Sibiu-The medieval city of Transylvania, which tests if lovers lie and its houses do not sleep
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| Sibiu, great square |
Sibiu may not be
Transylvania's top tourist destination, but its touristic crowds have
been steadily increasing since Forbes magazine ranked it as the 8th
most idyllic city in Europe (published in 2008). Let's stroll around the town together!
Great square
Sibiu is 275 km away from
Bucharest. It has approximately 134,000 inhabitants and due to its
history it was included in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, as a
representative example of a medieval city. In 2007 it was the
Cultural Capital of Europe together with Luxembourg. The Cibin River
divides the city into two picturesque districts.
Beautiful house at Sibiu
Traditionally the Upper-Town
was home to wealthy businessmen and merchants and the Lower-town
was the area of
artisans and
manufacturers.
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| Bridge of Lies |
The history of the city dates
back to Roman times, but the big change came when in 1147 the Saxons
settled in the area and a German-speaking minority was created in
Transylvania, the city used to be called Hermannstadt.
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| Bridge of Lies |
Bridge of Lies
For Romanians, however, it is
the most ideal romantic destination, since they consider Sibiu the
most romantic city and according to tradition they come to the city
to verify if their love is true. According to the legend the 'Bridge
of Lies', a cast-iron bridge built in 1859-1860 and connecting the
Great and the Little Squares, will shake violently if someone lies to
the questions were asked by their the other half, the time they are
upon the bridge. Another legend says that merchants crossing the
bridge often tried to cheat their customers. Those who were caught
lying were thrown from this bridge. According to another legend the
bridge was the meeting point for men attending the military academy
with their mistresses. The young men did not show up and left the
girls waiting for them, until they realized that they had been
deceived. Another legend says that the bridge was often crossed by
young couples promising eternal love. Girls claimed to be virgins and
the lie was discovered after marriage. As punishment they were thrown
from the bridge, which was the place where they had originally
claimed their lies.
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| "Open eyes" at the attics of the houses |
Open eyes
It is said that the houses of
the city do not ''sleep'', because in their attics they have small
windows that look like ''open eyes''.
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| The stairs passage |
The Stairs Passage
The
Pasajul
Scarilor is
a passage of steps from the 13th
century, an graphical,
architectural
masterpiece with twin staircases and archways, connects the Upper
Town to the Lower Town. At one end of the passage there
is the city's oldest
building which now hosts the oldest restaurant in Romania, The Golden
Barrel (Butoiul
de Aur).
Holy Trinity, The Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral (Catedrala Ortodoxa Mitropolitana Sfanta Treime)
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| Holy Trinity |
It is the seat of the Romanian
Orthodox Archbishop of Sibiu and Metropolitan of Transylvania.
It
is built between 1902-1906 in the style of a Byzantine basilica,
inspired by Hagia
Sophia with the main spires
influenced by Transylvanian
church architecture and
Baroque elements.
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| Holy Trinity |
The
interior is dominated by a massive gold chandelier and features
neo-Byzantine decorations. This is the second largest Orthodox
cathedral in Romania (the biggest one is located in Iasi).
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| Holy Trinity |
Sibiu Lutheran Cathedral
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| Lutheran Cathedral of Saint Mary |
The Lutheran Cathedral
of Saint Mary is the most famous Gothic-style church in Transylvania.
The big height of 73.34 m is a landmark of the city. The four turrets
situated on top of the steeple and used to symbolize that the town had
the right to sentence to death. It
belongs to the Lutheran, German-speaking Evangelical Church of
Augustan Confession in Romania.
We
had great time at Sibiu. We rent a room at an old house with a yard at
the historic center, near the Large Square and we had an excellent night
at Atrium restaurant, next to the Bridge of Lies, at Piata Mica.
The night was warm like a summer night, there was a piano outside of
the restaurant next to the bridge and the pianist chose to play a nice
collection of songs, our Aperol drinks on the table, such a great night!
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| Stairs passage |
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| Lower Town |
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