History. * * *
Marking Romania's EU accession, Sibiu, as a city of art and culture, was designated European Capital of Culture for the year 2007 together with Luxembourg, following its nomination by the Culture Ministers' Council of the EU in 2004. * * * The Culture. Theatre. Sibiu is one of Romania's most culturally lively cities. It has two theatres and a philharmonic orchestra. The Radu Stanca National Theatre is one of the leading Romanian theatres. With origins dating back to 1787, it attracts some of the best-known Romanian directors, such as Tompa Gabor and Silviu Purcarete. It has both a Romanian-language and a German-language section, and presents an average of five shows a week. The Gong Theatre is specialised in puppetry, mime and non-conventional shows for children and teenagers. It also presents shows in both Romanian and German. The State Philharmonic of Sibiu presents weekly classical music concerts, and educational concerts for children and teenagers. The concerts take place in the newly restored Thalia Hall, a concert and theatre hall dating from 1787, situated along the old city fortifications. Weekly organ concerts are organised at the Evangelical Cathedral during summers, and thematic concerts are presented by the Faculty of Theology choir at the Orthodox Cathedral. Museums. Sibiu's museums are organised around two entities: the Brukenthal National Museum and the ASTRA National Museum Complex. The Brukenthal Museum consists of an Art Gallery and an Old Books Library located inside the Brukenthal Palace, a History Museum located in the old town hall building, a Pharmacy Museum located in one of the first apothecary shops in Europe, dating from the 16th century, a Natural History Museum and a Museum of Arms and Hunting Trophies.  The ASTRA National Museum Complex focuses on ethnography, and consists of a Traditional Folk Civilisation Museum—a 96-hectare open-air museum located on a forest south of Sibiu—a Universal Ethnography Museum, a Museum of Transylvanian Civilisation and a Museum of Saxon Ethnography and Folk Art. It also has a project of opening a Museum of the Culture and Civilisation of the Romany People. There is a Steam Locomotives Museum close to the railway station, sheltering around 40 locomotives, two of which are functional. Events. Several festivals are organised yearly in Sibiu, the most prestigious of them being the Theatre Festival, organized each spring at the end of May. The Art Mania rock festival is held every Summer since 2006 and as of 2008 the Rockin' Transilvania Festival is also held in Sibiu. The oldest Jazz Festival in Romania is organized here, as well as the "Carl Filtsch" festival for young classical piano players, the "Astra Film" documentary film festival, the Transylvania calling Festival a Multi Cultural 6 day Open Air Music festival! * * * Much of the city's aspect is due to its position, easily defensible, but allowing horizontal development. The old city of Sibiu lies on the right bank of the Cibin River, on a hill situated at about 200 m from the river. It consists of two distinct entities: the Upper Town and the Lower Town. Traditionally, the Upper Town was the wealthier part and commercial outlet, while the Lower Town served as the manufacturing area. The Lower Town. The Lower Town (Romanian: Orasul de jos) comprises the area between the river and the hill, and it developed around the earliest fortifications. The streets are long and quite wide for medieval city standards, with small city squares at places. The architecture is rather rustic: typically two-storey houses with tall roofs and gates opening passages to inner courts. Most of the exterior fortifications were lost to industrial development and modern urban planning in the late 19th century; only one or two towers still exist. A building associated with newer urbanism of the period is the Independenta Highschool. This area has the oldest church in the city, dating back to 1292. The Upper Town. The Upper Town (Romanian: Orasul de sus) is organised around three city squares and a set of streets along the line of the hill. As the main area for burgher activities, the area contains most points of interest in Sibiu. The Large Square.  The Large Square (Romanian: Piata Mare, German: Großer Ring) is, as its name suggests, the largest square of the city, and has been the center of the city since the 16th century. 142 m long and 93 m wide, it is one of the largest ones in Transylvania. Brukenthal Palace, one of the most important Baroque monuments in Romania, lies on the north-western corner of the square. It was erected between 1777 and 1787 as the main residence for the Governor of Transylvania Samuel von Brukenthal. It houses the main part of the National Brukenthal Museum, opened in 1817. Next to the palace is the Blue House, an 18th century Baroque house bearing the old coat of arms of Sibiu on its façade. The Small Square. As its name says, the Piata Mica is smaller in size, being rather longer than wide. Its north-west side has a curved shape, unlike the Large Square, which has an approximately rectangular shape. Accordingly, Piata Mica plays a smaller part in the city's present-day life. The square is connected to the other two squares and to other streets by small, narrow passages. The main access from the Lower City is through Ocnei Street, which divides the square in two. The street passes under the Liar's Bridge - the first bridge in Romania to have been cast in iron (1859). To the right of the bridge is another symbol of the city, The House of the Arts, an arched building formerly belonging to the Butchers' Guild. On the left side of the bridge is the Luxemburg House, a Baroque four-storey building, former seat of the Goldsmiths' Guild. The Huet Square. Huet Square is the third of the three main squares of Sibiu. Its most notable feature is the Evangelical Lutheran Cathedral in its center. It is the place where the earliest fortifications have been built. The buildings around this square are mainly Gothic. On the west side lies the Brukenthal Highschool, in place of a former 14th century school. Passage of the Stairs. The steep Passage of the Stairs leads down to the lower section of Sibiu. It descends along some fortifications under the support arches.  It is the most picturesque of the several passages linking the two sides of the city.In Sibiu's old centre you can find a range of restaurants, cafes and bars, which ring to the sound of Romanian folk music and jazz. As you stroll down the city's old area, you will find outdoor cafes, clubs, boarding houses and hotels in beautiful, historical buildings. The 'Romans Emperor' hotel is just one such remarkable building. It has been open under this name since 1773 and has accommodated many famous personalities, including Franz Liszt, Johan Strauss and Johannes Brahms. Sibiu can accommodate around 2,000 people in boarding houses and hotels, most of which are 3-star hotels. These have their own restaurants, but you can also find restaurants where you can sample traditional local cuisine, which bears German and Hungarian influences. You can taste beef and poultry soups with dumplings, as well as traditional homemade noodles. Sauerkraut or vinegar are used to prepare sour soups, whole other soups are rich in vegetables and meat. The herb tarragon is widely used in Sibiu cuisine, mostly in potato, bean or salad soups. Apple soup and sour cherry soup are two local specialties, whose origins lie in traditional Saxon cuisine. Sheep cheese comes from shepherd villages in Marginimea Sibiului, and a celebrated local variety is a telemea, cottage cheese, which people preserve in brine. * * * |
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