Manastirea Golia (Golia Monastery), Iasi (must see)

The Golia Monastery is a Romanian Orthodox monastery established in the 16th century by boyar Ioan Golia. Currently it is listed as a National Historic Monument and in 2012 was awarded the European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage. The monastery is surrounded with tall walls, featuring corner turrets and a 30 m (98.43 ft) Goliath tower – one of the key symbols of Iasi – from the top of which one can enjoy a fantastic view of the city; to get there, one has to climb 120 steps. The monastery also houses the Museum of Ion Creangă, famous Romanian writer and former curator of the monastery's church, and Doxologia Cultural Missionary Centre of the Metropolis of Moldavia and Bukovina.