Sibiu by Sunshine

Salut again!

I should probably mention that the first day I was in Sibiu I had a bad headache from staying up all night on the phone with the NCSECU, so my first 24 hours really started in the afternoon. Hence all the shots at dusk. That was a Saturday. On Sunday the sun was out and it was gorgeous so you get to see Sibiu by sunshine.

This was another frustrating day as I finally realized no bank teller would take my card except for one which had broken in the short time I'd been there. So after taking a lot of photographs in the sunshine I spent that afternoon on the phone with USAA setting up cash advances on my credit card. Thank you USAA. I would have been SOL without them.

Enjoy Sibiu by sunshine.

Sunny Street

Sunny Street Lower Town

Sunny Alley

These little towns are full of cute little alleys and back garden pathways.

I had cappuccino and wrote postcards in a cute little cafe called L'Orient Express. The woman that owned it had it decorated with antiques to look like little train booths on the Orient Express. She even had old French passports that had been stamped as having been on the Orient Express. She was listening to some really good funky techno but she couldn't tell me what it was. She said it was somebody she knew. He was playing keyboards and sampling everything from great rap to funk to rock and it ROCKED.

Les Cafes Orient Express

Here's the church tower in the sunshine. Still looking good!

Church Tower in the Sunshine

I walked downtown to the Str. Nicolae Balcescu which is the main street leading onto Piata Mare. On the way there I stopped in Piata Mare and followed the crowds to a little storefront window where they were selling espresso for 1 Lei, which is 33 cents. Everybody was eating these pretzels covered with sesame seeds which were also 1 Lei so I bought one of those. YUM. I haven't eaten a baked good that good in Hungary yet. Maybe it's the German influence but those pretzels were unlike anything you'd get at the Smith Center or the State Fair.

Sibiu Town Hall Piata Mare

Piata Mare

Piata Mare

Fountains in Piata Mare

Piata Mare was ful of school kids, mothers with their children, adults drinking coffee and eating pretzels or doughnuts, and little kids who wanted to splash in the fountains.

Next I headed down Str. Nicolae Balcescu. It was packed. I found an antique store selling a gorgeous old phonograph and I spent two days wondering how I might possibly get it home. Unfortunately I'd packed a bit too much stuff, bought a bit too much junk for Dad's Art Wall, and I decided a broken phonograph would be worse than none at all. I found a few more, so the next I go to Sibiu. . .you guessed it! 

Here's the Nicolae Balcescu.

Nicolae Balcescu

Another View of Nicolae Balcescu

Here are some angels adorning a bank on Str. Nicolae Balcescu. If there had not been so many people hanging around I could have taken pictures of adornments everywhere. As in Hungary, all the buildings have the most beautiful details.

Angels Adorning a Doorway

After walking around I decided to go into the Catholic Church where it was dark and cool, just to check it out. Plus, there is something so mysterious about the inside of a Catholic Church, especially on a hot sunny day when it's noisy outside. It's like stepping into another world.

Catholic Church Piata Mare

Catholic Church Approaching Piata Mare

Another View of the Catholic Church

Here is a shot of the Brukenthal Museum. I intended to visit it and kind of forgot in my frenzy of picture taking and shopping, but I think it's always good to save something for the next trip.

Brukenthal Museum

And here is a shot of La Turn (the City Tower) in the afternoon sunshine.

La Turn by Sunshine

Sibiu is actually on several levels. The Lower Town, where I stayed the first three nights, is at the bottom of a hill from Piata Mica and Piata Mare. You have to walk uphill or climb stairs to get to the Old City. Once you are in the Old City, if you approach the edges of it, you can look down over the rooftops and walkways towards the Lower Town. The views are really gorgeous.

Here are some shots of the walkways and rooftops near the church.

Brick Walkway Behind Church

Brick Maze

Rooftops with Eyes

More Rooftops

More Eyes

When I was on Str. Nicolae Balcescu I noticed a Lion's International Club.  :)

Lions Meet Here

And it seems like every single building in Sibiu has one of these.

Monument Istoric

Here are some more shots of Piata Mare in the afternoon, just because.  :)

Piata Mare in the Afternoon

Piata Mare in the Afternoon Again

Here is a shot of a side street looking towards another Catholic Church on the edge of the Old City. You can see you're looking down.

Sibiu Side Street

Church of Ursinine Order

Ursinine Church Sibiu

And here is the Art Gallery where I bought way too much Romanian folk art. But it was handmade, and so cheap. In the US this stuff would have been HUNDREDS of dollars. Dad's got some new stuff for his Art Wall, and Mom, well, Mom can find out at Christmas what she got.  :)

Sibiu Romanian Crafts Gallery

This is what Romania did to me.

What Romania Did to Me

No, it didn't turn me into a monster from Sesame Street. It made me buy folk art. This mask is so cool. It's made from sheepskin, the teeth are beans, and it's wearing an old hat that someone's grandfather probably wore. It's going to look really nice on my wall at home. All I need is one of those North Carolina pottery face jugs to go with it.