Day 24 - July 6th - Bucharest to Brasov

Day 24 – July 6^th – Bucharest to Brasov

It was a welcome early start today because our rental car was being delivered at the Hotel by 9am. We nevertheless had time to linger over breakfast, although I must confess that the breakfasts here at the Europa Royale have not been as sumptuous as others we have had on our journey. Gladly we were all packed and ready to go at 8:30am when we had the call that our rental car man was waiting for us down in the lobby.

Thank the Lord for our back-packs. Our Hotel is located on the edge of the traffic free area of the old city, which meant the car had to be parked at least 1k walk away, on the northern edge of the old city which required what felt like quite a walk. It would have been difficult with drag-along suitcases especially over the cobbled streets. The car is a tiny 4 door, a Romanian version of a Ford Fiesta, but we were assured it was very good. After the formalities, I nervously began negotiating the narrow back lanes of Bucharest, trying to find our way out and on to the main Boulevard that would take us north out of the city to Brasov.

Unfortunately, Julie couldn’t find her Driver’s Licence, which committed me to all the driving and stationed her in the passenger seat with my iPad driven GPS, neither of us in our strong gift areas. To say our stress levels were raised was something of an underestimation as we negotiated left hand drive, narrow lanes, one way streets and very fast drivers going around us. However, we managed to get ourselves on the ‘Bulevardul Lascar Catargiu’ which took us past some of the famous landmarks we explored the previous day – the ‘Arcul de Triumf’ and the Piata Presei Libere. Once we negotiated the latter, we were on the road out of town, past the International airport and picking up the signs to Brasov, a distance of about 160k.

The countryside was ‘table’ flat for quite some time, but gradually we could see the Transylvania Mountains emerging in the distance. The country was beautiful, with acre upon acre of the yellow glow of mature sunflower crops. We stopped at a small family-run mini-mart for some coffee and snacks where no-one spoke English. I never cease to be amazed how we always manage even though we speak in English and the locals in Romanian, yet there is an ability to understand.

Once we passed the only main town of Ploiesti, we were in serious mountain country. The road narrowed and became very windy but the scenes were quite dramatic. The mountain towns through which we passed reminded us of Austria or Switzerland, with mountains towering above us. We climbed up and then we descended with the road in tight twists and turns, before the signs of the outskirts of Brasov started to appear.

Brasov has a population of about 250,000, and surrounds one of the world’s most beautifully kept secrets – the old town which is still beautifully maintained in its medieval splendor, sitting in a tiny valley up against the 1000m Mt Tampa. Our ‘Pensione’ Casa Albert was in the old town, right on the main traffic free cobbled ‘Strada Republicii’. It was a nightmare negotiating our way anywhere near close to it due to the lanes being so narrow, always the wrong way to the way we needed, and the traffic was thick and impatient. This time our stress levels were topping the scales for at least 30 minutes, with Julie doing her best with my iPad GPS map, but it seemed that every time we needed to turn it was a one-way street the wrong way.

Anyway, we finally found the parking area near the Hotel, and walked into the splendor of the ‘Strada Republicii’. It was just beautiful, with the ‘Casa Albert’ tucked away right in the centre of this very historic and beautifully preserved old town. We couldn’t have felt more delighted with everything we saw. We checked in, and set off to explore.

There was so much to see, and so little time (we are here two nights) that it was hard to know how best to tackle it. We walked the main street with so much beauty and history everywhere we looked. We decided then to take the chairlift, a few hundred metres behind our Pensione, to the top of Mt Tampa in order to see the entire panorama of the old city of Brasov. It was spectacular, with stunning views down on this ancient beauty. It was difficult to leave the nest with its panorama, but the day was now getting late.

We walked the western end of the city with its huge ancient Cathedral and then eventually back to the Casa Albert, where we watched the last 50k and drama of the 3^rd day of the Tour de France, before having a most delightful dinner in the tiny courtyard Bistro of the Casa Albert. It was a lovely way to end what was a very taxing day on our nerves, but a very stimulating day in the midst of such ancient splendor as the old city of Brasov in the Transylvania Mountain Range.

Tomorrow we will linger around the old shops, and then take a short drive to the great Bran Castle, known as ‘Dracula’s Castle’. That’s tomorrow. Until then….

KRA