Buzau County

The region of Buzau, in eastern Romania, is famous for the diversity of its relief

Daniel Onea, 07.11.2019, 13:06

Today we invite you to join us on a trip to the region of Buzau, in eastern Romania, famous, among other things, for the diversity of its relief. The region is home to large forests, the muddy volcanoes, old monasteries, caves, but also interesting museums. Buzau County is also a favorite destination for adventure tourists, as they can do mountain climbing, off-road trips, rafting, hang-gliding and canyoning.

Usually, when we say Buzau we think of traditional produce too: bagels, the famous Plescoi sausages, babic, plum brandy and the Pietroasele wine. However, Buzau is more than that. Florina Florea, the coordinator of the Nehoiu Tourist Information and Promotion Center told us some of the stories that add to the attractiveness of the area:

Florina Florea: “I would like to start with the Buzau rail station. Right at its entrance there stands a unique sculpture of ‘Ilie the eagle. The story goes that, between 1924-1942, an inn keeper named Adam had an eagle who liked to sit around the station area. In 1942 a German soldier shot him dead, and the local poet Bucur Chiriac wrote a poetry book in honour of the eagle. From the station, reaching the center is quite easy. The Communal Palace is, in the words of the famous historian Nicolae Iorga, one of the most beautiful town-hall buildings in the country and one of Buzaus gems. It is indeed a symbol of the town of Buzau. There are also several other things worth visiting in the center, such as the Dacia Plateau and a small but extremely beautiful church, which has been declared a historical monument.

There are many events organized every year across Buzau County. The calendar of events can be downloaded from the website cniptnehoiu.ro. The most important such events are Dragaica, organized in late June, and Buzau Fest, which is held in early June, in the resort of Sarata Monteoru. Florina Florea told us more about this resort and other attractions in the area:

Florina Florea: “The resort is famous for its salty water pools. Also, an adventure park was built in 2016, right in the middle of the forest. Also in 2016 the resort got the status of spa. But this is not the only place worth visiting. I would also recommend the ‘muddy volcanoes, 35 km off Buzau. These apparently boiling pools of mud have been included in the list of monuments of nature, ever since 1924. Then, from the muddy volcanoes, we can easily get to Ulmet and see the trovants, also known as ‘the living stones. These are geological formations of unusual and strange shapes.

From here we move on to the Nucu – Buzioru area, home to a large number of rock-carved dwellings, used as religious sites. Florina Florea, coordinator of the Nehoiu Tourist Information and Promotion Centre, tells us more:

Florina Florea: “We are working with a geography professor from the University of Bucharest, Cezar Buterez, who has been conducting extensive research in the area for over 10 years, and who is soon to publish a map of these dwellings. The area is lesser known to the public, and tourists will need a guide to accompany them. The best known of these sites is the Rock Church of Alunis. It was carved in rock by 2 shepherds around 1274. But apart from this one, there are many other such dwellings whose names indicate their religious usage.

Tourist guide Florin Burgui presented us a less usual mountain route, one which covers some of these rock carved dwellings, with Poiana Cozanei as its starting point:

Florin Burgui: “A first stop is at the Cell of Dionisie Torcatorul. They say that this monk, Dionysus, lived in this cell carved in stone for 30 years, only coming out once a week to go to church for confession. The rest of the time he would spin wool, which was brought to his cell. Just a few minutes walk from this there is a skete called Fundul Pesterii (roughly “The end of the cave). In my opinion this is the most important site of this type in the area, because in this cave, which is currently closed in order for the parietal drawings to be preserved, there are 137 carvings representing various weapons and dating back to around 4,000 BC. Then we reach Josephs Church. The route takes 8-10 hours to complete, going up and down through the woods. The route markings are not very clear, but with a little training it is no problem.

Florina Florea, the coordinator of the Nehoiu Tourist Information and Promotion Centre, also invited us to an adrenaline-packed adventure in the region:

Florina Florea: “I would end the tour of the region in Nehoiu, the mountainous part of the region, where rafting is practiced in Buzau River. From March until October or November, you can bring your friends to try whitewater rafting every day. This March we even hosted a rafting championship, with teams from Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria and Britain taking part. Last year, on December 1, we released, together with Prof. Cezar Buterez, a Visitors Map. So now you can easily find the most interesting and unusual sites in the region, and you are all invited to discover them.

In short, Buzau County, an ideal destination for all ages, which is worth exploring in any season, is waiting for you.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)