While planning this trip, it didn’t seem like a trip to Romania would be complete unless I visited the Carpathian Mountains and Transylvania. To make this possible, I hired a car (via Viator) to take me to famous landmarks in that area - today was the day for this amazing excursion! I slept very well (after mastering the air temperature in the room) and was awake at 0530. Did some texting with my daughters (time difference made that possible) and also read, did Duolingo exercises, responded to comments on social media and filled out surveys for my travel the previous day. At 0715, I walked down to the hotel restaurant and got some breakfast. There was a lot of good food at the buffet and I decided to fill up, in case lunch plans were later delayed. I was finished eating at 0745 and, with my backpack, headed towards the parking lot. On the way out of the hotel, I encountered the morning manager and told him about Edward (the trainee) doing a good job the day before. He gave me a couple of coins of small denominations (Romanian Lei). At 0800, I met my driver, Catalin (same gentleman who retrieved me from the airport yesterday), outside the hotel. Some notes on Catalin: he was about my age and had been a driver, boxer, paratrooper for French military and a motorcycle enthusiast. He also had some amazing stories (e.g., ran away from Communist Romania but was captured by the Hungarians near Austrian border and returned to his home, his car was stolen car in Bulgaria). Our early departure time turned out to be a very wise decision because we had the best (cooler) weather, light traffic and good opportunities for photo ops on the way. Another good decision was that I sat in the front of the car with the driver - I then felt like I was on a road trip with a buddy. Our route took us (via city streets) out past the first “Beltway” around Bucharest to the A3 super highway). We wended our way north, past the second “beltway”, towards the northwest. As I’d noticed during our arrival yesterday, the land in most of Walachia (w = v sound) is extremely flat (think northern Indiana). In the far distance, it was possible to see a trace of the mountains but the morning haze kept them mysterious. We eventually reached a roundabout and the end of the superhighway. This required us to exit and get on the winding (two lane) National Road (DN-1). Think Lincoln Highway… During this time, I’d gotten distracted by the fact we were passing through the oil fields of Ploiesti (i is silent). Catalin gave me some details (from the Romanian perspective) of the famous Allied bombing raid. I’ve always been fascinated with the mission and it was easier to imagine while driving over the ground. From there, it was mostly slow going - the total outbound tour distance was 170ish KM so there was a LOT of time standing still for lights, turning cars, accidents, etc. Despite the rather slow pace, my spirits were lifted as we entered the Prahova Valley and the land on both sides of the road began to rise steeply (foothills of Bucegi Range). We passed through some small “ski-hamlets” (Campina and Breaza) before reaching a larger town called Sinaia (1000). It was here that I had my first stop of the day: Peles Castle, the once (and future?) home of the Romanian Royal Family. Catalin dropped me off and I climbed a small hill to where the queue formed for tickets. It took me almost 30 minutes to obtain mine and then almost another 30 minutes before I got inside. And that was almost by subterfuge - the doors were closed while the staff assembled tours by language or tour bus. After missing my chance to enter a few times, I decided to just follow the next group inside. It was only a bit later when I determined that I was assumed to be part of a group visiting from Santiago de Compostela in Spain! At least I was in the castle finally - and I do know a little Spanish. As we walked through each of the fantastically decorated royal rooms, I soon became aware that the tour would take over an hour at the rate we were moving. Since there were still a lot of other places to visit, I started moving surreptitiously towards the front and joined the group in front - they were German. I know less of that language than I do of Spanish so I was only able to understand a bit of the commentary. Again, I moved forward and caught an English group this time. Saved, I thought! Unfortunately, the guide was REALLY BORING… Breaking free of all the groups, I finished the tour alone - this was easily possible anyway because there were signs in English throughout the building. On the way out, I visited a side room with pretty stained glass. After that, I walked the grounds of the property. It was all very elegant and pretty but the main tower was under renovation (scaffolding). Walking back towards the car, I took a look at Castle Pelisor (another Romanian royal family residence). Not as exciting but worth the detour. By 1130, I’d found Catalin (WhatsApp making things easy!) and we headed out of town on our way towards Transylvania. This stop was a bit touristy for me but I’m glad I visited - having a mountain home is definitely a dream of mine and I got some decorating tips! Leaving Sinaia, we hit the worst traffic of the morning. Still, I took comfort in Catalin’s comments that he’d seen it far worse on other days. He also admitted that he’d not been looking forward to our drive today for the traffic reason but “had to do it because I’m the only one not on vacation.” I vowed silently to try to get him to be glad he’d decided to drive me… We passed through several more ski towns and then entered the Transylvania region - I’d expected more fanfare for a historically disputed border but I guess the relative silence speaks volumes on Romanian unity. Working our way down into the valley north of the Carpathians, it was amazing to watch the terrain and weather change. Like the mountains we were in, the temps were pleasant - unlike most of Walachia, though, rain was falling. We’d crossed a spiritual border too - for much of history, the mountains indicated the boundary between Catholic and Orthodox. We had to take some rural roads at this point and that hurt us on time again - there was LOTS of road construction (can’t get away from it, even after leaving the Upper Valley!). Eventually, we arrived in Rasnov, gateway to the town of Bran (known for its unique cheese, palinka and inspiring the home of Dracula). Castle Bran, a precariously positioned fortress on a steep hill over the town, looks like the kind of place an evil vampire might choose to live and the locals have embraced this idea. Apparently, though, the only way there is any historical connection to Vlad Tepes, who also inspired the tale, is if The Impaler was kept prisoner here in the dungeon. Regardless, the huge queue to tour the inside was a testament to the popularity of Bram Stoker’s masterpiece - after Catalin dropped me at the ticket kiosk (1330), I took one look at it and began to reconsider going inside. But he had suggested I walked the grounds - at least - and I took his advice (even though I had to buy a full priced ticket). I tagged along with a group of like minded youngsters (they spoke English) and, even though we got scolded several times by “line monitors” (i.e., tired tourists), we reached the top. Taking in the view, I began to think of how hard the place must have been to build. I walked around everywhere I could before heading back down the hill. It started to rain then and I was even happier I’d skipped the line… Near the park exit, I noticed a small, connected, area that had a big field - this location provided some of the best views of the castle I found. Continuing on the slippery path, I passed an “inspiration point”, apparently used often by one of Romania’s Queens (Marie?) in the 1930s. The trail continued and I never saw any “area closed” signs. As a result, I reached the bottom of the hill and left the park through a parking area. My guess is that the well used trail is a way for locals to skip the queue. Across the street, I found historic old church buildings, mock ups of peasant housing and the mausoleum type building that I believe was once contained the heart of the Queen I mentioned earlier. Backtracking to the park entrance on the busy street (no sidewalks), I next stopped to tour a recreated Medieval settlement and outdoor market. Overall, the venue was quite commercial and touristy but it was very pretty and historically interesting. Catalin collected me at 1430 and we headed back towards the south - on our way to Braşov! To reach our final planned stop of the tour, Catalin suggested we “take the scenic route.” Most of you know that’s my style and I gladly agreed. We had to backtrack for a little while (more construction delays) but the rain stopped during that time. After driving through Rasnov, which I noticed had a “Hollywood-esque” sign next to a historic castle (apparently built by Teutonic Knights) on the hill above, we drove east and deep into the mountains. Catalin said that we were close to an area with lots of black bears - they offer tours to view them. We climbed all the way to the summit of a ski mountain (Alpin Resort) and got some amazing views of clouds below the nearby peaks and a panoramic view of the beautiful city of Brasov. What a great “detour”! Coming into town (1545), Catalin dropped me off at Piata Sfatului (Council Square) and I immediately started taking lots of photos. The old town seems to have buildings (and plaques of historical events) dating back to the late 1300s! There was so much to see but my stomach was protesting about not eating since 0715. I started looking for food but the return of the rain forced me to be less picky. I ended to sitting down to a late lunch (or early dinner) at an Italian restaurant called Pensiunea da Vinci (1600). I was the only customer so was able to convince the waitress to help me select a series of local dishes. Continuing my exploration of Romanian cuisine, I enjoyed some Supa Gulas (Goulash), Pui cu Hribi so Sos de Smantana cu Marar si Mamaliga (chicken with mushrooms and sour cream and dill sauce and polenta) with a Kozel Premium Lager to wash it down. Since Transylvania was traditionally part of Hungary, it was all local food (the beer was Czech). At the end of the meal, I tried a local dessert called “Clatite Brasovene” (pancakes/crepes, dipped in eggs and breadcrumbs) - very rich and filling (I couldn’t finish)! I paid with a credit card and departed without realizing that I’d paid for the wrong lunch/dinner - fortunately, the price was right... By then (1710), it had stopped raining so I spent nearly an hour walking the historic streets. I visited: the old city wall and Schei Gate; the (bases of) The Black Tower and The White Tower; The Black Church (didn’t go inside because ticket line was too long); a pretty trail along a small canal on the northern edge of town; Strada Sforri (“narrowest street”); a forestry school near the First Romanian (Language) School and many other minor points of interest (including street performances). Could have spent many more hours exploring but had promised Catalin that I’d be ready at 1800. He picked me up and we headed back out of town. The character of Brasov outside the central area is much more industrial and this generated some commentary by my driver about the seeds (in this city) of the anti-communist uprising of the mid to late 1980s. Catalin had all day been a fount of knowledge - I truly valued his frankness and perspective. Our drive back to Bucharest had much less traffic than we’d seen earlier in the day - the other side of the roads, however, looked horrendous. By then, I'd noticed several animals along the route: storks, cows, sheep and a fox. Backtracking to Ploiesti, we took a different route (Romanian Route 1) that allowed me to see a completely different perspective of Bucharest. We passed huge shopping malls, two airports, a beautiful (tree filled) area (Parc King Michael I), the Bucharest Triumph Arch, pretty avenues that led into the city center and a series of historical (and architecturally pleasing) buildings. It occurred to me then that Bucharest had been spared most of the ravages of the World Wars - this gave it an older character than most of the German cities I’ve visited. After an unforgettable day, we arrived at my hotel at 2100. Catalin’s car had check engine light by the end but he said that was a problem for tomorrow. After getting inside the hotel, I ordered a beer at the hotel bar (2110) and took it to my room. I spent the rest of the evening posting on social media and getting some packing done. Finally went to bed after midnight. By then, I was filled with high spirits and true appreciation for Romania - I owe it all to my driver, Catalin. Hope I’ll get another chance to visit this amazing country again someday!
