Bye Bye Romania

On my way across Romania heading to the border I decided to stop off for lunch. I was told about a popular route which would bring me through the mountains and to a town called Lacu Rosu.

I figured this would be a great mid way stop for lunch. As i was walking away from lunch I once again spotted these interesting rolls that everyone was buying. I had all seen these in Brasov and wondered what they were. 

So off I went to buy one of these and damn what a good decision this was. Now first thing to note is this is not a Romanian treat but actually comes from Hungary and are called Kurtoskalacs. There are a few different flavours but of course I choose the cinnamon and sugar version.

And holy shit it was good! They are interesting to eat as they are hollow and you just tear away strips as it unrolls.

To make the shape they take something that resembles a huge rolling pin and wrap the dough around the pin and bake.

The artiist who created my yummy version. Can't wait to get to Hungary as I will be trying few new flavours for sure.

Transylvania Time (Chill'n with the count)

If there is one thing Transylvania is know for that is castles of which they have an abundance. My first stop and recommendation by many was to visit Peles Castle.

I was told it was the prettiest and most interesting to see both inside and out. 

You may notice that I have only posted pictures of the outside. The reason for that is some brainac in Romania has decided to it is smart to close all museums and attractions on Mondays. People these are tourist attractions! Tourist are tourists and they arrive to see things anytime anyplace. What the hell were you thinking!!!!!!

So, after sipping o some coffee looking at the outside of a castle it was time to ride to the town of Brasov. 

Great little city with many parks and of course the obligatory walking street.

While in  Brasov i had the chance to stay two nights with a fellow rider named George and his family.  They were phenomenal hosts and great conversationalists. Here George and i are seen dipping into his homemade liquor made from sour cherries, sugar and homemade alcohol. I love the stuff as the straight alcohol was soothed down by the cherries.

If your movie memory is great you may recognize this castle as the home of none other than Dracula.  After leaving Brasov I headed to the nearby town of Bran which is the home Bram Stokers Dracula.

I hate to say it but it was the let down others had warned me that it would be.was Peles was by far the better castle even though I only saw the outside.

And this is the real reason I came to Romania. 

To ride the famous Transfagarsan mountain pass.

The ride up starts all tame and serene. 

But as you climb it starts to become very inspiring.

This point was around 1600 meters and I reach a little over 2000 meters at the peak. 

This was far from the highest I have ridden (5600 meters South America) but none the less spectacular views.

The pass has only been open a little over a week now awaiting the melting of the snow.

Switchback city!!!!!!

After crossing the apex and coming out of a tunnel I was greater by a temperature drop of at least 10 degrees and fog/clonds

My look is saying what the hell just happened.

The ride down was extra slow due to the twists and turn and less than clear situation, but well worth the effort.

Romania (Country #37)

You cannot get much more of an efficient border crossing then this. 

Hand the visa in one window and out it comes the other and you are in your next country

I had yet to stay on the black sea so I decided I would do the border crossing from Bulgaria to Romania there. The crossing brings you out into the party beach town of Vama Veche where there are more bars than accommodations.

I though this was an interesting set up in a private campground. It seems there is some sort of advantage to digging a hole and placing your camper in it.

After Vama Veche it was off too Bucharest to see my friends Andreea and Alex who I last saw three years ago when we crossed from Panama to Columbia together. Since alex was busy with work and school Andreea took me out to the city centre to see the sites at night.

After a few hours of snapping pictures and walking around it was time for some traditional food. We opted on the Mici with samples from the various regions of Romania. It was served with garlic potatoes (they love garlic in Romania.....think Transylvania) along with an assortment of mustards. 

The following day we decided to see the city by bicycle. Since Alex had to study I was able to use his bike and that damn sexy helmet you see on my head. 

And I wonder why the beautiful Romanian women were pointing and laughing when I rode by. Well better luck in the next country maybe.

One of the many city parks we rode through.

Monument in the palace gardens

Interesting fact I did not know, but this building is only second in size to the Pentagon as far as largest buildings in the world.

Once you do pull away from the city centre you do see the styles of the old communist regime. There are hundreds of soviet style apartment blocks that were built to house the family's working in the equal number of huge factories. 

As much as i love seeing the old buildings etc it is the odd things that catch my attention. The first is this music concert that will be powered solely by peddle power (note the setting up of the bikes in the left and corner).

Now if you have been following my blog from long ago. You maybe remember I was propositioned by a hooker (in Nicaragua) on a bicycle who rang her bell to get my attention which I thought was unique.
And as uniqueness goes it seems that both in Bulgaria and Romania prostitution has another twist. As you drive down the highways near cities there will be prostitutes standing on the side hoping for customers flying by at 100km hour to stop. I found it really interesting to be driving down a four lane freeway and seeing a prostitute standing or sitting on a bottle crate waiting for customers.
(I will try and get a picture for the next blog as proof).