On
Thursday 14th September 2006 at 15.15 participants will be invited
to see some of the sights of Cluj. There are three choices and
we would like to know your preference at time of registration.
1. Walking
Tour of Cluj Duration 15.15 – 17.00
Groups of 20 participants will be
given a historical tour of Cluj with an experienced guide. Participants
are asked to wear good walking shoes and be prepared to walk uphill.
2. Visit to the Village Open-Air Museum Duration 15.15 - 17.30
Participants are asked to wear good
walking shoes and be prepared to walk uphill.
Participants
will be taken up by bus to the village open air museum which houses
unique wooden houses and churches dating back to the 14th century,
set out in a wonderful park overlooking Cluj. You will see exactly
how village life as it was throughout the centuries.
3. Visit to the Turda Salt Mines Duration 15.15 – 17.30
Participants should wear very sensible
shoes as some areas are slippy and very dark. The temperature
is always only between minus 2-3°
Turda is a
small town 30 kms from Cluj which is famous for its natural salt
water spa and also its salt mine. The age of the salt deposits in
this mine are 13.6 – 13.4 million years old. The salt was
first surface mined by the Romans when they occupied Dacia. The
first recorded document about Turda and its salt mine was issued
in 1075 by the Hungarian Chancery. In 1552 the Turda salt mine was
referred to as the most important in Transylvania. In 1690 the first
mining operations began and continued until 1932. In the second
World War it was used as an anti-aircraft shelter and after that
as a cheese warehouse. In 1992 it was reopened as a tourist site.
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All
Day Excursions on Saturday 16 September
These
excursions, inclusive of a buffet lunch, are offered free to all
participants. There are three choices and we would like to know
your preference at time of registration.
TOUR 1 – ALBA IULIA and RÂMETI MONASTERY 9am –
6pm
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Our
first stop will be at Alba Iulia, (71,168
inhabitants) located in Transylvania, 100 km from Cluj.
The city, known for its vineyards, is often considered as
the cultural and spiritual capital city of Romania and is
one of the most important historical towns of Romania. It
was known as Apulum in the II and III century and was the
capital of the principality of Transylvania in the Middle
Ages (1541-1690), Alba Iulia was also the capital of the
three Romanian countries, united in 1599-1600 under the
scepter of the great king Michael the Brave. It was in Alba
Iulia that the National Assembly comprising 100,000 Romanians
and 1228 delegates from all over Transylvania made the historic
decision for the union of Transylvania with Romania on the
1st of December 1918.
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The fortress
of Alba Iulia, an impressive monument of military architecture,
was built between 1714-1738, soon after the Austrian conquest of
Transylvania. The Italian architect Giovanni Morandi Visconti designed
the fortress in the style of Marshall Vauban, the famous military
engineer of Louis IV. Other historical monuments are the Apor
Palace,constructed in the late Renaissance style, the Batthyaneum
Library known worldwide for its collection of incunabula
and manuscripts and the Union Cathedral built between
1921 and 1922 for the crowning of King Ferdinand and Queen Mary.
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Twenty
kilometers from Alba Iulia on our way back to Cluj, we shall
visit the Râmeti Retreat and Monastery, a beautiful
example of combined ancient and modern Orthodox religious
culture. There will be time to visit the 11th century chapel,
beautifully restored by a French artist, the museum, the
new modern church. Finally we will be able to see the exquisite
hand woven carpets made on site, by the nuns themselves.
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TOUR 2 – HUNEDOARA – Corvin Castle and Alba Iulia 8.15am - 8.30pm We shall stop for a very short time in Alba Iulia for sandwiches and tea/coffee and have time to visit the Union Cathedral built between 1921 and 1922 for the crowning of King Ferdinand and Queen Mary but our destination is much further away. We shall visit Hunedoara and Corvin Castle and then have a late lunch at Lake Cincis high in the mountains of Poiana Rusca. Maximum number of people for this trip is 80.
HUNEDOARA
is a town situated in South-Western Transylvania, in Cerna Valley
in the Poiana Ruscãi Mountains within the Transylvanian Alps.
It is about 3 hours drive from Cluj. Iron ore have been extracted
in the area since the Iron Age and later in the Thracian and Roman
times. Mentioned since the 12th century as a hub for leather tanning
and wool processing, the town of Hunedoara became an important iron
extracting and processing center in Transylvania. In the 14th and
15th centuries the iron foundries and works were famous for their
swords and spears. However, nowadays, the town is only famous for
the Corvin Castle, residence of the Corvin family.
The CORVIN CASTLE was built in a beautiful gothic
style on top of a 12th century old fortress in the 14th and 15th
centuries, as a residence for King Ioannus Corvinus of Hunedoara
(Iancu Corvin de Hunedoara) and his son, Mathias Corvinus (Mathias
Rex).
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Corvin
Castle is one of the most important gothic buildings in Central
Europe, and the only Gothic Castle entirely preserved in Romania.
It has survived many centuries of turmoil, having been burnt
down 3 times. The castle has impressive large rooms and halls
with arms and artifacts, torture towers and bastions. Vlad
Dracul (Vlad Tepes (Tzepesh), the Impaler, better known as
Dracula) also spent some time here imprisoned in the castle's
dungeons. |
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TOUR 3 – BIERTAN AND SIGHISOARA 9am – 7.30pm
Biertan was
one of the first Saxon settlements in Transylvania placed between
the two "Sees" (Medias and Seica) in the Andreean Diploma
in 1224, situated 130 kms from Cluj. The first attestation of its
name was certified in 1283, in a document about taxes demanded by
the Catholic Capital of Alba Iulia to the Catholic priests from
the Transylvanian Saxon communities. From 1572-1867, this village
housed the Lutheran Bishop of Transylvania.
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The church is
an extensive gothic building with also renaissance and baroque
elements comprising towers with heavy doors and double exterior
walls. It shelters a magnificent gothic altar from the 17th
century, and the door to the treasury has a unique piece of
metalwork - 19 locks, made by J. Reichmut of Sighisoara in1515
who also made the unique wooden decorative pews. Biertan village
and its fortified church are included in the UNESCO's World
Heritage List.
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We finish our
visit to Biertan with a buffet lunch at the adjoining Unglerus restaurant,
fitted out as a medieval banqueting hall. Afterwards we set off
to spend the afternoon in the nearby town of Sighisoara. Sighisoara
(Schaessburg) which Vlad the Impaler (Dracula) called home,
is one of the most beautiful towns in the heart of Transylvania.
Originally a Saxon town known as Castrum Sex (Fort Six, of the seven
Siebenbürgen), Sighisoara grew rich on the proceeds of trade
with Moldavia and Wallachia
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Sighisoara
was, for several centuries, a military and political stronghold.
One of its most famous attractions is the 14th century Clock
Tower (Council Tower), where each day a different wooden figure
emerges from the belfry on the stroke of midnight. Other highlights
include: the Guild Tower, the 13th century Venetian House,
Vlad the Impaler’s (Dracula’s) birthplace –
now a restaurant, the wooden covered staircase to the Hill
Church and Hermann Oberth Square |
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ACCOMPANYING PERSONS PROGRAMME
Friday September 15, 10.00am – 17.00pm
Arts and Crafts Village and Visit to Lake Belis
Lake Belis is situated high in the Apuseni mountains 80 km from Cluj. On the way there we shall stop at the village of Izvoru Cristului which has over 80 stalls permanently open. Locally made tablecloths, blouses, porcelain and wooden goods and many other crafts can be seen and bought here. Euros are acceptable but remember to bargain a little!!! Then we shall go straight to our destination for a lunch overlooking the lake. Time will be left after lunch to take walks around the lake or to just relax and enjoy the stunning beauty of this picturesque spot.
Please remember to register for this trip at the Conference Information Desk.
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Pre-conference
and Post-conference Tours
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Castles
of Transylvania
Painted
Monasteries of Bucovina
The
Danube Delta
Available
on request from :-
naturatravel@cluj.astral.ro
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