Day 6 - Corvin’s Castle and Alba Carolina

After breakfast, we took s short walk through the square and visited Sibiu’s art museum, one of the city’s main attractions. Next, we took the car out of the parking lot - this took some effort, as the machine where you pay wasn’t working properly - and headed west to Huneadoara. We parked and walked up a small ramp to Corvin’s Castle, which was built by Matthias Corvinus, one of the most important figures in Romania’s turbulent history.

Like Peleș Castle, Corvin’s Castle seems almost too amazing to be real. It is easily one of the most impressive castles that I have seen anywhere. (We snapped LOTS of pictures!) Tall towers reach skyward from flawless stone walls. The long bridge that leads to the main entrance crosses a rushing creek nearly ten meters below. The entire structure is surrounded by a daunting moat-like excavation.  

The castle is amazingly well-preserved, and visitors can walk though a good bit of it. Impressive views are available from the towers and the outer walls. There’s even a torture chamber, a feature that fascinated a group of teenaged tourists as we walked past.

After touring Corvin’s Castle, we walked back to the parking area and browsed a row of vendors selling drinks, clothing, and memorabilia. Across the street from the parking area was a small pizza place called “Pizza Hot.” I got a chuckle out of the similarity of the name to that of the a American pizza chain. We passed a nice restaurant on our walk back from the castle, but we didn’t have time to sit for lunch. There was more touring to do!

Our next stop was the city of Alba Iulia, named for a Hungarian king (Julius) and a Roman city that once occupied the site. The Roman city had white walls (alba). The main attraction at Alba Iulia is the massive citadel of Alba Carolina.

Unlike the crumbling citadel at Rasnov, Alba Carolina looks as thought it could have been built in the last fifty years. All of the buildings are spotless, as are the massive outer walls which form a seven-point star. The fact that Alba Carolina was was constructed in the 1700s under King Carol the 6th, defies imagination. The citadel, which covers an area equivalent to several city blocks, has the feel of an open, family-friendly park. A steady stream of locals strolls through on foot and on bicycles.

Our first stop in the complex was a museum where we took in a lecture on the history of the site dating back to Roman times. On ongoing project excavates and studies details of the original the Roman city, which in itself was quite expansive. - The lecturer, who participates in historic reenactments of Roma times, told us that they had not yet found the outer borders of the Roman settlement; they keep finding more to it as they dig. - Alba Carolina hosts several houses of worship including the grand St. Michael’s Roman Catholic Cathedral and a towering Romanian Orthodox cathedral. The Orthodox cathedral is referred to a Coronation Cathedral, as King Ferdinand was crowned here in 1922.

After a long day, we returned to Sibiu. I went out to the big square to shoot some photos as the light was changing over, and we went to dinner at a restaurant on the smaller square called Tango.