You can read the previous travel review ROMANIA #7 : Bran Castle https://th.readme.me/p/5245

I leave Branc Castle and head back to Brasov. It takes about 0.5 hour to get to town. Before we take a stroll around the town, we drop our luggage at a hostel called "Central House Hostel" where we are going to stay tonight.

The hostel of which the guest rooms are on the second floor is located on a tiny road.

The lobby looks so simple that it's hard to differentiate the reception desk from a typical working table.

There are a kitchen, a living room and restrooms on the upper floor .

My room where I am staying is just a few steps from the lobby. The room provides a personal bathroom, a small desk and a comfortable sofa to lie down. The room costs 35 Euro. After we have done unpacking our stuff, we leave the hostel to take a walk in the town. On both sides of the road in front of the hostel are sited with variety of shops and restaurants. The road is usually crowded with the Romanian that come for a meal after late afternoon till at night.

Brovsov is one of the seven walled citadels with the remains of walls, buildings and towers left after wars. The distinct medieval ambiance can also be found in another four towns I have visited: Sibiu, Timisoara, Cluj-Napoca and Mediasch. Brosov is viewed as Switzerland of Eastern Europe. The town is surrounded by Tampa Mount and Warthe Hill.

The heart of the old medieval Brosov locates the Council Square, one of the finest squares in the country. It was built surrounded by ornate churches and elaborately trimmed clock tower which once belonged to Casa Sfatului or Council's House. The building with notable architecture is history museum and tourist information. This area is probably a nice place to relax for local people as it is full of people when I am there. There is a stage for traditional Romania shows and plenty of shops selling various kinds of goods.

On the stage, there are a number of shows like singing and dancing. I really have a nice time there.

Next to the square, there is a Romania's leading gothic church built in 1383 called "the Black Church". The church boasts the largest church bell in Romania. Its name derives from the damage caused by fire in 1689 when the walls of the church were blackened. It is surrounded by statues of Madonna and important saints. It is so pity I don't have a chance to take a peek inside the church as there is a concert. I heard that the interior is incredibly beautiful with 119 fabulous Turkish carpets and it also houses 4000-pipe organ dating from 1839.

A another interesting spot near the Black Church you can't miss is the Rope Street (Sforii Strada). It is one of the narrowest streets in Europe, approximately 4 feet wide. It is written in history that it was initially used as an access route by firefighters. I think this street is exactly as narrow as the tiny road leading to my hostel.

I keep strolling around from one road to another from the map I grabbed at the hostel. I pretty enjoy it.

I haven't been inside the Sinagoga Beith Israel because it closes. The map says it is the museum.

This is Schei Gate, the only entrance used by the ancient Romanian who lived in Schei.

The fairly-tale Catherine's Gate was built by tailors. From my point of views, this is the most beautiful gates of Brosov.

After a long walk, I get back for dinner at Bistro de l'Arte which is located near the square.

The restaurant is well decorated with cozy atmosphere.

Fresh fruit juice, hot coffee and other variety of drinks are offered.

The food is so delicious that I can finish off my meal, costing 159 Romania lei.

The sky is getting blue when I go out of the restaurant. So, I decide to take more photos of the surroundings around the square before leaving to the hostel. Tonight I need to get a lot of rest since I have a big plan to enjoy the spectacular panoramic view of the city of Brasov on the top of Tampa Mount and Warthe Hill.

In the next morning, I'm going to walk up to Warthe Hill where the White Tower and the Black Tower are located.

I walk pass the Council Square early in the morning. The atmosphere at this time is entirely different from that in the evening. Along the street there are some resplendent buildings with gothic, baroque and renaissance architecture. It indicates that the city was founded for such a long time ago.

I keep walking along the way with the city wall and a small canal on each side of the road. On the way, there are huge trees making it shady on the road. Then, I see Graft Bastion and a bridge over the small canal. From here, we have to climb up steep stairs. Both sides of the stairs are full of grasses and weeds making it a perfect place for dangerous snakes. I continue to walk quickly up to the hill without stopping for fear that I may run into something I don't want to.

Warthe Hill is where the White Tower is located. There is a wooden terrace overlooking the town with Tampa Mount behind it. I have to walk carefully on the wooden floor since it is always making some noise when I am walking.

Warm sunlight is shining onto the houses and buildings waking people up to start their new day.

From the White Tower, I walk along a small trekking way in the woods heading to the Black Tower. The way is in good conditions and we don't feel tired at all when we reach to the Black Tower. There is a viewpoint on the terrace just like at the White Tower. Anyway, I think it is more beautiful at the previous one because you can get bigger picture of the town view. Do you see the huge letters stating "BRASOV" on the top of Tampa Mount? We are going there in the late morning for the picturesque scenery at the viewpoint.

After the small trip to Warthe Hill, we come back to our hostel for breakfast prepared for us. We then take a cable car to the top of the Tampa Mount to get panoramic views.

There are some local people working out on the shady way we walk to the cable car station.

On the walkway, we can see the White Tower we visited this morning.

It takes about 20 minutes on foot to get to the station from the hostel.

The cable car hours is from 9.30 am.-6.00 pm. every day but on Monday it opens 12 pm.-6 pm. The round-trip ticket costs 16 Romania lei.

A cable car can contain up to 20 people. I am so excited when the cable car is moving past a range of huge trees at the station up to the top of the mountain. I take plenty of pictures showing orange houses' roofs and green forests.

From the station to the top, it takes 2 minutes and a half. During the way up, there must be another cable car going down to keep the weight balance.

There are some restaurants available right at the station. If you want to enjoy the bird's-eye views without anything blocking, you should take a short walk from the station.

The viewpoint I have told you is where the letter "V" of "BRASOV" placed. I spend quite a long time with these fantastic panoramic views absorbing the ambience.

You can continue reading our journey at ROMANIA #9 : Peles Castle https://th.readme.me/p/5248