Preliminary Day By Day Itinerary

June 16            Depart USA
Tuesday
Meet your travel companions at New York’s JFK for our 7:05 PM flight via Delta Air Lines.

June 17            Arrive
Wednesday       Bucharest
Welcome to Bucharest!

Upon arrival this afternoon, we are warmly greeted by our guide and assisted with luggage. Our coach and driver are waiting to transport us to the hotel where the rest of the afternoon is free to recover from jet lag. The more energetic among us may prefer a stroll around Bucharest from our well-located hotel. Rested and refreshed, we’ll meet again this evening for a welcome dinner at our hotel. (D)

****Ramada Majestic Hotel

June 18            Bucharest
Thursday
Today is free to explore downtown Bucharest.  We will have the option for a walking tour combined with a metro ride accompanied by our Romanian guide. 

Options today may include: 1.a stroll along Calea Victoriei (Victory Ave), the oldest one of Bucharest, to learn its history and legends, to see its manors, historic buildings and do some shopping; continue with a stroll in the historic town of Bucharest (Lipscani and bank area), now under restoration, where one can purchase Gallé type of hand-made glassware and/or all kinds of antiques; 2. shopping at the “Unirii” department store (25 minutes walk or one metro station from our hotel); 3. stroll in the Cishmigiu Garden, the oldest and most romantic park in Bucharest (20 minutes walk from the hotel along the Elisabeta Boulevard) followed by lunch (suggested)  at “Monte Carlo“ restaurant near the pond in the Cishmigiu Garden Park.

In the evening we will walk to the Romanian Athenaeum to enjoy a classical music concert and admire the edifice’s lavishly decorated interiors before an optional late dinner tonight at a popular pub near-by.

On the way to the Romanian Athenaeum, we will stop in the Revolution Square called so as it gathered together thousands of people of which many were shot dead by the communist state’s repressive forces in December 1989, just before Ceaushescu’s regime would be overthrown. We will learn the history of the buildings that surround the square, namely the Palace of the former Committee of the Romanian Communist Party, the former Royal Palace which now holds the National Fine Art Museum, the former King Carol I Foundation which is today the University Library, the Athénée Palace Hilton Hotel, and, of course, Bucharest’s most precious gem of architecture, the Romanian Athenaeum. We will discover that all these edifices were designed by French or French trained architects of Romania between 1886-1938. (B) 

**** Ramada Majestic Hotel

June 19            Bucharest
Friday
Today we will see Bucharest, Romania’s capital-city. The first recorded mention of this old city is found in a document signed by prince Vlad the Impaler, or Dracula (a character of whom we all have heard, most likely in a distorted manner), in 1459. We will notice that the townscape is surprisingly diverse and full of contrasts and our guide will explain.

We will start our tour from the city’s foundations, and stop at the ruins of the Old Princely Court (15th century) and the nearby Church, the oldest one that has preserved its original shape among Bucharest’s 300 such Orthodox sanctuaries. It can be rightfully called a Romanian “Westminster Abbey” as it served as a coronation place of Wallachia’s ruling princes between the 16th and 19th centuries. Just across the street, we will be able to see Manuc’s Inn (whose restaurant and hotel are under restoration), raised in 1808, that can be imagined in its heyday, when it swarmed with town folk and peasants, clergymen, gypsies and merchants, all come to the market.

We remain in the old part of Bucharest, but move a little bit uphill, to the Metropolitan Church, a fine edifice built in 1656, which holds the relics of Demeter Basarabov, the patron saint of Bucharest. From the 17th century, we will make a leap to contemporary history, and see the largest building in Europe and only second in size after the Pentagon in the U.S., the Palace of Parliament, a token of Nicolae Ceaushescu’s megalomania, and of the oppressive regime he imposed on his own people.

Our tour of the “The Little Paris of the East”, as Bucharest was known between the two World Wars, continues with a drive past Bucharest University. Built in 1857, the University was renowned in 1920’s Europe for the quality of its curricula and professors.

We will admire the harmonious proportions and fine decorations of the French spirit and art styles in Bucharest when we stop for lunch in a former manor featured in the French eclectic style, now the Romanian Academics’ restaurant.

After lunch, our tour takes us to Cotroceni Palace, another fine example of French architecture (1893), and a former residence to King Ferdinand and his wife, Queen Maria, grand-daughter of queen Victoria of England. We will learn more about Romania’s modern history and the saga of its kings and queens (who ruled Romania between 1866–1947). In the late afternoon, we will return to the hotel to freshen up. In the evening, the bus will take us to the Hera˘stra˘u Park, the largest and most beautiful of Bucharest, landscaped in 1936  by two French architects. Therein, in the cool and fresh air of the park, a performance with folk music and dancing over a glass of wine and dinner at the “Pescarus”/Seagull restaurant by the lake will happily close this full day. (B-L-D) 

**** Ramada Majestic Hotel

June 20            Curtea de Argesh
Saturday         Horezu
Our journeys today will take us to the churches and monasteries south of the Carpathians. At Curtea de Argesh, a capital-town of Wallachia in the Middle Ages, we will see the Princely Church, the oldest in the province, with vivid paintings pertaining to the Byzantine tradition of the 14th century. At the nearby Curtea de Argesh Monastery dating to early 16th century, but owing its present-day aspect to a French architect of the 19th century, we will throw a coin in a well-basin for good luck, and learn the legend of the monastery’s foundation by Mason Manole. The impressive edifice is both a princely and a royal necropolis, as its two princely founders of the Middle Ages and the first two couples of Romania’s kings and queens are all buried there.

After another 200 km ride, we will stop at Hurez Monastery, whose name derives from owls (“hurez” in Romanian) that must have populated the green and peaceful valley where it proudly stands.  We will learn from our guide and our nun hostess why this gem of architecture, featured in the Brancovan style – a late Renaissance art style mixed with Baroque elements, which displays an abundance of vegetal decorations -, and commissioned by Romania’s “prince of gold”, Constantin Brâncoveanu in the 17th century, holds pride of place among UNESCO’s World Heritage treasures. After enjoying a vegetarian lunch prepared by the nuns, we will admire the local brownish and green pottery made by peasant artists in the village of Horezu.

Our drive towards Sibiu passes through the spectacular Olt River Gorges.  After time for a shower at our hotel in Sibiu, we will go to the pub in the forest to have dinner. (B-L-D)        

***Continental Hotel

June 21            Sibiu
Sunday           Biertan 
In 2007, Sibiu and Luxembourg shared being the joint cultural capitals of Europe.

In the morning, we will walk around the old town built by the German settlers in Transylvania (called Saxons because many of them would come from the region of Saxony in Germany), between the 13th and 17th centuries. The Council Tower, raised in the Gothic style of the 15th century, is emblematic for the town. The Stairs Passage dates back to as early as the 13th century, whereas St. Mary’s Evangelical Church, raised in the 14th and 15th centuries, holds valuable tombstones and murals of the 15th century, as well as an organ of the 16th century. We can probably hear it play during this Sunday morning service. We may also want to hear the beautiful choir of the Orthodox Cathedral which stands today as one of the two seats of the Metropolitan Orthodox Church in Transylvania.

Our image of Sibiu is not complete without a visit to the Brukenthal Palace, built in the Austrian baroque style of the 18th century, an impressive edifice which bears the name of its owner, Baron Samuel von Brukenthal, a former governor of Transylvania. Today it houses the oldest Museum in Romania (1817), which boasts valuable art collections. We will have lunch at the restaurant of the “Imparatul Romanilor” hotel, a historic building of the 18th century featured in the Austrian baroque style.

We leave Sibiu and drive towards Biertan, a former Saxon village, to discover the second UNESCO World Heritage site of our tour, the Fortified Church. Built in the late Gothic style of the 15^th and 16^th centuries, this former residence to Lutheran bishops is surrounded by three lines of defense walls with 12-meter high towers. Although besieged repeatedly by Turks and Tartars during the Middle Ages, the fortified church was never breached by its assailants.

We leave Biertan behind and arrive at Sighishoara (Schässburg in German), one of the best preserved medieval towns in Europe, and a third UNESCO World Heritage site on our itinerary. We will be lodged in the upper and older part of the town, so that either before or after dinner we can enjoy a walking tour on our own. Stroll through the winding streets with thick-walled houses (among which Dracula’s birthplace). Huge portals, guarded by defense towers which bear the name of their respective guild, i.e. the Tinsmiths’, the Butchers’, the Blacksmiths’ etc., were all built by the Saxon artisans during the Middle Ages.  (B-L-D)

*** Sighishoara Hotel 

June 22             Sighishoara
Monday              Târgu Muresh        
In the morning, we further enjoy the charm of medieval Sighishoara. Those up for a brisk morning walk can climb the 175 wooden steps of the Wooden Covered Staircase to the Church on the Hill  (13th - to 15th centuries), and see its valuable murals, Renaissance style pews, and painted altarpiece. More climbing awaits us when we next visit the History Museum located in the citadel’s former Clock Tower.  Its narrow winding stairs will lead us to a marvelous and rewarding view over both lower and upper Sighishoara. Afterwards, we cannot possibly miss the Exhibition of Medieval Weaponry beneath the tower, and a medieval Torture Room with its typical horrifying implements.

We leave the citadel and drive towards Bistritza, another fortified town built by the Saxons in the 14^th century, that we will only cross. We will not stop before Târgu Muresh, a cradle of Hungarian culture and civilization,  in order to have lunch, and possibly visit the superb Mirrors’ Hall at the Palace of Culture built in the Transylvanian Sécession style between 1907- 1913.

As our journey continues, we leave Transylvania and cross the Carpathians towards the painted monasteries area through a picturesque mountain pass. In the evening, we arrive at our hotel and relax over dinner at the hotel restaurant. (B-L-D)

****Best Western Bucovina

June 23            Moldovitza 
Tuesday           Sucevitza
In the morning we will see the first famous painted monastery of Bucovina, Moldovitza. We will be surprised to find more of a fortress than a religious sanctuary, with high, thick walls clad in ivy, that enclose white stone buildings and the magnificent painted church right in the middle. Commissioned by ruling prince Petru Raresh in 1532, it displays astonishingly fresh and vivid frescoes, predominantly yellow on an intense blue background. Holding places of prominence among the frescoes are the Siege of Constantinople and the Customs of Heaven.

We’ll continue along a winding remote mountain road through a range of small Alpine villages, across the surrounding fields to our next destination, the largest of the monasteries in Bucovina, Sucevitza. This fortified monastic enclosure, with towers, buttresses and watch roads, was built between 1582 and 1601. Its church is almost completely covered with exterior frescoes except for those on the western wall depicting the Last Judgement, which were left unfinished. We will have to find out why; also the reason why a female head was carved on a black stone in the yard of the monastery.  Sucevitza’s frescoes display shadows and hues of purple red and blue against an emerald green background. There is plenty of royal gold too, taken from the medieval art of miniatures. Perhaps the finest painting at Sucevitza is the Ladder of Virtues covering the northern wall, which is protected from erosion by the edifice’s huge eaves. It presents flights of angels who assist the righteous enter Paradise, while the sinners fall through the rungs into the arms of a grinning demon.

Our next stop on the way to Radautzi is at Marginea, a tiny village renowned for its black earthenware and pottery. Here we will visit the workshop to see how the pottery is made, and maybe purchase a souvenir for home. After a nice lunch in Radautzi, we cannot leave the town before a stop to the 14th century Bogdana Church, the oldest stone church in Moldavia. Tonight we will dine at a rural pension by the forest, and enjoy both the flavours of nice food and local wine. (B-L-D)

**** Best Western Bucovina

June 24            Humor - Voronetz
Wednesday     Neamtz Fortress
                           Neamtz Monastery
                           Piatra Neamtz
After breakfast, we will visit Humor Monastery (1530), which, unlike the other painted monasteries, is surrounded by ramparts made of wood. Its church has no steeple, a sign that it was commissioned by a high dignitary, but still lower in rank than a ruling prince. Of all the monasteries in Bucovina, Humor displays the most impressive interior frescoes. Both interior and exterior murals are by Toma of Suceava (1535), the local artist who painted Moldovitza too. The predominant colour at Humor is reddish brown, with rich blues and greens. Paintings on the church’s southern exterior wall are devoted to the Holy Virgin, the patron saint of the monastery. They depict her miraculous intervention at the siege of Constantinople by the Persians turned into Turks, just like at Moldovitza.

We crown our tour to the famous painted monasteries of Bucovina, all of them acknowledged by the UNESCO World Heritage, with a visit to Voronetz. It was erected in 1488 by prince Stephen the Great, Moldavia’s most renowned ruler, in only three and one half months,  to fulfil a pledge after defeating the Turks. We will understand why it has been dubbed the “Sistine Chapel of the East” when we see its superb frescoes made between 1547-1550. They display the Voronetz blue, which has actually entered the lexicon of art alongside Titian red and Veronese green. On the church’s western wall we will see the Last Judgment, and understand why experts consider it the finest single composition among the Painted Monasteries. In the fire of hell, sinners, among whom illustrious characters including kings and popes, and many characters who wear turbans as the Turks (the Moldavians’ enemies at that time), are writhed in pain. A hand is holding the scales of Justice where the sins of mankind before the final judgment are being weighed. To the right and to the left, the devils are quarrelling for possession of the sinful. The Resurrection of the Dead, a very dramatic scene, is performed to the sound of the “bucium”, a Romanian alpenhorn. At the Gate of Heaven where angels have the sweet faces of Moldavian women, people rush to enter; the painter wishes to express humorously how eagerly do people hurry to enter the Garden of Eden.

Before noon, leave Bucovina and head to Piatra Neamtz. Enroute, we will stop and visit the Neamtz Medieval Fortress, a fort founded in 1359, which stands for the Romanians’ constant struggle against the Turkish Empire during the Middle Ages. We will have a delightful lunch at the foot of the fortress, and then continue our way to Neamtz Monastery, the oldest in Moldavia. It was founded by Stephen the Great in 1497 to celebrate a victory over the Poles. Its architecture is typical of Moldavia, whereas its library, with over 18,000 works and manuscripts of the 14th   to 19th centuries is related to the famous schools of miniaturists and illuminators who had a major contribution to the development of the Romanian culture and art during the Middle Ages.

Late in the afternoon, we will arrive in Piatra Neamtz, to check in at our hotel for dinner and overnight.(B-L-D)

*** Central Hotel

June 25            Szekely area
Thursday         Brashov
This morning we will leave Moldavia and cross back through the giddy vertical walls of the Bicaz Gorges in the Eastern Carpathians enroute towards Transylvania. We will soon enter an area of Transylvania with the Harghita and Covasna counties where the bulk of population is not Romanian as everywhere else in the country, but Szekler. Our guide will introduce us to the history, culture and civilization of the Szekely community who has lived in the south and south-eastern part of Transylvania since the 13th century. By now we have a sense of Transylvania as a melting-pot of different ethnic communities: Romanians, who make up the bulk of population, Saxons, who, unfortunately are left in very small numbers as they fled away to Germany mostly during the communist age, but also before and after those times, and whose legacy we saw at Sibiu, Biertan, Sighishoara, Bistritza followed by Brashov (which we will visit later today), the Hungarian community who left their indelible stamp on Târgu Muresh for instance, and of course the Szeklers, a brave and hard-working people, Catholic by faith, and  direct descendants of the Huns led by Attila. We will cross the Szekler towns of Gheorghieni and Miercurea Ciuc and stop at Sfântu Gheorghe (St.George), at the Székely National Museum (1879). The museum is certainly worth a visit for its typical architecture and exterior decorations, alongside its fine sections of history, archaeology, ethnography, fine arts and natural sciences.

We depart the “Szekely” region and re-enter the Saxon territory to Brashov, the former medieval fortress of Kronstadt founded by the Saxon settlers of Transylvania in the 14th century. Lunch at a restaurant in the Council Square, near the former Town Hall (15th c.) and the Merchants’ House (16th c.). Visit the Black Church (whose construction started as early as 1383), a fine example of late Gothic architecture, the largest church in Romania, and in south-eastern Europe. It holds a huge organ (1839), which resounds through 4,000 pipes. Our guide will explain why the interior walls of this Lutheran Church, white-washed and sober as they should be, are decorated with colorful Oriental carpets of the 17th and 18th centuries. We will also see the impressive White Tower, a sample of the town’s medieval fortifications, on top of the hill, just across the Council Square.  Check into our hotel in Poiana Brashov and freshen up for dinner at “Shura Dacilor” (Dacians’ Grange) restaurant with folk music performance. (B-L-D)

*** Villa Cassandra

June 26            Bran
Friday            Sinaia
After breakfast, our adventure today will be a visit to Bran Castle, a fine example of architecture typical of the medieval Europe of the 14th century. Starting from the 1970’s, Bran was billed as Dracula’s Castle due to Bram Stoker’s successful novel and subsequent horror films. What true history actually records in this connection is that it once belonged to Vlad the Impaler/Dracula’s grandfather, Mircea the Old. It later served as a royal residence to queen Mary of Romania. 

We will further explore royal estates in the Carpathian Mountains when we next visit the Pelesh Castle at Sinaia. Built in the 1880’s by Romania’s Hohenzollern monarch Carol the 1st, it outwardly resembles a Bavarian Schloss. Its interiors reflect Carol’s wife, Elisabeta de Wied’s taste, as they are decorated in ebony, mother of pearl, walnut and leather, and cover more than one art styles. To the north of the castle lies a park landscaped in the English fashion. After lunch at a restaurant in the proximity of the castle, we will head to Sinaia Monastery, with its oldest church (1695) featured in the Brancovan style, and murals by Pârvu Mutu, a renowned Romanian icon painter.

We arrive at our hotel in Bucharest to freshen up and then walk to the “Beer Cart” restaurant, a European type of beer saloon of the late 19th century featured in the Neo-gothic style, for dinner with musical performance”. (B-L-D)

**** Ramada Majestic Hotel

June 27            Bucharest
Saturday         Mogoshoaia
This morning, after breakfast, we will drive to the lovely Mogoshoaia Palace designed by ruling prince Constantin Brâncoveanu at the end of the 17th century. The palace features the art style that now bears his name, Brancovan, with which we have now become acquainted at the Hurez and Sinaia monasteries. The palace is a two-storey edifice of red brick with rich stone-carved decorations and lush atmospheric gardens around.

After the visit, we can have a snack or an early lunch at the restaurant near the palace. Then the bus will take us back to the green area of Bucharest, and stop at the Folk Craftsmanship Fair being held at the Village Museum today. We will enjoy talking to peasant artists and craftsmen come from all over the country, buy souvenirs, while also walking around to see the Village Museum, which epitomizes rural life in Romania across centuries. It is one of the largest and oldest outdoor museums in Europe, with a wonderful collection of vernacular houses (about 300), brought from all over Romania, a village church, a wind and a water mill, lots of farmer traditional farm machinery, tools and more. In the late afternoon, on our way back to the hotel, we will pass the Arch of Triumph, a replica of the famous monument in Paris, which celebrates the allies’ victory over Germany in the 1^st World War.

In the evening, as an option, our guide can take us for dinner to a classy restaurant with live music played on the piano. (B)

**** Ramada Majestic Hotel 

June 28            Bucharest
Sunday             
In the morning, we can enjoy about two hours of our own before heading to the airport for our 1:55 PM flight from Bucharest, OTP to New York. Welcome Home! (B)

B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner

Note: Flight schedules always subject to change.