Suceava (county)

Suceava (county)

Suceava county is a world of incredible color and deep spiritual history, famous for the painted monasteries that are unique to the region. You visit the monasteries of Bucovina, where the exterior walls are covered in bright, detailed murals that tell stories from the ancient world and the holy books. The **Voroneț** blue is a secret shade of paint that has survived the wind and rain for over five hundred years and remains a mystery to this day. Each church is located in a green valley and is surrounded by high wooden walls that protected the monks during times of war. It is a peaceful and artistic journey through the deep forests of the north. The Suceava Fortress stands on a high hill overlooking the city and was the central seat of power for the brave princes of the east. It was built to withstand the greatest armies and features thick stone walls and deep moats that have been beautifully restored for visitors. You can walk the battlements and explore the interior rooms to see how the court lived and defended the land against invaders. The view from the fortress looks across the whole city and the rolling green hills of the Bucovina region. It is a powerful symbol of eastern strength and the pride of the people who call this land home. Drive through the mountains of **Bucovina**, where the forests are dark, deep and full of ancient spruce and fir trees. You find small, quiet villages where the people still wear traditional, hand-embroidered clothes and follow the old customs of the mountain life. The food in this region is rich and hearty, featuring wild mushrooms, forest fruits, and the famous local cheese pies. This route is a perfect blend of high religious art, heroic history and the untouched nature of the northern mountains. The local tradition of painting eggs with intricate patterns is a craft that you can still see in many of the village homes.

Suceava (county) highlights

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The Scenic Route
The Heritage Drive
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History of Suceava (county)

Suceava is the holy sanctuary of the Moldavian throne and a landscape defined by the military genius of Stephen the Great. The Suceava Citadel completed in the 14th century was the primary seat of power for the Moldavian princes and famously remained uncaptured even during the massive Ottoman siege of 1476. The county is world renowned for its UNESCO painted monasteries such as Voroneț founded in 1488 which features a unique blue pigment and a massive exterior fresco of the Last Judgment that has survived the harsh northern winters for over five centuries. This region was the spiritual and political heart of the state until the capital was moved south in the mid 1500s to escape the growing pressure from the southern empires. The history of the county also reflects a heavy Habsburg influence in the northern half known as Bukovina which was annexed by the Austrian Empire in 1774. This period brought a wave of Central European architecture and multiethnic diversity to cities like Cernăuți and Suceava as well as the industrialization of the massive timber and salt resources. The Cacica Salt Mine opened in 1791 features a unique underground chapel hand carved by Polish miners into a solid salt block and a ballroom located 38 meters below ground. During the Great War the region was a brutal front between the Russian and Austro Hungarian armies with the mountain passes serving as strategic choke points for the massive infantry movements of the era. A road trip through Suceava takes you across the Rarău Mountains via the Transrarău highway which reaches altitudes of 1500 meters and offers views of the Lady Rocks limestone towers. You can drive to the village of Marginea to see the only workshop in Europe that still produces black pottery using a prehistoric firing technique that dates back over 2000 years. The local roads through the Bistrița Valley lead to the Putna Monastery where the tomb of Stephen the Great remains a site of national pilgrimage. Suceava is a journey through the royal fortresses of the medieval princes and the refined imperial history of the northern borderlands.
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