Bistrița – Bistritz – Beszterce

Bistrița – Bistritz – Beszterce

Bistritz is the gate of Transylvania, the boarder between the Occident and the Orient, the last medieval citadel from the Western Europe. Bistrita is a place where the history and the culture born the legend. Bistritz is a spiritual mixed between the Orthodox, the Catholics and the Protestants Christians.

If you are coming from Moldavia, from Bucovina the first Transylvanian town when you are passing the Carpathian Mountains is Bistritz.

Bistrița – Bistritz – Beszterce

This Transylvanian town is famous all over the world but the natives from here don’t know… The Bram Stoker’s novel (1897), The Dracula Book starts with the Bistritz description and the Jonathan’s Harker impressions about the people, food and drinks, accommodation, life style, superstition, religion, nature from Bistritz town and county.

Bistrița – Bistritz – Beszterce

In the Jonathan Harker’s Journal we find: “It was on the dark side of twilight when we got to Bistritz, which is a very interesting old place. Being practically on the frontier – for the Borgo Pass leads from it into Bukovina – it has had a very stormy existence, and it certainly shows marks of it.”

Before the Jonathan Harker’s legendary visit was the real visit of Charles Boner. After his travel to Transylvania he will write in 1865 a book about his voyage experience, called Transylvania: its products and its people.

Josephinische Landaufnahme

Here the English traveler mentions: “Bistritz is prettily situated on the plain, just where a range of hills, covered with orchards and beech- groves, rise beside it. It has nothing of that medieval look which distinguishes Hermannstadt or Schässburg; the streets are straight and broad, and nearly every building is of modern date, the place having suffered repeatedly by fire.”

From these travelers a lot of people passed and visited Bistrita. Some of them were impressed, others disappointed and others have passed indifferently.

After the big Saxon migration from the town, after the Romanian migration abroad the town is looking for his lucky direction. Now Bistrita is searching its tourist spirit, its tourist calling.

Come to Bistrita and give us an idea to revival this community!