with Jozef Kaufmann & Helene Cincebeaux
Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Austria, Romania, Ukraine, Serbia, Croatia
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with Jozef Kaufmann & Helene Cincebeaux Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Austria, Romania, Ukraine, Serbia, Croatia |
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Day By Day |
Serbia Romania and Ukraine Adventure Tour
July 28 - August 8, 2012 Sat. July 28 Our Adventure begins at the Budapest Airport between 9 and 10 am. Then drive south through Hungary heading for Serbia's Vojvodina where a royal welcome awaits from our friends, the guest house owners, who get rave reviews for their home-made specialties and amazing Francesca wine! The village was settled by immigrants from Slovakia over 200 years ago – we love the babicky on bicycles. (2 nights in Backi Petrovac, Serbia) Sun., July 29 Explore Novi Sad, Serbia’s "Athens" with a local guide. This culture capital, located on the Danube River, is a new hot destination. Explore star-shaped Petrovaradin Fortress built in 1692. Visit a museum showcasing Vojvodina’s ethnographic diversity with a colorful display of Serb, Hungarian and Slovak folk dress. A highlight is St. George’s Orthodox church erected in 1742. Leafy Sremske Karlovice charms with the Four Lions Fountain and a wine tasting at our friend’s vineyard in their elegant outdoor living room. Mon., July 30 Travel to Kovacica, known world-wide for a village full of naive painters. We’ll visit galleries and studios and meet the artists; especially famed Zuzana Holubekova. Few people know Kovacica was settled by Slovaks long ago. Many homes have folk painters today and their work is utterly charming. Then cross the border into Transylvania in Romania. (2 nights in Sibiu, Romania) Tues., July 31 Everyone falls in love with amazing Sibiu, one of the seven walled citadels built by Saxon settlers in the 12th century. A European Culture City, Sibiu is a pedestrian-loving place famed for its charming squares including Goldsmith’s Square. Gorgeous architecture abounds with the picturesque Bridge of Lies, the Passage of Steps uniting the Upper and Lower Towns, plus the grand Brukenthal Palace is a noted art museum with countless treasures on view. Opportunities to buy at antique shops, book and souvenir stores and sample olde worlde elegance at charming restaurants and cafes. Love the 15th century Guild Towers, the fairytale Blue House, an 18th century baroque confection, and our 16th century hotel in the heart of it all. Wed. Aug. 1 See unforgettable Sighisoara, a UNESCO Treasure, a medieval walled town crowning a hill top.Visit the birthplace of Vlad Dracul and the famed clock tower. On to quaint Livezie, a mountain village, on our way to Romania’s Bukovina/Moldavia region. (2 nights here) Thurs. Aug. 2 A day to revel in the world famed painted monasteries! Colorful religious scenes bloom not only inside the churches and on the ceilings but on the outside walls as well. We'll follow the monastery route from Voronet, famed for vivid blue in its decoration, to Humor and Moldavita. Fri., Aug. 3 Cross into Carpathian Ukraine, one of the most secluded and remote places on earth. Step into a magical world in the changeless Carpathians with charming homesteads and beautiful scenery. Our destination is Kosiv, a hotbed of Hutsul culture.The Hutsuls are larger than life, wild and vibrant and have a rich culture with crafts galore. After we visit the local museum with a display of the regions’s crafts, we‘re invited to a small farm to visit a wood carver and have dinner with the family. (Two nights in Kosiv, Carpathian UKRAINE) Sat., Aug. 4 Hutsul culture is on glorious display at the colorful Kosiv market and being on the scene we can go very early. Hundreds of exhibitors are there selling everything from dried mushrooms to a pig in a cart. My favorite area holds the village people who sell embroidered and wood-carved treasures from folky embroidered Easter basket covers to colorful carpets made with natural dyes. On to Kolomyja to see the superb Egg Museum housed in a huge decorated egg, the Ethnographic Musuem, browse super antique shops and enjoy the charming cafes. Sun., Aug. 5 On to remote Kosmach where the classic “Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors” was filmed. We visit two candle-lit churches during services where villagers in folk dress stand with huge candles and banners and some lay prostrate on the altar. Next we journey through rural mountain villages to the Friendship Bridge to cross back into northern Romania and incredible Maramures, another place where time stands still. (2 nights at The Pearl, a cosy hotel/guesthouse in Sighetu-Marmatiei, Romania ) Mon Aug. 6 We love Ieud where women sit outside log homes to spin and weave every day. A favorite icon-filled wooden church dates back to the 1300s with a graveyard full of crosses interspersed with wild flowers. A log home museum shows village life! We'll meet locals and be welcomed with famed Romanian liquor. The homes are a riot of color, carpets hang on all the walls with decorative plates above! The carved wooden gates of Maramures villages are legendary and it's nice to see new ones being erected. Tues., Aug 7 A glimpse of Sighetu-Marmatiei and opportunity to visit the Ethnographic Museum, the home of Elie Weisel or the Museum of Arrested Thought from the Communist era. A highlight is a trip to nearby Sapanta to see the unique Merry Cemetery. Hundreds of graves are bright blue and painted with scenes from the deceased's life. The church is spectacular, painted inside and out with vivid Biblical scenes, ceiling and all. A traveling day to a hotel near the Budapest airport. (1 night in Hungary) Wed., Aug 8 Fly home or Add On. |
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