Continuing from the previous episode ROMANIA #6 : Cluj Napoca https://th.readme.me/p/5244

Early in the morning, I set off on my journey. Today, my destination is Brasov, and I will not be making any stops along the way. Therefore, I have chosen to use the bus service. Actually, the hotel does offer breakfast, but since I have to leave before the dining room opens, the hotel has prepared two large sandwiches for each of us.

From the hotel, I called a taxi to take me to the bus station. The bus station here is a small one, with buses of various shapes and colors. Unlike the tour buses back home, which all have the same color scheme, making it easy to identify them as public transportation.

For purchasing tickets, it is recommended to contact the hotel to help book tickets in advance. And arrive at the bus station half an hour before the departure time. Because I am not sure if they will check whether we have booked tickets in advance when buying tickets. Because I saw some people who came later were able to buy tickets. And importantly, there will be no standing tickets here. The bus is full and the tickets are sold out. Some people will ask to stand, but the driver will not allow it. And there will be no seat numbers for sitting. In addition, if the passengers are full, the bus will leave early. I was glad that I arrived before time. If I had come close to the departure time, the tickets might have been sold out, and the bus would have left early.

Another observation I made is that while the cost of living (food) here is similar to that back home, transportation costs, especially taxis, are considerably more expensive. This could be due to the high price of gasoline here, which is around 40-50 baht per liter, similar to what we used to pay back home. The fare from Cluj Napoca to Brasov is 65 lei per person, and the journey takes about 5 and a half hours. The bus departs Cluj Napoca at 6:30 AM, arrives in Tarnaveni at 8:30 AM, Medias at 9:00 AM, Sighisoara at 9:45 AM, and Brasov at 12:00 PM.

The condition of the car I'm riding in. The car will stop and let passengers use the restroom at Shikijo Ara.

View along the way

The minibus dropped us off at Brasov bus station, arriving 10 minutes early. I sat and waited for the rental car that I had arranged through the accommodation, so that they could take us sightseeing before we checked in.

Our first destination was Rasnov Castle. It was almost unnecessary to say that we had entered the city limits of Rasnov, as there was a large RASNOV sign on the top of the hill. It took us about half an hour to travel from Brasov to Rasnov.

The driver dropped me off at the parking lot. There are two ways to get to Rasnov Castle: on foot or by tractor trailer with a passenger car.

I opted to walk. Throughout the journey, the path was flanked by a lush forest, providing ample shade. However, the steep incline caused me to break a sweat, and my breathing became audible.

Halfway between the car park and Rasnov Castle, there is also a dinosaur museum. But I didn't go in. I only noticed parents taking their children in to see it.

Berries are also available for sale above.

It takes about 10 minutes to walk to Rasnov Castle. The entrance fee is 12 lei.

Originally, there were more than 30 houses within the city walls. There was also a school and a church. However, the fort has now been restored and is open to tourists. I'm not sure if the houses within the walls are still inhabited or if they are only used as souvenir shops.

At the center of the wide courtyard, there is a tourist service center. At this point, there is a balcony where you can enjoy a high-angle view.

The view stretches out as far as the eye can see, encompassing the entire cityscape of Rostov-on-Don.

From the wide courtyard, walk up a little further to reach the highest viewpoint of Rasnov Castle.

This viewpoint offers 360-degree views.

Returning to the front of the fort, we saw a stone arrangement resembling a square with a curved top. I guess it's a Christian symbol.

I saw a small fort, so I walked up to take a look. I got another view of Rasnov Castle.

From Rasnov Castle, my next destination is Bran Castle, which is only a 10-minute drive away.

In front of Bran Castle, there are many restaurants and souvenir shops. I haven't had time to stop by yet because my heart is already in Bran Castle, and I intend to stop by and look for souvenirs when I leave the castle.

Admission to the castle costs 35 lei per person, which includes a photo permit. Whether you take photos or not, the admission fee is the same.

Many people have heard the legend of Dracula, and Romania is the mysterious land that is said to be the origin of the story in the novel "Dracula" by the Irish writer Bram Stoker. He drew inspiration from the history of Romania in the era when it was still divided into the regions of Wallachia, Transylvania, and Moldavia. He created the character of "Dracula," the immortal vampire, based on the history of Prince Vlad III of Wallachia, who ruled the land of Wallachia. He was the son of Vlad II, or another name, Vlad Dracul (Vlad Dracul). The word "dracul" is Romanian for "dragon" (Dragon). Therefore, Prince Vlad III was called according to the custom of using his father's name as his own name, as Prince Vlad Dracul III (Vlad III Dracul).

At the tender age of 17, Prince Vlad ruled Wallachia during a tumultuous period marked by war. He faced threats from both the Kingdom of Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, both of whom sought to subjugate Wallachia and make it a vassal state.

Prince Vlad was renowned for both his prowess as a warrior and his cruelty towards his enemies. Captured prisoners were tortured by being impaled on stakes and left to die slowly in the open field. This brutal practice earned him the nickname Vlad Tepes, or Vlad the Impaler.

Bran Castle, also known as Dracula's Castle, is actually not related to the Dracula novel at all. However, the castle is now mistakenly believed to be Dracula's castle.

Bran Castle was built in 1212 by the Teutonic Knights. The castle was built on a cliff, and the buildings were made of wood. It was located on an ancient trade route connecting Transylvania and Wallachia. The castle was constantly being improved to fight against the Turkish army. Later, the Brasov City Council presented Bran Castle to Queen Maria of Romania (granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom). The castle was then extensively renovated, keeping the original exterior structure and decorating the interior to make it more livable. This was to make it suitable as a summer palace according to Queen Maria's wishes. The castle was later passed down to Princess Ileana, Queen Maria's daughter.

In 1948, the Communist Party seized the castle and exiled the royal family from the country. The castle fell into disrepair and was neglected for decades. After the Romanian Revolution and the fall of communism in 1989, the government restored Bran Castle and turned it into a tourist attraction and museum.

In mid-2006, Bran Castle was returned to its rightful owner, Dominic of Habsburg, the son of Princess Ileana. At the time, he was 69 years old and working as an architect in New York City, USA.

Inside the castle, there are also narrow secret passages that lead to different rooms.

So many rooms!

This is the angle you will see when you look out.

Walking around, I came across this corner. It's a fairly large open space on top, and you can enjoy the view as well.

The view from here.

There are countless rooms, some large, some small, and some even interconnected.

This room houses clothing, including armor.

This small room is a torture chamber.

There are so many rooms here, and that's even though not all of them are open to the public. It still took me almost an hour to walk through them all.

It is said to be a scale used to weigh whether one is human or a demon.

Exiting Bran Castle, there was a slight change of plan. Originally, I intended to exit through the gate where we bought the tickets, so we could do some shopping. But when it came down to it, at that moment, we were both tired and hot, so we asked to exit through the side gate, which was closer to the car park. So we missed out on shopping.

Watch ROMANIA #8 : Brasov at https://th.readme.me/p/5247