Window on Transylvania

Discovering Transylvania's mysterious secrets and surprises

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#1 Sibiu - squares, squealing children, and a stunning dessert

Is it bread? Is it soup? Is it even possible to eat this much for lunch??

Day 1 in Romania. Gordon had ordered this 'bean soup in a bread loaf' as the menu translated it. We were at the restaurant of our hotel, Horeum Boutique Hotel on the outskirts of Sibiu. He was hungry and it was a very cold day - and he likes soup - so it seemed the obvious choice. Our first meal was a real surprise - just like the discoveries on our trip throughout this beautiful mysterious country.

Gordon wasn't the only one to have fun with his lunch. Both of us had chosen too hungrily, as the servings were huge. Later in the trip we would learn to agree on ONE dish and share that, but here was what I selected: something translated as 'chunk porridge'.

Despite its name (and appearance) it was wonderful. Chunks of cooked polenta, a slather of sour cream, plus a generous handful of cheese had been baked in a hot oven, then topped with fried egg. It was almost molten and surprisingly delicious. A perfect wintry dish. Comfort food at its best.

Little did we know, then, that this country was about to deliver many more surprises - meals and otherwise!

Before we head off on our journey, the FIRST big surprise about Transylvania is that it is not all about the dark and dreadful things for which Count Dracula is accused.

Even the name of this almost mythical region is benign. It is means 'through the woods' - trans+sylvan. That was a mini-surprise for us, too. The Romanian language shares some Balkan words but as the name suggests, its people speak a 'romance' language.

So, with my smattering of Italian, I soon found that, very helpfully, I could 'almost' read and translate road signs and chunks of information on brass plaques. Romania was the only country (out of 13 that we visited on this long trip) in which I could do this.

Back to Sibiu - a city located a few hours drive across the border from Hungary or (the way we came) from Serbia.

Like most medieval cities it has a grand main square, Piata Mare, surrounded by cafes, restaurants and hotels - and a church, in this case the baroque 18th-century Holy Trinity Roman Catholic church (above right). The square was the hub of the old walled city and some buildings date back to the 14th or 15th century.

The square is popular too because of hidden jets that spray up randomly - and this is where the kiddies' squeals came in.

The daily fun and business of the square is watched over by sleepy-eyed buildings .....

.........and who knows what these 'eyes in the eves' would have witnessed over the centuries?

Even when the sprays stop, the square is still beautiful and - for the young at heart - it's fun to risk yet another wetting.

Sibiu has a couple of squares which interlink, and of course many churches, including the 16th-century Evangelical Church in Huet Square, with its lavishly tiled spire and roofs.

One day, after walking for hours, it seemed time to stop at a small cafe, where we sat outside watching the other diners. It was a case of 'I'll have what they're having' as I pointed to a dessert at one table. I later learned these lush creamy doughnuts are called papanasi and we were to see them throughout the rest of Romania, but never in other countries. I certainly plan to attempt these at home, and I'll begin with this recipe....

Our coffee came, and we sipped it slowly, dawdling so that we could enjoy it with this sour cream and berry-filled doughnut. Eventually, after about fifteen minutes and tired of waiting, I went inside and tried to ask, via my No-Romanian and their No-English, where my (already paid-for) doughnut was. Somehow they made me understand it was still coming, and later I realised that these are each made to order, so of course I would need to be patient. When it arrived, it was perfect, and all was forgiven.

Next morning we had the first of many breakfasts which we would discover to be basically identical. In fact eggs (mostly as an omelet) ham and white and yellow cheeses and bread seem to be the staple breakfast throughout this whole area. Although this is a well-balanced, tasty, protein-rich meal, let me just say that, after about six weeks, I was thrilled to get back to my morning porridge at home.

Romania, like most European and Balkan countries, has a long history of artisan crafts, often using simple easily available materials, like these straw objects that are both beautiful and useful. They make lovely (yet fragile) souvenirs.

As always, there was never enough time to do and see everything, in this our first taste of Transylvania, but I agreed wholeheartedly with the framed hand-embroidered message (above) which I saw in a gift shop.

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#2 The surprising people and places you see along the way

Perhaps one of our greatest thrills when travelling is the unexpected experiences and sights that await us, often just around the next corner. There is no way these can be planned or organised, and we regard those serendipitous moments as precious gifts.

These shepherds, somewhere soon after we left Sibiu, near Slimnic, were having a chat as they watched their flocks on the hillside. They didn't pose for us, but simply nodded when we asked if we could photograph them, then kept talking as if we were invisible. Even the dog stayed still!

We had heard about 'gypsies' in Romania, and were unsure whether we were hearing the truth. Some people said that they are Albanians who have filtered across borders to find a home in more northern European countries. Visiting there, we heard many stories, some of them negative, but we learned to simply call them Roma or Romani and leave it at that.

Often the Roma (the preferred term) choose to work with copper or other metals, making pots and pans, and we saw some of these for sale once at an impromptu roadside stall. It was not uncommon to encounter them on the more rural roads, on horse-drawn carts like this, or bigger vehicles such as tractors.

Then there were the castles. For people from countries like Australia, these will almost always cause a gasp. To round a bend and see a fortification high on a hillside is a special moment. This is the 14th-century Rupea Castle and citadel, easily visible from the highway to Brasov.

Of course we had to take the winding road up and, once there, could see that this 14th-century complex has recently been restored. Doubtless tourism will soon discover what is said to be one of the most beautiful castles in Transylvania.

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#3 Sighisoara - a high Old Town with a touch of Dracula

There is more than a few references to Count Dracula in Sighisoara. Even though this is where Vlad Dracul, later to become ruler of Walachia was born, none of his villainous acts were perpetrated here.

Visitors may indulge in fantasies about being in the same room he was once or dining on food with a Dracula-ish overtone.

Our choice of hotel, found on booking.com, was in the new town below the hilltop where the city began centuries ago.

Hotel Bulevard offered all we needed, and more. Just a short walk up a steep cobbled street behind the hotel and we were transported back hundreds of years.

We were faintly amused, though, at the number of our room. Had the evil Count been here before us, we wondered, grinning meanly as he let the red dribble down like that?

Entering the old town of Sighisoara, originally a 12th-century Saxon settlement, is like opening a child's fairy-tale book

As we looked down on the jumble of tiled rooftops we couldn't help but wonder what had gone on here in the past half-millennium.

Below the walls and outside on the Tarnava Mare riverbank, is a much more recent building. This pristine neo-Byzantine orthodox church, the Holy Trinity was sanctified in 1937.

A maze of narrow laneways connect the various parts of the old town. Cobbled streets, no doubt laid down hundreds of years ago, have been worn smooth by all the feet that have passed over them in that time.

The town is full of towers, each belonging to a medieval guild of trades-people: rope makers, butchers, shoemakers, tailors, furriers and more. Watch out for these and try to imagine what it must have been like here four hundred years ago.

Brightly glazed ceramic tiles have long been popular for use on spires and towers to catch the light and glow beautifully. These are on Sighisoara's five-level 64-metre 14th-century Clock Tower.

The clock was not added until the 16th century and animated mechanical figures appear on the hour representing various parts of the day.

And just in case you had not been fully convinced that this is a romantic city, we captured a moment of true romance as a bridal couple strolls through the old city.

Although you could visit in any part of the year, our visit to Sighisoara coincided with spring, and the blooming of scarlet tulips.

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#4 Viscri - tiny and delightful with a princely connection

Sometime before leaving home I had heard about this place. I'd not remembered enough to know where to find it, but when I saw a signpost pointing to the right off the highway on which we were heading to Brasov, I shouted 'That's it! That's Prince Charles' village.'

If we'd had time to research it, we would not have taken that road - a dirt track, bumpy, steep, winding - and off our GPS radar. But we did get there, finally, and it was one of the best surprises of the entire trip. If we could have read Romanian, this would have explained that although Britain's Prince Charles has an interest in the village and has visited many times, he is part of a group of entities, the Viscri Project, interested in restoring and keeping this village looking as it did originally.

As the sign shows, many houses have either been refurbished or are on the list to be.

There was energy in the air. A cart carried seats to the hall for an upcoming event. In a small side street we found another of the initiatives of this village. Originally beautifully hand-crafted knitwear, gloves, caps and felt slippers, made by the local Women's Association, were exchanged for food items, but we found them now for sale displayed by a laneside wall.

Many were made by this lady with the sweetest smile. Money earned from sales of handcrafts is used to help poor local children gain a better education.

It was lunchtime and we wondered where we could find a meal in such an isolated tiny place. On seeing this sign, and the word 'Artizanat', we realised that this cafe too is part of the Women's Association.

We chose to sit outside under a tree which dropped tiny flowers over us, but we could have also dined here beside the kitchen.

There was no menu, so Gordon asked for soup - and this fragrant herb and vegetable bowlful arrived.

I asked for bread and cheese and was rewarded with this homemade bread and creamy fresh cheese.

After that there was only time to climb to the fortified church nearby, one of many churches in this part of Romania that were fortified in the Middle Ages. Later I found a map which listed 29 of them in the valleys and forests of this part of Transylvania.

Best news of all was that in the village we were given directions to a new and better road back to the highway!

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#5 A high time in Brasov

High on Mount Tampa which overlooks the city of Brasov, is the sign announcing its name. As if anyone could forget it, although we did need to relearn how to pronounce it: BRARSH-oh.

Our hotel, the newly refurbished and reopened Hotel Avelux was a few kilometres from the city centre, so the next morning, we parked in a city side-street then walked into the Old City. One of the first places we encountered turned out to be one of the city's favourite landmarks, the Black Church, Romania's biggest church.

The name comes from the fire of 1689 in which much of the church and its furnishings were burned. It was Sunday and a service was on so unfortunately we could not see inside.

Brazov's main meeting place, Council Square, is surrounded by old Saxon houses.

You may think this lane is narrow, but we found one even narrower - 13th-century Rope Street, between 110 and 135cm wide and 80 metres-long. Check it out on the video.

Although this old city has plenty to offer, few can resist the two-minute 20-second ride on the cable car to the top of Tampa mountain.

The view of the town shows the square, the Old Town Hall, and the Black Church. To the left, the White Tower which was an important defense. Like Sighisoara, Brasov also has several towers built for the members of various guilds, which included drapers, hunters, rope-makers and weavers.

Of course no public square in Romania would feel right without places to sit and eat and drink in the sunshine.

And if you are wondering what that irresistible sugary smell is in the air, then you can be sure that somewhere nearby a van is selling the Romanian version of Hungarian kurtosh, or chimney cakes, which are like doughnuts cooked on a thick stick. Here they are called kurtos kalacs.

You must try at least one!

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#6 Dracula-land - torture meets tourists in Bran

If it seems like we have purposely made you wait to the very end to get to the part you have all been waiting for - then I am sorry, but that is the way our trip took us.

By now our castle-sensors were on full-alert and so there was a short detour to Rasnov, which also kindly spells its name out for visitors like us. The 'castle' turns out to be actually a 13th-century fortress that withstood many attacks.

It is in Bran that we finally encounter full-on tourist bedlam. Parking spots are at a premium, coaches cram the narrow streets, and everything is geared to play out the Dracula dream - whatever that is.

In amongst it all, you can still see remnants of artisan cheese-making such as these interesting smoked and braided ones.

This is just one example of the souvenirs. There is stall after stall of them: magnets, caps, masks (the scarier the better), T-shirts, and mugs - most with vampire fangs dripping fake blood.

Bran Castle itself is a 14th-century fortification built high on a craggy cliff above the town. We take a tour, along with a couple of hundred others, and are led though the rooms and corridors, occasionally peeking out through barred windows at the long view across the countryside.

Dracula or Vlad, or whoever he was, lived so long ago, and so much myth has grown up around his doings and about his life, that it would be impossible to get at the real truth. Best to let the myths continue, the stories to become wilder, and for Bran Castle, a lovely example of the architecture of the time, to keep on welcoming people from around the world.

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PLUS

#7 Bucharest - a capital city now facing forwards

And so, on to the capital.

Arriving from north-west, the entrance to the city is flanked by a solid bank of fifteen-story Communist-era apartment blocks for what seemed kilometres. I dubbed them 'the Great Wall of Bucharest'.

The city itself is a mix of gracious old-style architecture with newer commercial buildings. It is a large city (population around three million) which seems still to be coming to grips with becoming part of Europe and the world community.

I had no explanation for this statue on the steps of the National History Museum! I later discovered it is of the Roman Emperor Trajon carrying a wolf, and is meant to symbolise the merging of the Romanian and Dacian people. It seems the locals were as bemused as I was when it appeared. Read more...

Like any large city, there are moments when you see where it may be headed, and this bright and lovely boutique is one hint.

But this is the building most people talk and wonder about. The Palace of the Parliament is the world's second-largest administrative building. It has 1100 rooms and covers 365 hectares. It was begun in 1978 by Nicolae Ceaucescu who had demolished, some say, up to 25 percent of the buildings in the city to make room for it.

It was a huge project and even now is not completed. In the building and decorating of it, no expense was spared, and its size and lavish interior have earned it very mixed opinions.

But the city itself is growing at its own pace and showing its individuality. This Spanish U-shaped arcade off Victoria Street, one of the major shopping streets, has become popular for dining.

Romanian pastries can rival those of any other central European country and I can personally recommend the pumpkin slice, lower right of this photograph!

The first evening in Bucharest, we dined just a few blocks from our hotel, at Hanu Berarilor, and were so impressed that we returned the next evening too.

I have to tell you about this duck salad, because at first glance it may not look as exceptional as it was. On a warm evening this light and lovely mix of greens, pear segments, pomegranate seeds, camembert, tiny cubes of beetroot, all topped with succulent slices of smoked duck breast, then tossed together with a light dressing, was sublime.

Like any other European city, a new young generation is looking for places to hang out and drink beer or wine, sip coffee, or simply chat in the sunshine.

As we wandered in the Old Town we discovered streets that had now become dining laneways....

...and others, thoughtfully with English signage, that would become more and more busy as late afternoon turned to evening.

Within a block or so, though, we found the Princely Palace Museum and archaeological treasures unearthed from the city's far distant history. And perhaps that is the rough-hewn magic of Bucharest.

Past and present seem to collide, sometimes too abruptly you may think. This is all part of growth and maturity, for Bucharest is a city coming to terms with centuries of change and upheaval, trying to make its own place in a world that is also altering.

In the gardens of this 18th-century orthodox church we found a peaceful place to allow our whirling thoughts and half-formed opinions to settle.

Here was our small Hotel Foisor, angled into a corner between two extremely busy roads, just ten minutes from the city centre. With our trusty TomTom GPS we found it without too much trouble, but crossing the road took time!

On local advice the next day we took a taxi into the city ('Do NOT drive there', we were told) but fell into a common tourist trap on the return that afternoon. We forgot to check the driver had zeroed his meter!

Finally it was time to say goodbye to the hotel owner-manager, 'Poppa' as he had introduced himself. His total lack of English did nothing to stop him communicating in the common language we all share. Smiles, body language, kindness.

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Goodbye Poppa, and goodbye Romania - for now. He, and his country, had proved to be a generous and hospitable host.

La revedere - until next time!