Friday, August 17
We took the train from Bucharest North Station to Brasov, in the heart of the Transylvania region. We were warned that the train service in Romania is not up to the same standards as Western Europe but our trip was completely uneventful. We even arrived a few minutes early.
The train station has a bad reputation and some really bad reviews but we found it to be bright, clean and very nice. Like so many buildings in Bucharest it must have once been grand and elegant but it still retains much of its charm. As is our habit we were over an hour early so we settled into “So Coffee” for some cappuccinos.
We’d been looking forward to this leg of our trip for quite some time. Transylvania is well known for its association with Vampires and other dark legends and is reputed to have a completely different character from other parts of Romania. Whereas most of modern day Romania was under Turkish rule for so many years Transylvania was part of Hungary and later under the rule of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until World War I. After World War I Hungary claimed part of the territory and it didn’t become fully part of Romania until the end of World War II.
As our train progressed north the character of the landscape changed dramatically. The scenery changed from urban to suburban sprawl to rich farmlands to lush green forested mountains. Much of Transylvania is within the Carpathian Mountain range and our destination, Brasov, is nestled in a deep valley. Immediately upon disembarking we were asked if we wanted help with our baggage – in French (do we look French?). Later that day we were addressed in German and in Italian although most people were speaking Romanian. This was going to be an interesting experience.
Our apartment is just a ten minute walk from the Old Town district and has a lovely balcony with a view of the nearby mountains. The place is huge! There are two bedrooms, a large kitchen with dishwasher and washing machine and a large living room with a nice selection of satellite TV stations. Even the Internet service is fast. On the down side it’s a fourth floor walkup but we certainly could use the exercise. Did we forget to mention the air conditioner? We probably won’t really need it. Whereas Bucharest was hot, humid and in the 90s just about every day, Brasov is in the mountains where there is a nice, fresh breeze and the temperatures stay in the 70s.
After settling in we walked over to the Old Town district. We fell in love. It’s a charming area with cobblestone streets and beautiful old style colorful buildings. There were so many interesting pastry shops that we knew we had our work cut of for us. We stopped in one and ordered what looked like a large blob of chocolate. It turned out to be a rich chocolate that was a cross between a fudge and a frosting. Inside were finely chopped nuts and some kind of crystalized sugar. It was wonderfully decadent. We’re going to have to go back and find out what it’s called. We also ordered two meringues filled with chocolate cream. They were very good but couldn’t compare to the chocolate blob.
(Meringues and The Chocolate Blob)
We hit a grocery store on the way home. Their selection of fruits and vegetables was poor so we were delighted to find a large farm stand directly in our path. This wasn’t your typical mega-farm fare. This was produce from small local farms and everything looked amazing. We walked away with some apples, peaches and a half dozen ears of corn. We had fresh corn with butter and salt for dinner and peaches for dessert. Yum!
Distance walked: 4.4 miles
Saturday, August 18
We walked over to Old Town in the morning and had coffee in one of the many attractive cafes situated on the main pedestrian walkway. Our cappuccinos came with a small, freshly baked chocolate chip cookie that was so delicious that we knew we had to come back later and try some of the pastries.
At 10:30 am we met the free tour in the main square. Our guide, Simona, was an energetic young woman with a great sense of humor and a wealth of information about the city. She explained that the part of the city that we were in was historically Saxon. In the 11th century the king had invited Germans to the city to help promote trade and develop the city’s fortifications. The Romanian part of the city was located outside of the walls. This was a typical configuration for most of the cities in Transylvania and the reason you find so many fortified churches (more on that later). Because of the ethnic make of the area there are three major religions here: Romanians follow the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Germans follow the Lutheran Church and the Hungarians follow the Catholic Church. All three sects manage to co-exist and get along nicely. We even spied a synagogue on our route.
The tour lasted almost 2.5 hours and gave us a great overview of the Town and the area in general. As usual we’ll go back and visit all of these sights (and more) and report back in detail.
We had a late lunch at a Romania restaurant that our guide had recommended called Sergiana. We got a complimentary plate of cracklings shortly after we sat down; they were served with a sliced raw red onion. I ordered a pork loin stuffed with sausage and cheese that came with a side order of shredded potatoes with cheese, cheese sauce and a slab of bacon (you can never have too much pork or cheese in your diet). Deborah ordered a chicken schnitzel covered in sesame seeds that came with a baked potato with dill and garlic sauce. We didn’t have room for dessert.
(Pork with Pork and Cheese)
After lunch we went back to the apartment to rest before attending an organ concert at the Black Church at 6:00 pm. The so-called Black Church is a large Gothic style church that was originally named The Church of Saint Mary. Construction started in the late 14th century and was completed about 100 years later. It was originally a Catholic church but was converted to the Lutheran faith in the late 17th century. It is called “Black” because the outside stones turned black in the great fire of 1689. They have since been cleaned.
Brasov was located at the crossroads of many important trades routes. The city collected taxes of 20% on all transactions and was, for a while, a very wealthy place. Many tradesman offered donations to the church during this period. One of the most popular donations were handmade Persian rugs and as a result the Church has the second largest collection in the world (the largest is in Turkey). The church also houses one of the largest organs in Europe. It has over 4,000 pipes and contains over 74 registers. Our guide said that humans can only hear 63 registers and that the others were for dogs. It’s a very pet friendly city.😁
The church charges 10 Lei to enter but the cost for attending the concert was 12 so attending the concert really only cost us 2 Lei (about 50 cents). The concert consisted of a piece by Lübeck (a Baroque period German composer), The Tocatta and Fugue in C Major by Bach and The Choral in E Major by Franck. We were grateful that it only lasted about 40 minutes. The organist was pretty bad but the organ was magnificent.
After the concert we walked around the church. In line with the Lutheran faith the church was rather sparsely decorated. Lines of pews had been painted with the symbols of the German guilds. The pews belonging to the richer guilds were in the front of the church. Above the pews we saw a few dozen of the famous Persian rugs. Many had beautiful and intricate patterns.
There is a well known fresco in the church of the Virgin Mary flanked by Saints Catherine and Barbara. Mary’s dress was originally painted blue. During the fire of 1689 most of the interior of the church was destroyed. The fresco survived but the color of Mary’s dress was turned black. Nothing else in the fresco was altered. It is considered a sign that Mary is protecting the church and the city.
(The Black Madonna)
We decided to drink our dinner. We’d heard about some local spirits and wanted to try them. We found a local pub along the main pedestrian walkway and sat outside at a table underneath an umbrella. We ordered a shot of Zetea and an Aperol Spritz. Zetea, sometimes called Țuică, is a strong spirit originating in Transylvania made from fruit (typically plums) with an alcohol content of around 50%. It tastes like straight whiskey with a fruity aftertaste. Aperol Spritz is a common drink found all over Europe. It’s very similar to a wine spritzer. We also tried a local Brasov beer (technically an ale) called Mustata (Mustache). It was surprisingly good (we’ve learned to steer clear of lager style beers.) Just so we had something in our stomaches we also ordered a few appetizers: an assortment of bruschetta and some garlic bread with cheese.
(Brasov’s Mustata Beer)
We had originally intended to stay in Brasov for just ten days but since we’re enjoying the city so much we decided to extend our stay for an additional two weeks. Belgrade will just have to wait.
Distance walked: 8.3 miles