Hateg Country Dinosaur Geopark

If you're into really old things you can visit the Dinosaur Geopark from the Haţeg County. Near Sânpetru commune, a few km away from the European road E79, surrounded by a beautiful landscape, were found remnants of herbivorous dinosaurs along with those of turtles and crocodillians dating back to the time when the region was an island in the Tethys Sea.

Fossils were found in different regions of Haţeg County, but the Dinosaur Geopark remains the best places were worldwide scientists can study the unique dwarf dinosaurs of Transylvania.
Some of the fossils found here belong to dinosaur species such as Magyarosaurus dacus (a titanosaurid sauropod), Rhabdodon priscus (an iguanodontid), Telmatosaurus transsylvanicus (a “duck-billed” dinosaur) or Struthiosaurus transylvanicus (an ankylosaur or “armored dinosaur”) and other reptiles such as Kallokibotion bajazidi turtles, Allodaposuchus precedens crocodillians or the flying Hatzegopterix thambema.

Some more info can be found on the official site, here and here and on dinodata.org.

Colţ Fortress

Situated on a steep cliff above the village Suseni, the Colţ (cliff/rocky ridge) fortress was built by the Knyaz (or Cneaz) Cândea in the XIV-th century. Soon after, he turned to the Roman Catholic and changed his name to Kendeffy. Although now in ruins, the fortress had an important role, being the strongest transylvanian stronghold of its time belonging to a knyaz.

Next to the road, there is a church from the same period as the fortress, and a monastery of monks. There is also an unmarked path (around 30minutes on foot) leading to the top of the cliff.

Although debated, some believe that this is the place that inspired Jules Verne for his 1892 novel
Le Château des Carpathes.

Some photos on Patzinakia and here and a nice movie clip on Youtube. The location on Wikimapia.

Deva Fortress

Deva, capital of Hunedoara county, an industrial town with ancient legacy (former Dacian settlement of Decidava or Dacopolis) and home of the Romanian Gymnastics Olympic Team, is being watched over from the top of a volcanic hill by the citadel built in 1269.

The fortress had a long history, defending against both the invasions (such as the cumans' and later the Turkish army's attacks) and popular revolts (such as the one in 1784 led by Horia, Cloşca and Crişan). During the 1848 revolution (when Transylvania was part of the Kingdom of Hungary), terrible battles were fought here by the magyar revolutionary forces against the czar's army.

Part of the fortress was destroyed in 1849, due to an explosion in the gunpowder storehouse and today it's being reconstructed (so I couldn't take any pictures from inside).

The fortress can be reached on foot (50 minutes walk on a path that goes round hte hill) or by an aerial tramway (costs 10RON/person but it's fast). From the top of the hill one can see a magnificent view of the city and the valley of Mureş river.

Besides the old town buildings dating back to the XVIII-th century (among which is the cemetery chapel) it is worth mentioning The Bethlen Castle (Magna Curia - The Great Court). It can be found just below the citadel hill and it dates back to 1582. Nowadays it hosts the Dacian and Roman Civilization Museum.

More details regarding Deva can be found here, while the location is here and some personal photos follow:

Corvin's Castle (Hunyad Castle)

Built in the XV-th century on a cliff above the Zlaşti stream, the castle of Corvin Family (hu.: Vajdahunyad vára) is the most important gothic monument from Transylvania, and one of the most imposing structures in Romania. Placed in a mining zone, in the town of Hunedoare, the castle got blackened and dirty but the main polluting factories are now closed and the castle is being restored (and I had the misfortune of visiting it during this period when not every section of the castle was opened to the public).

There isn't much to say because there is plenty of information on the internet and you could check out some of the following links: the official site, Wikipedia, Travel Romania or here.

Some of the main attractions of the castle are: the drawbridge, the Last Defense Tower (Ne boisa), the Capistrano tower, the Council Hall, the Knight's Hall, the Club Tower, the White Bastion, the Diet Hall and the 30 meter deep well.

The location is this, and some personal photos follow: