Targu Mures

From Sighisoara, it was 54 km and 50 minutes to Targu Mures, the seat of Mures county and the 18th largest town in Romania. It has a population of 142,000.

We parked near the revolutionary statue on the main road. 

There's plenty of street parking but you'll need to purchase parking tickets. Find a news stand and purchase 1 ticket for each hour you plan to park. 3 lei/hour ($0.70). Scratch off the day and start time. Scratch off 1 hour later on subsequent tickets.

Display on your windshield. I highly recommend taking the time to get the tickets. We saw many cars  with parking violation tickets.

Purchase admission to the Palace of Culture from the office on the main road. Tickets are 12 lei ($2.80). Skip the photo ticket. No one's watching.

The entrance is around the corner. The Palace is closed on Mondays.

Not many tourists visit the Palace of Culture. Wander around the floors and see the elaborate halls and rooms. There isn't much signage.

Be sure to look up--even the ceilings are elaborately decorated.

Beautiful mosaic windows.

The Great Concert Hall within the Palace.

The Rieger organ within the Great Concert Hall was inaugurated in 1913.

The most impressive room in the Palace is the Hall of Mirror. There are 12 stained glasses depicting life in Romania, as well as popular fairy tales. No pictures allowed.

Across the street is the Prefecture (County Council Building) with a 60 m clock tower. 

Teleki-Bolyai Library is a 10-minute walk from the Culture Palace and it's definitely worth a visit. It's open Tue-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat-Sun until 1pm. Closed on Mondays. Opened in 1802, it's one of the oldest library in Romania.

Open the door and walk into the inner courtyard. Someone will come to the window. Let them know you'd like to see the library. They will send someone with a huge keychain full of keys to open the library. You'll likely be the only one there. Walk around the intimate room and look at the old books. There's even an engraved copy of the Declaration of Independence. Donations welcomed.

Just north of the library, you'll find the Citadel. It's free to enter. Closed on Mondays.

Within the Citadel is the Fortress Church, the oldest church in Targu Mures. It's often closed, as was the case during our visit.

The Orthodox Cathedral sits to the west of the Citadel. It was built between 1925 and 1934. It is the seat of an archpriest rather than a bishop so technically it is a church and not a cathedral. 

A statue of Avram Iancu sits in front. Avram Iancu was a Romanian lawyer who played a key role in the Austrian Empire Revolutions of 1848-1849.

The National Theatre is nearby. 

2019 09 20

Touring Sighisoara

The next morning, we toured Sighisoara.

The Doubletree was located a short walk from the Citadel. On the way to the Citadel, you'll find streets lined with colorful buildings.

The highlight of the Citadel is the Clock Tower. Admission to the tower and the museum inside is 15 lei ($3.50).

On the Clock Tower, next to the clock, are figurines.

Inside the museum, you can see the figurines up close. Each figurine represents a day of the week.

The museum had a room of medical history. This is a gynecologic case from the 18th century. The forceps in the case are still used today.

A nice view of Sighisoara from the top of the clock tower.

More views of the surrounding area.

Vlad Tepes, the inspiration for Dracula, was born in this house in 1431. Unfortunately, the building has been completely rebuilt so little remains from the original house.

The Citadel had 14 towers managed by a different guild. Today, only 9 remain.

The Tinsmith's Tower has 8 sides and is located in the southern part of town.

The Tailor's Tower was built to guard the back entrance.

The Bootmaker's Tower guards the northern end.

Piata Cetati in the center of the Citadel. It was here that markets, public executions, impalings and witch trials were held.

A short walk from Piata Cetati, climb the Scholar's Stairwell, a 176-step covered stairway that leads up the hill.

Church on the Hill, located at the top of the Scholar's Stairwell. It's a Gothic Church dating from the 14th century.

Interior of the church.

Colorful frescoes inside are fading.

The other church in the Citadel is the Church of the Dominican Monastery.

The interior is stark.

Behind the church is a status of Vlad Tepes.

We needed to grab a quick lunch and found this popular hamburger stand.

The Cheeseburger with Fries and a drink--19 leis ($4.44). This was a very tasty burger.

2019 09 20

Altepost

Back in Sighisoara, we had dinner at Altepost, a 10 minute walk from the Doubletree.

Altepost is both a restaurant and a hotel.

The interior was very dark and cave-like.

Saxon Tourist Platter--47 lei ($11). It included Potato Sour Soup, Beef Goulash with Spaetzle, Pickled Cabbage, Bread and Apple Streudel. The soup was delicious but the goulash was not memorable.

Sarmale with Polenta--32 lei ($7.55). The sarmale was good but once again the polenta was bland.

My husband had a 400 ml glass of beer for 6 lei ($1.41) and I had a glass of wine for 12 lei ($2.83). It's amazing how inexpensive the alcohol is and how good the Romanian wine is.

2019 09 19

Biertan

Biertan is another Saxon village. It's located 25 minutes from Sighisoara.

The fortified church sits above the village of Biertan. The church and the village earned a Unesco listing.

Climb the covered stairs to enter the inner wall.

View of the church at the top of the stairs.

Ornate door leading to the church

The triple-naved church was built between 1493 and 1522.

The pulpit is intricately carved.

The ceiling is also intricate.

The door to the sacristy

It has 19 locks, all simultaneously operated with 1 key.

There are just a few buildings in the village of Biertan.

They do have the sleepy eyes, which we will find again in Sibiu.

2019 09 19

Doubletree, Sighisoara

In Sighisoara, our home for the night was the Doubletree by Hilton.

The Doubletree is on the main road, right next to the river.

It's near the Citadel and some of the rooms face it. 

The view at night is nice.

The rooms in the front of the hotel face the river and the Biserica Sfanta Treime.

The lobby is not impressive.

There is a pool.

Our room had a Juliet balcony--you can't go out on it.

There was plenty of toiletries.

My husband's favorite thing about staying in a Doubletree--warm chocolate chip cookie. This cookie had oatmeal in it and was crumbly.

2019 09 19