Must see in Romania: Sibiu

Maybe not the biggest, but one of the nicest and most important cities not only in Romania, but in the all Europe, Sibiu was elected 2007 (together with Luxemburg) the European Cultural Capital, thus becoming even more popular as a tourist destination

Panoramic view of Downtown Sibiu; far behind, the peak Moldoveanu, Romanian highest, a favorite target for the trekkers

Sibiu has a rich history. It lies on Cibin River, and the Roman fortress in the area was called Castrum Cibinensis, but the first human settlements go back to the Halstatt age. In the XIIth century Sibiu (German Hermannstadt, Hungarian Nagyszeben) appears for the first time in a written document. After a massive German colonisation promoted by the Hungarians, Sibiu became a flourishing city, with 19 guilds, everyone of it having its own tower (not all preserved up to today). The German architecture is still present in the Downtown (divided in Upper Town and the literally Downtown), you will feel transported in Middle Age, somewhere in Germania or Austria!

The City Hall of Sibiu and the Bruckental Museum

The numerous German population was a majority, observed already to the first census after Reunification with Romania, from 1918. But during the WWII the German population decreased, and nowadays only counts 3 % of the total population. In the Ceausescu time, the communist regime promoted the Emmigration, the Germans were the best ware for Ceausescu export. Today, the Romanian population deeply regrets the lacking of germans and warmly welcomes they back. Amazingly, the Mayor of Sibiu is the repesentative of this minority ( Klaus Johannis is very beloved, competent, and was reelected more times).

Group of Norwegian tourists and guide Kjell Hagbarts in Downtown Sibiu

Due to its status as European Capital of Culture, Sibiu experienced a boom in building sector. Toghether with the German investments, results in a very prosperous city. Really a place to visit, and even one to live (according Forbes!). Don't miss Sibiu while in Romania!

Crama Sibiul vechi offers traditional Romanian meals

There is no time to boring in Sibiu, there are so many things to do. Walk in the Centre, from Piata Mica through Piata Huet to Piata Mare, observe the wonderful City Hall, fresh redecorated, of course. If you are an art  and culture freak, don't miss the Bruckenthal Museum, near City Hall. Walk further, near Hotel Imparatul Romanilor, the city's most atractive place to spend the night(s). Further, on Nicolae Balcescu Street, you find a lot of cafes and fancy boutiques, it is the city's most chic and expensive one. And if you are tired, I can recommend a Romanian restaurant checked by myself, with a group of Norwegian tourists, Crama Sibiul Vechi, offering traditional menu, while the waiters wear traditional suit!

If you have more time to spend in Sibiu, visit also the Museum Astra of rural civilization. If you are lucky enough, you will meet couples wedding in the church, or other folkloric festivals.

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Must see in Romania: Cluj-Napoca

Cluj-Napoca has been for years the official capital of Transilvania, a province in the former Austrian-Hungarian Empire. Today, not so officially anymore, this city enjoys the same status.

The Orthodox Cathedral of Cluj-Napoca, with the Monument of Avram Iancu, a Romanian hero

Discovering Cluj-Napoca from any direction is an event for your eyes. You come from the mountains, and you see from distance the city, in a depression. You will admire it at once and fall in it, wishing to know everything possible about this city, one of Romania's most beautiful . Comparing it with Bucharest with its eclectic architecture is in the clear advantage of Cluj-Napoca (German Klausenburg, Hungarian Koloszvar). In the centre, Cluj Napoaca acts very Central European, similar maybe to Budapest.

The Hotel Continenta, also known as New York Palace, is an architecture jewel in the centre of Cluj-Napoaca

Cluj-Napoca has a huge scientific and cultural potential. The actual leader of the Romanian Academy is born in Cluj-Napoca and made here his researches. Cluj-Napoca, also known simply as Cluj, is the main target of the foreign investors in Romania, after Bucharest. There are plans to develop Cluj Napoca to the unbelievable level of 20 Millions inhabitants within next 50 years. The people in Cluj Napoca (nowadays 20 % Hungarians) are usually high educated, very serious, respecting there words. It is not very easy becoming friend with these people, but once you have their confidence, be sure to receive a dinner invitation, where you will able to enjoy palinca (plum made strong brandy), good wines and sarmalute. Despite the cosmopolite aspect of the city, the people don't forget their roots and traditions.

City Hall from Cluj-Napoca is another monument of architecture

Entering Cluj-Napoca you will notice first the most modern buildings from the last 20 years, some ruinated industrial factories from Ceausescu time and even the communist blocks which the inhabitants dream to leave (but of course, not all of them can afford to do it). Going further, deeper in the city's heart, you will discover the amazing center, with the Catholic Cathedral (St Michael's Church), hotels and restaurants, cafes and museums. Visiting it during the peak hours with a group of Swiss tourists from Twerenbold on behalf of Karpaten Turism was very nice, but I couldn't organize a lunch because all the restaurants were overcrowded. That means a big city indeed.

The Catholic Cathedral of Cluj-Napoca

Special mention for the riding statue of Matthias Corvinus, former ruler of Transilvania. The Hungarians say he was Hungarian, but the Romanian say also he was Romanian, or at least to have a Romanian origin. Not so important anymore, the mutual relations start to improve.

The Synagogue of Cluj-Napoca is an historic building, but Jews are unfortunately not anymore to find in Cluj-Napoca

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Winetasting in Tarnave vineyard

On the nice road between Medias and Targu Mures, and namely in Ganesti/Seuca, I have been honored to take part on a profesional winetasting, organized in Butoiul Sasului. Our very friendly hosts have been Mr Janos Jancsi and Ildiko Molnar.

Serge Gunnar Nguyen and his friends.

I did not come alone, but with my group of tourists from Norway who were visiting Romania, special mention and thanks to their guide Kjell and excellent busdriver Oivind!

Norwegian tourists taking part to a profesional winetasting. They were speaking very much after the fourth sort of wine!

This vineyard of Tarnave, in the very heart of Transilvania, is a little cooler than other Romanian vineyards. Consequently, the harvesting must be made in the late Autumn, not earlier than the half of October. This year was very good for wine production, with a dried summer and a long warm Autumn. Along many times, the most appropriate grape varieties have been proved to be Italian Riesling;  Sauvignon; Muscat Ottonel (very important: they are all exclusively white wines. The Reds need a moo soil, which is not possible to be found here.) The over mentioned varieties are well adapted to resist and fight against diseases, long drought periods, long chilly winters. They give in average a production of 8-10 tones/hectare and reach a net sugar content of 210-270 gr/kg, resulting excellent wines with 12-13 degrees alcohol. We tasted all these wines, and they have been very convincing, as explained by Mr Jancsi. Of course, the sweet light Muscat Ottonel has conquered the heart of our ladies, and especially the happy group around Serge Gunar (the sultan of the harem obviously!).

This blessed bus has been our wheel hous for 6 days in Romania, and his driver  Oivind our guardian angel!

But we proved also a much more appealing for the men Cabernet Sauvignon, which is a red wine, made from grapes who are purchased from other regions of Romania, e.g. Recas. Neither the Red, nor the Muscat Ottonel was available to purchase, and thus the big hit was the Italian Riesling.

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Romania seen by  a Norwegian group

A few enthusiastic tourists from Norway, during a more extensive Europe tour, reached also Romania as a main destination. The trip has been excellent organized by PR Norge, the permanent guide Kjell Hagberg and the bus driven by Oivind Brenhagen, and I was on behalf of Karpaten Tours.

Autumn, the painter of the nature, was an excellent time for visiting Romania

It was for me a big honor and a deep pleasure guiding this group in Romania, and helping them to discover this exotic unknown country for many of them. If they felt so good as I did, surely means that they must come back, as they repeatedly promised.

The F1 driver Oivind at work, while we the other were most on vacation!

I will never forget their excellent behavior, I wish I have only tourists like these.  The Romanian adventure started in Oradea, in a hotel chosen by Kjell (he knows so many thing about Romania, much more than I do) and took place in a wonderful Autumn, probably the best season for visiting Romania, due to the many colors all around (Autumn is the best painter, not only in Romania). Due to the cooperative staff from Restaurant Ramada Oradea we managed to improvise a frugal lunch in 15 minutes, which was a good performance. Good start indeed. The people were very impacient waiting for me due to the introduction of Kjell and Oivind, excellent team players.

The organizer guide Kjell , impressed by the carnival in Sighisoara

The tourists have been very happy discovering a clean, nice, smiling Romania during 6 days of an excellent structured program, made by Kjell himself. We taste together many of the good local wines, and they enjoyed mostly the Riesling! But also Muscat Ottonel and the red Cabernet Sauvignon had their fans.

I assisted them to discover a colorful Romania, with his popular dancers and singers, with Dracula, with the imperial guard in Alba Iulia. The visited area, middle of Transilvania, is one of the Europe's best preserved medieval sites, also nominated as UNESCO heritage, contains 700 citadels.  But there are still some other landscapes to be discovered, very soon I hope.

Visiting Dracula House, nowadays a restaurant, was much more relaxing than we thought first!

I wait some comments from Norway for this post.

A part of the Norwegian group to the wine tasting

And the other part, fortunately you can't hear them talking! Because after tasting 4 sortiments of wine they spoke a lot! 

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Romanian gastronomic specialities

Romanian gastronomy is very rich indeed, and this is one of the many arguments for  taking  the decision to offer you exquisite food and wine tours here in Romania. The Romanian gastronomy is also not very original, due to successive  historic influences coming from neighboring Empires (Russian, Turkish, Hungarian and German).

The Gulash is rather Hungarian, no matter, you can eat exquisite Gulash in Romania

In Transilvania you can find very spicy paprika or gulash ( a tasteful spicy mix of meat pieces with sauce). In every corner you can find Kraut mit Wurst (German for cabbage with sausages!) with its local variation "Varza a la Cluj" (Romanian for " Cabage a la Cluj"). Cabbage a la Cluj is mixed with mincemeat and rice.

Varza a la Cluj pairs excellent with a red strong wine, as you can notice!

In Dobrogea you will be able to find the traces of the Turkish kitchen, mainly by the deserts like saraili and baclava! About the musaca (Romanian for Moussakka), it is much better represented Romaniawide, consisting of alternative layers of potatoes thin slices and mincemeat. You may observe, please, that the Romanians eat mainly pig meat, and there is an historical explanation even for that: during the Turkish occupation, the Turks took practically everything better, but they never enjoyed pig, as not recommended by their religion.

Baclavas are Turkish, and are very tasty.

Romanians were a few hundreds years ago mainly a shepherd people, and as a remaining they eat nowadays cheese at almost every meal. One kilo cheese costs 3 Euros, and a kilo tomatoes 0,8 Euros, and so you have a good idea for your menu if you are on a budget.

Sarmalute (  forc-meat rolls in cabbage sau vine leaves ) are present at any feast in Romania

An exquisite Romanian meal present at every meal during the feasts (Christmas, Eastern, etc) are the sarmalute ( forc-meat rolls in cabbage sau vine leaves). They are not very difficult for cook, the mix consisting of mincemeat, rice, eggs and spices, but you may have a problem while cooking, as the leaves go apart. This is a crucial test for the young girls when are just married, and many of them simply sew the leave after rolling! Which would be in your opinion the best wines for all these wines? Many combination possible, but your concrete one is opened for your Romanian Tour!

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The people need to sell all this production!

A small tribute for a great wine

I lived up to now a peaceful, wonderful and intense life. I tried all the joys of this Earth life, and I deeply enjoyed it.

Among the Romanian vineyards you are kindly asked to find the Tarnave!

Above and before anything else I remember  a glass of a special wine, an old wine of Tarnave, the heart of Transilvania. It is the famous Traminer from Blaj, made in 1940-1960, following the same methods like the heavy Rieslings of Rhine, or the Alsacian wines. The taste of this wine is in a certain way the taste of Transilvania, if you allow me.I am deeply convinced, that you will understand the history of Transilvania deeper and better drinking this wine than reading  a few volumes about it.

A little piece from the Tarnave vineyard

I also had the privilege to open ( and even drink, to be honest) many bottles of exquisite Romanian wines. I can also mention the spectacular Grasa or Tamaioasa from Cotnari. Describing them requires a few pages, it is much simplier to drink it. Translating all the resulted sensations in words, enumerating the right smell or taste impulses, this is the real labor of the wine afficionado when meeting these wines. I would mention rather as a memory practise honey, wax, nuts, overiped fruits, late flowers, Eastern spices, etc-it is quite an experience!

This a product from Tarnave, a Riesling, but we may not forget the Traminer!

I was also very enthusiasthic discovering the classic wines of Minis, I became wiser from the Samburesti, and I let myself becoming tipsy and dizzy in Murfatlar.

As I enjoyed all these things, I also push you to spoil yourself with these exquisite wines. The opportunities will come for sure, you only need to stay eager and grab them.

But let's go back to my favorite Traminer of Blaj. This wine still holds a typical scent of fresh hay. This sortiment came in Transilvania at 1900 , and you can barely find it dried, only scented. Enjoy it with a shells soup, or a white Mediterranean chicken, cooked with butter and Provence herbs in a pan ( only for advanced connaisseurs).

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