Our drive from Bucharest airport took us across flat farmland on a good main road which made it easy to get used to the car and the road signs.
Sinaia is our first destination, a mountain resort in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains which attracts hikers in summer and skiers in the winter.
There has been a monastery in Sinaia since the C17th, named after St Catherine’s on Mount Sinai. A larger church was added in the C19th and the site became an annual summer residence for the Royal family, seeking the healthy mountain air, until the nearby Peleș Castle was completed in 1883 for King Carol I of Romania and the town grew into a resort.
We are staying at Vila Camelia, a charming confection of a building …
… with wood fittings and stained glass.
Having checked in, we went to explore. We had arrived on a holiday weekend, celebrating Pentecost so Sinaia was full of people enjoying a particularly warm and sunny day.
As we browsed the craft market …
… we spotted several older buildings between the more modern …
… including the old town hall …
… before stopping for a beer … a bear beer!
We took a wander in leafy Dimitrie Ghica Park …
… which centres round the Sinaia Casino, built by the King in 1912 …
… and as the sign informed us, Sinaia was the first town in Romania to get electric light …
We chose a typical restaurant for dinner, decorated with red and white rugs and huge painted vases and chose typical fare. I had samale, or cabbage rolls, filled with mince and rice and served with slices of smoked pork and polenta and Chris had polenta with sour cream and cheese. It was our first taste of Romanian home cooking and was a great end to our first day here.
We woke to an overcast morning with the threat of thundery showers but it looked ok after breakfast so we walked up the hill to see the monastery. As we approached, we could hear the unaccompanied chant of the Orthodox service carrying on the air.
The new church is under repair, but was completely full of worshipers so instead we found the old church which was tiny and a painted treasure.
The church portal depicts Moses with the Tables of the Law on the left and Aaron with the leafy staff on the right and the frescoes tell the life of St Catherine.
Inside the light reflected off the gold and illuminated the saints around the walls.
Just as we were leaving a few raindrops fell, changing to a downpour in seconds, and we took cover under the porch till it passed.
The other must-see in Sinaia is Peleș Castle, but today it is closed so we took footpath through the forest, rather wet from the shower …
… and made do with a snap from the viewpoint instead!
Just a short way out of Sinaia is Busteni where a cable car climbs the mountains to a variety of trails for a walk and views. We did stop briefly, but it was obvious that it really wasn’t the best day to go up …
… so settled for a coffee instead.
Time now to move on … Transylvania beckons!
Off Travelling Together 