A shorter trip this week and a relatively late start for the 8:30 train to Siniai at the northern edge of Wallachia – yes I managed to stay out of Transylvania (just).
With the weather cooling I took the precaution of taking a pullover rather than my sun hat along and certainly needed it. In fact as I got off the train I was a little concerned that everyone else seemed to be sporting a nice big anorak!
The plan was to head for the cable car to take a walk in the mountains first (weather permitting), unfortunately with the top of the mountain swathed in mist this was not a sensible proposition. In fact all day it tried very hard to rain although fortunately no more than a few spots actually fell.
Crossing the main road it’s a steep climb up some steps to the park that sits alongside the centre of Siniai. The guidebooks say there is a museum here, there are two hotels a very scruffy local “art” gallery and the casino.
Leaving the far side of the park near a small WWI cemetery it’s another steep stepped climb to Siniai monastery.
The monastery complex dates from the 17th Century when the main 
church and the smaller winter chapel were originally built.
The winter chapel is currently under restoration but has a magnificent fresco at the entrance. 
Next to the chapel is the mausoleum of Tache Ionescu (a prominent politician during WWI and briefly Prime Minister) that comes with its own relatively modern frescoes.
The complex was extensively expanded in the middle of the 19th century with the building of a new court around the main church including an impressive bell tower.
The Castle appears in a clearing as you climb and is certainly a magnificent sight albeit clearly not a “castle” in any meaningful sense of the word. 
This palace was built at the end of the 19th century for King Carol, and the formal grounds and the larger park are as impressive as the palace itself.
A little further up the mountain is Pelisor Palace built at the start of the 20th century for Prince Ferdinand, King Carol’s nephew and adopted heir. This modest “palace” provides some interesting contrasts with the majority of the rooms very simply decorated and a predominance of basic white painted furniture (particularly in the bedrooms) but with a two very richly decorated “Gold” rooms and a rather grand dining room. The same camera conditions as Peles though so no interior shots.
The views across the valley here are great but with the weather 
not improving it was time to head back to Bucharest. Playing strictly “by the rules” today I came on a single ticket on an “Accelerat”, knowing if the weather truncated my visit that the rail schedule meant I’d be returning on a “Rapid”. So with my ticket bought and my seat reserved I was more than a little baffled when the same train configuration arrived as for my trip out in the morning. This meant that I had traveled more cheaply in first class in the morning than in second class on my way back – but on the same train taking the same amount of time. So maybe I haven’t quite figured out how the railways work here yet!
So today I’m home by 6pm via the supermarket with time to do some work before trying to watch Ingerlund against Israel which is on “free to air” here. Not surprisingly Ingerlund’s turgid football soon sees me fast asleep on the sofa. Fortunately I’m awake just in time to get out to The Dubliner to watch a very disappointing Wales lose to Germany. Also it seems I’m the only Welshman in the village – but at least the Germans bought me a drink!
With the weather cooling I took the precaution of taking a pullover rather than my sun hat along and certainly needed it. In fact as I got off the train I was a little concerned that everyone else seemed to be sporting a nice big anorak!
The plan was to head for the cable car to take a walk in the mountains first (weather permitting), unfortunately with the top of the mountain swathed in mist this was not a sensible proposition. In fact all day it tried very hard to rain although fortunately no more than a few spots actually fell.
Crossing the main road it’s a steep climb up some steps to the park that sits alongside the centre of Siniai. The guidebooks say there is a museum here, there are two hotels a very scruffy local “art” gallery and the casino.Leaving the far side of the park near a small WWI cemetery it’s another steep stepped climb to Siniai monastery.
The monastery complex dates from the 17th Century when the main 
church and the smaller winter chapel were originally built.
The winter chapel is currently under restoration but has a magnificent fresco at the entrance. 
Next to the chapel is the mausoleum of Tache Ionescu (a prominent politician during WWI and briefly Prime Minister) that comes with its own relatively modern frescoes. 
The complex was extensively expanded in the middle of the 19th century with the building of a new court around the main church including an impressive bell tower.From here it’s a steady climb up (at least it’s not steps this time) towards Peles Castle through a market lining the path up the mountainside through the woods.
The Castle appears in a clearing as you climb and is certainly a magnificent sight albeit clearly not a “castle” in any meaningful sense of the word. 
This palace was built at the end of the 19th century for King Carol, and the formal grounds and the larger park are as impressive as the palace itself.Inside everything is fairly dimly lit to protect both the extensive woodwork in the fabric of the building and the many artworks, not surprisingly flash photography is prohibited and so it wasn’t difficult to decline the “Camera Tax”.
The building is very richly decorated throughout, the hall being particularly impressive lined in wooden paneling that is richly carved with a very ornate oratorio and spiral staircase in two of the corners.
The arms and armour collection is very impressive albeit in no way related to the history of the palace. The tour is only of the lower floors due to the condition of the palace although it is planned to extend the tour to the bedrooms on the last Tuesday of every month from September 2008 – so get it in your diary! The rooms also include a dining room to seat 36, a theatre and several themed lounges. One particularly interesting feature is that the basement houses an electric vacuum pump connected throughout the house for cleaning – they claimed it still works but didn’t say if you could still buy the replacement bags.
The arms and armour collection is very impressive albeit in no way related to the history of the palace. The tour is only of the lower floors due to the condition of the palace although it is planned to extend the tour to the bedrooms on the last Tuesday of every month from September 2008 – so get it in your diary! The rooms also include a dining room to seat 36, a theatre and several themed lounges. One particularly interesting feature is that the basement houses an electric vacuum pump connected throughout the house for cleaning – they claimed it still works but didn’t say if you could still buy the replacement bags.
The courtyard with frescoes.
A little further up the mountain is Pelisor Palace built at the start of the 20th century for Prince Ferdinand, King Carol’s nephew and adopted heir. This modest “palace” provides some interesting contrasts with the majority of the rooms very simply decorated and a predominance of basic white painted furniture (particularly in the bedrooms) but with a two very richly decorated “Gold” rooms and a rather grand dining room. The same camera conditions as Peles though so no interior shots.
The views across the valley here are great but with the weather 
not improving it was time to head back to Bucharest. Playing strictly “by the rules” today I came on a single ticket on an “Accelerat”, knowing if the weather truncated my visit that the rail schedule meant I’d be returning on a “Rapid”. So with my ticket bought and my seat reserved I was more than a little baffled when the same train configuration arrived as for my trip out in the morning. This meant that I had traveled more cheaply in first class in the morning than in second class on my way back – but on the same train taking the same amount of time. So maybe I haven’t quite figured out how the railways work here yet!So today I’m home by 6pm via the supermarket with time to do some work before trying to watch Ingerlund against Israel which is on “free to air” here. Not surprisingly Ingerlund’s turgid football soon sees me fast asleep on the sofa. Fortunately I’m awake just in time to get out to The Dubliner to watch a very disappointing Wales lose to Germany. Also it seems I’m the only Welshman in the village – but at least the Germans bought me a drink!
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