Dracula Day

Saturday Sept 24

We had to wake early for breakfast at and be packed and ready for our guide Catalin. (Yes it sounds like a female's name to us but he was male). It was miserable trying to wake up so early. Any travel day is exhausting and ideally we should have slept in. But we had to travel a good distance today and take in several stops along the way so we had no choice. 

If you are familiar with Mark's ambitious travel schedules its no surprise. He would not intentionally schedule any sleep if it meant missing "The Annual Measuring of the Invasive Impacted Snail Trail" in some remote village only a 12 hour ride away, at night, in the rain, by motorcycle. Admittedly this was one of those days that we had no choice and as we found out, he certainly did plan the right thing for us this time.

We made it for breakfast, a decent buffet at the hotel including an assortment of meats and cheeses, cereals, waffles, breads and eggs, but not a minute more to spare as our guide was right on time. It took a little while to get everything in order after arriving so late the night before and I think I got maybe 4 hours of sleep. The rest may have gotten a little more, but we were all still very tired. 

Our guide was a local and has been working in tourism most of his life. Mark rode up front with him and spent a good bit of time chatting with Mark about the financial, political and economic state of Romania. The rest of us were in the back seat fighting off sleep and trying to watch the countryside.

I knew little about Romania before planning this trip. The only images in my mind were dark creepy castles and eternally darkened forests full of wolves concealed by thick mists. Turns out Romania is quite beautiful. Its like driving through the forests of Arkansas, then through West Virginia and then through Colorado. Romania is famous of course for Transylvania and the legend of Dracula, and although the character was based on a real man, there was little correlation to the blood drinking undead man we know Dracula to be from the movies.

Romania has just vast amounts of undeveloped forested lands, and much of it is part of the Carpathian Mountain range boasting beautiful landscapes and snow capped mountains. The place is still very green and has obviously had plenty of water this summer although they have had some unusually hot temperatures this year. Catalin mentioned that they have become over-populated with brown bears which have become quite a danger. We saw plenty of bear crossing signs along the highways.

Although automobiles were everywhere, we also saw quite a few horse drawn carts. They were quite numerous in fact and we had to be careful not to hit them when on the highways. 

Our first stop for the day was at Peles Castle. Commissioned by King Carol I in 1873 and completed in 1883, the castle served as the summer residence of the royal family. The castle covers over 34,000 sq feet and has 160 rooms fully adorned with the finest examples of European art, and considered one of the most luxurious castles in Europe. 

King Carol spared no expense and today the value is incalculable. The castle stands out for some elements that are truly surprising for its time period, such as its own hydro plant, central heating, hot and cold running water, a moving glass roof and even an elevator. It was the first European castle to have electricity. 

Each room is decorated in a different style or theme.

There is a Concert Hall, Music Room (India), Turkish Salon, Great Salon (Italy), Council Room (Switzerland), Moor Hall, and so many more. The Royal Library has a secret door and the castle's 60-seat Theater showed the first movie projection in Romania in 1906.

The building was by far the most incredible I have ever seen. The priceless antiques seemed to be without end and every inch of the floor, walls and ceiling were covered with art. To say it was breathtaking is an understatement. We were there for 90 minutes and it was not near enough time to see it all. 

We next took a quick detour to Caraiman monastery for some views of the mountains and then headed to Transylvania and Bran Castle. 

Commonly known outside Transylvania as Dracula's Castle, it is marketed as the home of the title character in Bram Stoker's Dracula. There is no evidence though that Stoker knew anything about this castle, which has no verified associations with Vlad the Impaler, the putative inspiration for Dracula. Stoker's description of Dracula's crumbling fictional castle also bears no resemblance to Bran Castle, yet tourists flock to the castle anyhow hoping to find some connection to the fictional character. The castle is now a museum dedicated to displaying art and furniture collected by Queen Marie.

Although Bram castle and the supposed "history" of Count Dracula was a fun concept and did offer an air of excitement, this castle was no where near as impressive as Peles Castle, yet it was a worthwhile stop and we got some great pictures.

Another hour and we were at our hotel, the Double Tree in Sighișoara, Transylvania. Sighișoara is a popular tourist destination for its well-preserved walled old town, which is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Sighișoara is one of the most important cities of Transylvania, with artisans from throughout the Holy Roman Empire visiting the settlement. The German artisans and craftsmen dominated the urban economy, as well as building the fortifications protecting it. 

Sighișoara is one of the few fortified towns that are still inhabited. A medieval stronghold was built on top of the hill and is known as the Citadel. The houses inside Sighișoara Citadel show the main features of a craftsmen's town. Buildings are ornate and often painted in bright colors. Inside the walled city there is a Parisian feels with cafes, restaurants, merchants and entertainers lining the streets. 

Being Diamond members I had a free upgrade to my room and was given a two level suite. The room is about 4 times the size of a standard hotel room. Mark is also a Diamond member but still got a small normal sized room. Since he is still pretty unhappy about that I wont say in more about it cause he may eventually read this blog. Hopefully its after we get back home.

We got settled and walked to our first restaurant right behind the hotel which had the most amazing food selection. We all got something different and it was all fantastic. Also within just feet of the hotel was a bakery and ice cream shops. This is gonna be a great week!