When I was a child, vampires scared me very much. If zombies are in fashion today then bad vampires were in fashion so between novels and movies there were nights when I didn't sleep. Even today vampire nightmares are recurring, so Transylvania should be among my travel destinations. Luckily it is.
The story of Dracula is one of the tourist magnets of Romania and he knows how to take advantage of it so you cannot pass through this Eastern European country without doing some of the dracula tours offered here. Although the true Dracula does not correspond to the image that Bram Stocker forged in the XNUMXth century ...
Dracula, of bloodthirsty impaler or romantic count
Vlad Tepes born in December 1431 in the Sighhisoara Fortress, in Romania, when his father was governor of Transylvania. With one year of life he was already part of the Order of the Dragon, a religious order similar to that of the Teutonic Knights or the Knights Hospitallers. Half religious, half military, this particular order had been created in 1387 by the Holy Roman Emperor with the idea of protecting Christianity from the threatening Turks.
Here in Transylvania the boyars, feudal lords, associated the devil with the dragon and began to call the father of Vlad Tepes, the governor, Dracul, Devil. The son was left with Dracula, son of the Devil. It was in the 30s of the XNUMXth century that Vlad became Prince of Wallachia, a Roman province, and after six years his father sent him to Constantinople, to the sultan's court. There he stayed another six years. From them he learned to impale people and was released from his duties after the murder of his father.
His older brother had also been assassinated by local nobles so he returned with a group of Turkish knights and troops loaned by the Turks to reach the Wallachian throne, something he accomplished in 1456. He only reigned six years but his thirst for blood and revenge made him famous. It was so harsh that crime and corruption had no place in his kingdom. Later he fought with the Turks and the Sultan invaded Wallachia.
The story continues with Vlad's wife's suicide and his own escape to be assassinated in 1476. This is pure history though the Irish Bram Stoker was inspired by her for his literary creation. Obviously, he didn't even travel to Transylvania, he just limited himself to reading a few books in London ...
Dracula Tours in Romania
Maybe we wouldn't know Vlad Tepes if it weren't for Bram Stoker so let's forgive the writer who took so many liberties and stained the name of a knight, bloodthirsty, but a knight nonetheless. Today There are nine dracula tours:
- Bucharest
- Snagov Monastery
- Targoviste
- Poenari fortress
- Arefu village
- Brasov
- Bran Castle
- to Sighisoara
- Bistrita
La Palatul Curtea Veche It is on Strada Franceza street, in the center of the historical area of Bucharest. The building was built in the 1972th century by Vlad and apparently his prisoners were locked up here in underground dungeons. The museum opened in 10 and today it operates from Tuesday to Sunday from 6 a.m. to XNUMX p.m.
El Snagov Monastery It is a few kilometers from Bucharest and you can go by train or bus. The church dates from the 1458th century and the monastery is from XNUMX. Vlad added dungeons and walls to it and there is a plaque inside that claims to be his tomb, although it is not confirmed. The monastery is on an island in Lake Snagov and you arrive either by boat or by crossing a bridge.
Targoviste It is a little further but you can also enter from Bucharest. The tour takes you to know the Prince's Residence and Watch tower. Tarogoviste it was the capital of Wallachia and here many nobles were impaled. You will see an exhibition dedicated to him, from Tuesday to Sunday from 9 am to 7 pm In Wallachia itself there is also the Poenari fortress. To get here you can take the train to Curtea de Arges.
The fortress is a handful of ruins on a hill above the river Arges, at the foot of the Carpathians. It dates from the XNUMXth century and Vlad had it restored. From here he escaped when the Turks arrived finally. It was abandoned in the 1400th century and fell into disuse. You have to climb more than XNUMX steps to reach these ruins, but they are great. Since you are here, if you have a car you can come to know the Arefu village.
The legend says that it was the villagers who helped Vlad Tepes escape from the Turks. There are B & Bs here and in other villages and I find it a good place to feel Vlad's history on my skin. TO Brasov you can arrive by train and without a doubt It is one of the most tourist destinations in Romania, with its Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque buildings. It was founded by the Teutonic Knights in the XNUMXth century and its medieval airs are something to see.
El Bran Castle, who everyone knows as the Dracula's castleYou reach it by going by train to Brasov and from there by bus to Bran. Walls, towers and turrets define it. It does not have to do with Vlad but with the literary character created by Stoker but it is filled with tourists who visit its interior, a fabulous place. In high season it opens on Mondays from 12 to 6 pm and from Tuesday to Sunday from 9 am to 6 pm. 7,80 euros per adult.
to Sighisoara It is a city founded by the Saxons in the XNUMXth century. Has the honor of being one best preserved medieval cities in Europe and World Heritage precisely for that. It is beautiful: cobbled streets, bourgeois houses, towers, churches. It is about the birthplace of Vlad Tepes and is his house, inside the citadel, near the Clock Tower. Here he was born in 1431 and lived with his father until 1435.
bistrira it is one of the oldest towns in the region. It is at the foot of the Vargau Mountains and near the Borgo Pass that links Transylvania with Moldova. It appears in Bram AStoker's novel as one of Jonatahan Harker's stops on his journey to Dracula's Castle. There is no doubt that for medieval destinations Bistrita is great. And finally we have the mountain pass itself, Pasul Tihuta, thousands of meters high. It is a really beautiful mountainous setting, with valleys, villages and the Carpathians as a backdrop. Precious.
If you are a fan of Bram Stoker's Dracula, you can follow the sites that appear in the novel. If instead you like the story of the real Vlad Tepes, then there are wonderful places to know. One or the other, Romania and Transylvania are unforgettable destinations.