Romania Part II: Transylvania

I'm guessing that it'll just take scrolling down a couple frames to understand "why Romania?"  All those head-scratching, strange-faced looks we got upon identifying our half term break destination?  Take that!  Transylvania, AKA Dracula country, was the primary destination for this trip.  And what better time to visit Dracula's stomping grounds than just before Halloween!  For the obvious ghoulish connection, but also because Transylvania is in all her autumnal colourful glory this time of year.  It was stunning!  We had a wonderful few days exploring castles, seeing beautiful fall foliage, exploring charming Transylvania villages and just relaxing at our beautiful villa.  

En route to Transylvania our first stop in gorgeous Sinaia . . .

Stunning Peles Castle in Sinaia

Pelisor Palace in Sinaia

In quaint Cristian village where we stayed . . .

Bran Castle, aka Dracula's castle near Brasov.  Though loosely associated with Vlad the Impaler (the fictional Dracula's historical origin), this is still commonly known as "Dracula's Castle."  It is every bit as picturesque in person as in the imagination and great fun to explore.

Handpainted wax eggs in the market at Bran Castle . . .

Next up, Brasov, sort of Transylvania headquarters.

Dripping in charm Sighisoara was a real highlight.

Back at the villa for some relaxing down time with our friends.

Around Cristian town . . .

A very strange sighting in Cristian . . .

What better way to conclude our Romanian travels than with a visit to "Dracula's" grave.

Romania Part I: Bucharest

This autumn half term break we checked another European country off our list.  People sure gave us some interesting reactions, some blank stares, some faces of bewilderment and some hard looks that said "are you crazy?" when we identified our half term break destination.  Yep.  Romania.  Our main objective was the beautiful castle-filled region of Transylvania, aka home to Dracula.  But first we had to grab a peek at the country's capital, Bucharest.  We just had two nights and one full day for the city, but that was truly enough.  Bucharest is interesting enough, but I will admit it's probably my least favourite European capital.  Nevertheless we had a great day of exploring.  

 Arriving our first night

 Heading down Calea Victorei

 Athenee Palace, once home to the KGB

 Piata Revolutiei

 The balcony was the scene of Ceausescu's infamous last speech in December 1989, after which he escaped via helicopter from the roof.

 Pasajul Vilacros

 Old Town wanderings . . .

 The grand Palace of the Parliament, world's second largest administrative building.  It is indeed massive!  We were able to take a tour inside the palace.  It is a grand structure, still in use today, but from what we saw it did appear to be a bit of an empty shell.  Lots of grand space, largely underused.  And I saw evidence that it struggles to maintain itself.  Only half of the lights were on in any given room, clearly a very expensive structure to run.

 View off the balcony of the Parliament Palace

 More strolling through the historic core . . .

Capped off by a fabulous Romanian meal at this beautiful restaurant