Things to Do in Oman

Built, as its name suggests, on a hilltop overlooking Sighisoara, the Church on the Hill is one of the city’s oldest buildings, dating back to the mid-14th century. Acclaimed as one of Transylvania’s most important examples of ecclesiastical Gothic architecture, it’s a striking sight, perched on the 420-meter summit of School Hill.

It’s a steep climb up a 175-step covered wooden staircase, the ‘Scholar’s Stairs’, to the church, but it’s worth the effort to view the beautifully restored interiors.  Highlights include a number of carefully restored 15th-century frescos, an elaborate 16th-century altar and an eerie crypt, home to around 30 tombs.

Founded in the early 16th century, the Curtea de Arges Monastery is one of the most important pilgrimage and prayer sites in Romania. A Romanian Orthodox cathedral sits on the grounds of the monastery that also dates to the 16th century. Built with pale gray limestone in a Byzantine style, it features Moorish arabesques and an interior covered with murals by French painters Nicolle and Renouard and Romanian painter Constantinescu. The monastery is also home to numerous relics and a gospel written in gold by Queen Elizabeth of Romania, as well as the graves of Kings Ferdinand and Carol I and Queens Elizabeth and Maria.

The monastery is tied to several local legends, including the legend of Master Manole, who is said to have sacrificed his wife and his own life to complete the building of the monastery. Another legend relates to the holy relics of Saint Filofteea, a 12-year-old girl who was killed by her father after giving food to beggars.

Brasov’s monumental Black Church (Biserica Neagra) soars heavenwards at the southwestern end of the city’s focal Council Square (Piata Sfatului) and is the largest Gothic church in central Europe. Afloat with flying buttresses and a landmark tower, construction on the church began in 1383 and it was completed almost a century later in 1477; along with several other prominent buildings in the city it was all but destroyed in the great fire of 1689 and takes its present name from its blackened, smoke-damaged walls. Repairs took more than 100 years and even today only one of the two proposed towers is complete, standing 215 feet (65.6 meters) above the Council Square. 

The Black Church’s Gothic vaulting remains but the interior now shows touches of Baroque in its styling; the flamboyant, 4,000-pipe organ is one of the best in Romania, designed in 1839 by the famous German organ-maker Carl August Buchholz and there are weekly organ concerts at 6 p.m. each Tuesday (tickets cost 10 lei). The church also has a priceless collection of 17th- and 18th-century carpets from Asia Minor, which provide a welcome splash of warmth and color against its austere walls.

Romania’s oldest national museum, the Brukenthal National Museum is actually made up of six distinctive museums, but it’s the Brukenthal art gallery that takes center-stage, in prize place on the Big Square (Piața Mare). Housed in the 18th-century Baroque-style Brukenthal Palace, the permanent art collection includes over 1,200 works dating between the 15th and 18th centuries. As well as European masters like Rubens and Van Dyck, the galleries include an Anatolian rugs collection; a library of rare books and manuscripts; and a comprehensive collection of Romanian art, including an impressive selection of Transylvanian medieval art. 

Also part of the Brukenthal National Museum are the Museum of History, housed in the 16th-century Altemberger House; the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Museum of Natural History. Additional collections include the fascinating Museum of Pharmacy, housed in a medieval apothecary, and the August von Spiess Museum of Hunting.

First built in 1878 as a wooden monument to mark Romania’s Independence, Bucharest’s Arch of Triumph (Arcul de Triumf) has long been one of the city’s most memorable landmarks. Although rebuilt again after WWI, the current Arch of Triumph is the work of architect Petru Antonesc, reconstructed in granite in 1936, and decorated with sculptures by Romanian artists like Constantin Medrea, Constantin Baraschi and Ion Jalea.

Towering 27-meters over the intersection of Kiseleff road, Mareșal Alexandru boulevard and Alexandru Constantinescu street, the monumental arch now marks the entrance to Bucharest’s Herăstrău Park. Still a poignant reminder of Romania’s independence, it’s the site of military parades and celebrations on Romania's National Day (Dec 1st), and an internal staircase also allows visitors to climb to the top, looking out over the busy boulevards below.

Finally inaugurated in 2009 after a long (and somewhat controversial) wait, Bucharest’s Holocaust Memorial serves as a stark reminder of the thousands of Romanian Jews affected by the Holocaust. The memorial holds great significance not only for Romania’s Jewish community, but as a symbol that the country recognizes its role in events (a fact often denied by the post-war communist government). 

The memorial itself is a simple yet poignant monument, designed by artist Peter Jacobi and featuring a plaque dedicated to the estimated 280,000 Jews and 25,000 Roma who lost their lives during the Holocaust. The memorial includes a ‘Column of Memory’, inlaid with the Hebrew word for ‘Remember’, and a Roma wheel, dedicated to the Romani people.

The Fortified Church of Harman is located in the heart of Harman village in the Transylvania region of Romania. A visit makes a great day trip from Brasov and is often combined with a visit to the Fortified Church of Prejmer. The church, which dates to 1240, is one of nearly 300 fortified churches in Transylvania. The belfry tower was added to the church in the 14th century and walls were added in the 15th century. The south chapel has been preserved in close to its original state, while the north chapel was rebuilt in the 15th century. The church was originally built as a Romanesque three nave church, but was later taken over by the Cistercians. The interior features traces of different styles and eras.

The fortifications were built to protect the village from attacks by the Ottomans and originally included three walls. Only two walls remain, an outer wall at 4.5 meters high and an inner wall about 12 meters high. Visitors have access to some of interior living spaces within the fortifications, as well as the walkway around the wall, which is still close to its original state.

Located outside the fortified walls of Braşov’s medieval heart, the district of Schei is a charming tangle of narrow streets and multi-colored houses. It was here where Romanian nationals congregated in the city and the area became a symbol of Romanian unity and pride. Schei is also site of the Orthodox church of St Nicholas, which was built around 1290; the first school for Romanian people was built in its grounds in 1495 and it became a great center of learning. At this time, all religious tracts were written in Slavic and it was not until a century later that these were translated into Romanian and printed at the school in the 1550s, including bibles and hymn books. 

The original school was replaced by a fine, pastel-hued Baroque building in 1760 and today it serves as a museum showcasing Romanian life in Schei down the centuries. Visits incorporate the schoolroom with its simple wooden benches, early printing presses, gleaming gold and silver icons, a library of thousands of books and an exhibition of traditional costumes worn by the residents of Schei.

With a history dating back to the early 1900s, Carol Park (Liberty Park) is one of Bucharest’s oldest parks, built by French designer Eduard Redont to mark the Jubilee of King Carol I. With its glittering lake, tree-lined esplanade and landscaped gardens sprawling over 30 hectares in South Budapest, the park offers an idyllic retreat from the city, with ample space for walking, cycling and sports.  

The park is also home to a number of important monuments and has been listed as a National Historic monument since 2004. Most notable is the Mausoleum, originally built as a communist monument and later transformed into a WWI memorial, fronted by the Monument of the Unknown Soldier. Additional highlights include the early 20th-century Tepes Castle and a series of statues, including Filip Marin’s ‘Sleeping Beauty’ and the ‘Giant’s’ by Dumitru Paciurea and Frederic Storck.

Cotroceni Palace in Bucharest is the headquarters and residence of the Romanian president, as well as home to the National Cotroceni Museum. The original palace served as the residence of Romanian rulers until the end of the 19th century, at which time a larger palace was commissioned by King Carol I. Most of the palace had to be rebuilt after an earthquake struck in 1977. Adjacent to the palace is the Cotroceni Garden, one of the major public gardens in the city which dates back to the 1850s.

The National Cotroceni Museum collection features more than 20,000 objects, divided into several different collections. Highlights include 18th and 19th century religious arts; a collection of Romanian paintings from the 19th century to the present; 18th and 19th century paintings from German, Austrian, French and Belgian artists; sculptures from both Romanian and European sculptors; drawings, watercolors and engravings from the 19th and 20th centuries; and decorative arts, including ceramics, glass, metals and textiles.

A natural oasis of lush wetlands, ancient forests and sprawling marshes, just 30 km from Bucharest, the Comana Nature Park offers a tranquil retreat from the city, with almost 25,000 hectares of land. Designated a national reserve in 2004, Comana is one of Romania’s most bio-diverse areas, home to around 141 bird species, including the endemic glossy ibis, and a startling array of flora, including wild pear trees and a rainbow of wild peonies that bloom in the spring and summer months.

 

Along with wildlife spotting, popular activities in the park include hiking, horse riding, biking and canoeing, while nearby attractions include the 16th-century Comana Monastery, built by the real-life ‘Dracula’ - Vlad the Impaler.

Built in the late 1890s and opened at the turn of the 20th century on one of Bucharest’s main boulevards, the CEC Palace was designed by French architect Paul Gottereau and the construction of this fine Beaux Arts masterpiece was overseen by Romanian architect Ion Socolescu. Designated to be the HQ of Romania’s oldest savings bank, Casa de Economii și Consemnațiuni (CEC) and located opposite the National History Museum of Romania, it is a monumental mansion topped with five cupolas; the central one stands over the grandiose, colonnaded entrance and is made of glass and steel. The palace is slated for transformation into an art museum and was sold to the city council for more than €17.75 million in 2006; while plans are drawn up the CEC Bank rents it back from the council but its sumptuous, marble-clad interior – much of which was covered over in Ceaușescu’s time – is no longer open to the public.

One of the first synagogues in Bucharest was the Choral Temple, which was completed in 1857 by architects Enderle and Freiwald; it is a copy of the Leopoldstadt-Tempelgasse Great Synagogue in Vienna and has a façade decorated in Moorish style with yellow-and-red patterned brickwork. A wealthy Jewish community was established in the city by the mid-16th century but never lived in complete harmony with its Romanian neighbors. In 1593, many were killed during a rebellion against the city’s Ottoman overlords and unrest continued to rumble for several centuries.

Several years after the Choral Temple was built, it was destroyed in a pogrom and rebuilt in 1866. Even with the destruction, the city’s Jewish population continued to grow. By 1930, it numbered 74,480 while the pogroms and indiscriminate killings continued. During World War II, all Bucharest’s synagogues were closed down and many thousands of Romanian Jews were sent to their deaths in Transnistria and Bessarabia. Following the war, Jewish numbers in the city swelled with refugees from other eastern European countries but uncertainty under the autocratic rule of Nicolae Ceaușescu led to mass immigration to Israel.

With the collapse of Communism, a memorial was erected outside the synagogue in 1991 to commemorate the thousands of Romanian Jews who died in the Holocaust, and in 2006, a painstaking restoration of its interior was undertaken; the synagogue finally reopened in December 2014 with its Moorish tiles, carved wooden balconies and heavy chandeliers gleaming once more. 

The George Enescu Museum in Bucharest is a memorial to Romania’s most important musician. Enescu was a composer, violinist, pianist and conductor who passed away in 1955. After his death, the museum was established in the Cantacuzino Palace, widely considered one of the most beautiful buildings in Bucharest. Designed in a French academic style with art nouveau elements, the palace features a remarkable glass awning above the entrance and an interior adorned with murals and sculptures.

The permanent collection of the museum includes three rooms of the palace and is devoted to the life of Enescu, as well as the history of Romanian music. Displays include photographs, manuscripts, medals, drawings, musical instruments, furniture and personal items, as well as a casting of Enescu’s hands and his mortuary mask. The museum also has two other branches: the George Enescu Memorial House in Sinaia and the Dumitru and Alice Rosetti-Tescanu George Enescu section in Bacau.

Founded in 1471 by Vlad the Impaler (the real-life ‘Count Dracula’ who inspired Bram Stoker’s fictional character of the same name), the Comana Monastery has long been an intriguing site for fans. Legend has it that the headless body of Vlad the Impaler was even found during excavations of the site.

The monastery was originally located on an island in the middle of a swamp and accessible only by a wooden bridge. Rebuilt in the 16th century by Romanian ruler Radu Serban and restored by Serban Cantacuzino at the turn of the 18th century, it remains a striking sight and makes a popular diversion for those visiting the nearby Comana Nature Park.

Hidden away in Bucharest’s old Jewish quarter, the Great Synagogue (or the Great Polish Synagogue) was built by the city’s Polish-Jewish community in 1845 and is an impressively preserved tribute to Romania’s rich Jewish heritage. Don’t be put-off by the synagogue’s simple façade – inside, the main hall is lavishly decorated, painted in Rococo style by Ghershon Horowitz in 1936 and hung with beautiful chandeliers.

Today, the Great Synagogue remains active as a place of worship, but it’s also home to a small, but fascinating Jewish museum. Focusing on Romania’s Jewish history and heritage, the most moving exhibition details the horrors of the Holocaust and includes the poignant Memorial for Jewish Martyrs.

The sprawling Cantacuzino Castle was completed in 1911 to plans drawn up by architect Grigore Cerchez; it was designed as a hunting lodge for Prince Gheorghe Grigore Cantacuzino, who was twice Prime Minister of Romania in the 1900s. Surrounded by forested hills, the mansion has an ornate stone-and-brick façade adorned with colonnaded loggias and towers in an exotic style known Neo-Romanian; it is open for guided tours of the decorative interior, where flourishes of Art Nouveau, patterned marble floors, stained glass, mosaics and embellished carved wood abound. A rare collection of Cantacuzino coats of arms is on display and the castle is host to occasional art exhibitions as well as summertime musical concerts known as Prahova Classic Nights.

After exploring the inner courtyard, the Cantacuzino family church and the hunting tower, there are grottoes and fountains to discover in the gardens and views towards the Bucegi Mountains. Family activities available at the castle include horseback riding, archery, zip lines and an adventure course for young kids. Costs for these sports are additional to admission prices but full instruction and safety gear are provided. Visiting Cantacuzino can be combined with a tour of fairytale Peles Castle in nearby Sinaia.

Located in the Transylvania region of Romania, the Fortified Church of Prejmer is the largest fortified church in southeastern Europe and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Not far from Brasov, it makes a good day trip, combined with a visit to the Fortified Church of Harman. Built by Teutonic Knights in the early 13th century, the church was once the most powerful peasant fortress in Transylvania. The church was built in a cross-like plan and the nave has late-Gothic style vaulting. It houses a folding triptych altar built around 1450, making it the oldest in Transylvania. 

The walls surrounding the church are 40 feet high and about 10-15 feet thick. Attached to the fortifications are nearly 300 well preserved small rooms on four levels, many of which were originally assigned to village families or used for school, weaving or storage.

Framed by old-fashioned lampposts and lined with colourful flowers, the iron footbridge running between Piata Mica and Piata Huet makes for a romantic spot, looking down over Ocnei street below. But if you believe local legend, Sibiu’s landmark ‘Bridge of Lies’ is much more than a pretty photo opportunity. First built as a wooden footbridge some 200 years ago, the bridge earned its ominous moniker thanks to local myth, which dictates that the bridge has ‘ears’ and magical powers. The bridge was said to expose liars and cheats, creaking and shuddering when lies were told in the town, and would allegedly collapse if a liar attempted to cross.

The iron bridge that stands today was built to replace its predecessor in 1859, but the legend remains and it’s often cited as an example to local kids about the importance of telling the truth. The Bridge of Lies has now become an important symbol of Sibiu and makes a popular destination for tourists, but if you plan on walking across the bridge, it’s probably best to watch what you say… just in case!

Sitting high on top of a 200-foot (61-meter) cliff in the middle of Transylvania, Bran Castle is surrounded by an aura of mystery tied to both the myth of Bram Stoker’s Count Dracula and the infamous Vlad Tepes—also known as Vlad the Impaler—who is said to have made Bran Castle his home. One of the world’s most famous castles, Bran Castle today is a museum dedicated to Queen Marie of Romania.

Even if you are not enticed by Bran Castle’s darker history, visiting the so-called Dracula’s Castle makes a lovely day trip from either Bucharest or Brasov. Views from the castle, which overlooks the medieval city of Bran, are epic, and learning about the castle’s rich history is easy, as most of the displays are translated into English. Expect dozens of tunnels, a secret staircase, and nearly 60 rooms, several with museum-like displays around different themes. Don’t miss the room dedicated to Dracula. To experience more of the looming stone edifice, stroll around its base to see it from every angle. See more of Transylvania by booking a one-day tour that combines a visit to Bran Castle with sites like Peles Castle, Poenari Castle, Rasnov Fortress, or Brasov’s Black Church.

Bran Castle is easily accessible from Bucharest and Brasov. Take the train from Bucharest to Brasov, about a 3.5-hour ride, and then transfer to a bus or taxi for the remaining 30-mile (48-kilometer) journey to Bran Castle. Buses run between Brasov and the castle every 30 minutes during the week and once an hour on the weekends.

Bran Castle is open year-round (April 1 to September 30: Tuesday through Sunday from 9am to 6pm; Monday from noon to 6pm; October 1 to March 31: Tuesday through Sunday from 9am to 4pm; Monday from noon to 4pm). The castle is best visited during summer, when the weather is pleasant and the castle remains open a few extra hours. That said, winter’s gray skies and chilly temperatures offer an appropriately gloomy ambience. Try to visit on a weekday and arrive first thing in the morning to avoid the crowds. Alternatively, arrive later in the afternoon and stay to watch the sun setting in the distance.

Bran Castle is rumored to have been the home of the infamous ruler of Wallachia, Vlad Tepes, the vicious ruler who is said to be the inspiration for Bram Stoker’s Count Dracula. In addition to Bran Castle, Dracula fans will enjoy visiting Targoviste, once the capital of Wallachia and where Vlad held court. An hour from there is the Poenari Castle, one of Vlad’s main fortresses. And on the way back to Bucharest is the Snagov Monastery, where Vlad is said to be buried. Visit all four sights together by booking a Dracula tour from Bucharest.