Day 6: Malancrav Cocktail

Our first destination today was Malancrav, a tiny village about 30 minutes from Sighisoara. Its primary highlight is that there's a restored noble manor there--the Apafi Manor, owned by the Apafis in the 18th century. Today, it's a beneficiary of the Mihai Eminescu trust, of which Prince Charles is the patron and which also does work in Viscri. It also has a fortified church with the most complete set of Gothic frescos in Romania.

Malancrav was pretty far off the main road, and without cell phone service or any signs we weren't very successful at sight-seeing there. The church was closed, and the manor was behind it, but we didn't realize that's what it was. We were also looking for an heirloom orchard apple, to try some juice and their local specialty, apple soup, but didn't see that either. We did end up driving every dirt road looking, though, and the edges of the town were deeply, painfully poor--tiny houses where the boards don't even fit together and you wonder how the families can possibly stay warm in the winter. Stray dogs roamed everywhere, and the people just stood in the streets and stared as us as we drove past.

We did stop once and ask for the manor, and were surprised that the person answered us in German--however, it made sense afterward, when we read that Malancrav has the largest remaining population of Saxons in Romania. (The Saxons came to Romania in the 1100s and managed to largely preserve their own culture and way of life, which is why there is so much German influence in the area).

We also stopped briefly so I could walk down to the creek running through town and try to photograph some geese, but that ended up with me fleeing to the car in panic when they decided that they did not want any part of my Instagram account.

 

(This picture was taken from far away.)

 

A little disappointed, we drove back to Cris, where I had seen a sign pointing to a place called Castle Bethlen, which is partially a ruin but under what looks like a very slow renovation. There was limited information about the castle inside, but walking around a castle that you have completely to yourself never really loses its awe factor, even if you don't know much about its history. However, like with the other castles here, it would have been very easy to break a leg and/or die there--there were some handrails, but there were also holes in the ground and doors that opened into air.

Then it was time to return to Sighisoara, which is very small and only takes a few hours to thoroughly explore (less, if you're speedy). Sighisoara has been inhabited since the first century AD (by the Dacians, the ancestors of the Romanian people); its current state is a mix of buildings from the 12th to 16th centuries, most of which look very well preserved. The clock tower is especially beautiful, topped with shimmering tiles that look like dragon scales. The city is also the birthplace of Vlad Tepes, the real-life inspiration for Dracula.

Though I had read that the city was very touristy, it was almost empty today--you had shops selling Dracula mugs and bat T-shirts, but there are also shops selling traditional Romanian handicrafts (I am now the proud owner of many hand-carved wooden spoons, swayed by the patient shop owner who took the time to explain each pattern to me and what it meant).

Below is the main square--where once the city held markets, public executions, and witch trials. Also below is a set of covered wooden stairs leading up to a school, a church, and an old cemetery.

 

 

I enjoyed walking down the quiet streets, between houses painted in a rainbow of soft colors--but I also don't believe in starry-eyed romanticizing of travel, and so I can admit I'm getting pretty hangry here. No place is perfectly magical--maybe you have a headache, or are fighting, or it's just boring (ahem, Munich, most boring city ever). But the food here aside from the desserts is AWFUL. Even the pizza, where I learned the sad lesson that "salami" here means lunch-meat bologna. (Below...chicken noodle soup, some fish Taylor ordered, and a piece of sour cherry torte and cherry pie.)

However, I did find local apple juice today, and it was everything I hoped it would be--not too sweet.

Tomorrow we make the five-hour drive to Breb, one of the last places in Europe where you can still get a glimpse at medieval life and peasant culture. I may or may not have internet there, so it might be a few days until I update again. And I've already Googled where a McDonald's is on the way, don't judge me.