Time in Transylvania

On the last leg of our trip to Eastern Europe.  We had the option of doing an extension in Transylvania or Istanbul - and chose Transylvania!  What an experience!

We left Bucharest and traveled through the Carpathian Mountains to

Bran Castle - the inspiration for Bram Stoker's Dracula.

Yes, we spotted Vlad the Impaler - and learned that he is NOT Dracula, but was a count, a crusader, and fought against the Turk invasion of Translvania.

A climb up to the castle, but worth the trek!

We had a great tour guide...who had the best diabolic laugh, which was perfect for this tour!

We had a great lunch with "Dracula Beer"...they make the most of the Dracula legend.  After lunch we traveled through Transylvania to the city of Brasov...with a beautiful preserved medieval old towne!

Our hotel - a Radisson Blu - was great, and right across from a lovely park and just steps to the historic district.

Our Viking Guide took us on a walking tour so we would be familiar with the area...

The next day we had the option to take an optional tour for Panoramic Transylvania - 8 hours on the bus with stops for visits and lunch.  We felt we were on the bus most of the day before so decided on a late breakfast and wanted to explore on our own.  Then I remembered an app called

FREETOUR

You can read more about this on the link above...we looked at the app and found a tour in Brasov - 2 hour walking tour and we booked it.  We were to look for the orange umbrella at the market square fountain - and we found our guide!

Radu was amazing!  He was born in Brasov, an artist who carves dragons out of wood he finds in the forests ( he had a show in Miami the week before, and was going to be at Burning Man, too) and is a ski instructor in the mountains in the winter.  He just LOVES telling people about Brasov.  There were 6 of us on the tour and we learned SO much!

The city is filled with history - this cathedral was the only gothic one between Istanbul and Bucharest and he showed us where the crusaders sharpened their swords as a blessing on the way to battle.

The little walkways, the history of the Turks/Saxons/Transylvanians over the years, more information about Vlad and the Saxon girl he fell in love with - even though it was forbidden.

And after a full two hours of history he turned around, opened his backpack, and said tip what you wish.

We gave a big tip because this was such an amazing tour. He then walked us back to the town square and gave us restaurant reservations for lunch and dinner - 

We took his advice and had this delicious potato and sausage soup, with great bread and for me, an Aperol Spritz!

Almost everyone speaks English, which makes it easy to order - students start learning English in first grade!

We wandered around the town...saw this stuffed bear - there are bears in the mountains and yes, they have been coming into the towns!

Sat in front of the fountain and people watched...then strolled back to the hotel for a nap.

The town has a rich German heritage, too - so we tried this place for dinner - 

Wonderful Weiner schnitzel with potato salad...and beer - 

then apple strudel with a warm vanilla sauce - yummy!

The next morning we left to return to Bucharest, but stopped on the way at the summer palace of Romanian royalty.

Located in the resort town of Sinaia - where the air is so clean and fresh.  The resort town is famous for hiking and skiing - and lots of great places for lunch!

Then it was back to Bucharest - and this -

Our luggage had to be out by 4:30 AM the next day, and we were leaving for the airport at 5 AM.  That made us realize we needed to stay in the beautiful Marriot for dinner and get an early bedtime.

What a great decision -

The special dinner that night was parmesan mushroom pasta with truffles - and when I ordered it I never expected the waiter to roll out a wheel of parmesan and prepare the hot past in the cheese!  It was AMAZING.  Our waiter was so nice, and when he learned it was our last night he brought us some complimentary after dinner drinks.  Perfect way to end our adventures.

This was our view from our room that last night...the big Orthodox Cathedral that is still under construction.

Well, we made the early wake up, then the flight to Heathrow and on to home.  We were awake almost 24 hours with the time change

 (7 hours ) and the flights.  It took us a few days to feel normal, but we will always remember our wonderful trip to the Capitals of Eastern Europe!

Thanks for following along on our adventures...and Happy June!

Hope the coming summer is full of fun times for you.

Thanks for stopping by Our New Vista!