Hey guys, since I last talked to you Grant and I have spent one night in Sibiu and two nights in Timisoara and have made our way to Belgrade.
On Saturday morning, Grant and I got up and headed out a few steps from our hostel to the main square and walked around to all the points of interest we had identified in our research of the city. We started out by climbing the Council Tower to get a view out over the city and surrounding mountains, and then proceeded to the other things which were all within about a 15 minute walking radius from where we started.
Setting out to see the sights in SibiuView from Council TowerView from Council TowerView from Council TowerThe main square of SibiuGrabbing some breakfast/lunch on the go. We didn’t want to waste too much time eating on Saturday morning since it is now getting dark so early and we still had a 3 hour drive to Timisoara ahead of us.Potter’s Tower, a part of the old city walls of SibiuBust of Friedrich SchillerSibiu City HallLutheran Cathedral. Sibiu was once majority ethnic German, but now there are only about 2000 Germans left in the city. One of them happens to be the current president of Romania.
After seeing everything we wanted to in Sibiu, we got on the road for the 3 hour drive to Timisoara, with a stopped planned along the route to see an iconic castle in the city of Hunedoara.
On the road again through the beautiful mountainous terrain of central Transylvania.Stopping off at Corbin’s Castle in Hunedoara Random hilltop fortification along the routeThe land began to flatten out at we approached Timisoara.
We reached Timisoara with about 30 minutes of daylight to spare, so we went around and saw a few things on the outskirts of the city that were on our list before locating our hostel and checking in. After that, we went out to a restaurant nearby that the hostel owner recommended and had a great meal of food from the Banat region of Romania.
Arriving to TimisoaraMillennium churchThe Isoefin Water TowerThe Notre Dame Cathedral of TimisoaraThe hostel, called Freeborn Hostel, was pretty cool and we met some nice people right away, so we decided to extend our stay there for one extra night. They had some funny rules, especially number 2.Enjoying a beer before dinner. Grant and I both became fans of the local swill, Timisoreana.Some type of rolled pork dish called a “Musketeer Roll”. It was outstanding.
After dinner, we went back to the hostel to see what was going on there and have a few drinks. One of the other guests, Max, said he was going to a cool bar in the old town and that we should join, so that is just what we did. The place was cool and we met lots of interesting people there throughout the evening.
Having a shot of the local rot gut called Polenka with some guys we met.
Accordion busker making his way through the crowd.
After the bar closed, we had one of the cooler experiences of my trip. We met a couple of other guys on the street, Chris and Jonny, who turned out to be really nice guys who were excited about how interested we were in the history of the area, particularly as it relates to the Romanian revolution which began in Timisoara. To make a long story short, these guys wound up taking us on a private revolution tour of the city at about 3am and showed us all the significant sights where the revolution events took place. We definitely learned a lot from these guys and we appreciated their enthusiasm in showing us their city! After the tour we hit up a 24 hour bar for a night cap before finally heading back to the hostel to get some much needed sleep!
Heading off with Chris and Jonny to learn more about the sparks that ignited the Romanian Revolution of 1989.This is a marker on the building where the very first protests began in December of ’89.Chris explaining to us how they picked the perfect location to stage the protest because it was the intersection of 6 tram lines and they were able to effectively bring the city to a standstill.
After the tour, just before the party died out.We were lucky to meet these guys, purely by accident, while we were walking down the street.Grant thinks the “Slav Squat” that people do in this part of the world is hilarious, so here is giving it a try himself on Saturday night.
On Sunday, we were pretty late to get moving and the weather was rainy, but we managed to get around town and see just about everything else we planned on seeing in Timisoara. The city really has some impressive architecture.
Liberty SquareA monument to the Romanian Revolution.Victory Square St. George’s cathedralTimisoara was the first city in Europe with electric street lights, starting in 1884.Marker to a victim of the revolutionAnother revolution marker.An old timey street tram passing through Liberty SquareWe felt like we needed help after going a little too hard on Saturday night..Some really cool buskers we saw. I’d never seen an instrument like the one in the middle before.
Here they are jamming on some “Hotel California”It’s hard to see, but there are bullet holes in the top of this building from the Revolution. Now there is a 24 hour McDonald’s on the first floor. Progress of man I suppose.Fountain in Victory SquareMetropolitan Cathedral at the foot of Victory Square
After seeing the things close to our hostel, we went over to a cafe that housed a small museum related to life and consumerism in Romania during the communist times in it’s basement. The place was very kitschy and had a few interesting items on display.
Early Timisoreana bottles
After the museum, we went back to the hostel and chilled out for the rest of the evening with the other guests and got some rest for the drive to Belgrade in the morning. We also learned that our roommate, Denis from Brazil, was looking to go to Belgrade as well so we offered him a ride and he gladly accepted.
Chilling out at the hostel on Monday night. That’s Denis on the far left who would be riding with us to Belgrade the following day.Max playing some kind of horn instrument that he created from some pipes laying around the hostel.
On Tuesday morning, we set off for the Belgrade with a short stop off on the way at the museum dedicated to the Romanian Revolution which began in Timisoara. The museum had a really informative film and some interesting pictures and other artifacts from that era.
Setting out for Belgrade with Denis in the back. The car is so crowded with 3 people and their gear, but we made it work.Piece of the Berlin Wall outside the revolution museum. It was the same wave of popular uprisings that ended communist rule in both East Germany and Romania in the 1989/90 timeframe.A display of the East German flag inside the museum.Nicolai Ceausecu, the dictator of Romania during the communism era.Romania during communist times. The people have formed Ceausecu’s name in the parade. He clearly enjoyed a cult of personality at one time.Soldiers uniform at the time of the revolutionMass protests in Timisoara, 1989The communist flag of RomaniaThe flag with the communist insignia cut out, the official flag of the demonstrators.Romanian army helmets from 1989Body bags to symbolize the victims lost when government forces opened fire on the crowds.A grave recreation in the chapel of the museum.
After we finished up at the museum, we made the 2 hour drive through the Pannonian Plain and across the border into Serbia. It was raining and the terrain was flat and mostly farm fields.
In the early afternoon, we made it to Belgrade and I took the guys on a little mini tour of the city center before parting ways with Denis at his hostel and getting settled in to our apartment.
Checking out the main pedestrian street in Belgrade, Kneza Mihelia.Some random street art in one of the passages under a major intersection.The view from our new patio at the apartment.
Tomorrow is the big day that Dr. Bingman will be arriving here in Belgrade and the crew for the next 2 weeks will be complete. We will be here in Serbia until Saturday, and then off to Bulgaria, and then back to Romania where Bing will fly home from. We are excited to see our buddy tomorrow!
Bonnie
You guys have a great time!!
david elliott
Great pictures and story of a beautiful city! I think the instrument in the middle is called a “Slavic Steel Pedal”👍