Romania Guide
Wallachia
Wallachia is mainly comprised of flat and featureless agricultural land, and is in many ways the least interesting of Romania's three principal provinces, but as it is home to the nation's capital, Bucharest, people will invariably find themselves passing through en route to Transylvania, the coast, or Bulgaria. The most rewarding part of Wallachia is its western half, known (after its chief river) as Oltenia, which stretches from Bucharest to the Iron Gates on the Danube. Here, the foothills of the Carpathians are largely scenic and unspoilt, and possessed of the region's most attractive and historically interesting towns. In addition, a string of fine monasteries, such as Horezu and Arnota, runs along the foothills.
Highlights
1 Curtea de Argeş Attractive small town with two of the region's most striking ecclesiastical monuments – the Princely Church and Episcopal Church.
2 Dracula's Castle Continue on Vlad's trail up to the dramatically sited Poienari Castle – the real Dracula's castle.
3 Brâncuşi's sculptures, Târgu Jiu Outdoor collection of some of the great Romanian's most famous sculptures, including the Endless Column.
4 Horezu Monastery Brâncoveanu's marvellous seventeenth-century complex, featuring the Great Church replete with Byzantine frescoes.
5 Tismana garden festival Listen to shepherds' panpipes and check out traditional clothes and rugs at this annual music and crafts festival in August.
6 Kazan gorge Bisected by the Danube, the sheer cliffs of the Kazan gorge offer some of Wallachia's most dramatic scenery.
7 Snagov Row out to the tomb of Vlad Ţepeş, aka Dracula, in the monastery on Snagov Island.