We watched TV’s Anthony Bourdain do his very best not to look bored as his camera crew followed him around the banquet hall. Had it not been for his unexpected arrival, we might have been bored, too. Regardless, it was All Hallow’s Eve in Transylvania, the locals were trying to keep us entertained, and we were determined to have a good time.  

It isn’t coincidental that everyone looking to party on Halloween in Dracula’s homeland ends up at the same corny gathering in the Hotel Dracula in Brasov. Its the only thing going in Transylvania on the most Transylvanian night of the year. For a set price, you get spooky decor, a nice dinner, tacky party games, and a DJ from hell.

We sat quietly, like Great Aunts at a wedding reception, as a contrived Transylvanian knighting ceremony dragged on and on. I considered the possibility that we’d been brought here as a feast for vampires who would burst into the room at any moment and devour us alive. But then, suddenly, I found my right hand uncontrollably reaching for a dinner roll and lobbing it across the room towards Anthony Bourdain’s head. I guess you could say the Devil made me do it.

Fortunately, I missed. But the strategic move did get a laugh from my little group, and I felt better knowing they would now have a memorable tale of Halloween night in Transylvania. The monotony was broken, and we decided we were ready to head back to our inn for some sleep.

Travel in still-emerging Romania can definitely have its ups and downs, as the story of our Halloween party suggests, but the good news is that tourists in search of spooky places, dark legends, frightening castles and fascinating medieval atmosphere will not be disappointed. Despite the failure of a small village in Transylvania to meet our expectations for the biggest the night of the year, the rest of our trip could not have been more thrilling.

Journeying to Romania for Halloween and Dracula first requires the spooky enthusiast to accept the difference between real history and literary fiction. There was indeed a vicious, evil man who murdered thousands of people in the dark ages of Transylvania, but he wasn’t a bat and he wasn’t superhuman. He was royalty.

The story of Dracula begins when King Sigismund of Hungary created a secret order of knights known as the Order of the Dragon. These knights were ordered to uphold the Christian faith and defend the empire. Prince Vlad II of Wallachia was admitted to the order in 1431 and chose the emblem of a dragon as his royal insignia. His son, Vlad III, later assumed rule. So violent and bloodthirsty was his reign, that he became known as Vlad the Impaler.

The Romanian word for dragon is “drac” and “ul” is the definitive article. Vlad III’s father was ”Vlad Dracul,” or “Vlad the dragon.” In Romanian the ending “ulea” means “son of.” Vlad III was therefore Vlad Dracula, or “the son of the dragon.” And so was born the name “Dracula.”

Vlad Dracula, the Impaler, ruled what is now Transylvania with an iron fist. Enemies and his own subjects were impaled on long sharp wooden poles and left to die slowly. It is said that he was so feared, he once left a golden chalice in the center of a village and and returned a week later to find it untouched!

Bram Stoker melded these historical facts with his own imagination to create the modern vampire we all know as Count Dracula.  But our excitement came from visiting locations associated with the real Prince Vlad. Our travels would take us from his birthplace to his tomb, with a drive past the ruins of his real castle on our way to see another medieval castle marketed to tourists as his.

In the little town of Sighisoara, we had a fabulous lunch in the house where Vlad was born, complete with gypsy singers and storytellers. That afternoon, a witch trial was reenacted for us in the town square of Sibiu. A highlight stop on our trip was Peles Castle, considered by many to be one of the most beautiful castles in all Europe. It was the final resting place for several Romanian monarchs including King Carol I, who died here in 1914.

Driving through the magnificent Carpathian Mountains and stopping in little villages to see the Orthodox church or the local market added a lot to our trip. It is very common to still see rickety old horse-drawn wagons traveling down the highway here, and generally speaking, people are still very poor, so some of the towns can be quite visually depressing. But the vibrant, colorful people more than make up for it.

We all enjoyed touring “Dracula’s Castle”, which is actually called “Bran Castle” and has very little to do with Prince Vlad. The Dark Prince’s real castle is on a rocky outcropping of the dramatic Borgo Pass, but nothing is left of it today except for a few small stone ruins.

Probably the most rewarding Dracula moment on this trip was our visit to the Snagov Monastery, wherein lies the real tomb of Prince Vlad the Impaler. It was a fun day because it was cold, dark and rainy, and the only way to get to Snagov is by boat, as the monastery is located in the middle of a vast lake. We braved the choppy waters and freezing winds and had the island, church and tomb all to ourselves! It was wonderful!

I would absolutely recommend Romania to anyone interested in the legend of Dracula. The scenery, history and sincerity of the people make it a destination you will not soon forget!

 

 

Tag-uri: accommodation brasov, brasov, cazare brasov, Halloween, Transylvania, Vampires