Fun Friday—My Virtual Summer Vacation: The *Other* Music City
I hope you’ve had as much fun as I have the last two weeks learning a little more about both Romania and Ukraine, the first two stops on my virtual summer vacation. Now, most of you know that I live in Music City USA: Nashville, Tennessee. So I thought the third stop on my virtual summer vacation would be the other music city:
Salzburg, Austria
For my foreign language in high school and college, I took German. I’d already been exposed to the language a little bit through my parents—who both took it in college, as well as living there briefly after they finished graduate school—and I found it relatively easy to learn. Could be because I have quite a bit of German heritage—from ancestors with names like Caylor (an Americanization of Koehler) and Frieze. Could be because it’s so close to English. But either way, my high school German teacher believed in total culture immersion, which included a lot of studying about the German-speaking countries (and I’ll age myself here by admitting that there were two countries named Germany—East and West—when I was in high school). And for the oral report I had to give my senior year, I chose to do it on the city of Salzburg—specifically the city’s history with music.
City of Mozart
Salzburg is most famous for being the hometown of one of the most famous classical composers, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. So no trip to Music City Austria would be complete without visiting the Mozart sites, beginning with the Mozart Geburtshaus (Birthplace):
(It’s the yellow one)
Next is the Mozart Wohnhaus (Residence), the home where Mozart lived from 1773 to 1777 while he was the court musician to Prince-Archbishop Hieronymus Colloredo. 
And I’ll have to visit Mozartplatz Square near Old Town Salzburg—and maybe have coffee at one of the nearby cafes.
The Sound of Music
It’s no secret, The Sound of Music is one of my favorite musicals. So of course, my visit to Salzburg wouldn’t be complete without seeing some of the sites used in the movie.
Mirabell Gardens (fountain and trellis-covered pathway featured in the song “Do-Re-Mi”)
Schloss Leopoldskron (used as the back of the von Trapp home—where the boat carrying Maria and the children overturned in the water)
Schloss Hellbrunn (current location of the gazebo—shipped over from Hollywood to Salzburg)
Frohnburg Castle (front facade, courtyard, and gates used at the end of “I Have Confidence” when Maria arrives at Villa von Trapp)
Nonnberg Abbey (The actual abbey where the real Maria von Trapp was a novice, as well as where the abbey scenes in the movie were filmed)
Mondsee Cathedral (where the movie wedding between Maria and the Captain was filmed)
Felsenreitschule (the amphitheatre where the Trapp Family Singers gave their concert in the film)
St. Peter’s Cemetery (Where the fight scene during the von Trapps’ flight from Salzburg was filmed)
The Rest of Salzburg
Of course Mozart and The Sound of Music sites aren’t all there are to see in Salzburg. There are also a bunch of castles and fortresses (click the image to see a slideshow in a new tab/window):
And then there’s the city of Salzburg, as well as surrounding mountains and villages (like Wolfgangsee) to spend time exploring (again, click the image to open the slideshow in a new tab/window):
Where are you heading on your virtual vacation this week?
Thursday Thought Provoker
Forty Fabulous Things about Turning Forty!
While I know there are a lot of people out there who will never admit their real age, I’m stinkin’ proud of the fact that
I’m turning
…
FORTY
…
today!!!!
…
So, I thought I’d take a few minutes to celebrate forty fabulous things about turning forty!
1. I’m forty years old. People have to listen to me now.
2. I’m forty and broke—very low possibility of being kidnapped.
3. I can get away with wearing sweats and no makeup to the grocery store.
4. I can wear sleeveless tops and not care how flabby and pasty my upper arms are.
5. The decade of my teen years is now considered “retro” and “cool”—no longer “embarrassing” and “gauche.”
6. My back, knees, and right ankle are now better at predicting the weather than any meteorologist in the world.
7. I don’t have to worry about revealing any of my friends’ secrets—because I’ve forgotten all of them.
8. I can slow down and take things at my own pace (if I want to).
9. I can say no because I’m at an age where taking care of myself first is not only expected, but necessary.
10. I have the career that I’d always considered a pipe-dream. And even though it’s been tough financially, I can still say I attained my dream before I turned forty.
11. I feel younger than ever—because I’ve connected with so many childhood/junior-high/high-school friends in this here age of technology.
12. I don’t have to worry about meeting “the right kind of people” or making “the right kind of friends.” I’m already surrounded by them.
13. Understanding my parents better as each year passes.
14. Having a ton of other fabulous friends who also just turned forty, or are about to.
15. I have minions. 😉
16. Not being carded when I buy wine at my favorite store. (Though I think that’s because they know me.)
17. Being carded when I go out for margaritas with some of my other fabulous fortysomething friends and having the cute young waiter act all surprised because he thought we were his age.
18. I can now get away with yelling at the teenagers driving down the street too fast to “SLOW DOWN.”
19. I can also gripe about the twentysomethings having the party down the street about how they need to TURN DOWN THAT RACKET YOU CALL MUSIC!
20. I no longer worry about the Zombie Apocalypse. In fact, some days I’d welcome it!
21. I don’t have to pretend to like something if I don’t.
22. Turning forty means it’s time to try some things I haven’t yet (like Indian food or dining out alone at least a couple of times a month).
23. At forty, peer-pressure—or at least the urge to give in to it—disappears. (Or so I’ve been told.)
24. Those aren’t gray hairs. That’s experience.
25. My competitiveness is waning.
26. I don’t feel the need to try to prove myself. I’ve spent the last twenty years doing that. It’s time to relax a little and enjoy what I’ve accomplished.
27. If I want to eat cereal for dinner and a ham sandwich for breakfast, that’s okay. (Or maybe that’s should be on the forty fabulous things about being single list.)
28. I not only saw the original versions of the Star Wars movies when they first released, I remember them back before the digital updates and “prequels” ruined them.
29. No hesitation in telling off the teenagers in the movie theater who insist on talking or answering their phones during the movie.
30. I can get away with cutting through the smalltalk to get to the point—I’m getting older by the minute, here, people!
31. I am more certain that I know less than I think I do.
32. Forty is the new twenty-five.
33. I know who I am and what I want out of life, and I’m not afraid to pursue it with passion, no matter what anyone else might think.
34. When I say that wisdom is one of my top spiritual gifts, people actually have to take me seriously.
35. I won’t have to worry about if people are watching and judging me all the time. (Wait, did someone just see me type that? What are they going to think? Maybe I shouldn’t have written that.)
36. “The first forty years of life give us the text: the next thirty supply the commentary.” ~Arthur Schopenhauer
37. I haven’t started receiving AARP stuff in the mail . . . yet.
38. Failure isn’t terminal. Success isn’t eternal. It’s all just life. And it’s soooooo worth living.
39. It’s now officially okay for me to not be girly and giggly and for me to hate chick flicks. I can grouse about them all I want!
40. The most fabulous thing about turning forty—it must be better than being thirty-nine was. Thirty-nine sucked, big time!
Fun Friday–My Virtual Summer Vacation: Ukraine
Last week, my virtual summer vacation started out in the land of my ancient heritage, Romania. So I figured for this week, I’d just slip over the border into one of Romania’s neighbors—and a country I’ve been somewhat fond of ever since I wrote my second completed manuscript way back in 2002 . . .
Ukraine
While I don’t personally have any familial roots in Ukraine (that I know of), as I mentioned, I became interested in the country when working on what would become my second complete manuscript, The Best Laid Plans. Because I chose an Eastern European actor (Goran Visnjic) for the template of the hero, I needed him to come from an Eastern European country—but because the country which the actor was from (Croatia) had just come out of a very violent time of war, I wanted him to be from a country that had a more peaceful transition from Eastern Bloc to free. Because so many famous figure skaters have come from there, it must have been top of mind for me—I chose Ukraine, a country which claims almost every different type of landscape possible in Europe.
Last week, in Romania, I stayed away from the bigger cities and stuck with the villages and mountains. And it’s through those mountains, the Carpathians, that we’ll get to Ukraine:
In Ukraine, I’ll be visiting several of the cities, starting with Odesa (a.k.a. Odessa)—yes, the city from which the place in Texas got its name. I will stay at the Hotel Odessa, right at the seaport. Odessa is a city of contrasts, from old medieval- and Renaissance-era buildings to Soviet-era block housing and buildings to new construction of a city on the move. (Click the image to see a slideshow, which will open in a new tab/window.)
From Odesa, it’s on to the capital city of Kyiv (a.k.a. Kiev). A city that’s been the crossroads of East and West for centuries, this metropolis is considered the center of education, culture, trade, and industry for Eastern Europe. It’s believed to be one of the oldest cities in Eastern Europe, founded in 482 A.D. Though Ukraine is a country with its own language (similar to Russian, but different enough to be considered a unique language and not a dialect), its past is a tapestry of occupations and annexations—it’s been part of the Khazar empire, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Crown Kingdom of Poland, and in 1667 became an autonomous part of the Tsardom of Russia. In the 19th Century, a secret society—the Brotherhood of St. Cyril of Methodius—pushed the idea that Ukrainians were Slavic, not Russian, and as such should be a separate and distinct country. They were quickly silenced, but ethnic Ukrainian aristocracy preserved the unique Ukrainian language and culture through private clubs and secret societies of their own, while the peasants living outside the cities retained their Ukrainian folk culture through being largely ignored by the Russians. From 1921 through 1991, Ukraine was part of the USSR, with Kiev serving as one of the Soviet Union’s key industrial centers. Because so much of the rural population migrated to the city, even though it was a Soviet controlled city, Kiev became a center for Ukrainian language and culture. Chernobyl is only a little more than 60 miles north of the city, but because the prevailing winds blow north, the city was largely unaffected by the meltdown.
Ukrainian independence was declared and instituted at parliament in Kiev on August 24, 1991. In this new modern era, Kiev has exploded—population, building, industry, commerce, culture—with a revitalization of the old parts of the city as well as new growth and expansion outward and upward. (Click image to open the Kyiv slideshow in a new tab/window.)
After the teeming metropolis of Kiev, it’s time to take things a little more slowly with a visit to L’viv (also Lviv and Lwow). The old city pretty much escaped major damage in World War II and as such gives a very good view of what cities in this part of the world would have looked like two to five hundred years ago. (Click image to see slideshow in a new tab/window.)
And though there’s still so much of the country left to see, my trip to Ukraine will end with a visit to the Crimea region, and Yalta, if for no other reason than to see the Swallow’s Nest castle. This decorative, Gothic-style “castle” was built between 1911 and 1912 on Aurora Cliff to replace a wooden cottage known as the “Love Castle,” owned by a court doctor to the Russian Tsar. In 1911, a German oil baron acquired the cottage, tore it down, and built this decorative castle overlooking the Black Sea. It’s been one of the most popular tourist attractions in Crimea since then, and currently houses an Italian restaurant. But though it may be one of the most popular sights to see, it’s not the only one, so click on the photo to see a slideshow of Crimea/Yalta.
Where in the world are you going for part two of your virtual vacation today?
Thursday Thought Provoker
The Page 99 Test
Have you heard of the Page 99 Test? I read about this on a blog: At the bookstore, if you can’t decide whether or not you want to buy a book, open it to page 99 and read the page. If you want to keep reading–or want to go back and find out what happened up to that point, it’s probably one to read in full.
So here are a few Page 99s for you:
Ransome’s Crossing:
She tucked the heel of bread and chunk of cheese she’d swiped from the kitchen an hour ago into her pocket, snuffed the candles, clapped the tall, round hat on her head, and hoisted the sea chest.. . . . .If Susan and Collin were not awakened by the creaking of the floorboards, surely the sound of Charlotte’s pounding heart would be loud enough to wake the dead. But she made it to the service stairs with no incident. At this hour, only the cook would be stirring, and as she lived in quarters beside the kitchen, she never used this staircase. But Charlotte paused often to listen for footfalls or other telltale signs she was not alone.
. . . . .None came. As she had so many times before, she sneaked out the back of the house into the garden. In less than twenty feet, she would be in the alley.
* * *
. . . . .Ned sauntered around to the area where Howe oversaw the delivery of supplies for Audacious. “Any sign of Lott yet?”
. . . . .Howe grunted. “Not yet. I will be very put out, Cochrane, if after waiting all this while I have to secure another midshipman, when I could have had one a week ago.”
. . . . .Ned pressed his lips together. He was usually a good judge of character, and Charles Lott had struck him as someone he could take a risk on. Actually, Charles Lott had struck him as something entirely different than any other midshipman Ned had ever met—but he couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was. There was something so familiar about the lad, yet Ned knew he’d never met the boy outside of the few times he’d seen him here at the dockyard.
. . . . .Matthews signaled him from their entrenchment on the quay, so he left Howe, trying to not feel betrayed by the young midshipman.
. . . . .He turned at the sound of pounding feet. Down the quay ran a slight figure in a midshipman’s uniform. Lott. The boy stopped a few paces from Ned and dropped his sea chest onto the stones beneath their feet.
The Art of Romance:
Mrs. Holtz looked around her husband. “Do you sing, Dylan?”. . . . . “Sing?”
. . . . .Dr. Holtz chuckled. “This is a liberal and fine arts school in Nashville, Tennessee. Aside from having one of the largest vocal performance and choral programs in the city—after Vanderbilt and Belmont, of course—we have a lot of talented people on this faculty.”
. . . . . “Happy holidays, everyone!”
. . . . .Dylan joined the crowd in murmuring “Happy holidays” back to the man in the tuxedo at the microphone, the college’s president, he supposed, not having seen anyone else in a tux. He glanced around, not looking for a tall redhead—and to his surprise, he didn’t see the person he most definitely wasn’t looking for.
. . . . . “Thanks for joining us again this year for our faculty holiday celebration. I hope you all had a wonderful fall semester and are looking forward to your time off for the next few weeks. I know I am.”
. . . . .Mild tittering and chuckles from the crowd.
. . . . . “But you didn’t come here to hear me talk. So I’ll turn the evenings’ festivities over to Dr. Edgerton in just a moment. I do want to take this opportunity to say thank you to each of you for the wonderful work you do in leading, mentoring, guiding, and teaching our students. James Robertson University wouldn’t be here, wouldn’t have the stellar reputation we have, without a stellar faculty. So thank you, and happy holidays!”
. . . . .Applause and a few whistled emerged from the crowd that must have been over two hundred people.
. . . . .A distinguished woman who looked to be in her fifties took the stage. Dressed in a red sequined dress, she commanded Dylan’s attention simply by the fact he couldn’t look away from the sparkly garment.
. . . . . “You’ve been waiting and wondering for a year, while others have been plotting and planning. We had so many good submissions this year, it was hard to narrow it down to a manageable number, but somehow we did. So let’s get started. And remember, if you feel like dancing, please do so!”
. . . . .The music professor introduced the musicians on the stage—a jazz quartet made up of other music department faculty—and they got
Now, here are a couple of page-99 excerpts you’re getting a sneak peek at.
Ransome’s Quest (August 2011)
. . . . . “I’ll be back, Pa. I’ll bring help.” He turned the horse back the direction they came and kicked it into a run.. . . . .Julia tore a long, wide strip from one of her petticoats and, taking advantage of Winchester’s momentary lapse of focus on her, rushed to Levi and began to bandage his leg.
. . . . . “Saint Julia to the rescue.” Winchester sneered, grabbing her arm to yank her away from the groaning man. But he did not order the bandage taken from Levi, who managed to sit up and begin wrapping the strip of linen tightly around his wound.
. . . . . “Come. The commodore does not like to be kept waiting.” He dragged her toward the treeline a few yards from the edge of the road.
. . . . . “Who is the commodore?”
. . . . .Winchester’s smile was anything but pleasant. “You’ll see. I believe he would be angry with me if I spoiled the surprise.”
. . . . . “Why are you doing this?” She struggled to free her arm from his injurious grip.
. . . . .He tightened his hold. “Because, it’s time your family and the Ransomes pay for what they did to us.”
. . . . .Confused, Julia stopped struggling. “Did to you? What do you mean?”
. . . . .He whipped around and leaned his face into hers. “You ruined our lives. All of you, the whole lot of you Witheringtons and Ransomes.” He straightened, as if remembering himself. “But I will let the commodore explain it—after all, he was directly involved. Now, get on the horse.”
. . . . . “I think I may have broken a few ribs when the carriage overturned.”
. . . . . “And why is that a concern of mine?” Winchester grabbed her around the waist and lifted her off the ground. Perhaps he meant to throw her up onto the horse’s back, but he did not have the strength. She grabbed onto the saddle, and though it sent fresh spasms of agony through her torso, pulled herself up into a sidesaddle position on the regular saddle.
. . . . . “Give me your hands.”
. . . . . She held her hands out in front of her. Winchester tied them together
Turnabout’s Fair Play (November 2011, estimated by word count based on where Page 99 falls in the previous two books)
. . . . .“It was just like seventh grade and Lisa Jackson all over again.”. . . . .Danny leaned forward, his elbows on the table, his coffee cup held in both hands. “She didn’t slap you, too?”
. . . . .“No—but I wouldn’t have blamed her if she had.” Jamie scrubbed his hands over his face. He probably should have shaved for church this morning, but frankly, the only reasons he attended that church were because it was just down Old Hickory Boulevard from his townhouse community and it’s where all the big money in town attended—and he really didn’t care about impressing them anymore. “Man, I was such a dork.”
. . . . .The word tasted foul in his mouth, so he took a swig of the strong house coffee, black today, just like his mood.
. . . . .“And you couldn’t just laugh it off with a wink and a smile and get her to see the humor in it?”
. . . . .“No. I totally lost it. Started stammering like an imbecile. A dorky imbecile. I don’t know what it is about her that’s so different from every other beautiful woman I’ve been around. I can usually handle myself. Flirt. Laugh. Make them fall in love with me, even if just for five minutes.”
. . . . .“I remember. You got really good at it in college. As I recall, that’s the only way you made it through Advanced Macroeconomic Theory—because the professor thought you were cute.”
. . . . .“See—that’s what I’m talking about. Even sixty-year-old women, who should know better, fall for me. So why do I completely lose my cool whenever I’m near Flannery McNeill? I’m such an idiot.” Jamie pushed his cup back, leaned over, and pressed his forehead, nose, and chin against the table. He hoped it had been cleaned recently. He let his arms dangle from his shoulders.
. . . . .Danny’s bolt of laughter brought Jamie upright again.
. . . . .“What?”
. . . . .Wiping his eyes with the back of his hands, Danny shook his head. “I can’t believe you still do that face-plant move. Remember the time—”
. . . . .“You swore you’d never bring that up.” The memory of a face-plant leading to getting his forehead stuck to a table in the middle-school cafeteria only added to his current sense of self-scorn.
What are your “tests” for whether or not you want to read/buy a book?
Writer’s Window: Allie Pleiter
Joining us today for Writer’s Window is romance author Allie Pleiter.
One lucky commenter* will win a signed copy of Allie’s latest release, Yukon Wedding. Deadline for leaving a comment to enter the drawing is Friday. To enter the drawing, you must answer the question posed by Allie at the end of the interview. Only one comment per person will count toward the drawing. Please do not include your e-mail address in the body of your comment—just make sure it’s correct when you sign in to leave your comment. The winning name will be drawn next weekend and the winner will be notified via e-mail.
- *U.S. residents only, void where prohibited. If you win the drawing, you will be ineligible for the next three drawings, though hopefully you will still come back and join in the discussion.
__________________________________________________________
YUKON WEDDING
Harlequin Love Inspired Historical
April 2011
ISBN #978-0373828630A gold-rush town is no place for a single mother. But widow Lana Bristow won’t abandon the only home her son has ever known. She’ll fight to remain in Treasure Creek, Alaska—even if it means wedding Mack Tanner, the man she blames for her husband’s death. Mack sees marriage as his duty, the only way to protect his former business partner’s family. Yet what starts as an obligation changes as his spoiled socialite bride proves to be a woman of strength and grace. A woman who shows Mack the only treasure he needs is her heart.
Welcome, Allie!
What do you like best about being a writer?
- Getting to work in my pajamas? No, actually I love the un-containable nature of it. It is fluid, can happen anywhere and anytime, so I can flex and bend with the crazy demands of my family. I pull stories out of thin air…I am continually energized by the wonder of that.
What do you like least about being a writer?
- There’s only me. Successes are all mine (and God’s, of course), but failures can’t be shucked off to someone else. No one else can do my job, fill in on vacation, etc. When all that’s standing between me and my deadline is me, well, it’s not especially fun.
Pop, Soda, or Coke? What do you call it, and what’s your favorite variety?
- I don’t like soda at all. I’m a 100% coffee gal. Even when it’s 90 out.
What’s your favorite dessert?
- Chocolate anything, although a good key lime pie or cheesecake can turn my head. Come to think of it, so can a good crème brûlée. My favorite dessert? The one that comes before dinner 🙂
What’s the most fun/interesting/crazy/scary/unique hands-on research you’ve done for a book?
- Oh my, I specialize in this. I’ve done everything from learn to walk a tightrope to making a latte on the world’s most expensive espresso machine with a world-ranked barista to cracking a ten-foot bullwhip. I LOVE research, talking to experts about their passions. I’ve spent some amazing time with firefighters doing research for my Feb 2012 book, FALLING FOR THE FIREMAN –and that’s been incredibly inspiring.
What’s your favorite movie from childhood?
- I have always adored How the Grinch Stole Christmas. I’m a sucker for clever lyrics.
If you were to write a novel about what your life would have been like if you’d become what you wanted to be at eight years old, what kind of character would the story be about?
- I don’t know what I wanted to be when I was eight, but I went to college to become a soap opera villainess. Really. Tall, dark, alto voice, I thought I had it made. Until I discovered being six feet tall is a tremendous disadvantage in television.
What makes you happy?
- Knitting. I am a huge knitting freak. I even have my own blog, DestiKNITions.blogspot.com, where I travel all around the country interviewing yarn stores and their communities.
What makes you nervous?
- While I’m totally fine with public speaking, I have a hard time playing an instrument or singing in public (despite having a theater degree . . . go figure).
What’s your biggest dream for the future?
- I’d love to see one of my books turned into a movie. Casting Hugh Jackman or Daniel Craig or David Tennant as a hero would be a definite high point.
Tell us about your newest release and what you’re working on now.
- I’m launching a new series next year—another great cast of quirky small town characters beginning with Falling for the Fireman in February. After that, I’ll have a WWI historical romance featuring a Naval hero and a South Carolina nurse running the Red Cross Knitting Campaign—you know I’ll have fun with that one.
Where can people find out more about you/connect with you online?
- www.alliepleiter.com
www.destiKNITions.blogpot.com
I’m also on Twitter and Facebook
Now it’s your turn to ask the question. What question do you want to ask the commenters to answer?
- What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve done to catch the attention of someone’s heart?
__________________________________________________________
An avid knitter, coffee junkie, and devoted chocoholic, Allie Pleiter writes both fiction and non-fiction. The enthusiastic but slightly untidy mother of two, Allie spends her days writing books, buying yarn, and finding new ways to avoid housework. Allie hails from Connecticut, moved to the midwest to attend Northwestern University, and currently lives outside Chicago, Illinois. The “dare from a friend” to begin writing has produced two parenting books, fourteen novels, and various national speaking engagements on faith, women’s issues, and writing.
Fun Friday–My Virtual Summer Vacation: Romania
It’s no secret . . . I really enjoy watching HGTV. And one of my favorite shows is House Hunters: International. But unlike most people, I tend not to watch the episodes in which they’re looking at properties on magnificent tropical islands or looking for beachfront property. (And don’t get me started on people who are looking for vacation properties, where they’ll spend at most three or four weeks a year and they gripe about small bathrooms and kitchens—it’s a vacation home, people!!!)
So, since I’ve been housebound the last three weeks—two weeks finishing Turnabout and this week because I’ve been not just flat-broke but in-the-hole-broke and can’t even afford a big night out at McDonald’s, I thought it would be fun for the next few weeks to take a virtual vacation, hitting some of the top spots I’d love to visit and spend some R&R time. So today, we’re traveling to . . .
Romania
Anyone who’s heard the story of the origin of my last name should understand this one. But for those who haven’t, here’s the scoop. Dacus is Latin, dating back to the early Roman empire, and it’s the Latin word for a person who was from the province of Dacia—what is now Romania. In fact, Dacia, which was home to at least twelve different tribal groups, traces back to the Iron Age. I’ve always figured my ancestors came from the area that is now Transylvania—it would explain why I’m such a night person!
For my virtual trip to Romania, I will stay in the village of Sinaia, Busteni, known as the Pearl of the Carpathian Mountains. Sinaia, in the foothills of the Bucegi range of the Carpathians, takes its name from a 17th century monastery built by a Romanian nobleman after he took a pilgrimage to Mt. Sinai. So, of course, I would need to do my due diligence and visit the Sinaia Monastery:
After spending time in a quaint village in a gorgeous mountain setting . . .
. . . and visiting Peles Castle, the summer palace built by the royal family in the 1880s:
. . . it would be time to move on to some of the more famous sights in Romania. The first, of course, being Bran Castle, reputedly Dracula’s castle, as it was one of the fortified castles Vlad III the Impaler called home:
(though I will be sure to visit during the daytime 😉 )
The fortified church-city of Sighisoara is known as the city of Dracula, as it’s the birthplace of Vlad Tepes, son of Vlad Dracul, who would become known as Vlad the Impaler—it’s also one of the most beautifully preserved medieval cities in Romania. So, of course, this is my next stop!
From there, it’s on to the Maramures region, known for its wooden churches:
Then, it’s on to Bucovina to visit the painted (and fortified!) monasteries:
What’s a vacation without a relaxing stay at a spa? I’ll visit Ursu Lake near Sovata, famous for its unique bearskin shape and heliothermal saline qualities. A layer of fresh water sits atop the saltwater, holding in warmth from the sun. It even has its own legend:
- “Once up in the woods above Sovata lived a fairy in a beautiful castle. She saw a shepherd lad and she fell in love with him. But according to the fairy laws they couldn’t met so she listened his flute play every night. After a while she decided to break the law and meet the lad. She went down to the valley and saw the boy kissing a girl. She went crazy and turned them and the sheep into stones. She also paid for her villain deed. After this she wondered in the woods and from her veil flowers grew everywhere. And the beautiful palace disappeared. She started crying and her tears grew into a stream then a lake. The fireplace of the fairy is heating it from below.” (From transylvaniantravel.ro)
And, of course, I must make time for all of the beautiful castles throughout the country:
Huniazilor (Hunyad) Castle
Făgăraş Castle
Karolyi Castle
Cantacuzino Palace
Fortified church of Viscri
Want to play along?
I’ll be posting these “virtual vacation spots” on Fridays through the end of June. So come up with your own list of dream vacation spots and be prepared to tell us where you’re going for your virtual vacation, one locale each week. Can’t wait to see where in the world we end up!
So, what’s your first stop on your virtual summer vacation?
Thursday Thought Provoker
I should be writing a blog post . . .
. . . and given that it’s Tuesday, it should be something to do with the craft and/or industry of writing fiction.
But my brain is still feeling slightly fried from having written 76,000 words in twelve days to get TFP finished.
- So, instead, I’m going to get a quick (as in thirty-minute) editing project done then start reading all the background materials for the new fiction series I’ll be editing starting next month.
I also should have gone to the gym this morning, seeing as how it’s been almost a month since the last time I was there and I promised myself I was not only going to go at least four days a week, I was going to do it in the mornings before I got caught up doing other stuff.
- Instead, I promise that I will at least take a walk around the block sometime today.
What are some shoulds and insteads you’re dealing with today/this week?
Update, 1:20 p.m.
I did finish the little editing project and got that sent off posthaste after writing the post above. But then . . . I started on another instead and thought I’d share the beginning part of that with you:
Update 5:00 p.m.
After a nice long chat with my publicist for the Ransome series, I got back to work on getting my books reorganized and put back on the shelves. So here’s the “after” of my book organizing project!
KayeDacus.com 