Transylvania - Romania and Bulgaria - page 157

one. The first European castle to have central heating, electricity and vacuuming(!), Peleş
was intended to be the summer residence of Romania's longest-serving monarch, King
Carol I. Construction on the 3500-sq m-edifice, built in a predominantly German-Renais-
sance style, began in 1875. Some 39 years, more than 400 weary craftsmen and thousands
of labourers later, it was completed, just months before the king died in 1914. King Carol
I's wife Elisabeta was largely responsible for the interior decoration. During Ceauşescu's
era, the castle's 160 rooms were used as a private retreat for leading communists and
statesmen from around the globe. US presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, Libyan
leader Moamar Gaddafi and PLO leader Yasser Arafat were all entertained by the Ro-
manian dictator here.
The basic 40-minute tour takes in about 10 rooms on the ground floor, while two addi-
tional tours also take in the 1st and 2nd floors. In the first Armoury Hall (there are two)
look for one of the 11 medieval knight suits with the long pointed boots. Rembrandt re-
productions line the walls of the king's office, while real Gustav Klimt works are in the
last stop, a theatre/cinema behind the entry.
Guides will point out a secret door in the small library; all rooms have such a door ap-
parently. Queen Elisabeta painted and wrote some 43 books in her life under a pseud-
onym; the paintings in the poetry room depict 'fairy-tale' scenes she wrote about in one
book. Tickets are sold in a kiosk in the central courtyard. Guides speak English, French,
Russian and German.

Pelişor Palace
Offline map
( www.visit.peles.ro ; compulsory tours adult/child 10/2.50 lei; noon-7pm Thu-Sun; )
Heavily art nouveau in its decor, and about 100m uphill from Peleş Castle, the German-
medieval Pelişor Palace has a hard time competing with its neighbour. King Carol I
planned this house for his nephew (and future king) Ferdinand (1865-1927) and wife
Marie. Most of the furniture was imported from Vienna
Marie died in the arched golden room, the walls of which are entirely covered in gilded
leaves.
At the western end of the Peleş estate is the Swiss-châlet-style Foişorul Hunting
Lodge Offline map , built as a temporary residence by King Carol I before Peleş Castle was
completed. Marie and Ferdinand's son, the future King Carol II, briefly lived here with his
mistress Elena Lupescu. During the communist era, Ceauşescu used it as his private hunt-
ing lodge. The building is closed to visitors.

PALACE