Transylvania

The Great Train Escape to Transylvania

Miles Traveled: 4,736

Countries Visited: 2

Cities Visited: 5

Dracula Sightings: 0

After seriously considering moving to Budapest (just kidding Mom and Dad!). We decided to shake things up a bit and immerse ourselves in the last dignified, but dying, form of travel and take the railways through Transylvania. Our original plans for traveling through the Balkans included visiting Croatia, Serbia, and Montenegro, however we found that many of these countries were not connected by rail and involved grueling all day bus rides. Lucky for us, Romania was there to provide an alternative path to our final destination in Europe - Istanbul. Though technically not part of the Balkans, Romania is home to some of the most beautiful and wild areas in Europe up in the Carpathian mountain range. These mountains make a U shape in the center of the country and are mostly found within the Transylvania region - a place packed with fortified Saxon churches and pristine national parks - not just vampires.

Before WWI, some parts of Transylvania were part of Hungary. And before that in 1242 a Hungarian king named Bela IV invited Saxon foreigners (German peoples from Luxembourg, Flanders and Austria) to help settle the region they called Erdely in order to reconstruct an area that was devastated by Mongol invaders. The Saxon settlers were granted noble lands and were ordered to build stone fortresses to fend off future invasions. They constructed the Siebenburgen (seven fortress towns) which included Sibiu, Sighisoara, Medias, Sebes, Brasov, Bistrita and Cluj Napoca. The combination of Saxon buildings and dense forest makes this area feel more like Bavaria than Romania. This is why the region has three names depending on who you ask; Siebenburgen in German, Erdley in Hungarian and Transylvania in Romanian.

Most of the German population left in the 80's during Romania's more oppressive brand of Communism rule, so the region now consists mostly of Romanians and a large minority of ethnic Hungarians, or Szekely peoples in the north. We generally found the Romanians to be less reserved and more emotive than their Hungarian neighbors. Down here restaurants were more lively, couples were a lot more affectionate with each other (lots of PDA), stereos were played at volumes that make tarmac seem serene and some Romanians had no problems getting into a staring contests on the train or metro or restaurant. Another interesting fact -  for some reason every cashier wants exact change, every single one. Maybe someone with a deeper knowledge of Romanian culture can tell us why? Overall we found them to be very friendly and a little quirky.

Hope you enjoy are our pics of train travels through Transylvania...   

Transylvania by Rail

Our path through Transylvania

Romania has an extensive, but decaying,  rail network run by the state owned CFR. It is the most efficient way to get around Romania as they only have a few major highways and Romanian drivers seem to have a death wish. The ride through the Carpathians is incredibly scenic as we passed through mountain gorges, gypsy villages (they prefer to be called Roma), rolling hills swarming with sheep, and rivers with local fisherman. The cities on our tour included Cluj Napoca, Sighisoara, Brasov, and Bucharest. Tips for riding the railways in Romania can be found below.

Cluj Napoca 

Cluj Napoca is one of the largest cities in Transylvania and is home to about ten universities and 50,000 college students while school is in session. It is also a very popular place for dental tourism for Europeans looking for cheap dental work. When we told our cab driver in Budapest that we were going to Cluj Napoca, his friendly demeanor quickly turned serious and he sternly corrected us, "Its called Kolozsvár". Apparently this is one the cities the Hungarians lost after WWI and some remember it like it happened yesterday.

Despite it's large population and more urban vibe, you'll find yourself running out of things to do after a day or so. However, it makes for a good stop over after a 8 hour train ride from Budapest or a good home base for trekking the Apuseni mountains (they have a large airport too). We tried make a day trip to the Turda salt mine but we (mostly Fausto) got hopelessly lost trying to find the bus station. Friendly Romanians tried to point us in the right directions but even with their incessant pointing our lack of language skills proved to be no help. A few signs will go a long way Cluj!

One of the more interesting moments on our trip happened when we found ourselves in the middle of a large demonstration on the way to the hotel. Romanians have taken to the streets in Cluj and Bucharest to protest a new law that would destroy much of their cherished Rosia Montana in the Apuseni mountain range.

According to the Guardian (link):

"The protests erupted after the Romanian government proposed a draft law Aug. 27 that gives extraordinary powers to the project promoter, Rosia Montana Gold Corporation (in which Canadian group Gabriel Resources is the majority stakeholder).

According to the text, the company can relocate people whose homes are on the perimeter of the mine. Additionally, the law asks state authorities to grant the company all necessary permits within set deadlines regardless of national legislation, court rulings or public participation requirements.

Gold Corporation plans to build Europe's largest gold mine at Rosia Montana to extract 300 tonnes of gold and 1,600 tonnes of silver over 17 years. The operation would involve the destruction of three villages and four mountains.

In all, 12,000 tonnes of cyanide would be used yearly and 13 million tons of mining waste produced each year, according to a project presentation submitted by the company to the Ministry of Environment."

But they are creating jobs! Am I right? (what's the sarcasm emoticon?)

First of several protests since we left Cluj.

Piatra Cruilui National Park. An example of the beauty in Romania's back yard. Not the Rosia Montana (which is actually more stunning I hear) which is in Apuseni mountains near Cluj.

Cluj's main plaza - Piata Unirii with Banffy Palace in the background. 

A controversial statue of Hungarian King Matei Corvin in Piata Unirii.  There is a plaque on a nearby building that says " The Romanian Mattias Corvinus is considered the greatest of all Hungarian kings" These two countries love to stick it to each other.

Statue of the founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus with their wolf mother. These statues are found in most large Romanian cities to symbolize their Latinity. Romanians claim that their language is the closest to the original Latin.

After 12 days of travel we are not driving each other crazy at all.

Sighisoara

Sighisoara is the best preserved fortress town in Transylvania that still has many of its original towers, cobblestone streets, city walls and burgher houses. It is one of the three UNESCO world heritage sites in Transylvania, all of which are castle fortresses. When we arrived in the evening and had to climb up the hill into the town center to get to our hostel, we couldn't help but feel that we were transported to another time. The town was deserted, misty and cold (for the first time on our travels). It was a little spooky to be honest. But upon closer inspection things looked a little too perfect, it was as if Disneyland decided to create an authentic Dracula Land. This is the birthplace of Vlad Dracul and Vlad Draculea aka son of Dracul, aka Vlad the Impaler. Once we explored beyond the city walls we found that the real living, breathing Sighisoara, nestled in the forested hills of Transylvania. 

The clock tower. One of Sighisoara's 14 towers (9 of which remain). These towers were built by the various town guilds who defended Sighisaora. They include, the Ropemakers' Tower, Tailors' Tower, Cobblers' Tower, Furriers' Tower, Butchers' Tower, Tinsmiths' Tower, Tanners' Tower. You get the gist

Saxon cemetery outside of the city walls. Starting to feel like Halloween up here.

Multicolored burgher houses at the bottom of the hill on the way to see the working Sighisoara.

Actually got to sport our fleeces for the first time.

Where to next? 

It doesn't really matter.

Brasov

The last stop on our rail journey was in Brasov, the largest city in Transylvania. Brasov is a city with two identities, the beautifully restored medieval old town and the more austere new city hastily built by the Communists. We decided to stay in the old town and splurge a little bit by booking a B&B up in the hills of the fancy Schei district. It was our one year anniversary after all. Brasov is also a fortress town that is surrounded by mountains on three sides. Beyond these mountains, in Brasov county, is prime trekking territory with the Paitra Craiului and Bucegi National Parks nearby. This is also one of the few areas of Romania where the highways are top notch and incredibly scenic. For you Top Gear fans, the famous Transfagarasan highway, the road they deemed "the best in the world", is about an hour away. Brasov was definitely the highlight of our Romanian adventure.

The Brasov sign on the top of Mt. Tampa. I didn't know that maker of the Hollywood sign had other customers.

The Panoramic room at Casa Cristina in the Schei district and one year married to this incredible woman.

Romanians know how to properly Oktoberfest. Everyone in the tent was dancing singing and drinking liters of Cuicas (Romanian Lager), which was the only thing they got wrong. Where was the Paulaner Oktoberfest?

Authentic fish sticks. My elementary school lunches were a lie.

We hiked up 1000 ft to Mt. Tampa to catch some stunning views of Brasov (not pictured).

Still better than sharing the road with Seattle's hard core cyclists.

Hiking through the gorges on the blue stripe trail in the Piatra Craiului National Park. Heading for the Cabana Curmatura - a cabin with views of the ridge.

The Piatra Craiului ridge in the background.

No caption needed.

Our return journey on the yellow stripe trail. Breathtaking views in all directions

We couldn't get enough of the cow bells ringing from all over the hill.

My decades of experience playing Super Mario Bros. tells me that this mushroom will give me super powers. Janelle wouldn't let me test that theory.

Dracula

Thanks to Bram Stoker, most people equate Transylvania with the story of Dracula - even though he never explicitly connects Vlad Tepes with his Dracula character. Nevertheless,  I feel that it needs a mention. The reality is that there is very little Dracula to see in Transylvania. Most of the Dracula tourism revolves around areas that look the part, like Bran Castle and Sighisoara, where the real Draculea spent very little time. Bran Castle in particular is a complete waste of time unless medieval castles are your life's passion. Going to Transylvania for Dracula would be like going to Forks, Washington for the Twilight movies.

Bran Castle. The Romanian government wants to construct a Dracula theme park in this town.  

This is all the Dracula we saw.

The town of Bran seems to be made up almost entirely of gift shops and bad restaurants. 

Birthplace of Vlad Dracul, not Draculea, which means son of Dracul.  This cafe in Sighisoara still attracts droves of misinformed tourists.

Bucharest

Our train journey came to an end in Romania's capitol city, Bucharest, where we only spent a couple of days. Bucharest was known as the Paris of the east due to the Romanian affinity for all things French. It has all the elements of a great European city; countless museums, monuments, great parks, and a vibrant youth culture but it is still very rough around the edges. Bucharest seems to be still recovering from the days of communism and the despotic rule of Nicolae Ceausescu but it is definitely a city on the rise.

Our final train stop into Gura Nord

Grand boulevard leading up to the monstrously big Palace of the Parliament.

The Palace of the Parliament. The world's second largest building after the US pentagon. 1,100 rooms, 3.7 million sq. ft, 1.5 bathrooms.

Architectural remnants of the communist era.

Parcul Cismigiu. Bucharest's version  of Central Park.

The Romanian Anthenaeum. The city's main concert hall and a good example of the splendor of this city.

And we're off to Turkey!

Our Recommendations

Good Places to Stay

• Casa Cristina - Brasov: a family run pension in the hills of Brasov. The owners are warm and welcoming providing a breakfast for a small fee and information about the city and the national park.
• Hotel Transilvania - Cluj Napoca: Centrally located, very clean, and affordable. 

Good Places to Eat - We didn't dine out much in Romania since Romanian food was a little too heavy for our tastes. The stomach aches after meals provided motivation to grocery shop and cook often. 

• Livada - Cluj Napoca: Serves traditional Romanian food in a serene courtyard. Great place to go for lunch on a sunny day

Tips for anyone planning to train there since there is not a lot of info on the internet:

• Take the IC (inter city) trains when possible. they have cleaner bathrooms, a restaurant car and more direct routes. IR (inter region) are also fine for shorter trips.
• You can buy tickets the day of departure only at the train station. You can also buy them in advance at any of the CFR offices (Agentia de Voiaj CFR) found usually in the city center will save you 10%. 
• Reservations can be made online if you create an account with the CFR but you still need to purchase them at the train station or CFR office.