The two-year Erasmus Plus project on the significant and highly relevant topic of "Peace" concluded with the final meeting from February 14 to February 19 in Transylvania (Romania). In total, we traveled 50 hours by train, covering 3068 km, experiencing four days of snow and temperatures of -13 degrees, which framed our adventures.
Our journey began with a trip to Vienna and a bumpy night on the Romanian night train.
On the first day we visited Peleş Castle, which was built between 1873 and 1883. The remarkable features of this impressive castle included electricity from the very beginning, elevators, running water, a centralized vacuum cleaning system, and central heating. However, we were not only fascinated by these modern conveniences but also by the detailed and varied interior design.
In the afternoon we explored Bran Castle. Compared to the more modern Peleş, the medieval castle was much simpler but still extremely charming.
We found the exhibition on medieval torture methods particularly interesting. We ended the day with a traditional dinner with our partner students.
On Monday we visited the German-speaking Johannes Honterus High School, the first school in Transylvania (1541), where we heard very touching accounts from teachers about the time of the communist regime under Nicolae Ceaușescu (1965-1989). They shared stories of their carefree childhood filled with football and Western television. The situation changed dramatically in their youth due to Ceaușescu's trips to China and North Korea, from which he adopted the cult of personality and absolute dictatorship. As a result, their lives were dominated by propaganda, restrictions, and surveillance. We were particularly shocked that all of this happened just forty years ago and that rural areas have hardly recovered from the dictatorship to this day.
The contrast to the touristy old town center of Brașov was all the more striking. After lunch, we visited various places of worship, including a synagogue and a Romanian Orthodox church, which showcased the cultural diversity of this area. In particular, we received a tour of the Black Church, which was built by German immigrants between 1383 and 1421. The church has an extremely large collection of oriental carpets.
We spent our last day with a short city tour and visits to the Olympia Museum and the Historical Museum.
Looking back, we found our experience very exciting and extremely valuable. We would definitely love to travel to Transylvania again.