Romania. An amazing country. People don’t know much about it. Some know it is an Eastern European country, others have heard of the hideous dictator Ceausescu. Some know Romania from television: they have seen reports describing the poverty of the land or count how many homeless children live on the streets, begging, starving. Others will describe Romania in other words: the land of beautiful women, a mixture of Latin and Slavic culture, mysterious and fascinating. Bucharest, the country’s capital, used to be called “Little Paris” and Romania has many other wonders waiting for it.
A wonder is Transylvania, the country between forests, a true Romanian territory, full of history and imposing in its splendor. The land has it all: bucolic landscapes, breathtaking heights (the Western Carpathians, also called Apuseni Mountains, cross the county from north to south), medieval towns (Sighisoara is the most famous of all and the place was Prince Dracula was born ) and rustic villages, places where many ancient traditions were piously kept and the people are friendly and welcoming.
When traveling to Transylvania, there is no better way to enjoy your trip than to stay in a small, privately owned bed and breakfast village. Remember: you are in a wine country. Romanians make delicious wines, some of which you will never find in stores, as they are home-made wines just as tasty as the more expensive brands, if not tastier. So don’t choose a hotel. They are too expensive, the service is poor (there is still a lot of work to be done in Romania when it comes to customer service and tourism) and the food is not that good. If you want to get a taste of tradition, choose to spend your holiday in a village or in a country house outside a village, where the hostess will welcome you (on your first visit) with special and usual snacks of bread and salt and a shot of palinca – a traditional Romanian alcoholic drink, very popular in Transylvania. Bread and salt have a symbolic meaning: they included the Romanian way of saying “welcome to my house.” You probably won’t find the same custom wherever you go, some traditions get lost, but don’t be surprised if you find it.
So where should you go to be pampered the way you deserve and have a real and genuine Transylvanian experience? Not far from Brasov, in Miclosoara (a small town in the foothills of the Carpathians) are the guest houses “El Conde”. You have plenty of winter activities here, such as skiing at Poiana Resort, bear and wolf tracking (oh yes the land is wild – a large population of bears, you won’t find it in other European countries), bird watching (there are plenty of rare birds in the region, such as eagles, ural owls, creepers, black storks), cross walks and cultural activities (many of the places you can visit are listed as World Heritage by UNESCO).
El Conde is one of the many bed and breakfast accommodations in the region. We mention him because his name – yes, it is Count Dracula (although in real life he was a prince) – makes it much easier for you to remember this destination. However, Transylvania is magical and has many other destinations waiting for you to discover.
