Today was advertised as a "long day", but it didn't feel that way. Admittedly we did cross the Carpathian mountain range, but the drive was broken up by visits to two of the most famous castles in Romania:
Peles Castle, the summer residence of Carol 1 and Bran's Castle which has all sorts of links to the famous Count with the long teeth. It should be added that Peles Castle is technically en route to Transilvania rather than in it...but close enough!
Carol was quite the philanthropist. His reign is seen as the real golden period of Romanian history. Understanding his mindset helps explain the elaborate features of his castle. At first glance it could come across as ostentacious and self indulgent..a smaller, but fancier expression of the useless selfishness that we observed in the massive structure in Bucharest that is the Palace of Parliament. The real story, however, was that this was actually more a Romanian version of the "where the bloody hell are you?" campaign... but none of the cherubs had a duck face.
A micro history lesson is required at this point:
There was much argy bargy in the region after the 1848 revolutions that spread across Europe. The concepts of Wallachia, Transylvania and Moldova developed beyond rough just areas of serfdom with a common gene pool, but essentially they all remained under Ottoman rule until the war between the Russians and Turks in 1877-78. The "Romanians" fortunately sided with the victorious Russians so the area south of the Carpathians was recognised as an independent state at the Treaty of Berlin in 1878. Russia enveloped the Moldovan region as part of the deal. In 1881 their status was raised to a kingdom with Prince Carol elevated to King Carol 1 of Romania. In WWI Romania sided with the Allies and at the end of the war were rewarded with the unification of the three territories of Wallachia, Transylvania and Moldova to form the nation of Romania. So Romania was late to the party in terms of being at the big boys table. Things would go a bit pear shaped when they sided with Germany in WW2, but prior to this Romania was keen to become a grown up nation and to be seen on the map.
Carol was acutely aware of the importance of enhancing Romania's status. He insisted that the Orient express stop in Bucharest and Brasov on its way to Istanbul from Paris. He also built a wonderful castle to impress the well to do visitors who would stop along the way. In order to impress he employed three architects from different countries and created a building full of wondrous Bavarian carvings, glass chandeliers and mirrors from Modena, central heating and even a central vacuum outlet system. Even when he was living there he resided in the less beautiful upstairs section and invited the public to wander through the downstairs area at their leisure. He was not fleecing the public to fulfil his own fancies, but was instead leading one of the most sophisticated tourism marketing campaigns of modern history. He was a nationalist, a philanthropist and is a revered figure in Romanian history.
We were certainly wowed by both the exterior and the interior of the Castle. We were not wowed by the organisation. Despite being winter, the Peles Castle was still a popular site. George managed to get us there at the equivalent of a Disney rope drop for the first English tour, only for them to let a large rowdy group of school children through first. After that, groups of people were allowed to push up in an amongst our group, speaking loudly, and taking photos without paying the fee (common here). Multiple staff at various points along the way did nothing to moderate the situation. This meant we couldn't hear our guide, whose straight-faced humour was like Natasha from Rocky & Bullwinkle.
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| Peles Castle |
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| Intricate timber work |
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| Amazingly detailed painting |
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| Outdoor taps did not escape special treatment |
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| Hurray for George for getting us early! Waiting for our "official" tour to start |
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| And we're off, being herded like sheep... |
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| One of the first imposing views that visitors see |
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| Just like the words of the song from "If I were a rich man" in Fiddler on the roof - stairs going nowhere just for show... |
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| The King loved collecting weapons and had an impressive collection |
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| including this full set of armour for riderand horse |
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| The Castle had its own "theatre" |
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| Ornate door handles |
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| Even tiny nooks had intricate details everywhere |
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| Fireplace |
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| Embelished pokers |
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| The music room! Too big to capture in one shot |
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| Of course we all have harps in our music rooms... |
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| Murano glass chandeliers |
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| My favourite piece in the castle. The intricate work is phenomenal and the colours so vibrant |
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| The central panel |
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| The "legs" |
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| How is this for marble work?! |
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| Hello??!?! Dining room... |
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| By this stage, I couldn't actually hear what this room is for |
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| Turkish salon |
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| Custom made mirrors |
Bran's Castle has connections to Dracula (Vlad the Impaler) and Bram Stoker's Dracula but it appears that no blood sucking count actually stepped foot in the place. It is now a museum for the collections of Queen Marie, the last queen of Romania and wife of Ferdinand the first. Despite the foreboding external appearance, the interior is quite homely with simple, but pretty furniture and plenty of tiled room heaters. We were free to explore the Castle and George was allowed in to act as our guide so overall it was a much more enjoyable experience. Some kurtos and garlic filled langos pre-visit and shopping at the souvenir market post-visit enhanced our appreciation....
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| Langos with cream cheese, garlic and cheese. Freshly made, piping hot, mmm.... |
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| Passed the taste test |
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| The giant kurtos |
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| Also known as chimney cake |
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| For once, there was silence |
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| Bran castle atop a hill |
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| The surprisingly cosy interior! |
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| Hidden stairways |
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| A hit with the kids who scrambled up in no time |
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| The queen's private rooms |
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| Ornate fireplaces |
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| The Kings rooms had the beautiful bavarian style painted doors |
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| even the beams were painted |
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| View of the town of Brasov below |
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| The castle courtyard |
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| Wait...that's not just a banner. It's Oma! |
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| Channeling our inner dracula |
Our home for the next two nights was Casa Wagner at the gorgeous medieval town of Brasov. The location was superb being right smack bang in the central square. However, for those with difficulties doing stairs or walking, be aware that being conveniently located in the Old Town Centre meant that you can't be dropped off right outside the hotel, and that a short walk on cobblestones is necessary. Also the building is old so there is no lifts.
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| Location, location, location! |
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| Our hotel in the middle of the square |
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| Three stars, and rustic, but clean and comfortable |
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| He loves his own loft |
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| with his own bed! |
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| Clean bathroom |
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| Christmas market right outside! |
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| Trying palinka... |
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| The children couldn't resist these... |
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| A very large and vey decorated gingerbread cookie! |
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| The little one wanted his own too |
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