Between the Arges River and the Olt River lies the Topolog Valley, the river that springs from beneath Negoiu, the second-highest peak in Romania. Until 1720, the only connection between Wallachia and Transylvania was through the Topolog Valley, coming from Caineni and reaching Curtea de Arges.
Starting in 1720, the Austrian Emperor Charles VI opened a road for military equipment and carriages along the Olt Valley, which led to a decrease in the importance of the road through the Topolog Valley. Nevertheless, the area remains rich in history and stories.
From the legend of the old oak tree in Suici, where it is said that in 1599, Mihai Viteazul made a stopover on his way to Transylvania through Turnul Rosu, to the Valeni Monastery, which housed a school for the underprivileged, where students from poor families were educated for free, and where George Topirceanu, the author of “Balade vesele si triste” (Merry and Sad Ballads), spent part of his childhood, to the well-preserved traditional architecture on the upper part of the Topolog River (https://petopologinsus.ro), all are reasons not only to travel along Via Valahia but also to spend a few days in this area.
