Romania, Land of Vamps

 

    Romania has always caught my attention. Since I read Bram Stoker's book Dracula many years ago and then saw the Francis Ford Coppola film (which is probably my favorite film ever), I became very interested in Romanian history and culture, so I started researching about that country. Transylvania, Wallachia, it has the best-preserved medieval cities in Europe and its landscapes and forests are truly beautiful, in addition to his communist past. Also, being a meeting point between Central Europe, Eastern Europe and the Balkan Peninsula, its culture is very varied and interesting.

    For those who don't know the relation of a fictional character like Dracula with Romanian history; this character is based on Vlad III, better known as Vlad Tepes, Vlad Dracul or Vlad "The Impaler", Prince of Wallachia in three periods between 1448 and his death in 1477. He's recognized for his extreme cruelty, especially for The Forest of the Impaled, a place that it’s said Dracul ordered to cut down all the trees to impale more than 20,000 prisoners and instill fear in the Ottomans. Very scary.

I would love to visit all those castles and historical places that Romania has.