A couple of days ago I showed you a portion of the medieval wall of a Transylvanian city called Mediaș, which has a history of more than 700 years. The wall is quite long, it's discontinued now but still has most of its parts. you can check my previous post, to see the part that situates above the farmers market. Today I'd like to show you another part of the wall, that is in a better condition and used to protect the opposite part of the city.
Passing through the medieval city center an walking up on the Nicolae Iorga street, you see this old building, that always makes me sad. Back in the day, when it was built, must have been considered a palace, due to its size and wonderful architecture.
Now, even though it has been renovated several times, still looks like greatly neglected, all the time. I've never had the courage to enter that gate, even though it's always open. If the front looks like this, imagine what you can find inside.
Nicolae Iorga street is a historical one, all the buildings you find here are old and protected.
This should be good as history needs to be protected, but the problem is, many of the buildings here are empty and in a deplorable state. The impressive size of these buildings is a problem for many, due to the obligation the owner has. Renovation has to be done in accordance with the original architectural design and for that you need a restaurateur or a very good architect and not many can afford that.
Another problem that occurs here very often is the question of property ownership.
Many of the original owners have emigrated to other countries a long time ago, some have reclaimed their property, others haven't. State owned properties (due to the fraudulent nationalization during the communist period) are not a priority, unfortunately.
This is the Forkesch Tower.
The Forkesch Tower, or the Goldsmiths' Tower, was one of the three main towers of the city's fortification system. It is a massive tower built between 1494-1534, it has three floors and a pyramidal roof. Under the roof is a wooden guard gallery, which cantilevers, and very narrow embrasures can be seen on the facades of the tower. Until 1800, the tower also had a clock that indicated the time by striking a gong. source
The wall is restored to its original state and you can walk along it in the outside as well as in the inside. The outside part is nice, but a bit monotone, so I decided to walk along the inside part and you'll see why.
To make things interesting, they (I have no idea who came up with the idea), decided to set up a long bookshelf on the wall and fill it with books.
To create more medieval vibes, there is a hand painted wooden wardrobe and a chariot wheel made of wood set up next to the wall. These are authentic items.
You can park your bike there as there are several bike parking spaces.
"Take a book, enjoy it and return it. Or put another one in its place."
You can take a seat, have a coffee, a beer or a soft drink and enjoy reading in the shade provided by the wall.
There's a pub on the other side of the road, opposite to the wall.
I think this is the coolest place in the city, if you're into medieval history and like unconventional places. What could be more relaxing in the heat?
This is the street that runs along the wall. The beauty of it is that the original cobblestones are still there, which go well with the brick wall.
The funny thing was that this street is called Ice Street and at the time of my visit there was 30°C outside.
There's an old well as well. Back in those days there was no tap water, so these wells were their source of water. I love how the wall is restored here and the flowers in front of the wall is a nice addition to the landscape.
Houses at this part of the city are well maintained, most likely all of them are inhabited or used as businesses.
What you see there is the other tower, the Blacksmiths' Tower.
The Blacksmiths' Tower was built in the 16th century in Baroque style, above the Mill canal, which brought the water of the Moșna stream from Izvorul Rece to the city. The tower has in the upper part throwing mouths and shooting holes. On the southern facade in a panel marked by two columns and two twin arches, it is recorded that in 1641 the craftsmen Martin Petri and Petri Michaelis finished its renovation. source
There's a nice place with a terrace, called Art Cafe, where you can enjoy the view and have a cold drink in a hot and torrid day like I had. The downside is that there's traffic there, so it's not as quiet as the other place.
If you want to walk on the outside from the Forkesch Tower to the Blacksmiths' Tower, this is the view you get.
There's another part of the wall, I'm going to post about it next time.
I hope you liked the walk with me in this medieval part of the city. I'm planning to put together a guide with all the tourist attractions worth visiting in Medias and pin it to the map so anyone who wish to visit the city have an easy job finding what it worth visiting and know what to expect, but I need more time as it's not an easy job.
If you're a newbie, you may want to check out these guides:
