We left the capital today and headed north through the flat plains of Wallachia and on towards the Bucegi mountains and some of Romania’s ski resorts. Although very popular, their shorter slopes are more attractive to the locals rather than overseas visitors who tend to opt for the longer runs in France.
On our visiting list today were four important buildings. The first was Peles Castle, more an imposing house than a style of castle we are familiar with.
It was the residence of King Carol I, Romania’s first and longest serving of the country’s four monarchs. Many of the grand buildings here have a far shorter history than those of the UK. This residence was built in German Renaissance style from 1875 and no expense was spared. It is considered to be the first European castle to have electricity. It had its own power plant, central heating and even a central vacuum system. It has turrets and spires but a very dark, albeit an incredibly ornate, interior. There are masses of breathtaking intricately-carved adornments comprising an estimated 25 species of wood. Beautiful hand-painted stained glass windows adorn many of the rooms, and decorative frescoes in the theatre (our equivalent of a media room today) were designed by Austrian artists Gustav Klimt and Frank Matsch. An armoury has more than 500 pieces including a full horse armour weighing 60kg and thought to be the only complete set in the world. Unfortunately in several of these houses photography is not allowed, so we are unable to illustrate many of the fine pieces.
Within the same grounds is Pelisor Palace.
This was also built by King Carol I, but for his nephew and heir to the throne, Ferdinand and his wife Maria, granddaughter of our Queen Victoria. It is said that Maria did not like the dark style of Peles Castle and had Pelisor decorated in art nouveau style in the much lighter pastel colours.
We then headed to Bran Castle, an intriguing building with lots of little passageways.
The original furniture does not remain, but there are many ornately decorated fireplaces.
Bran Castle is incorrectly thought to have been the home of Vlad Tepes, the 15th century Wallachian prince (known as Vlad the Impaler due to the cruel ways he despatched his enemies) whom the novelist Bram Stoker (not to be confused with Bran here mentioned) immortalised in his novel about Count Dracula in 1897. Despite that, there is quite a lot of reference made to Dracula at the castle.
Our final stop of our 11 hour journey was Brasov which is one of four towns colonised by the Saxons from Germany in the 12th century.
We visited the Black Church in Brasov that was originally built in 1383. It is considered one of the most beautiful Gothic monuments in the country. Although not black, it was named after the building caught fire in 1689. Only the walls, font and treasury survived and much rebuilding has since taken place. The dimensions were intended to be monumental and this is clear once entering the interior. Its roof stands 65 metres tall and its main organ (one of five) is claimed to be the biggest mechanical organ in the country. Recitals are carried out each Tuesday. It was originally intended to be a Catholic Church but today is considered to be one of the most important Lutheran places of worship in the region.
Tomorrow we head for more religious sites on our way to Radauti in the north-eastern area of Romania.
Copyright: words and photos, Sue Barnard 2019
Very interesting, a part of the world with which we are not familiar at all. More to add to our bucket list! happy travels, Di and Eric xx