Braila is not one of the major tourist attractions of Romania like Bucuresti, Brasov, Constanta
and other big cities. However this is not because there isn’t much to see or do here but
because the authorities have failed to properly promote this area as a tourist destination.
The town and the surrounding area deserve a place among Romania’s most interesting places
with many unique features that are worth exploring for tourists from all over the world.
Any visit of the town should start at
Braila Museum – the place where one can learn everything there is to know about this
beautiful old town.
It was founded by royal degree in 1881 and shelters archeological and historical collections,
art and deco art collections, ethnographical and popular art collections, natural science and
memorials.
Braila Museum Head Office is situated in Trajan Square at the very heart of the Old Centre. It
is an elegant two-storey Neoclassical building dating back to 1855 when it was known as The
Big French Hotel.
The museum features an Archeology section focusing on local Neolithic and Bronze Age
sites, a History section with old furniture and traditional objects displays, an Art section as
well as an Ethnographic and Folk Art section. A valuable collection of sepia photos provide
an interesting foray into the history of Braila during the 19th and 20th centuries.
The next stop should be
Maria Filotti Theatre
It was built around 1850 but it was inaugurated as the Rally Theater in 1895. Hariclea
Darclée in 1881 and Maria Filotti in 1905 started their careers on its stage.
It would change its name to Municipal Theatre (1919) and Braila State Theatre, until 1969
when it got its current name.
During 1980-1988, the theater building was reinforced renovated and restored by an
impressive team consisting of the best architects, builders, designers, painters, sculptors,
ceramists and glassmakers in the country.
It has a big hall decorated in Italian style that offers 265 seats in the stalls, 32 seats in boxes,
10 seats in the central lodge, 52 seats in the balcony. It has air-conditioned facility and it is
equipped with computerized lights and modern sound and stage sliding facilities.
Braila’s Churches
Being an important port on the Danube, Braila has always attracted people of all faiths and
nations who came to settle and do business here. It has been a multiethnic and multicultural
town for centuries. Romanian, Turkish, Greek, Armenian, Bulgarian, Russian Lipovan,
Jewish, Albanian, Macedonian, Belgian, Austrian, German and Italian people have managed
to live here in harmony and have all left a significant cultural heritage.
Braila’s churches and cathedrals now bear witness to the town’s former ethnic and religious
diversity.
May one be Orthodox, Catholic, Lutheran, Adventist, Baptist or Jewish, one can always find
a place to pray and feel like home in Braila.
Even if they are not as impressive in size as Western churches, their unique architecture and
fascinating stories are sure attract any tourist’s attention.
It would take a whole week to visit all churches of different rites taking into account only
those that were declared historical monuments. However there are two that not even the most
hurried of tourists should miss:
”St. Archangels Michael and Gabriel Church”
This is the oldest church in Braila. Its construction began in 1667 on the site of an older
orthodox church and until 1808 it served as a Turkish Prayer House. After the end of the
Ottoman rule in 1828, it definitively became an Orthodox church. Though very modest in
size its architecture is unique as it preserves a lot of elements typical of Muslim mosques and
prayer houses. It is one of the very few orthodox churches in Romania that have no spire.
In 1923 a very beautiful belfry was built next to the church. It was designed by the engineer
Gh. T. Marinescu and founded by the philanthropists Ana and Nedelcu Chercea.
The Annunciation Church also known as The Greek Church built between
1862 and 1872 with financial support from the Greek community of Braila and with the
approval of the prince Al.I.Cuza. It is the work of architect Abraham Ioanidis of Brusa. The
style is a unique combination of byzantine, neo-greek, gothic, and renaissance styles that
can be found nowhere in Europe.
The interior is equally important as it displays frescoes painted in 1890 by the great
Romanian painter Gheorghe Tattarescu and finished later by two other artists: Constantinos
Livadas Liochis and Belisarius. The stained glass windows, the Jesus Christ tomb made of
wood, the central chandelier in Murano crystal and the other five chandeliers of Bohemia
crystal are the jewels of this magnificent church.
Symbolic landmarks
The Clock
This magnificent metal work was made in 1909 in the fashion of many garden clocks found
in all major European cities of the period. It was a donation to the municipality by P. Naum
Petru. There are sailing ships on each of the four sides of the base reminding of Braila’s
importance as a port and it has showed the exact time for more than a century. The town’s
inhabitants hold it dearest of all Braila’s symbols.
The Water Castle
When it was built in 1912 it was the highest building of this kind in Romania (35 m). It
supplied with fresh water half of the town’s population.
In the later communist years it housed a restaurant with a rotation system (360° in one hour)
that offered a complete panorama of the town.
The present-day local authorities have decided to renovate it and turn it into a musem with an
astronomical observer on top.
The Kinetic Fountain
Placed in the middle of the Civic Centre of the town, the Fountain is the work of the famous
sculptor Constantin Lucaci, also named the „second Brancusi”. It is a sculpture in stainless
steel.The beautifull mobile fountain combines the old tradition of rennaissance and baroque
water games with neoconstructivism, kinethique art, optical art and programmed art.
It was finished in 1988 and has become one of the symbols of Braila.
The Small Wetland of Braila
Even if this is not the only nature reserve in Braila county, it is by far the largest and most
important.
The Natural Park Small Wetland of Braila is the last remaining part of the former
wetlands of Braila. Covering a 241 km² area and 62 km, on the lower Danube between
Giurgeni – Vadu Oii Bridge (km 237 up-river) and the city of
Braila (km. 175 down river), at flood peak.
The Natural Park Small Wetland of Braila is home to a rich fauna and flora biodiversity,
an extensive part of which are protected by national and international laws. 207 bird species
find refuge here for nesting, food or resting throughout the migration periods.
It has become a RAMSAR site and a Wetland of International Importance. Students,
scientists and tourists come here to watch or study the plants and wildlife many of which are
either endangered or cannot be found elsewhere.
Salt Lake Resort
Records of this place date back to 1400 during the rule of Vlad Tepes, when wounded
soldiers and horses found that the water in this lake was healing them.
Salt Lake is a cozy resort, situated in Braila Plain, just 5.5 km from the town of Braila to
which it is connected by a permanent tram line dating back to 1900 . Although located in the
middle of a field on the shores of the lake whose name it bears, the resort is surrounded by 70
hectares of forest, which mitigates the climate of the steppe and is a pleasant place for
recreation.
Salt Lake is actually composed of two lakes, separated by a road and a railway, lakes that
communicate with each other through a specially designed underground channel. The first
establishments for warm baths were built here in 1875. Further research and chemical
analysis of lake water showed strong concentration of minerals and that the mud here has an
analogous therapeutic efficiency to that in lakes from Sweden, Italy and Austria.
The water of the lake is so salty that people simply float on it. In spite of that, its minerals
helped develop an unique micro-fauna which gives it special curing effects. Together with the
sapropelic mud (one of the most effective in Europe) it is used to treat a wide range of
rheumatic diseases.
People come from all over the country to benefit from this natural wonder.
Authors :
Stroe Roxana – 7th B
Enescu Adelina -6th B
Chiriac Alina – 5th B
Podaru Victor -5th A
Bianu Gabriel – 5th A
Tarachiu Stefania – 5th A
Grosu Ariana – 5th A
Raducan Alexandra – 5th C