Many Saxon families arrived in Transylvania as colonists sent by Hungarian King Geza II in 1152. The Saxons created villages and towns that formed the appearance of this area in the past and nowadays.
We stood in front of the closed wooden gate of a fortified white Saxon church. A lazy dog undisturbed and uninterested was watching us. We were wondering why the lunch break is 3 hours long, but it probably includes an afternoon nap, so we decided to visit the village first.
The Saxon village
The Viscri village was very nice and well preserved Saxon village somewhere in Transylvania. A mid-point in our trip between Sighisoara and Bran. And maybe the fact that the village doesn’t have a paved street and is far from the main road helps to preserve its authentic view of a Saxon village from the Middle Ages.
The colourful houses are arranged like the small bones of herringbone with the road like spine.
The isolation of Viscri, as well as the lack of alternative employment when agriculture collapsed at the end of the 1990s., probably made a group of resident Germans to create a brand called ‘Echte Viscri Socken aus Schafwolle‘ (“Genuine Viscri Sheep’s Wool Socks”). Nowadays the brand sells products not only in Vscri but in Germany as well. On the street that leads to the fortified church you can buy different wool products, generally socks.
[info]You can find Viscri close to the main road between Sighisoara (43 km) and Brashov. I recommend to visit this historical place. You can take the road from Bunești, it is not a bad road, paved. And the other road is from Dacia, about 7km, but it is dusty and not paved road, but passable with car.[/info]
The most interesting fact about the Transylvanian village is that King Charles III himself has a B&B in Viscri. It is a well preserved and authentic furnished blue Saxon-Transylvanian house. You can have a great stay in this beautiful house.
Although Charles’ house is an interesting attraction in this village, the most important site remains the white Saxon church.
The White church
We climbed the hill of the church again. The dog was no longer at the entrance and was walking in the courtyard of the church.
All these amazing old buildings and the village itself are in the list of World Heritage Sites of UNESCO (1999). The first buildings were erected in 12th century when the Saxons settled the area.
Over the years the church had undergone many transformations and reconstructions. In the middle ages the walls were strengthened. The current look of the complex is perhaps due to the XVIII century’s renovations. For me this is one of the best preserved fortified churches I’ve seen.
The fact that this is not the most visited tourist attraction in the region gave us the opportunity to enjoy the peaceful and quiet afternoon in this lovely village. And then just drove down the dusty road to Bran.
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