Agapia Monastery

Getting to Agapia

Today’s plan was to visit one or maybe two monasteries outside Targu Neamt.  I had checked the bus schedule for Agapia Monastery at the station yesterday and also had an old timetable for Varatec Monastery.

I walked to the bus station in time for the 0900 service to Agapia.  The man who gave me the schedule yesterday told me to wait for the 1000 instead.  With the language barrier, I guessed that the 0900 one finished in Agapia village, which is still a considerable walk from the monastery.

The hour’s wait went quickly deleting photos take from the last few days.  Once on the way, the ride took only about 20 mins, making the wait for the bus a bit of a joke.  I could have just taken a taxi!

Agapia Monastery

Walking through the arched gate into the Agapia Monastery, I was hit by the stunning beauty of the garden.  It was very well tended with lots of flowers.  The nuns here have done an awesome job.

This monastery is the second largest in Romania after Varatec Monastery.

The frescoes inside the church were life-like (three-dimensional effect), rather than flat illustrations, which is the norm in most Orthodox places.

With a crowd of Spanish tourists, it took a while for me to get a proper look of the place.  After 30 mins, I made my way out of the monastery.

Earlier, I had seen a hill with a chapel.  I made my way there to find that it was surrounded by a pretty cemetery.  The elevated location helped me get a good view of the surroundings as well.

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There’s meant to be a lovely forested walk of maybe 5km from here to Varatec Monastery but I saw no signage.  I wasn’t overly keen with the distance, the changeable weather and the fact that I’ve come close to overdosing on monasteries.

I decided to wait for the bus back to Targu Neamt, starting at 1115.  The wait for the bus proved fruitless and it was the same with my attempt to hitchhike.

After an hour, a nun helped me hitch a ride and I was luckier then.  But I was dropped off in Agapia town nearby, rather than in Targu Neamt.  That turned out helpful enough as the next bus appeared to serve Agapia but not the monastery.

Rest of the day

I was back in Targu Neamt by 1300.  The day had largely been spent waiting for the bus, in both directions, with total riding time of less than 40 mins.  If only I had been able to borrow a bicycle!  A taxi would have only worked going to Agapia.

I went to the Lidl supermarket to get a salad and some bakery items.  I felt super tired but had no good reason to be.  Perhaps it’s having lost interest in travel due to the uncertainty with my flight back to Malaysia.

My shawarma for dinner tonight was super messy.  I had planned to eat it in the park but just as well I didn’t.  It would have been far too messy to eat in the park and the drizzle had turned torrential!

With the torrential rain, the mosquitoes seemed to be out in force. I didn’t think too much about it but I ended up with some bites that were red and itchy for well over a week.