Tag Archives: moldova

Places

The Neamt Fortress

This medieval citadel was built on the peak of a mountain near Tg. Neamț in Moldova, Romania. The origins of the original fortifications are somewhat unclear, but there is clear historical proof that the citadel as we know it now took shape during the reign of Peter I, toward the end of the 14th century and was enlarged and further fortified during the reign of Stefan cel Mare in the 15th century. After being destroyed in the 18th century, it underwent significant restoration work in the 20th century and became a museum.

While I appreciate the architectural and structural work that was put into the restoration process, I am less than enthused about the way the interiors were decorated, with puppets and props and modern light appliances. The Neamt Fortress isn’t the only one to be done in this way. The Rupea Fortress has only recently been restored and it’s the same story there. Other places I’ve visited in Europe and in the United States were done the same way. The problem is that it gets to a point where it’s too fake to be believable, even though it all seems period-appropriate at first sight. Maybe it’s just me, I don’t know. Luckily all these faults are only window-dressing, so they can be addressed gradually and without too much expense.

Enjoy the photos!

Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania
Cetatea Neamt, Moldova, Romania

Btw, I took these photos with my Canon PowerShot G10.

Canon PowerShot G10

Canon PowerShot G10

Standard
Places

The Suceava Castle

The Castle of Suceava (Cetatea de Scaun a Sucevei) was the ruling place of a Romanian historical figure who has become the stuff of legend, namely Ștefan cel Mare, also known as Stephen III of Moldavia. He was “voivode” (ruler) of Moldavia from 1457 until his death in 1504. I’ll let you read more about him here.

Stefan cel Mare

Stefan cel Mare

The castle was built and extended in multiple stages. The initial medieval keep was completed in the 14th century and was called Fort Mușatin. The exterior wall around the keep was built during the reign of Stefan cel Mare, between 1476-1478. The moat was dug at the end of the 15 century. The counterattack wall around the moat was built in the second half of the 15th century. The castle’s architecture allows for the walls at the main points of cannon attack to be as thick as 3.5 meters. It’s an impressive structure and once inside its walls, there’s a certain air of history that will take hold of you, provided you’re not surrounded by crowds of tourists.

Enjoy the photos!

Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.
Cetatea de Scaun, Suceava, Bucovina, Romania.

I shot these photos with my Canon EOS 5D and the EF 24-105mm f/4L lens.

Canon EOS 5D (front)

Canon EOS 5D

Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM Lens

Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM Lens

 

Standard
Places

Images from historic churches and monasteries in Bucovina and Moldova

In August of 2*** (regular readers will know the year 😁), we took a tour of the historic churches and monasteries in the provinces of Moldova and Bucovina (within the territory of Romania).

A clarification is in order here. When people hear Moldova they automatically think about the Republic of Moldova, which used to be part of the Romanian province of Moldova but was taken by the Russians in 1940. That whole region has a fairly tumultuous history which you can read here. Just keep in mind these photographs were taken within the current-day borders of Romania and yes, there are two provinces called Bucovina and Moldova in Romania. I’ve lost track of how many times people have tried to correct me on this, all of them foreigners…

romania-historical-provinces

I could have published individual posts of each place but that would have been tedious for me (and for you too). I know it was tedious for me when we visited these places, one after another, day after day, dealing with heat, huge crowds and the hospitality industry (you know, the three Hs of travel; they add together to form a fourth H which is a four-letter word)… but we had made a plan and we stuck to it. Romanians in general tend to make trips to these places yearly for religious reasons. We visited these places because of their historical and architectural value, so while we were there we saw as many as we could in the time we had allotted ourselves.

In this gallery of photographs (there are 134 of them), you will see images from the following places:

  • The wooden church in Șurdești (Maramureș), a UNESCO monument and also the highest wooden church in the world
  • Moldovița Monastery
  • Sucevița Monastery
  • Chilia lui Daniil Sihastrul
  • Putna Monastery
  • “Dragoș Vodă” wooden church
  • Voroneț Monastery, famous for the blue used in its exterior murals, called Voroneț Blue
  • Humorul Monastery
  • Arbore Church
  • Dragomirna Monastery
  • Agapia Monastery
  • Văratec Monastery
  • Neamț Monastery
  • Secu Monastery
  • Sihăstria Monastery

Since I arranged the photos in chronological order, you’ll see them just as they’re listed above. You’ll probably want to know which was my favorite place. Dragomirna Monastery, definitely! Enjoy the gallery and thanks for being a subscriber!

Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania, a UNESCO monument
Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania — the tallest wooden church in the world.
Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania — the tallest wooden church in the world.
Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania — the tallest wooden church in the world.
Biserica de Lemn “Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil”, Surdesti, Romania — the tallest wooden church in the world.
Crossing the Carpathian Mountains in the province of Maramures, Romania
Main gate, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Lovely stone architecture, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Cloisters, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Flowers at the cloisters, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Main gate, interior courtyard, Manastirea Moldovita, Bucovina, Romania.
Entrance to Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Stairway to cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, church, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, garden, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Defense wall, cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, defense walls, cloisters and church, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Defense wall and cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church and interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church and interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Cloisters, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Church exterior, Manastirea Sucevita, Bucovina, Romania.
Langa Chilia lui Daniil Sihastrul, Bucovina, Romania
Langa Chilia lui Daniil Sihastrul, Bucovina, Romania
Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania
Cloisters, Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Putna, Bucovina, Romania.
Biserica de Lemn “Dragos Voda”, Bucovina, Romania.
Biserica de Lemn “Dragos Voda”, Bucovina, Romania.
Biserica de Lemn “Dragos Voda”, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Voronet, Bucovina, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Late afternoon, Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania
Historic district, Mediaș, Romania
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Humorul, Bucovina, Romania.
Biserica Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Arbore, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania. Ligia enters the fortified walls by one of the doorways.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Outside the fortified walls, Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Dragomirna, Bucovina, Romania.
Manastirea Agapia, Romania.
Cloisters, Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Agapia, Romania
Manastirea Varatec, Romania.
Manastirea Varatec, Romania.
Ceiling murals, Manastirea Varatec, Romania.
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Inside the cloisters, Manastirea Neamt, Moldova, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Neamt, Bucovina, Romania
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Manastirea Neamt, Romania
Inside the ossuary, Manastirea Neamt, Moldova, Romania.
Manastirea Secu, Moldova, Romania.
Interior courtyard, Manastirea Secu, Moldova, Romania.
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania
Cloisters, Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania.
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania.
Manastirea Sihastria, Moldova, Romania

I kept things simple in terms of photo gear for this trip, because there were four of us in the car and I knew I’d have to deal with the 3Hs of travel I mentioned above. I shot mainly with my Canon EOS 5D and the EF 24-105mm f/4L lens. My backup camera was the Canon PowerShot G10.

Canon EOS 5D (front)

Canon EOS 5D

Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM Lens

Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM Lens

Canon PowerShot G10

Canon PowerShot G10

Standard
Places

A hike through the hills of Moldova

These are photos I’ve taken during a couple of hikes through the hills near the village of Strugari in Moldova, Romania. Here’s a map of the area.

A map of the region around Strugari, Moldova

A map of the region around Strugari, Moldova

It was the middle of March (the 14th and 15th) and spring had just arrived. Most of the grass was dry and leaves hadn’t sprouted yet. As a matter of fact, no buds were even apparent on the branches of the trees in the area. A friendly little mutt that belonged to friends of ours accompanied me on the hikes (you can see him in the photos). A late snowfall introduced an element of adventure to one of the outings. It’s lovely to be in the middle of nowhere and to be suddenly surrounded by myriad falling snowflakes. A magical quiet sets in, sounds are muffled and a feeling of wonder takes over.

Enjoy the photos!

© Raoul Pop. All rights reserved. 
Available for licensing and purchase. 

Website – Raoul Pop. 
Photo Catalog – Raoul Pop Photography.
A thick forest of conifers cover the hill in the background while a quiet little stream winds its way through thickets and sparse trees in the valley below.
A shepherd tends to his flock of sheep on a distant hilltop.
Tall grass, blown every which way by the wind and dried by the same, covers this abrupt hillside somewhere in Moldova, Romania.
A late winter snowfall starts to cover the hills and valleys.
Atop a large hill, a wide plateau is used for farmland. In winter, it sits unused and barren.
Tall grass, dried by the long winter and downed by strong winds, on a hilltop somewhere in Moldova, Romania.
Moldova, Romania
Puffy white clouds cast shadows on the hills and valleys below on a sunny winter morning.
A crumbling old country house sits unused at the bottom of a hill in a little village in Moldova, Romania.
Snowfall caught me in the middle of a walk in these hills, somewhere in the region of Moldova, Romania.
Standard
Places

On the road in Moldova

We traveled to the province of Moldova recently (not the Republic of Moldova, the province of Moldova, which is part of Romania, as was the Republic of Moldova at one time), and while on the road, I recorded these videos.

The first is of the sunrise somewhere between Iasi and Piatra Neamt. I processed this to give it an old-time feel, with film grain, scratches and an appropriate soundtrack.

The second, filmed a little later that same morning, is of an historic piazza in Piatra Neamt.

The third, filmed that same day, is of a mountain brook in Cheile Bicazului, as we crossed the Carpathian Mountains from Moldova into Transilvania.

I hope you enjoy them! (They’re all in HD, so if you can’t see them at full res on my site, click through to YouTube and make sure to select 720p.)

Standard