Travel Notes | The remaining socialist atmosphere in Romania

There was a problem with the roaming function of my mobile phone, and I couldn't use the Internet after leaving France. I cleverly borrowed an old mobile phone before leaving the country and made ends meet by turning on the hotspot. The dormitory provided by the school did not have Internet access, and the foreign roommate I had arranged never showed up. Fortunately, I met four Chinese classmates here and discovered several new albums that I loved so much, so I was not too lonely during these seven days.

Started the journey with a bottle of beer

This round trip is with Lufthansa. You can bring one hand luggage and one school bag. No meals are provided, but bread, sandwiches and tea are provided.

On the way to transfer

A castle worth viewing from a distance

Romania is dotted with castles of all sizes, and we visited two of the more famous ones.

An unknown castle I encountered by chance, with a roof like a Halloween pumpkin head

The first stop is Peles (Royal) Castle, where several kings have lived.

Castle close up

There are many secret rooms and secret passages in the castle. It was very hard for my sister to explain, and she would say "keep secret" with a serious face every time while suppressing a smile.

I photographed the ugly glass roof

The glass windows of the castle are particularly attractive, and a large number of mirrors are used to create a spacious visual effect. As a royal castle, the furnishings are very well-furnished, but there is a fee (5 euros) to take photos in most rooms. I can only record the beauty in my mind.

The castle is located in the countryside. Looking around, it is full of late autumn atmosphere.

Couple taking wedding photos

The second stop is Bran ​​(Dracula) Castle, famous for the vampire Count Dracula.

Castle appearance

The castle has some vampire elements in order to cater to tourists, but if you want to go on a pilgrimage, you may be disappointed. It is not as scary as you imagine, but full of life.

Yarn in Romania National costumes play an important role

One side of the castle is built on a cliff, and you can enjoy the scenery of the entire town from the windows of the castle.

Bird's eye view of the castle

In fact, the real Brown Castle has no direct relationship with the vampire legend, and people cannot even confirm whether Vlad Dracula really lived here [1].

Castle roof

But vampires, as a major selling point, have indeed made a lot of contributions to Romania’s tourism industry.

The business district near the castle is very mature

People's Palace: Witness of the last glory of the Romanian Communist Party

In order to demonstrate his power, former Romanian Communist Party leader Ceausescu began building the People's Palace in 1984. But it remained unfinished until the fall of the Romanian Communist Party in 1989. It is the second largest building in the world after the Pentagon and the largest civilian building [2].

People's Palace distant view

The internal tour of the People's Palace = visiting the conference room and basement was quite boring. My classmates commented that "the decoration is not as good as that of hotels in prefecture-level cities." The interior lighting is a major flaw. Some places are actually lit with purple light, making it feel like entering a nightclub.

conference room door

Romania in my eyes

The country's development seems to have stagnated in the last century. The streets are dilapidated and many buildings are ugly and "socialist".

Street scenes around the school

Bucharest is the capital of Romania and calls itself "Little Paris". The messy and old subway stations are quite similar to Paris.

Subway station entrance

Romanian men do not like to sit on public transportation to avoid the trouble of giving up their seats. The special care seat on the airport bus was left unattended for a long time. Even the gray-haired grandmother walked around it with a look of disgust and chose to stand.

In the morning in Bucharest, a flock of seagulls are feeding on the river.

seagull seagull

This season, Romanian street flower shops sell various varieties of chrysanthemums.

Shopkeepers put flowers on the street

The main vegetables in Romania are still the three most popular vegetables in Eastern Europe, eggplant, zucchini and tomato.

There is oil floating on the beef soup, the real hot pot soup base

There were no surprises in the staple meals I had at the restaurant. What surprised me was the local soup, which I must order every time I eat!

Cream of lamb soup, yes it served me with a raw green pepper

Another one that I can't stop trying is CIUC, a local beverage brand. Its fruit-flavored beer is sweet and unique, and the sparkling drink in the picture below is even more surprising. The entrance is full of fragrance, you can feel the delicate foam blooming on the tip of the tongue, and the aftertaste is a different kind of fragrance. The fruity smell can last for a long time in the mouth. It does not contain alcohol, but one night I was listening to Wang Ruolin's new album in the room with a bottle of wine in my hand. My body naturally twisted with the music, as if I had entered a tipsy state. It was so pleasant!

It’s a pity that this soda is not available in a certain store

In Bucharest in the evening, black crows circled in the sky.

crow crow

At sunset, the streets became too beautiful and I took the wrong path several times because I was so obsessed with taking pictures. In the middle of the road in Bucharest is the dedicated lane for the tram . Under the evening atmosphere, the lighting inside the car gives a Japanese atmosphere against the evening sky.

But I'm too lazy to color

The night before my return trip, I braved the howling cold wind to go to the supermarket, and encountered the second snowfall of this year on the way. When I went out the next day, I found snow covering the roof of the car. How nice!

On the way back

I saw the sunset on the flight back, and my eyes were as bright as a child's.

Easter eggs

Saw an amazing car.