My road trip to Romania! Part I

    Our road trip to Romania started on Saturday morning. At 6 am we were already on the road. Our destination was the small town of Bran in Transylvania. We arrived  in the afternoon after 10 hours drive but it was worth it. We had a reservation in a small hotel with view of the Bran Castle, known also as the Dracula's Castle. 

Bran Castle:

     As it was already late and the Castle was closed for visits we went for a walk in the town and we had very nice diner in one of the local restaurants. We visited the Bran Castle on the next day right after breakfast. I have to say that it was very impressive!

     Our second stop was the Peles Castle located in the Carpathian Mountains near Sinaia within 1 hour drive from Bran. It is a Neo-Renaissance castle with a beautiful garden, built between 1873 and 1914. Very impressive as well ;)

Castle Peles:

     In the evening we had a lovely diner in a local restaurant in the old town of Brasov. Unfortunately we didn't have the time to view the town as it was already dark outside. Maybe the next time we will.

    We were very lucky these two days. The weather was very nice for this time of the year. On the second evening it started to snow and on Monday everything was white. It was also foggy that morning as you can see from the next photos, but this didn't stop us to continue with our plan and to visit one last place before we leave Transylvania - the Rasnov Fortress. 

     We saw the fortress from the car window on our arrival to Bran and we were so impressed that we decided to make some time and go visit it. The fortress is situated on a top of a hill near the town of Rasnov on 20-30 minutes drive from Bran. The Rasnov Citadel - a 13th century Romanian fortress, is also known as the "Fortress of Fear". It is one of the best preserved rustic citadels in Transylvania. 

Rasnov Fortress:

to be continued..

My "Must visit" list - Koprivshtica!

     Koprivshtitsa is situated at a distance of110 km south-east of Sofia. It's near to the Topolnitsa river in the heart of Sredna Gora Mountain. There are nine peaks surrounding the city. With its beautiful nature and authentic architecture from the 17-18th century, Koprivshtitsa is one of my top 3 "must visit" destination for this year.

     Here are some interesting facts: 

• The city is well known as a center of education, literature and culture during the Bulgarian Renaissance period;
• Koprivshtitsa was announced for town-museum in 1952;
• Since 1971 the city has become architectural and historical reserve;
• Even if it is a small city there are 388 monuments in the town.

My "Must visit" list - Melnik!

      With the beginning of the New Year I think it's the perfect time to start planning my holidays. I will start my "must visit" list for 2015 with Melnik :)

    I have been there once when I was a child, but it was so long ago that I don't remember it very well.  I've been  thinking of going back to this amazing city for some time now. Melnik is the smallest city in Bulgaria. It's famous with the pyramidal rocks which are surrounding the city and of course with some of the best wineries in Bulgaria.

     I can already picture myself in some of the local taverns, enjoying the local food, wines and the amazing view :). And why not taking the opportunity to visit the Rozhen Monastery located in the area as well.

photographer: Neli Tsonova