Exploring Romania: From May 24 through July 5, we visited the historic towns of Transylvania: Cluj-Napoca, Sighişoara, Sibiu, Brasov, and Sinaia. After a week in Bucharest, Romania’s capital city, we returned for a longer visit in Sibiu.
Cluj-Napoca, often referred to as just Cluj, was our first stop in Transylvania, the central part of Romania in the beautiful Carpathian Mountains. The area is culturally quite diverse, a result of its unique history, and the mountainous landscape here is gorgeous. Cluj is a large city, second in size only to the capital, Bucharest, and a major center for higher education.
We took the train to Cluj from Budapest. After settling into our hotel, we walked the area, pleased to find that so much was available within an easy walk. A block or two in one direction took us to the National Theater and the Romanian National Opera House, across from which we found the Metropolitan Orthodox Cathedral and a monument to Avram Iancu, a revered Romanian hero.
Four minutes in the opposite direction took us to Piata Unirii, the large main square that features St. Michael’s Catholic Church. It’s a gorgeous Roman Catholic church in the Gothic style, the largest church in Transylvania, second only to the Black Church in Brasov.
Alongside the church, the square also features an impressive monument to Matthias Corvino or Matthias I, King of Hungary and Croatia from 1458 to 1490. In that time, Transylvania was part of Hungary. Matthias was born here, and his birthplace is preserved just a block from the main square. He ruled and expanded a large territory. Legends tell of him as “Matthias the Just” wandering in disguise among his people. The beautiful monument in the square depicts Matthias Rex on horseback (of course) flanked by four of his admiring generals.
During our stay, the square also featured an exhibition celebrating 25 years of cooperation between Romania and the USA. A number of large panels provide photos and descriptions of how the USA and Romania have worked together to support business, manufacturing, education, and the arts.
The Romans were Here: The history here goes back to the Romans who named this settlement Napoca. So it’s not so surprising to see the Capitoline Wolf Statue, a symbol of ancient Rome by our hotel. The statue depicts a mother wolf suckling two baby boys, Remus and Romulus, the legendary founders of Rome itself. The image is found all over the world, but especially in Romanian cities: Cluj, in Bucharest, Brasov, Constanta, Alba Iulia, Sighisoara, Timisoara, and others.
Reformed Church off Farkas Street: We learned that the “Reformed Church” here is related to the Presbyterian churches which originate historically in Scotland. Theologically, they follow John Calvin, even with a belief in pre-destined election. John Knox of Edinburgh studied under Calvin in France and brought his theology back to Scotland, so Knox is more or less the father of Presbyterianism and the Church of Scotland. This reformed church reminded us of Protestant churches in America, beautiful in their very simple and plain construction – quite a contrast to the more opulent Roman Catholic structures in the Gothic and Baroque styles.
St. George and the Dragon: Before the entry to the Reformed Church stands another statue with a most popular and common theme, that of St. George, on horseback, as he is killing the dragon. Good triumphs over evil; the Godly defeat the devil. It’s a lovely statue depicting a young St. George, perhaps even somewhat feminine. This is a copy of one in Prague.
The Alexandru Borza Cluj-Napoca University Botanic Garden: On a lovely sunny day, we visited the highly recommended Botanical Garden, closely associated with the university. It covers 14 hectares and offers beautiful walks along a hillside, through gardens and forest settings, as well as greenhouses featuring tropical plants and even a Lilypad pool. On this day, many school groups also visited. So in addition to enjoying nature, we were amused by the antics of children, some excited, others bored, and all enjoying an outing as they anticipate the coming end of the school year.
Transylvanian History: Over the years, this area was often invaded and ruled by others, so its culture today reflects a rich history of cultural influences. A few thousand years ago, the ancestors of Romanians in Transylvania were the Dacians. Traditional costumes still reflect Dacian themes, and we can thank Dacian myths and legends for both werewolves and vampires. The Dacians were invaded and ruled by the Romans. Later it was Magyars (Hungarians). In medieval times, many Saxons, people of German origin, migrated into Transylvania at the invitation of rulers within the Holy Roman Empire. Saxons were invited for their skills to provide strong defenses against raiders from the east. They built walls around even more than the “Seven Saxon Cities,” and they built walls around churches to fortify them against attack. Transylvania was key to defend against eastern tribes and invaders, and later against the Ottoman Turks wishing to spread their empire further into Europe. Later Transylvania was ruled by the Hungarians again, and then by the Hapsburgs of Vienna.
Cluj-Napoca was one of the original “Seven Saxon Cities,” but very little remains of its medieval walls. The Taylor’s Bastion is one of the few remaining remnants of the medieval town walls. (More on the Seven in our upcoming posts.)
We crossed the river and climbed up to the Citadel for outstanding views across the city. The city landscape of this town is beautifully dominated by St. Michael’s Church.
We really enjoyed our few days in Cluj-Napoca, thanks to a great TI /Tourist Information office that offered good advice and the best, most helpful city maps we’ve ever seen. We ate well with good local food – Gulas and Varza de la Cluj (meat and cabbage) and an occasional Kilkenny Ale on draft at “O’ Peter’s Pub.” As the song says: there’s an Irish Pub in every town all around the world. And next we’re off to Sighişoara.
