Finally departing the railway station after a good look around the model railway displays and reading the history of this royal station itself I departed by taxi for a winding trip through Sinaia up the mountain side to visit the castle. The Carpathian mountains were shrouded in cloud but the views were still dramatic. The whole of the town reflects the royal influence from hotels to spas, mansions and gardens. A very pleasant week could be spent here. My taxi driver points out various landmarks as we pass.
Finally we turn into the drive to the castle itself. If you are feeling energetic you can, of course, walk all the way from the station. We pass a cafe set against the backdrop of the little castle for there are, in fact, three. Peles itself was constructed on the order of King Carol I of Romania, beginning in 1873 it was not completed until 1914. There is a very good document in
Wikipedia telling the history and development of castle and grounds. We drove up as far as allowed, I dismounted and felt a few splashes of rain. Undeterred I walked up the cobbled road to see my first view of this beautiful building surrounded by magnificent parkland.
To my mind Dracula's castle, about 50 km further up the rail track, is not half as interesting as Peles. Some people do both but there is so much to explore here. A large fountain greets you as you approach, perhaps your horse-drawn carriage would have turned here as another royal ball commenced. I tried to take in the whole of the building but I was too close. The queue for tickets was obvious except that they do not exactly queue! Having reached the front I find that I can also buy photography pass, for personal use, not for Facebook???
The ticket office is on the opposite side of the forecourt to the entrance. The inner court is magnificent, a taste of things to come. I pause to admire the architecture and finely worked statues. A little confusion until the 'control' understand that I am on my own then I am admitted. Plastic overshoes provided to preserve the carpets and finely polished floors. I enter the main part of the castle and wander around. There is a plan and a route to follow. There are also two types of ticket, one entitles entry to the upper floors but I thought that I had enough to see already.
The inside of the castle lives up to the promise of the outside. There isn't a square centimetre which isn't decorated, carved, or covered with something. The corridors, the alcoves, the themed rooms all give an insight into the life of royalty at the time. There are objects from all over the world. From the music room to the armoury I have an amazing collection of photographs. The dining room sat 36 on finely upholstered Cordoban leather seats. Crystal and silver artwork decorate the room. Perhaps you would prefer to have a relaxing conversation in the room inspired by the Alhambra Palace in Spain. Dodging the crowds I explore to the full extent of my ticket. Hop on a 'plane, come and look.
Out into the grounds for a brief look around, there are are still rain showers, before I return to Sinaia, a late lunch beckons and I want to explore some of the landmarks previously pointed out to me. All this against the backdrop of the Carpathian mountains, breathtaking at every turn. The taxi driver who happened to be where I left him dropped me at his favourite restaurant after I dissuaded him of a full tour of the neighbourhood. What do know? they do Chinese, I haven't had one in ages. A relaxed meal and a beer then I am off on foot to explore the town itself.
I head in the general direction of the park which is surrounded by mansion like buildings and is taking me gradually up hill. I figure that I will do a circuit which will, eventually, take me back to the station and my evening train back to Bucharest. There are information posts throughout the area giving details of the history of the place. For instance, here we have the first electric street lighting in Bulgaria. The pleasant park is surrounded by stately hotel, spa and casino. Enough to keep royalty and their entourage entertained.
I head upward along the path past colourful tree stumps, sunlight shining through the trees. I am in search of the German cemetery. Intrigued by its mention as we drove along in the taxi. This dates back to WWI and is a respectful resting place for those who fell in this part of the world. The spot where I emerge to view the cemetery is also the spot where the steps commence which will take you all the way up to the castle if you have a mind to. After a look around I turned right, figuring that if I headed downhill I would come to the station.
Well, sort of. I was actually one level above. As you can see from the photo trail when I reached the Hotel C I had the choice of a flight of steps or, walking further along the road a sloping path. Both lead to, or from, the station. Perhaps the energetic gentry at the turn of the century used the steps whilst the porter pulled their baggage up the path. I opted for the path and it gave me some grate views in both directions before reaching the bottom and the crowd of taxis dropping off tourists and day-trippers returning home.
I took a "cheeky" photo of the ticket machine in the Booking Hall before emerging onto the platform. It was cooler inside. Waiting on the platform a train pulled in and I was able to see the size of the engine which had hauled our train from Bucharest along this mountainous route. Our train turned up on time and afforded a pleasant run home until suddenly the skies darkened, thunder growled and lighting lit up the angry sky. The rain lashed down.
I hope that you enjoy the photo diary, I am hoping to show more of the castle when I can find the conditions on the photo pass.
The photos relating to this post are here:
Sinaia and the castle
The whole trip to Romania so far is recorded here:
Romania Photo Diary
My next post will describe a visit to a rather large building, probably one of the biggest in the world.
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