Sibiu

Go and visit this city in the sunshine - it’s beautiful!

After a 5 and a half hour train journey from Bucharest we arrived in Sibiu. Some people here are dead against these long train journeys and refuse to leave Bucharest and then they complain that there’s nothing to do here! Anyway, it’s their loss because Sibiu (and many other Romanian cities) are certainly worth the long and slow train rides!

We actually enjoyed the slow and meandering journey - really good scenery and we watched The Artist on the way, which I really enjoyed. It also gives us plenty of time to talk and catch up.

Here is a view from the train of the Transylvanian Alps:

When we arrived into Sibiu the sun was so bright and the sky was clear. The streets were so clean and everything looked organised. This is quite a contrast to the crumbling streets of Bucharest. So our initial impressions were very good!

We found our hotel very quickly - it was nice; we had a balcony and it was very modern.

We didn’t stay in their for long, the great weather was luring us out into the streets. So we wondered through the cobbled streets and up to Liar’s Bridge and into Piata Mica. The Liar’s Bridge is supposedly meant to collapse if you tell a lie on it, hence the name!

We then went up the clock tower to see the views of the whole city and the mountains.

We had to climb a very narrow and winding staircase and on each floor there were photos and paintings of Romania which were interesting. However I was a bit to eager to get to the top to see the views so I didn’t linger over them for long! Here is the view of Piata Mica from the clock tower:

We spent the rest of the weekend going from bar to restaurant to cafe having lots of delicious food and drinks!

Besides eating and drinking in the glorious sunshine, we also wondered around the streets taking it all in. I as ever was out to spot interesting methods of subverting the conventions of a city; Sibiu provided a good canvas for artists to get their messages across. 

We also ventured into a tiny independent cinema. The sound was a bit off and the picture was a bit fuzzy at times, but I kind of liked it!

We went in a Romanian Art Gallery, which I really enjoyed. Some of the contemporary pieces were brilliant, I would like to buy some. Maybe one day! I would definitely recommend visiting this gallery below:

I think the best part of Sibiu was the pedestrianisation! Check it out in Piata Mare: 

That’s what Bucharest is missing!

So, anyway, I loved our short trip to Sibiu. If you live in Romania and haven’t been - go at some point this year, it’s such a relaxing and welcoming city.