City Tours of Timișoara Relaxing Walks in a Historical Urban Landscape
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City tours of Timișoara relaxing walks in a historical urban landscape There are many occasions, on which a city tour of Timișoara is welcomed: a Timișoara-based company has guests from abroad, or a group of tourists wishes to visit Timișoara as part of a larger roundtrip of Romania a.s.o. For all of these situations we offer our 8 years of experiences with the city tours of Timișoara. What does Timișoara offer? • the Romanian city with the highest numbers of buildings Short city tour military casino, Turkish cannons, depending on time perhaps also registered as monuments ± they the nearby synagogue and the Our most popular city tour contains cover almost entirely four old area of the old hospitals. districts (neighbourhoods) the downtown (quarter “Cetate”, the former “Inner City”) and catches • Union Square (former Dome Sq.) • with the Catholic dome-church, a highly interesting history, the essential of Timiș oara: countless Serbian-Orthodox cathedral, with countless interesting old buildings in the styles of Art European connections President's Palace (“Baroque Nouveau or Baroque, large Palace”, today Arts Museum), • a multicultural background pedestrianized squares filled with other old palais, statue of the Holly European history, the multicultural Trinity (“Pillar of the Plague”) a.s.o. • dramatic events of character of the city and of the • The “Bastion” area: remains of contemporary history: the Banat region (”in the Banat, even the huge (post-)Vauban-type beginning of the Romanian the dog barks in four languages”). fortress of Timiș oara. Revolution of December 1989 Especially suitable for people On each of this points, we answer the basic questions: When? Who? Why? • a young, dynamic atmosphere coming to Timiș oara on (university centre) But don't expect this to be so simple professional visits, and don't have and straightforward. This basic much spare time. The short city tour questions often lead to in-depth fits smoothly between the busy work discussions – history shows in Of course, there are piles of schedule and dinner. Timiș oara its complicated ways... Our information available about this city. guidings are far from “reciting a poetry”. But let©s cut the long story short: Route. Whatever the exact route might Even if we conduct many of this “short everybody had to do with be (this might differ slightly, depending city tours” each year, there are hardly on pick-up point and the exact interests Timișoara: from Maria Theresia, to two of them quite the same. of the guests), we will visit all of the Franz Joseph, and from Sigismund ”must-see” points of Timiș oara: Duration: some 1½ to 2 hours. This of Luxemburg, to Nicolae depends a lot on your time and interest • Victory Square (or ”Opera Ceaușescu. in the topics. Are you fascinated Square” with the locals), with the by history & old architecture, It©s your turn now! Romanian-Orthodox cathedral and have many questions? (visit inside, if opened), Opera We're glad! House and Theatre, Art Nouveau On our side, (Wiener Secession) palaces on the there's no ”Corso”-row, the events which took problem if place in the square during the the tour Revolution. takes • Liberty Square with the Old City 2½ hours. Hall (with the Turkish inscription), tymes tours www.tymestours.ro city tours of Timiș oara travel agent & tour operator in Timisoara, Romania relaxing walks in a historical urban landscape Medium city tour The tour ends at the Timiș oreana ”Beer for explaining details and social or Factory” (brewery). The beer production historical trends, of which even started already 1718, being initially This is a step further (or “deeper”) many local people are not aware. intended especially for the soldiers of There is also enough time for coffee than the previous tour, for you to the Austrian army (!). We can not visit know this fascinating city. We visit the brewery inside, but there are here breaks in-between, whenever we the downtown (similar to the “short nice places to have a beer: the large, need to recharge the batteries. old hall (in winter) or the Biergarten city tour”), but then head east and Route. We start in the downtown (summertime). Actually, the restaurant see the old neighbourhood called (”Inner City”) just like in the previous of the brewery can be considered for a “Fabric” - this is basically a two versions. The centre of Timiș oara is full lunch or meal (prices more than beautiful display of valuable certainly the best place to explain the reasonable, but the service somewhat basics about the city's evolution, before architecture. After receiving slow). insightful infos, we deserve a beer getting into details. On the other side, break at the oldest brewery in this city area is full of first-hand monuments – many of which appeared (nowadays) Romania. in connection with European events. Route. The first part (some 1.5 hrs) is Then we move to the Fabric similar to the short city tour described neighbourhood. After seeing the previously: we visit the sites on Victory complex of Art Nouveau architecture Square, Liberty Sq. and Union Sq., near the bridge, the Millennium church respectively. From the Bastion we then and Traian Square, we can have a head east, passing by the former break at the brewery (just as an idea... German high-school “Banatia” (now there many other spots for a coffee University of Medicine) and the County break, but, once we leave the Office (“prefectura”) - a place which downtown, not so many where we can knew a very troubled time during the also eat). Revolution in December 1989. Following is a transfer (by tram, taxi or Then we cross the river Bega on the hired bus, depending on group size, former “Parkstraßenbrücke” (now weather, mood) to Elisabetin neighbour- Decebal bridge) and reach the Fabric Duration: 3 to 4 hours, depending hood (there are a few good places here district. The whole area makes a especially on the time spent at the to eat, as well). There is much less wonderful reserve of Art Nouveau brewery; the tour without the bear break traffic here, so we can focus better on architecture: the fancy bridge, the takes ca. 2½ hours. the architecture – like the Secession richly-decorated “palais” of the bourgeoisie, the gate of the park – they all belong to this style. Behind the park is the Neologue synagogue, lavishly adorned with “Moorish” touches. As we pass the large-scaled Millennium church (neo-Romanesque), we get near the heart of the Fabric district. This is the Traian Square, surrounded by other nice examples of old architecture (Art Nouveau and Classicism). houses built by the architect Martin Gemeinhardt, and also on the events Big city tour which triggered the Revolution: the first episodes of the mass movements took This city tour takes a whole day, for place on St. Mary Square (Piaț a Maria), those of you passionate about at the border between the districts history, historical architecture, and Elisabetin and Iosefin. observing the “real life” of the Next is Iosefin: the main boulevard is locals. We visit all the old districts bordered with impressive buildings. of Timiș oara, starting with the Among countless large houses of the downtown, then Fabric (lunch break bourgeoisie, we can also see here the Catholic complex of the nuns' order of possible at the brewery) next we Notre Dame, the Orthodox synagogue continue to Elisabetin and, lastly, and also the Baroque Catholic parish Iosefin. During this we take our time church. You might be pretty tired by tymes tours www.tymestours.ro city tours of Timiș oara travel agent & tour operator in Timisoara, Romania relaxing walks in a historical urban landscape now – in which case we stay “on the unprecedented economical revival, human side” and cut short some of the which chronologically coincided with long stories. the ascension of the architecture At the end of the day, the guests will based on the ”coup de fouet” in probably be exhausted, but certainly Western Europe. The timing was just filled with interesting new (hi)stories. perfect. Duration: 5-6 hours, even up to 8 Route. There are two possible routes hours, including the breaks. There is no for 99the Art Nouveau heritage of rush on our side, he are happy to meet Timi oara: people highly interested in our city. ș 1. The centre (”Inner City”) and the Fabric district City tour of the 2. The centre (”Inner City”) and the Art Nouveau heritage districts of Iosefin and Elisabetin. Hard to say which of the two is better... In the last decades, the Art Nouveau The location of your hotel might also How did Timiș oara's chief-architect Székely László reshaped the outlook of has been quite “trendy”. Many play a role, also the existence of the city around 1910 is the main topic of European cities rush to promote it. restaurants (the restaurants in Iosefin and Elisabetin might meet higher discussions in this area. Here in Timiș oara, only (very) few tastes, than those in the Fabric). Next, we cross the Bega. Near the are aware of what a stunning Following, we describe the 2nd route. German consulate we have the hidden heritage of Art Nouveau is to be We start in Piaț a Unirii; even here, in Piaț a Plevnei (Plevna Sq.), where we admired. The Art Nouveau (also ”Timiș oara's Baroque treasure find the most elaborate houses of known as Jugendstil, but here, in chamber”, the beginning of the XX-th architect Martin Gemeinhardt, but also Timiș oara, rather as ”Secession” century brought in some refreshing buildings from other architects – because of the Viennese affiliation) changes: we have here two outstanding including from Székely.