Sibiu is located in a stunning natural landscape with a magnificent view to the snowy peaks of Fagaras Mountains, on one side, and the Cindrel Mountains on the other. The two main squares of the city are so lively coloured by the old authentic Saxon architecture and make tourists feel full of joy. Especially if you think about all those quaint cafés and pubs located right in the heart of the city. 

The cultural life brings thousands of people from different corners of the country and from abroad interested in attending the theatre or film festivals, outdoor shows, street art performances, or photo exhibitions that happen all year long. 

Fun facts about Sibiu

The Bridge of Lies has its name from an old legend. The story goes it acted as a lie detector and collapsed whenever someone told a lie while crossing it. So, lovers who want to know the truth about their partner`s feelings said their vowels on the bridge☺. According to the local documents, the bridge is from 1859 and it was the first iron cast bridge in the country. Its purpose – to connect the upper and the lower side of Sibiu. 

The multistage rocket

Few people know about the connections between Sibiu and the rocket industry. All started in the 16th century when the Bathory family (who ruled Transylvania at that time) invited Conrad Hass to Sibiu. Haas was an important Austrian military figure and he wrote a book about the invention of a multistage rocket. This book was lost for centuries only to be discovered in Sibiu in 1960`s. 

The second story is about the engineer Herman Oberth, one of the scientists who created the modern rocket science. He was born in Sibiu and, inspired by Jules Verne, started to propose a theory about moon travels when he was only 11 years old. Several years later, a movie company from Berlin commissioned him to design a rocket for publicity, which he successfully did. Among his other achievements we can enumerate the test firing of his liquid-fuel engine and the papers on reflecting telescopes and space stations. 

The first Romanian museum 

The scholar Samuel von Brukenthal (1721-1803) is one of the most outstanding figures with whom Sibiu is associated. Born near Sibiu, he was first Chancellor and later Governor of Transylvania. 

His palace in Sibiu dates back to 1779 and is a beautiful piece of baroque architecture. Brukenthal`s house became quickly a reference point in Sibiu cultural life, hosting a great variety of artistic performances. After his death, the place was turned into a museum, where visitors can also admire the baron`s famous stamp collection. 

The electrical tram

Carl Wolff, a reputed economist and the first President of Sibiu Electrical Factory, had in 1893 the vision of an electrical public transportation solution – better than the horse-driven railway in Timisoara and Arad or the steam-driven railway in Brasov. In 1904 it was introduced the electrically driven, railway-free “omnibus” as the first means of modern transportation in Romania. With electrical engine and wooden wheels, the four omnibuses were very noisy, but they were also unstable and accidents happened all the time. Two and a half months later, the omnibus ue to safety issues. The first tram line between Piata Garii (Train Square) – Parcul sub Arini (Sibiu’s Central Park) opened in 1905. The wagons came from  Budapest and the line was also built by a Hungarian company.