TIMISOARA
Go Back
Timisoara is one of those cities that once you’ve visited, you want to keep coming back to. Why is that, you may ask?
It’s not just because you fall in love with its parks of a surreal beauty, the scent of the ancient buildings, or its tumultuous, rich and always inspiring history. It’s not even because of the many significant technological breakthroughs that have been made here, the quality of the universities, or the many fields which this city has revolutionized.
The reason is much simpler, and closer to us than one can imagine: the people. No stereotypes, no humans acting like ants beneath a magnifying glass, no masses following some fleeing fashion or blindly following each other. There is uniqueness all around, with open minds and original, diverse people from all over the country and all over the world living together in one city in which a contagious young spirit seems to reside.
The streets of Timisoara are wrapped around the city centre in concentric circles, and, just like the core of a supernova waiting to explode from all the life boiling within, this is where everything happens: festivals, shows, the meeting place of lovers and the starting place of revolutions.
From there you can take a stroll down the Bega canal, whose still silent waters just float away all worries in sight, check out the only theatre in Europe whose plays are acted in three languages, or visit the numerous landmarks we have in mind.
Union Square (PiataUnirii)Across the town centre is the picturesque Habsburg-era PiataUnirii, so-named for the imposing sight of the Romano-Catholic and Serbian Orthodox Cathedrals facing each other. Historic pastel-hued buildings line the square. During the 18th century, this was the city’s commercial centre and the venue for numerous military processions and religious ceremonies.
Victory Square (PiataVictoriei)
Some of the city’s most interesting sites are its elegant baroque buildings, spread around town and particularly along the main square, PiataVictoriei, which stretches from Opera Square (PiataOperei) to Loga Boulevard.
Freedom Square (PiataLibertatii)
Another remarkable open space in the city is PiataLibertatii which offers a great display of Secessionist architecture. The Banat region was under Turkish rule from 1552 until 1716 when the Austrian-Habsburg Prince Eugene de Savoy took over Timisoara. At this time, a seven-star- shaped bastion and gate-towers were constructed and the marshes surrounding the town were drained by the new Habsburg governor, General Mercy.