Choose the best tours to Transylvania. Explore the land of Dracula and then discover impressive landmarks, either related to the Count or just important culturally and historically.
Tours to Transylvania – Curtea de Arges
Written documents give evidence of the fortified town of Arges since 1330, whereas during the Middle Ages, it was the second capital of Walachia. The Court of Arges citadel consists of a set of ruins among which the basements of two princely residences within a wall made of boulders taken from the river, together with the oldest church in Walachia, the Princely Church.
Built by Basarab I, the founding prince of Walachia, the Princely Church has front sides made of apparent bricks and river stones. It is decorated with painted frescoes, actually the first samples of Romanian painting (XIV c.). You’ll find here an exquisite fresco of Holly Mary pregnant.
Curtea de Arges Monastery – The Legend of Master Manole
Another impressive monument is the Curtea de Arges Monastery founded by Negoe Basarab in 1514-1517. There are two popular legends surrounding this impressive monastery. The first one revolves around the beginning of its construction. According to the legend, the builders were unable to begin their work. Everything they built a day before would crumble during the night. One night, though, the architect, Manole, saw the solution in a dream.
According to the dream, in order to be able to build the monastery, they needed to incorporate a person they loved inside its walls. He revealed this to his masons and they decided to wall in the first of their wives to show up. Sadly for Manole, this happened to be his wife, Ana. The legend ends with Manole and his masons building a wall around Ana. This would serve as the foundation for Curtea de Arges Monastery, which they were finally able to build after this.
A second legend takes place after the monastery’s completion. The Prince, worried that Manole and his team would build an even greater monastery for someone else, stranded them on the roof of Curtea de Arges. According to the legend, the masons built themselves wooden wings in an attempt to fly off the building. It didn’t work. One by one, they fell to the ground and died.
Book our Tours to Transylvania!
Book our amazing tours to Transylvania and then visit our country! Discover amazing historical and cultural landamarks and follow into Dracula’s footsteps. Our folklore is rich, so get ready to learn more legends like the one of Master Manole and the Curtea de Arges Monastery.
