it in the flesh.
Read more about Dracula
I enjoyed every moment of this trip and i would recommend it to everyone. Also i learned so many things about the history of Romania and i am glad i journeyed all this way too see it in the flesh.
Read more about Dracula
