It was reported this week that King Charles is set to retreat to the Romanian countryside next month, where he will spend time in his farmhouse in the small village of Viscri which he bought in 2006, after falling in love with the country during a visit in 1998.
While he is there, he may choose to pay a visit to a wildflower meadow that is only an hour’s drive away and is owned by his grandson, Prince George. The young royal was given the meadow as a christening gift from Count Tibor Kalnoky, who is close friends with the monarch.
At the time, Count Tibor explained: “If we sent flowers they would wilt, so this is a symbolic gift. Wildflowers are fragile like newborn babies. This gift will protect this area and contribute to raising public awareness so that rare flowers can be protected.”
Although George was given the gift back in 2013, the royal has not yet been able to visit the European nation and see the beautiful wildflowers himself.
The meadow wasn’t George’s only touching gift from his christening, as his aunt, Pippa Middleton, is believed to have visited Wrightson and Platt, a company who makes silver casts of a baby’s hands and feet which are then engraved with their name and date of birth for a bespoke gift for George.
Charles typically spends a couple of days a year in Romania and the guest house is then rented out to the public. It’s known as the Blue House and features seven double bedrooms with en-suites, a drawing and dining room, a sitting room, and a kitchen.
The property takes its name from the distinct blue hue of the building. A rustic aesthetic is maintained throughout, with high ceilings and concrete white walls. The bedrooms are furnished exclusively with antique Transylvanian furniture and according to the guesthouse’s website, there are no televisions or radios, in order to create an atmosphere “of peace and tranquility”.
Three of the bedrooms’ en-suites feature their own bathtubs and the space is decorated with patterned wallpaper and hand-painted plates, reflecting authentic Transylvanian culture. The guest house has its own outdoor breakfast barn, complete with an enormous bread oven.
It will be the King’s first visit to the country since the passing of his mother back in September. Last year, the royal was photographed hiking in the Romanian wilderness near the estate. Charles was dressed down for his walk sporting stone-coloured trousers, a shirt rolled up at the sleeves and a pair of sensible hiking boots.
While her husband is away, Queen Camilla will remain at her Ray Mill residence in Wiltshire, which is a spectacular property that boasts stables, an outdoor swimming pool, and even its own river, bought by the Queen for £850,000 in 1994, following her divorce from Andrew Parker-Bowles.
Before Charles and Camilla were crowned, the King boasted an incredible £1.2billion property portfolio but ahead of the monarch’s coronation day, Charles passed his Duchy of Cornwall holdings onto Prince William. However, he still owns several private homes, from Clarence House in London to Dolphin House on the Isles of Scilly.
