Miniature History At Szejke (Băile Seiche)

About a week ago I had a post about my trip to the Miniature Transylvania Park, in Szejke (Băile Seiche).

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It's in Harghita county, Romania and a tourist attraction loved by many. Looking at the miniatures it may seem like a toy park or a playground, but in fact it's Transylvania's history.

Walking among these miniatures make you think about what places you've seen so far and what are the destinations you should visit. I've heard many talking about the places they've been at and remembering the good times. It's a walk through history, or back in history if you like.

The church of pilgrimage site of Csíksomlyó (Șumuleu) is a well known place in Europe, especially for Catholics.

Csíksomlyó became a pilgrimage site in 1442. In the 1990s the church and the surrounding region could no longer accommodate the hundreds of thousands pilgrims. In 1993, a new altar was built at the mountain side and since then the celebration of the Eucharist have been taking place outdoors. source

Thousands of people are gathering in this place each year from all over the world, on that specific date. I've never been there, not a Catholic ether, but should visit the place one nice day.

This is where the religious ceremony is held each year as the church is too mall for so many people.

Another castle that is on my radar for some time.

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This is the Catholic church of Ditró (Ditrau) and I'm proud to say I've been there. Not so proud to admit that the church was closed and could not see it from inside. It was on a Sunday afternoon and that's a rest day for village people, so there was no chance to go in. As you can see, it's an impressive building from outside and I's sure it's beautiful from inside as well.

This is the "Székelytámadt" fortress of Székelyudvarhely (Odorheiu Secuiesc), which unfortunately looks different today. It has a rocky past, has gone through a lot of transformations, has been demolished and rebuilt several times during the centuries and all it's been left of it is some walls. Unfortunately there was no time to visit the ruins when we were there, so it's on my list for next time. Here's a video about its transformation over the years.

It's a real pleasure to look at these mock-ups. It feels like a huge playground and trust me, there were kids wanting to cross the barriers to play with them. I did not envy the parents as it's difficult to explain to a 2 year old, why they are not allowed to go play with them.

It's impressive though, to have such a park. With the technology we have today, almost everything is possible. In the video I linked you above, there's a simulation of what the castle looked like back in the day and you can see it from every angle. This is huge. It's like walking back in time.

The Catholic church and the Catholic high school of Székelyudvarhely (Odorheiu Secuiesc), which I posted about yesterday, so these are getting a check mark and I'm glad to collect these check marks, one by one.

The Franciscan Church and Monastery of Székelyudvarhely. It's another check mark as I was able to enter the church and wrote about it in my post a week ago I believe. It's a gorgeous one, but it's not a surprise as catholic and evangelical churches are usually nicely decorated and have a beautiful architecture.

I knew there were Armenians in that region, years, maybe decades ago, but to be honest, I've never been to an Armenian church. Have no idea how it looks from inside, but would love to visit one, or as many as I come across.

Look at this beauty. It's a nice fortress with a long and bumpy history. I've heard of it but have not visited it yet.

As you can see, most of the buildings, or at least the original buildings were built in medieval times. Many have been burnt down, destroyed, several times, then rebuilt.

Another check mark as this is the Reformed College of Székelyudvarhely (Odorheiu Secuiesc). I wrote about it yesterday. The good thing is I got to see this mock-up from above. The building is huge and you don't realize how big it is at the scene.

This was an interesting one, a fort inside another fort. But if you read the description, you understand why. Too bad only there ruins can be found today.

This castle has been on my radar for ages and I've never managed to visit it. I think having a list can help me make things happen faster.

This is not a fortress, or a church, but it's just as important. It's called the Szekler log funicular and has been used to transport logs. Unfortunately the fire of 1996 severely damaged it and only the remains can be seen today.

This cool toy was functioning at the time of our visit, so we got to see how transporting logs used to be done, live. Kids absolutely loved it.

It's a smart solution in any case and I'm sure it made the work easier.

The Mikó Fortress. Another one on my list, that I need to visit, most likely next year. Since it functions as a museum, it is a must as I can see the interior too, not to mention the exhibitions the museum is hosting.

I hope you liked the tour. I wish each region could have a similar miniature park. Europe has a rich history, there are so many castles, fortresses, churches that can be reproduced, restored, brought to life this way.

If you're a newbie, you may want to check out these guides: