I thought an appropriate title for this post should have been “Romania - Run Down in a Beautiful Way.” Similar to some of the other countries we have been to in the last few weeks, Romania was greatly affected by the wars and communism. But just like those other countries, Romania is slowly but surely building back up. We haven’t stopped talking about how obsessed America is with fixer-upper houses and how people’s minds would explode if they saw some of these incredible houses/mansions sitting empty or in need of few repairs. Here is a summary of the 3 cities we visited.
Sibiu - Our first stop in Romania was in the small city of Sibiu which is located in the famous Transylvania region. We enjoyed our time here but we probably spent too much time here because there’s not a whole lot to do. When you research what to do in Sibiu, one of the top options is walking across the “Bridge of Lies.” The Bridge of Lies is a 20 ft. pedestrian bridge that is supposed to collapse if a lie is told on it. If a pedestrian bridge is in the top things to do in a city, you can assume it’s not the most exciting city. Now that’s not to say it wasn’t an adorable city that we enjoyed. We probably just didn’t need 5 days here.
In terms of touristy things we did do and would suggest:
Brukenthal Museum that is right in the main square and is a history/art museum highlighting Romania.
We rented a car for a day ($27) and took a day trip to Corvin Castle, which was about 1.5 hours outside Sibiu.
Walk on the Bridge of Lies (just kidding). I mean, do it but I feel bad for you if this is the reason you are visiting Sibiu or the highlight of your trip to Sibiu.
This is about it for touristy things. We really enjoyed just walking in the old town and there also happened to be a movie festival going on in the town so it was always lively. The most enjoyable part was just looking at all of the houses because they were run down but almost in an artistic way that looked intentional. In the end, we enjoyed Sibiu but it only deserves a day or two at most.
Brasov - Our next Romanian stop was in the city of Brasov. It was a breath of fresh air, literally. It is surrounded by the Carpathian mountains and has the mountain town feel about it. We really enjoyed this town and the amount of time we spent here (5 full days) because there was always something to do if we wanted. Here are our highlights from Brasov:
Tampa Hill - Overlooking the city of Brasov is a giant hill/small mountain and it even has the Hollywood signage welcoming you to the city. You can climb this hill or take a cable car to the top for a great view of Brasov and of the Carpathian mountain range. I hiked up here a couple of times and there are also some additional trails up there if you want to get in some hikes.
Bran Castle - Dracula’s castle! Well, kind of. Come to find out, Bram Stoker (author of Dracula) never actually visited Romania but instead used a description of Bran Castle that was available to him. They very well could be taking liberties with declaring it Dracula’s castle but whatever, it was still cool. The castle is about a 45 minute bus ride outside of Brasov and I am sure it looks incredible during any season but there was something about seeing it in the fall (close to Halloween) that made it even more beautiful. We also did the tour inside which was maybe a little pricey and way too crowded but the architecture inside was worth it.
The Liberty Bear Sanctuary - We had read a few reviews talking about a bear sanctuary outside of the city that we had to see. Unfortunately, it is a huge pain to get to and even worse trying to get the limited number of tickets but we finally found a site that took us and provided us entrance tickets (details below). The Liberty Bear Sanctuary is home to over 70 bears that have been previously abused, abandoned at birth, or wander into cities. They show you a video and tell you some heartbreaking stories about how during the time of Communist rule there were no rules/laws protecting the bears so you would go to restaurants that would have small cages with bears out front to attract visitors. Very heartbreaking, but it made us so happy to see them taken care of now.
NOTES ABOUT THE SANCTUARY:
The sanctuary is only about a 30 minute drive outside of Brasov and you can drive there. BUT the last 10 minutes is on a VERY nasty unpaved road, so beware.
We went through Brasov Day Tours which provided transportation and the tickets. This was the most expensive touristy thing we have done in Romania ($80 the ride and tickets) but we have no regrets.
Do NOT take kids under 5 because they won’t let them in. We witnessed 3 families show up with kids under 5, were turned away and the families were not happy (we had a good laugh though).
You can tell they really care about the health of the bears. So much so that they only do tours of 50 people and only at 9:15, 10:15, and 11:15. They don’t let you wander either so you are in and out in no more than 60 minutes.
City Square (Restaurants, Bars, and Shops) - It’s official… we want to live in a European city with a city square. It never gets old going to a place with an old town city square. Yes, these squares are usually filled with tourists, Starbucks, and expensive restaurants with patios but it really does feel like it’s where the locals come to meet and enjoy each other’s company. Brasov, with its mountain backdrop, was no exception. The square and surrounding streets were filled with energy, good food and great spots for a drink.
Bucharest - Our last stop in Romania was in the capital city of Bucharest. In the opening paragraph I said that a good title would have been “Romania-Run Down in a Beautiful Way” and Bucharest was the number one example of this. We hadn’t read bad things about Bucharest but they also weren’t the most flattering either. Transportation is bad, there is no parking so cars just park on the sidewalks, electrical wires are everywhere, and there isn’t a single building without graffiti. But if you are able to look past some of these things you will be rewarded with some incredibly beautiful sights. Our favorite stops and sights included:
Book stores - Bucharest has some incredible book stores that are cafes, shops and a bookstore all in one. They are also usually in some pretty incredible buildings.
Parliament Building - The sheer size of this thing is incredible (see picture below).
Caru' cu Bere - This was an awesome beer hall that used to be a church and we loved it so much we came back a couple of times. Not to mention their happy hour is great with 2 for 1 beers from 4:00-6:00.
Architecture - I am going to go out on a limb and guess that Bucharest isn’t known for their architecture but for whatever reason, we loved walking around and looking at the buildings. As I said above, a lot of places were run down but it made them more interesting and incredible.
