ROMANIA - The City That Thinks its Hollywood

One of the first things you see when you arrive in Brasov is a big "Hollywood" style sign on the hill above the old town. Its certainly a good reference point when moving around the city.

First impressions of Brasov were not good I'm afraid. I got off the train in the middle of a summer thunderstorm with torrential rain. The station is in the newer "Communist" part of town and you have to get a bus to the old town where the tourist action is and of course my contactless card chose that moment on the bus not to work properly! Then of course when it's chucking down it proves almost impossible to fiind your hotel amongst the maze of narrow streets even though it was actually on the main road and I was just being wet and irritable!

Anyway I have been here four days now and from previous posts you can see I have done a lot and really like it.

The old town is centred around the main square and the nearby Black Church. This is a Lutheran building. We are still in Transylvania, historically this had an Orthodox local population but was settled by Protestant Saxon Germans.

There are several legends as how the Black Church got its name the most common referring to a great city fire in 1689 which seems to have the same legendary status in Brasov as London's fire in 1666. 

Inside the church is adorned with many Transylvanian Islamic rugs which were donated by local merchants trading with the Otttoman Empire in the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. You hung an expensive rug in your pew to show wealth and status. Not too sure how the vicar at home would react if I rocked up with an offcut of shagpile next Sunday!

Some VERY old pews - signed as now to be used!

The Town Hall is in the market square and there are loads and loads of restaurants in the surrounding streets giving the town a real buzz in the evening. Its a great place to stroll.

The old town has remains of walls so there are gates

The hill above Brasov is called Tampa and there is a cable car which takes you up so you can stand by that "Hollywood" sign and get a good view of the town. Fortunately it is currently undergoing a comple rebuild so is not operating. Great thats one less of of those things to go in!!

What I found really interesting - because only I would - was the huge drum of cable by the bottom station waiting to be installed.