You visited the salt mine of Turda and you had a walk in the town. But is there something to see in the surroundings? The answer is positive and we have three recommendations for you.
Cheile Turzii
If I am not mistaken, the word “cheile” stands for gorge. Cheile Turzii is Romania’s version for a canyon and this one in particular covers more than 300 ha and is about 2.9 kilometers long.
As you can imagine, Lars and I couldn’t wait to start exploring. First obstacle, a bus full with tourists… We waited and waited and waited. They really took their time to make pictures and then it seemed to last forever before the bus drove away. At last, I could take these pictures:
Problem number 2: a thunderstorm which turned the road into a swimming pool. It was simply impossible to come any closer, so we left. We hope to return here one day.
The Catholic Armenian Cathedral in Gherla
As you can see in the pictures, by the time we arrived in Gherla, the weather had changed completely! Anyway, Armenians built this town in the 18th century; Gherla has also been part of Hungary. Quite an interesting mix. The cathedral is easy to find and is definitely worth a stop.
The Orthodox Monastery in Nicula
If you only have time for one location, let it be this one. We really saved the best for last. Nicula refers to both the village and its monastery and comes from the name Nicholas, a hermit who lived in a nearby forest in the 14th century. The monastery itself dates from the 16th – 18th century and boasts magnificent icons.
We still have a lot of catching up to do – the rest of the Romania trip and the big summer trip of last year, but from now on we will also be blogging about the trips we have made this year. So, expect stuff coming up from Paris, Denmark and Eupen!
