The town is worth a visit for other and better reasons though. The medieval
citadel is the main sights. Walking up from the city center of Sighisoara,
one enters the citadel through the 60-meter-tall clock tower, which dates
from the 14th century. Be sure to visit the Clock tower too. It houses a
museum and the clock still works with wooden figures truning round. From the
gallery at the top of the tower you have a good overview of the town.
The house of Vlad is just opposite the clock tower. It has been turned into
a restaurant. Walking uphill form here, along narrow streets lined with
beautiful old houses, you'll come to a covered staircase. This leads to a
14th-century Gothic church and a German cemetery.
__________Festivals
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Photo from the clock tower
Photo from the clock tower
Thelisad
Each year Sighisoara holds a medieval festival in perfect harmony with the
town's profile. I have been attending it for 2 years now and can say it's
one of the most beautiful moments for me in the summer. In the citadel you
can always see people dressed in medieval costumes, wearing clothes with the
dust of time upon them, acting as if they have just left their house, 500
years ago. During the 3 days festival you may attend the plays with medieval
profile in the most important squares and also can be a part of Sighisoara
at night when movies -Dracula related mostly- are projected in the citadel.
You can stroll in the citadel and at sudden you may hear some jester's
screams or the citadel's representant communicating any important news for
the different branches of workers in which the population was divided at
those times.(ironsmiths, tins, tanners, tailors or goldsmiths). Actually in
the citadel there are towers for each branch of workers. At first the clock
tower was the symbol of justice in the municipal hall of the town and once
served as jail. (usually those with death sentences were carried there). It
suffered also an arson but was rebuilt in the same medieval spirit. The
covered wooden stairs that lead to the gothic church and the german
graveyard consist of around 121 steps (if I remember it well). So you see it
was rather difficult to carry the dead to be buried, but also that graveyard
was for the rich people in the citadel. I have seen it and it's a real
beauty. I also took a nap there, in an afternoon, beside a cold gravestone
and I woke up rather fresh. It's a rather strange cemetery since it's on a
hill and it's more like a park with graves...and you really have a feeling
of warmth and you may also feel you belong there...Just like it happened to
me when I woke up :) . Concerts are always present during the festival,
concerts with specific music that deals with the same cultural heritage.
Every year an ammount of foreign tourists come here especially during the
festival along with thousands (around 20000-30000) romanian teenagers, to
express freely their feelings , to play the guitar in open air and to breath
the air of history and its unwrapped mysteries. |
