Journey across Romania / 16 days

Straight from the airport in Bucharest, we shall head up North, to the mountains. The Carpathians create an almost uninterrupted arc around the Transylvanian rolling hills, with Wallachia to the South, Moldavia to the East and parts of Banat and Crișana to the West. Tonight we shall stop in Sinaia, a mountain resort developed close to the royal castle completed in 1914 and the historic monastery going back to 1690.

• Arrival at Bucharest OTP Airport (the tour works for an arrival that is not later than 16:00).
• Transfer to Sinaia (ca. 2 hours).
• Accommodation in Sinaia, 3* hotel in the resort centre or historic lodge close to Peleș Castle.

After visiting Peleș Castle complete with its extraordinarily rich interiors and innovations for the time of its construction, we shall move on up river to Bușteni, home to a castle completed in 1911 in an entirely different style while employing the local, Brâncoveanu architecture and affording a wonderful view over Bucegi Mountains. Then, after hopping over the mountain pass in Predeal, we shall go down in the Saxon Land in Transylvania. Also known as Siebenbürgen, the region saw Hungarian King Géza II’s inviting the Saxons to settle in the 12th century; two reasons stood behind this invitation that came together with certain benefits (among which tax exemption), namely a need to protect the kingdom borders against invaders and to develop the then very weak local economy. The Saxons duly obliged, built churches and later fortified them, planned their houses like small fortresses and organized the region based on 7 major burgs or fortified towns. We shall commence with Brașov, known to them as Kronstadt, complete with its scenic location at the foot of Tâmpa Hill and home to a massive Gothic church. In the evening there are three options: a city stay in or just out of the old town or a stay in the countryside: either in a 1900 farm restored by a trust founded by King Charles III in the small Székely village of Valea Zălanului (locally known as Zalánpatak) or in typical, old houses in Cobor, a farming village.

• Breakfast.
• Visit to Peleș Castle in Sinaia.
• Optional (time allowing): visit to the smaller, entirely different decoration Pelișor Castle.
• Visit to the Cantacuzino Castle in Bușteni (interior and gardens).
• Walk in the old town in Brașov including exterior views of the Black Church.
• Accommodation in a 3* guesthouse set in a heritage property in the old town in Brașov or in a farmhouse in Valea Zălanului or Cobor.

According to the overnight place, we shall start the day with a different activity. It will be as it follows:

• In Valea Zălanului: after an exploration of the farm grounds, a short, rather smooth and easy walk uphill to a pasture locally known as ‘the King’s Meadow’ that affording a generous, wonderful view over the valley the small village is tucked.
• In Cobor: a visit to the ecological farm in the village; run by Carpathia, a trust also running an extensive nature reserve up Făgăraș Mountains, the farm has been created based on a minimal environment impact principle.
• In Brașov: en route to Sibiu, we can make a short detour to see the traditional ‘vâltori’ in Lisa Village, where stream water is directed towards a round, half barrel-like wooden structure where it acts like in a modern washing machine so as to clean textiles.

It will then be on to Sibiu, another of the Saxon Siebenbürgen and arguably the best preserved, most atmospheric of the 7 Saxon medieval towns in Transylvania. The three main squares in the old town, the iconic Council Tower or the imposing Evangelical Church, all are equally attractive and so are the local curiosities among which the Liars’ Bridge and the Sibiu Eyes, the stories behind which are best kept until one reaches Sibiu.

• Breakfast.
• Activity according to the overnight place: a nature walk to King’s Meadow in Valea Zălanului, a visit to the local farm in Cobor or a detour to the Lisa ‘vâltori’ in the case of the Brașov accommodation.
• Walk across the old town in Sibiu, including the three main squares there, as well as exterior views of the Council Tower, of the City Hall, Brukenthal Palace and the Evangelical Church.
• Accommodation in Sibiu, 3* guesthouse in or just off the old town.

Heading off the main, beaten track today we shall head straight into Saxon countryside for a better image of the way these communities developed and still live. Therefore, on the way to Sighișoara three different villages will come together with their stories and the differences in their fortified churches: the 14th century churches in Valea Viilor and Alma Vii complete with their imposing steeples, as well as the curiosities (do not miss the intricate door lock and the ‘no divorce’ room, among others!) at the 15th century church in Biertan, as well as the whole villages they are set in will definitely make the ride into Sighișoara enjoyable. There will then follow this captivating, highly atmospheric fortress-town going back to 1280, complete with its guild-built and managed bastions, Wooden Stairway, Church on the Hill and cobblestone-paved streets bordered by colourful houses.

• Breakfast.
• Short walks through the villages in Valea Viilor, Alma Vii and Biertan.
• Visit to Biertan Fortified Church.
• Optional (time allowing and provided they are open): visit to the Alma Vii and Valea Viilor fortified churches.
• Walk across the fortress town in Sighișoara.
• Accommodation, 3* guesthouse or hotel set in a heritage house inside the fortified town.

A longer day on the road will start with a closer look at Székely traditions. An old branch of the Hungarians preserving exquisite traditions especially as far as horse breeding (you might see some horses or horse-pulled carts up in the hills today!), wood carving (do not miss the wonderful carved wood gates often complete with the sun and moon symbolistic that is also present on the Székely flag), pottery (about that, not much later) and embroidery (with red stripes often sewn on a black and white background), the Székely still preserve the old, runic alphabet, the rovásírás (you may see the name of villages displayed in Romanian and Hungarian using the Latin alphabet, joined by the old, rovásí version). A break in Corund (locally known as Korond), a potters’ village where we shall have a closer look at this craft and its wonderful products, mostly decorated with blue depictions of flora (the tulip being the flower of choice) on a white background, while at times we might get distracted by a specific fragrance in the air, that of kürtőskalács, a pipe-like dough cake with various toppings among which sugar and cinnamon, sugar and walnuts, honey, cocoa… A drive across the Carpathians and into yet a different cultural region will follow, as we shall be passing by the scenic Red Lake, a natural dam lake with evergreen tree trunks still ghostly jutting out of the water, respectively along the dramatic Bicaz Gorges. Time allowing, we may have an optional break in Piatra Neamț, home to fine Middle Age vestiges among which an imposing tower and church, as well as to the fascinating Cucuteni Eneolithic pottery exhibition, respectively the oldest synagogue in Romania, the timber Baal Shem Tov going back to 1766; reasons enough for some to add a day or two for the city proper and also for its whereabouts including wonderful monasteries such as Agapia and Văratec and the scenic, remote Bahrin Old Believer convent (with the small log church surrounded by smaller log huts where the few monks live). Then, the evening will see us in Iași, the cultural (and not only) capital of Moldavia.

• Breakfast.
• Early start recommended.
• Visit to a potter’s workshop in Corund and presentation of the craft.
• Break by the Red Lake.
• Drive along the Bicaz Gorges.
• Optional (time allowing) break in Piatra Neamț and walk around Stephen the Great’s 1499 Tower, the Princely Church and with exterior views of the Baal Shem Tov Synagogue.
• Accommodation in Iași, period 4* hotel in or close to the city centre.

The 1925 Neogothic Palace of Culture set on the site of the old Princely Court is unmistakable while in Iași, but the city hosts many more riches including the find Trei Ierarhi Church, the National Theatre or a hotel designed by a certain Gustave Eiffel. After a walk in
town, we shall carry on back Westwards, with a break to see the eye opening collection of traditional, ritual masks set in a typical local house in Târpești. Then, after a view of the most dramatically located (80 meters above the river bed), still standing fortress in Moldavia just off Târgu Neamț set towards the end of the 14th century, we shall dive in Moldavian countryside. A handful of local people in a small village without any fortification, monastery or mansion got involved in preserving and promoting their ancestors’ traditions, from fur coat making to music playing and from the blacksmith’s anvil to the poale-n brâu (local, sweet cheese pastry) table. Therefore, let us join them while exploring traditions in this secluded village lost among the rolling hills covered with pastures and woods… And then, it will be straight into Bukovina (En. ‘Beech land’), another region of great cultural and ethnic richness, as it was here that Romanians, Jews (most of which came in from or via Galicia, a historical region in SW Ukraine), Germans, Poles, Ukrainian-speaking Ruthenians and Hutsul (highlanders), all and several others had their say.

• Breakfast.
• Tour of Iași with exterior views of the Palace of Culture, National Palace, Trei Ierarhi Church.
• Optional (time allowing) visit to the Ethnographic Collection inside the Palace of Culture in Iași.
• Visit to Neculai Popa’s collection of ritual and artistic masks in Târpești.
• View of and visit of Târgu Neamț Fortress.
• Traditional craft presentation in Dolheștii Mici: blacksmith and fur coat maker.
• Traditional lunch and live local music in Dolheștii Mici.
• Accommodation in Poieni Solca / Frasin or another village in the region, traditional guesthouse.

A great Bukovina day will commence with a look at the unglazed, unpainted, black pottery at Marginea, with its blend of religious and floral patterns. It will then be on to the painted monasteries of Sucevița (completed in 1601, with its fortress-like surrounding walls and wonderful setting at the foot of a pasture-covered hill), Moldovița (set in 1532, appearing jewel-like in its smaller yard) and Voroneț (built in 1488 and featuring the most captivating, very well preserved, blue-intensive frescoes among which the evocative Last Judgement is breath-taking). The manner in which the scenes in the Bible were transposed in vivid frescoes so that local people, quite frequently illiterate back then, could understand the holy texts, still captivates, while the quality of the craft has long amazed scholars. In between these visits, we shall have a close look at yet another local tradition, that of egg painting, with explanations of the two techniques employed in the region, the melted wax technique and the relief painting technique. And then, a wonderful day up in Bukovina cannot be complete without the great rural and natural background, from the extensive evergreen woods to the mountains all around, from the villages down the valley to the pastures dotted with cattle and summer huts or haystacks on the slopes above.

• Breakfast.
• Visit to the black pottery workshop in Marginea.
• Visit to Sucevița, Moldovița and Voroneț monasteries.
  • With an earlier start or rescheduling one or two sights for the following morning, we may also visit today Râșca Monastery, of the same period as the
    others, but with the particularity that its frescoes are in Byzantine style, a unique feature for the Bukovina monasteries of the time.
• Visit to an egg painting workshop and explanations (either in Moldvița or Brodina).
• Accommodation in Poieni Solca / Frasin or another village in the region, traditional guesthouse.

We shall not leave Bukovina before crossing the mountains twice and definitely not before heading up Bistrița River. First, the tumultuous river, especially in spring, is evocative for the times when there was no road or railroad plying the valley. A time when the logging relied on the river itself, with logs being joined together in great palm or fan-like groups and driven downstream by highly skilled sailors. While the ‘plutărit’ diminished and then vanished once lorries started to ferry down logs, the region is still strongly bound to its plutărit past and, with little agricultural land, it highly relies on logging, cattle and sheep breeding. In this particular, remote region up the Bistrița we shall make a break in Ciocănești, a village where local people ornate their house walls with plaster decorations inspired by the local embroideries. The resulting houses (candidly called ‘pui’ which also translates as ‘chicken’) are great to walk among while identifying the specifics each of them is about. Then, once over Prislop Pass and past the bustling Borșa, we shall reach the land of timber, as Maramureș is also known due to the great skill locals have when it comes down to carpentry or wood carving. It is no wonder that old churches (including some extraordinarily tall steeples), houses, and barns are all made of wood. As best examples for this, we shall visit the 17th century Church on the Hill in Ieud and the Poienile Izei church built in the same century. And then, we shall make yet another halt at the monastery off Bârsana; while rather new, the monastery best shows the local craftsmanship and artistic view with its relaxedly disposed wooden buildings set around a generous green area. The evening will see us in Sighetu Marmației, right on the Ukrainian border (border marked by Tisa River), the home town of Elie Wiesel, the one that coined the word ‘Holocaust’, but also to the infamous prison where many of the political and intellectual elite of pre-Communist Romania were jailed and died in the 1950s.

• Breakfast.
• Walk in the village of Ciocănești so as to see the exterior of local houses.
• Visit to the Hill Church in Ieud and to Poienile Izei Church.
• Visit to Bârsana Monastery.
• Accommodation in a traditional guesthouse in or just off Sighetu Marmației.

A border region now and throughout a good share of its history (for instance the Romans stopped just South of it, even though their influence penetrated), Maramureș remains a land of highly independent, tenacious and proud people, a fact that is visible in their past and present dwellings or communities. This tenacious, relentless spirit is also present in their seeing life and death as part of a greater, natural process, to the point where death is considered a natural occurrence, a necessary stage one has to go through, so that one can welcome it with a cheer and not with grief. This morning we shall take the time to explore the Merry Cemetery in Săpânța, where a local craftsman, Stan Ioan Pătraș, took this belief as the starting point when he commenced adorning the wooden crosses on his neighbours’
graves with vividly coloured depictions, as well as with funny epitaphs inspired by their lives. Then, after crossing the hills and turning Southwards, we shall be able to experience yet another, more recent tradition that emerged from a similar ancestral desire to be tenacious, to be successful and perceived as such at the social level. The expensive, large and modern villas in Huta Certeze, while they have no shortage of counterparts throughout the Maramureș we have just left and the whole country (from Buzescu in Southern Romania to Huedin in Western Romania to name but two communities where they abound), generally remain uninhabited for most of the year, as their owners left Romania, living and working abroad, but, once they got the money for that, they had them built in order to show the communities they were born in that they are doing well; then, the principle saying that ‘if my neighbour has a two storey villa, I shall have a three storey one’ sufficed to create an opulent, if ghostly, lineup of properties that could hardly come in a starker contrast with the natural background, respectively with the traditional region they were set in. Back on the road, we shall carry on and reach Satu Mare, in the central square of which we shall meet the Secession architecture (part of a greater process taking part mainly between 1890 and 1910, that saw its various approaches throughout Europe, whether this was about the Stile Liberty in Italy, the Art Nouveau in France, the Glasgow Style in Scotland, the Jugendstil in Germany or the Sezessionstil in the then Austro-Hungarian Empire). It will then be on South to Oradea, the Secession style city that was revived several years ago when most of its downtown monuments were restored; the Vulturul Negru Passage and adjacent palace will definitely charm us at the end of a long day!

• Breakfast.
• Visit to the Merry Cemetery in Săpânța.
  • Optional break in Huta-Certeze.
• Break in Liberty Square in Satu Mare and introduction to the Secession architecture.
• Walking tour in Oradea taking in the Vulturul Negru Passage, Republicii Street and the Moon Church.
• Accommodation in Oradea, 3* hotel set in a historical property.

Today we shall head Eastwards to Cluj. The second most populous city in the country and home to the biggest university in the country according to the number of students (as the university has two sections, a Hungarian and a Romanian-speaking one that generally double courses, Cluj is a bustling, vibrant city with a captivating student and IT youth vibe. The city gravitates around the central, Gothic, 14th century St. Michael’s Church, it preserves a fine part of the original fortifications complete of which Bethlen Bastion is evocative, as well as Hungarian King Mattyas Corvinus’ birth house. A walk across the pedestrian area in the vicinity of the latter will allow us to dive into the atmosphere of this thriving city. And then, we shall return to the riches of rural, ancestral life. Leaving the main road, we shall approach Trascău Mountains and there, in the wonderful setting at the foot of the fairy tale-like Székely Kő (En. Székely’s Cliffs), we shall find Rimetea, a village complete with its impeccably white old houses plying the road with mathematical rigor. The rural architecture, the setting, the traditional agriculture run by the locals and the excellent dairy products (one needs try the Floare de colț specialty), as well as, for the willing, a walk towards the said cliffs or a hike up to their peak affording grand views of the region, all will blend in to complete yet another great day across the country.

• Breakfast.
• Walk across the pedestrian area in Cluj, around St. Michael’s and along Eroilor Avenue.
  • Optional (not included, only possible based on a shortened tour of Cluj): visit to Turda Salt Mine.
• Walk in Rimetea to take in the traditional houses, with the option to taste the Torockoi dairy products (if arriving too late, it can also be done the following morning).
  • Optional (time allowing): walk towards the foot of the Székely Kő or hike to its top.
• Accommodation in a traditional guesthouse or a mansion-like bed and breakfast adorned with traditional furniture and rugs in Rimetea or Colțești nearby.

Trascău Mountains might not ring a bell to many, even to many Romanians, as these mountains are neither dramatic or rugged like the Făgăraș and Bucegi, nor spectacular or popular like the Piatra Craiului. Instead, they combine nature and man-made heritage in a highly balanced, harmonious manner, as the communities there, sometimes very small (to the point where even calling them hamlets is too much), perfectly blend in with the background. The typical houses in the region used to have thatched roofs and were built of strong logs, while locals lived out of a mixture of cattle, sheep or honey bee breeding and small scale agriculture, given the hilly terrain; at the same time, given the fact that many such communities were remotely located, people relied heavily on barter, exchanging their produce for others’. The day will therefore start with a drive along a recently paved (2024) 78 km. road crossing Trascău Mountains and providing a great image of their wonderful, eye charming nature, traditional communities and sense of remoteness. And while there are no castles, fortresses or impressive old towns along the way, we shall not miss those when up there. Then, with a total change of scenery, the afternoon will see us in multiethnic Timișoara, with its history that included the Hungarians, Tartars and Ottomans, that saw the city come to an extraordinary development under Austrian, then Austro-Hungarian rule. Today, we shall definitely enjoy a walk taking in some of its iconic sights such as the Orthodox Cathedral inspired by the monasteries in Bukovina, the Baroque Palace, the Catholic Dome and the Bastion, part of the once extensive fortification around the city proper; less imposing places such as the Iron Tree will spice up our experience here with their stories.

• Breakfast.
• Drive along the Transapuseana Road.
• Walk in Timișoara taking in the Orthodox Cathedral, the Opera House Square, Liberty Square, Union Square and its adjacent streets, the Bastion and the Iron Tree.
• Accommodation in Timișoara, 3* or 4* guesthouse or heritage property hotel.

After spending the night in the capital of Banat, we shall explore more of this once highly heterogeneous, historical region (not only in terms of population, but also in terms of geography, as we shall see along the way) that is nowadays splat between three countries: Hungary, Romania and Serbia. After the Roman Withdrawal in 273 AD, Banat saw wave upon wave of migration or invasion including the Goths, Huns, Gepids, Avars, the growth and dissipation of the First Bulgarian Empire, the Cumans, Hungarians, Ottomans, then the turning point given by the Treaty of Passarowitz that marked the beginning of the Habsburg
rule (followed by the Austro-Hungarian rule) over the region and the major development that came with it, and the region even saw its declaration of independence as an autonomous state, even though a short lived one lasting two weeks in October 1918. The mosaic of ethnic groups that lived or still live in Banat will definitely have us admire the vernacular architecture along the way together with the often bucolic natural background, and this will come to a climax during the break we shall make in Rudăria to see the water mills there, of which 13 lie in the village proper and 9 in the neighbourhood, in a wonderful, impressionist painting-like natural area; and this is just the tip of the iceberg, as there used to be 51 such water mills at the dawn of the 20th century, while a massive flood in 1910 and the twists and turns of history had their number reduced afterwards. And then, the water story still in our mind, we shall join the Danube, the ancient Istros as Greeks called it, and follow it downstream along its grand gorges where it creates the natural border line between Romania and Serbia. Compared with the river length of about 2730 km. from the Black Forest Mountains in Germany to Sulina in Romania, the 134 km. long Danube Gorges might seem little, but we might have a different opinion while following the massive river past the 14th century Golubac Fortress guarding the approach to its gorges and picturing it before the creation of the Iron Gate Hydroelectric Dam completed in 1972, at a time when the river was (in)famous for its rapids, the uneven river bed complete with pointed cliffs and sharp turns which made navigation extremely difficult. To allow more time to contemplate the Danube and the whole history that comes with it, from the Tabula Traiana to the nowadays submerged Ada Kaleh Island (hosting a homogenous Turkish population), we shall spend the night in a guesthouse by the mighty river.

• Breakfast.
• Walk to see the watermills down Rudăria Valley.
• Drive along the Danube Gorges from Moldova Veche to Dubova.
• Accommodation in Dubova or around, 3* guesthouse.

Not possible on Mondays and Tuesdays (unless Constantin Brâncuși’s house is opted out)

After carrying on along the Danube Gorges and emerging from them in Drobeta-Turnu Severin, the point where Apollodorus of Damascus built the first bridge over the river completed in 105 AD, we shall leave the river and head to Târgu Jiu to look into the life and work of a man that revolutionized sculpture in the beginning of the 20th century. Born in a village not very far from Târgu Jiu, Constantin Brâncuși is considered among the pioneers of Modernism with his reverting to what he considered to be the authentic, core simplicity; his Bird in Space and Madame Pogany still puzzle those seeing them for the first – and not only the first – time. More than anything, his memorial house in Hobița stands as an outstanding example of vernacular architecture where timber was the main raw material and of the way locals used space as a means of organizing their existence. After this break and introduction in the Wallachian tradition, we shall reach Târgu Jiu and see Brâncuși’s works of art there, all planned and placed with a geometric mind in 1938: the Gate of the Kiss, the Table of Silence and the Column of Infinity. Leaving Târgu Jiu with the Column of Infinity in mind (not only because it will be the last Brâncuși sight there), we shall carry on across smooth foothills of the apparently distant Parâng and Căpățânii Mountains Northwards, reaching Horezu with its two major attractions, both as interesting. First, completed in 1693, Hurezi Monastery stands as a major work of Brâncoveanu architecture. Ruler of Wallachia, Constantin Brâncoveanu created his own architectural style, by blending in Western
Baroque and Oriental lines, all that on the background given by vernacular patterns. Then, we shall see a similar interest in colour while admiring the Horezu pottery in the workshop of one of the local craftsmen: the feather design, the Horezu rooster pattern, as well as the frequent solar motifs will further introduce us in the Wallachian art and life approach.

• Breakfast.
• Visit to Constantin Brâncuși’s birth home in Hobița, a fine sample of vernacular architecture in the region.
• Walk in Târgu Jiu to see Constantin Brâncuși’s three works: the Gate of the Kiss, the Table of Silence and the Column of Infinity.
• Visit to Hurezi Monastery.
• Presentation of the Horezu pottery.
• Accommodation near Horezu, 4* hotel set in traditional style or 4* mansion.

Not possible on Mondays (unless the Măldărești ‘culas’ and the two museums in Craiova are opted out)

A particularity in a great share of the Balkan Peninsula, Medieval tower houses can be found from Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina to North Macedonia and Wallachia (more specifically Oltenia, the part of Wallachia we are in). Usually built of stone, later of brick, they had 2-4 storeys, and blended in the residential and military functions, as they acted as small fortresses meant to protect an extended family. Which reminds one the fact that their very name in Serbian (kula), Albanian (kulla) or Romanian (culă) is derived from Arabic qal’a via the Turkish kule meaning a fortress or fort. The two such buildings we are going to see this morning, Greceanu’s and Duca’s, date from the 18th, respectively 19th centuries, and show a fine association of the original defensive features and art. The strong hardwood doors, high ceilings, narrow ground floor (or lack of) windows, the picturesque loggia and the overall massive looks are highly evocative for the time and situation they were built in. After this insight in Balkan culture, we shall carry on Southwards to Craiova, the de facto capital of Oltenia and the historical seat of the ‘bans’ (local rulers coming from a powerful landlord family), a place that saw, among others, the Hungarians, Ottomans, Austrians, Ottomans anew, come and go. Craiova will welcome us in all its diversity, equally unexpected and rewarding for a place – and region for that matter – little mentioned in guidebooks. We shall definitely enjoy its pedestrian streets talking of its once thriving trading life, the old church at Coșuna Monastery completed in 1572 and featuring the Byzantine building style of different alternating layers when putting up a wall, Constantin Brâncoveanu’s House of the Bans going back to 1699 and featuring a blend of the fortified culas and the typical Brâncoveanu decorative style, and, not least, Dini Mihail’s Palace, an eye-catching, impeccably white residence from 1896 and currently hosting the art museum complete with fine sculptures by Constantin Brâncuși.

• Breakfast.
• Visit to the two culas in Măldărești.
• Visit to the church of the Coșuna Monastery.
• Walk across the old town in Craiova including a visit to the Ethnographic Museum hosted in Bans’ House and a visit to the Art Museum hosted in Dini Mihail’s Palace.
• Accommodation in Craiova, elegant 3* guesthouse hosted in a period house.

Not possible on Mondays (unless Potlogi Palace is opted out)

Heading Eastwards across the Danubian Plains towards Bucharest, we shall make a short detour to see Potlogi Palace. One of the two well preserved, out of Bucharest residences of Prince Constantin Brâncoveanu, the Potlogi was built in 1698 next to the church the prince had erected in 1683. While not large (‘manor house’ would describe it better, but the tumultuous Middle Ages in Wallachia usually did not allow larger properties to be built), the property features the typical, wonderful Brâncoveanu style exterior stairway in carved stone and fine stucco decorations featuring floral motifs around the windows that remind one of the Persian patterns employed at mansions in distant Kashan. After this visit we shall carry on to Bucharest, a city that will captivate us with its contrasts, whether they are about the architecture, cuisine, buzzing and peaceful quarters. Mentioned for the first time in 1459 by Vlad the Impaler and with the capital of Wallachia settled here after slowly making its way South of the mountains, Bucharest developed as a trading and craftsman post. A walk across the old town will reveal cobblestone streets bearing the names of the guilds that once flourished here or of the towns merchants with their ware came from (such as Gabroveni from Gabrovo or Lipscani from Lipsca or Leipzig), while at the same time revealing some of the still standing inns around which the town developed and the old churches with their fine architecture and evocative mural painting. With a diminishing Ottoman influence in the 19th century, the city started looking for light Westwards and the grand edifice we shall see while having a drive down or around the popular Calea Victoriei testify that. The Communist regime that followed WW2 complete with its great number of casualties would see major heritage across Romania torn down and replaced with insipid, ugly and dysfunctional residential or administrative projects. All that to a point where it amazes one to see that the same city can host at the same time thousands upon thousands of matchbox style apartment buildings, jewel-like churches and monasteries, outstanding museums of which some excellent artists’ houses, serene, leafy turn-of-the-20th-century residential districts and impressive Neoclassical or Modernist architecture. Therefore, with as little time as one might have for it, Bucharest will definitely catch one’s eye with all its contrasts and colour.

• Breakfast.
• Visit to Potlogi Palace.
• Drive down Calea Victoriei and / or other historical central avenues (note: especially during the week-end in summer, the Calea Victoriei might be closed to traffic and pedestrianized); break and presentation in Revoluției Square, with views of the Royal Palace, the Central University Library and the Athenaeum.
• Walk across the old town with its merchant and craftsmen streets, with views of the old churches (Stavropoleos, the Old Court) and inns (Hanul lui Manuc, Hanul Gabroveni, Hanul cu Tei) there.
  • Optional (not included): an outstanding, domed auditorium complete with its grand foyer and spiral stairways, the 1888 Athenaeum hosts classical music concerts which are highly recommended; furthermore, the 72 m. long fresco decorating the main hall depicts scenes from the history of Romanians; if of interest, tickets need be purchased well in advance.
• Accommodation in a 4* hotel hosted by a characterful, elegant period property in the city centre or on the verge of the former Jewish Quarter or in a 5* historic hotel down the Calea Victoriei.

The city could have us extensively wander to discover its sometimes easy to reach, other times well concealed riches whether this is about its fine architecture residential districts, great array of museums some of which hosted in memorable houses, captivating market places revealing fresh farming produce and good crafts, omnipresent pastry or bagel shops finely blending in the East and West or, well, its odd Văcărești Urban Delta, where nature took over the typical derelict, pointless Communist era prospect. But, if time is not on our side now, it may very well be in the future. Until then, we shall say farewell with the late Maria Tănase’s lyrics and great character in mind:

‘Lume, lume, soră lume,
Când mă satur de tine,
Lume, soră lume?’

En. approx.:
‘World, ye world of mine,
How could I ever have enough of you,
World, oh, ye world of mine?’

• Breakfast.
• Optional: in case of an afternoon or evening flight out (or more days to spend in Bucharest for that matter), we recommend further exploration of the city including, for instance:
  • A walk across the interwar districts of Cotroceni and Dorobanți, with their villas built in an appealing diversity of styles from the Neoclassical, Italianate, neo-Brâncoveanu or Neogothic to the Modernist.
  • A visit to the open air Village Museum founded in 1936 by Sociologist Dimitrie Gusti and consisting of genuine, traditional houses from different parts of Romania brought to Bucharest and set village-like in the city’s largest park, the Herăstrău.
  • A walk or drive and walk across the former Jewish District in a city that hosted a 95,000 strong Jewish community back in 1940. The streets of Romulus, Remus and the Calea Dudești, as well as the still functional Yeshua Tova Synagogue, Choral Temple and Jewish Theatre, or the museum – hosting Great Synagogue and Holy Union Synagogue are all evocative for the great role the Jewish community played in the history of the city and country.
  • A visit to the Romanian art wing at the National Art Museum hosted in the Royal Palace; the exhibition follows a chronological approach, hence emphasizing the style evolution and influence shift, and it includes some great local painters such as, among others, impressionists Nicolae Grigorescu and Ștefan Luchian, surrealist Victor Brauner and cubist Maxy, as well as fine sculptors among which Dimitrie Paciurea and Constantin Brâncuși.
  • A walk across the old residential districts of Sfântul Ștefan or Icoanei with their leafy gardens and airy houses which makes them atypical for a large city, the former not far from the Mântuleasa where religion historian and writer Mircea Eliade spent his childhood and found inspiration for his short stories.
  • A leisure walk across the Văcărești Delta, a vast area on the bottom of an abandoned reservoir that was taken over by nature, nowadays hosting a rich deltaic fauna and flora, all that within the city.
• Transfer to Bucharest OTP Airport for the outbound flight (please allow 1 hour – 1 hour 30 minutes for the drive, according to the time of the day).
• End of services.