If the treasure we saw today in Brasov were to be so illuminated, it would be revealed by a raging blue inferno.
This treasure comes in 2 parts. The first part is literary. It includes the first printing press in Romania, printing books in Romanian, and a set of manuscripts produced by this printer. It also includes flags, texts and artifacts carefully hidden in the bell tower of St. Nicholas' Church so that the communists could not destroy them. The first Bible printed in Russian is there; the Romanian joke about it is that since the Russians stole the Romanian national treasure, it's only fair for the Romanians to keep this Russian treasure.
The second part of today's great find is the intensely energetic, charming, scholarly priest who, with no real state support or other assistance, works on the task of finding and preserving the ancient books and other special items hidden in the walls of the church. His is the work of a lifetime or more; he told us there are still 3 rooms full of treasure to discover. Amazing!
We also saw another church in Brasov, the famous (and massive) Black Church. In addition to being a grand and beautiful example of Gothic architecture, this church also houses a rather splendid collection of carpets and prayer rugs.
We've now left Sighisoara, toured Brasov, and found our way to our hotel
In Bran. Tomorrow, we visit Bran Castle first thing!
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