Romania Photo Gallery

Behind Hungarians, Roma are the second-largest ethnic minority group in Romania, representing less than 3 percent of the population. Here, a Gypsy girl smiles for the camera in the Roma village of Brateiu in northern Romania.  

Transylvania in northern Romania is surrounded by the peaks of the Carpathian Mountains, a range that spreads across Central and Eastern Europe. The once-Saxon-occupied villages of Transylvania now feature fortified churches, some dating back half a millennium. Here, an Orthodox Christian icon stands at the crossroads of a rural street.  

Situated in the northeastern corner of Romania, Sucevita Monastery is an Eastern Orthodox convent built around 1583. It is considered to be one of the last churches built with a painted exterior, as was popular during 15th- and 16th-century Romania. The medieval-fortress-style walls are nearly 330 feet long and 20 feet tall. Now a UNESCO World Heritage site, the convent is home to a museum providing shelter to a comprehensive collection of historical and art exhibits.  

Pictured here are the up-close details of the painted walls of Sucevita Monastery in Bucovina, Romania.  

Southern Bucovina is a rural land of pasture and forest with UNESCO-recognized painted churches dotted throughout. Finding a way to get around these parts is challenging; try hiring a private guide and renting a bike for day trips.  

Here, a man mugs for the camera at his home in the village of Brateiu in northern Romania.  

Sighisoara is a city in the historically rich region of Transylvania. The area is popular among tourists due to its well-preserved, walled old town and a 200-foot clock tower, as well as for being the birthplace of Vlad the Impaler, better known as Dracula.  

Though often associated with dark and dreary Dracula, Transylvania is actually a picturesque region filled with medieval towns and hilly pastures.  

Here, a couple hitch a ride on their cart during harvest time near Suceava in northern Romania. The area's main crop is maize, though oats, rye, barley, potatoes, and wheat are grown in considerable quantities.