Best Culture and Wine Tours of Iasi

The Romanian City of Iasi is really amazing. It combines in a happy manner culture, history and archaeology, with entertainment and frenetic night life. Within one or two days you can experience all these things in an original mix, turning your ordinary Iasi Tour in an unforgettable event.

Remember first of all that Iasi is build on 7 hills, similar with the ancient Rome, and you can know and meet it  under excellent circumstances by feet or by bike. Thus you can go very close to its remarkable people, buildings and museums, experiencing the local flair and flavor.

You can take part to a professional wine tasting in Cotnari by Iasi

A brilliant idea is to start is to start and end your Iasi Tours in the Downtown, to the Culture Museum. The Culture Palace is a breathtaking building, dating back from 1925 and hosting no less than four museums, together with a leading library. If you are lucky not to find the Culture Palace during its neverending restoration works, you can use this opportunity for visiting all these museums. Thus you are going to use one or two days from your precious time, but you are not going to regret it! Discover first the History Museum of Moldavia, with artifacts from the old days up today. Run further in the Iasi Art Museum to enjoy fantastic painting and carving works from the Romanian school, but also from Italian, French and Flemish ones. If you are the technical freak, don't miss the Technical Museum, also hosted by the Culture Palace.

The breathtaking Culture Palace hosts no less than four good museums, deserving a visit

You can have a well deserved shopping or eating break in the Moldova Mall, which is actually a controversial modern building, just a few steps away from the Culture Palace. Critics and opponent can't forgive the arrogance of Moldova Mall, and are not able to understand who gave it the building approval. But the most modern mall of Iasi is a few streets further, namely Iulius Mall. which is really upscale and state of the art.

Old and new are permanently mixing in this breathtaking city with a student thrill! Close to the Culture palace discover the Dosoftei Museum of The Romanian Old literature, and the leading city hotels ( if you wanna stay and eat in style, make the good choice and select the Traian Grand Hotel, city's oldest!).

Iasi is doubtless a city of churches, you can find wonderful churches at every step and corner. Throwing a stone in Iasi , it will probably break a church window (local legend!)

Mix than with the locals, walking through the city, heading to the entertainment areas of Ciric and Bucium, where you can take part to wine tastings ( they are not running usually such fine events, but I can arange, would be great for your vacation and Iasi Tour!). Cotnari is another name to remember, when it comes to a Iasi Tour. It is very close, and is one of the best Romanian vineyards, with excellent white flavored wines ( note, ask, and taste the strong flavored Tamaioasa and Frangusa!). But please don't miss on the way the churches of Iasi, and don't be afraid visiting them inside. The Romanians are between the most tolerant people worldwide, they will be very happy to see you there. The priest will salute you, and on some very rarely events will accept even the women in the holly altar (unfortunately, it only happens 100 years after the church inauguration, so you must be very meek). Anyway, a fantastic peaceful atmosphere will seduce you inside.

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Things to do in Iasi

If you are young, you will love in Iasi the Bohemian atmosphere due to its many students. It is really delightful for every teenager dreaming to be a student in Iasi, counting also the very good fame of some high schools (The Medicine University is the biggest and most prestigious in Romania, also the Computer School from the technical University, which gave big numbers of employees in Google or Microsoft).

Almost to forget between so many other important museums: The Botanic garden is the oldest and the biggest in Romania and welcomes you

The city of Iasi proudly counts 240 000 inhabitants, with 80 000 students. The proportion is overwhelming, and during the vacations the city seems to be sad and deserted. It is a big difference comparing to Bucharest where the students are much more diluted inside the huge city, like a drop in an ocean.

When in 1859 Moldavia and Wallachia have been unified after centuries long fights, the newly formed Romania had for two years literally two Capitals, Iasi and Bucharest. But in 1862 the final decision has been made in favor of Bucharest, with the promise to reimburse Iasi with a huge amount of money (no penny at all has been payed). As a compensation, Iasi kept on developing its intensive culture life. There are theaters, universities, and museums in this picturesque city demanding your attention for three days at least.

The Church trei Ierarhi from Iasi build in Middle Age, with a special Architecture style  ( next to the byzantine style, there Turkish influences)

Visit in Iasi its wonderful Parks, Ciric and Copou and walk long there. Copou is old, nice and very interesting. The most important Romanian poet Mihai Eminescu used also the walk here, it has a statue in his corner, surrounded by the beloved  linden trees he depicted in some of this poems. You can find Mihai Eminescu in English, but if I tell you about Ion Creanga there are very little chances to have heard of him. Nevertheless, he is one of the greatest story tellers in the Romanian literature. He used to have a special language with many regional words, and nobody dares translating it in English or other foreign language, fearing the complete loss of the original richness and sweetness. His biography is also extraordinary, he was first a priest, but a rebel one, and has been cancelled after more  punishment.

The Lion Monument, from the Copou Park, not far from Eminescu's statue and Linden trees.

Wine tastings in Bucium, very near, are possible for the thirsty gorges; a little further in Cotnari is much more professional and exquisite. As we are at this chapter, if I shall to recommend one of the many hotels and restaurants in Iasi, that is doubtless Hotel Traian. Very old, very stylish, with a long history and many legends behind, is simply lovely and charming. You are going to love this hotel from the first sight.

For the culture freaks, a visit in the Culture Palace is a must do. Be aware that the huge building hosts four different museums, has an exquisite flamboyant  neogothic architecture, requires a small fee and a full day for a complete visit. You can also visit only for its museums, but it is difficult to make the choice among History Museum, Etnography Museum, Technique and civilization Museum and the Art Museum. Absolving this task of your Iasi trip asks for a visit in Wine and Vineyards museum from Hirlau.

Visiting Iasi is a pleasure and an event, but you must be very fit, as the city lies on seven hills, similar to antic Rome.

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