The Horezu Monastery is located about a 2-hour drive south of Sibiu, on the road to Targu Jiu. I hadn’t found much visitor information beforehand, so I just hoped it to be open on a Monday morning in late August. When I arrived there were only a couple of cars in the parking lot, and one single souvenir stall out of a row that was open. It’s not a site that appears to be visited by hordes of tourists, certainly not foreign ones.

You have to walk uphill to get to the monastery. The entrance is via a gate in the thick surrounding walls. You can just walk in, there’s no entrance fee and it does appear to be open every day (as it is an active nunnery). From the gate my attention was immediately drawn to the church in the center of the grounds: it is very white and a bit odd shaped (I had seen that already in pictures), and its front portal is completely covered by wall paintings. Clouds had been covering the sun for most of the morning, but fortunately, the sun came out now to brighten up my pictures of this very pretty site.

I slowly walked around in the enclosure, which isn't very large. Under the bell tower is a small refectory, almost like a cave. It holds a table and about 40 chairs, and its walls are completely covered in paintings. What a place to eat every day! The Last Supper is depicted here too.

Several black-clad nuns were ambling about, doing their daily business of which gardening seems to be an important part. The grounds are well kept and adorned with flowers and plants.

I ended my visit at the church, where I first sat down gazing at the frescoes at the entrance. The crowded scenery depicts mainly mythological scenes. The interior of the church consists of two parts: the first holds wall paintings of the monastery's patron, Prince Brancovan, and his family. At the end, there is a massive wooden altar.

In all, I spent about an hour at the monastery. It's located quite far from any other sights (although there are other monasteries in the area). So I just had lunch at Horezu Town, of pottery fame, and after that made my way back to Sibiu.