Congrats are in order...
Firstly, well done to everyone who got their degree results this weekend - lots of firsts! You all worked very hard and deserve it. We hope that you're all happy with your marks.
Just so you all know, if you don't already, Marli (Amalia) got a 2:1!! Found out last night (was a very tense few minutes spent over the phone to England) and she is very very happy. Very very proud.
Yesterday day was a bit of a non-day - the rain poured from dawn to dusk, making the temperature plummet and any planned trips went out of the window. We passed the time playing cards and reading, with Martha (Eugene's mother) bringing in pancakes for us to eat. (She's a whizz in the kitchen, and brought us a cheese pancake, followed shortly by a desert jam pancake). She's very motherly, and although she can't speak a word of english, we manage to communicate somehow. She rattles away in Romanian, we rattle away in English, and we come to understandings.
Last night, we had the amazing experience of bear-watching. Now, Eugene has 'officially' stopped taking guests to see the bears, as a law has been passed by the new mayor whereby any cars seen to be stopping at bear-watching spots are fined a total of 1000 leu (191 gbp), as they make the bears aggressive by taking pictures with a flash.
There is a small ring-road that circles the town, which houses big metal bins for the housing estates within. The bears emerge from the surrounding forest to get food from the bins, and it was this route that Eugene (+ girlfriend) took us at 10pm last night.
We drove up and down the road for a few minutes, peering into the dark recesses around the bins, and came across a large bear cub, sitting on top of the concrete wall above the bins, preparing to jump inside. It was hard to see, but another car stopped and shone a torch so we could make out the features. It was a juvenile female, and it jumped down and began to rummage through the rubbish. Eugene spotted a car in the distance, and worried it may be the police, drove away to turn around. We passed the police car and turned out we had left just in time - behind us, the blue & red lights began to flash as the cops caught someone else.
Going back, we saw another bear, an adult and huge (!), so Eugene stopped the car in a car park, and we hesitantly got out of the car and walked a bit closer for a better look. It was fantastic to stand so close to a wild animal, yet far enough away to be able to run if it looked in our direction. It was big and bulky, with a long snout, and ambled along (not looking ferocious in the slightest - looks really are deceiving). But then it ambled in our direction, and seemed to spot us, so after hearing 'ooookaaaay, we go now' from Eugene, we made our way hurriedly back to the car, watching the bear walk down the road alongside us.
Following it, we got out again and watched it safely from the other side of the road, as it sorted through more bins. But as the bins are emptied on the hour, every hour, there was no food so it made its way back up the hill and into the dark forest. It was all very 'cloak and dagger', watching out for police cars, hiding behind vans, added to the excitement!
It was a one-off experience, which we won't forget. But no photos, we're sorry to say, best not to aggravate a big brown bear with a bright flashy camera if you don't need to! Eugene then refused any money for the trip, as we are 'doing him a favour' by staying for 5 nights! It was great of him to do it, especially with the possibility of a massive fine.
After dreaming of bears, we woke this morning and caught the bus to Dracula's Castle, in Bran. Passing by the Carpathians on the way was awe-inspiring - huge, snow-capped mountains rising into the clouds, it took our breath away.
Bran has become a major tourist attraction since people cottoned on to the 'Dracula's Castle' aspect. The castle was (probably) never inhabited by Vlad, but it's an amazing piece of architecture, with turrets and solid stone walls, being perched on top of a hill in the middle of nowhere. To get inside, however, you have to pass through a 'tourist market', full of stalls with Dracula-themed gifts and souvenirs. We had a quick drink in 'Skeleton's Tavern', with tables shaped like coffins and odd music playing (Michael Jackson, Romanian Folk Music and JLo).
Going into the castle itself, it was beautifully kept, we had to wear strange slippers over our shoes to make sure we didn't mark the wooden floors (or, as M put it, a cheap and easy way for them to keep the floor polished). Lots of rooms filled with various items of furniture, (we were stuck behind some Harley enthusiasts, dressed to the nines in leather, taking numerous pictures of every single room with very expensive cameras - no idea why) and a secret staircase hidden between the walls, which was only discovered a few years ago.
Went to a little pizzeria just out of town for a bite to eat before catching the bus back, lovely pizza but the waitress didn't speak english. Asked for the bill, paid, then realised we had given them 10 leu too much (an extra note - fiddly little things) - asked non-english-speaking waitress for the money back, she refused, she consulted with a waitress who did speak english, she refused, lost 10 leu. Still, teaches us to check our money before giving it away!
Now - so you all know, as we're sure you're following our itinerary to the button... we are no longer going to Bucharest tomorrow. A decision we reached after reading other travellers' experiences of the city, it seems to be a party town, with little to see during the day, apart from grimy streets and pickpockets. So.. we have decided instead to go to Bulgaria early, and are catching the train to Veliko Tarnovo, in Northern Bulgaria tomorrow morning. We will be staying two nights and moving direct to Plovdiv by bus on 21st. Slightly worried about weather from Bulgaria onwards - it will be low 30s in VT/Plovdiv, rising to 38/39 degrees in Belgrade! But we will cope - we're making the most of the cool mountain air for our last Romanian night.
Hope you're all well - Zegna, Chris & boys, have a lovely holiday in Cyprus, hope you get lots of sun and let us know when you're back.
Auntie Gwyneth, great to see you're reading this, really nice to see your comment! Hope you're doing ok, H will email Adam (Gpa gave me his address) if he has access?
Lots and lots of love to all of you
From Us xxx
Just so you all know, if you don't already, Marli (Amalia) got a 2:1!! Found out last night (was a very tense few minutes spent over the phone to England) and she is very very happy. Very very proud.
Yesterday day was a bit of a non-day - the rain poured from dawn to dusk, making the temperature plummet and any planned trips went out of the window. We passed the time playing cards and reading, with Martha (Eugene's mother) bringing in pancakes for us to eat. (She's a whizz in the kitchen, and brought us a cheese pancake, followed shortly by a desert jam pancake). She's very motherly, and although she can't speak a word of english, we manage to communicate somehow. She rattles away in Romanian, we rattle away in English, and we come to understandings.
Last night, we had the amazing experience of bear-watching. Now, Eugene has 'officially' stopped taking guests to see the bears, as a law has been passed by the new mayor whereby any cars seen to be stopping at bear-watching spots are fined a total of 1000 leu (191 gbp), as they make the bears aggressive by taking pictures with a flash.
There is a small ring-road that circles the town, which houses big metal bins for the housing estates within. The bears emerge from the surrounding forest to get food from the bins, and it was this route that Eugene (+ girlfriend) took us at 10pm last night.
We drove up and down the road for a few minutes, peering into the dark recesses around the bins, and came across a large bear cub, sitting on top of the concrete wall above the bins, preparing to jump inside. It was hard to see, but another car stopped and shone a torch so we could make out the features. It was a juvenile female, and it jumped down and began to rummage through the rubbish. Eugene spotted a car in the distance, and worried it may be the police, drove away to turn around. We passed the police car and turned out we had left just in time - behind us, the blue & red lights began to flash as the cops caught someone else.
Going back, we saw another bear, an adult and huge (!), so Eugene stopped the car in a car park, and we hesitantly got out of the car and walked a bit closer for a better look. It was fantastic to stand so close to a wild animal, yet far enough away to be able to run if it looked in our direction. It was big and bulky, with a long snout, and ambled along (not looking ferocious in the slightest - looks really are deceiving). But then it ambled in our direction, and seemed to spot us, so after hearing 'ooookaaaay, we go now' from Eugene, we made our way hurriedly back to the car, watching the bear walk down the road alongside us.
Following it, we got out again and watched it safely from the other side of the road, as it sorted through more bins. But as the bins are emptied on the hour, every hour, there was no food so it made its way back up the hill and into the dark forest. It was all very 'cloak and dagger', watching out for police cars, hiding behind vans, added to the excitement!
It was a one-off experience, which we won't forget. But no photos, we're sorry to say, best not to aggravate a big brown bear with a bright flashy camera if you don't need to! Eugene then refused any money for the trip, as we are 'doing him a favour' by staying for 5 nights! It was great of him to do it, especially with the possibility of a massive fine.
After dreaming of bears, we woke this morning and caught the bus to Dracula's Castle, in Bran. Passing by the Carpathians on the way was awe-inspiring - huge, snow-capped mountains rising into the clouds, it took our breath away.
Bran has become a major tourist attraction since people cottoned on to the 'Dracula's Castle' aspect. The castle was (probably) never inhabited by Vlad, but it's an amazing piece of architecture, with turrets and solid stone walls, being perched on top of a hill in the middle of nowhere. To get inside, however, you have to pass through a 'tourist market', full of stalls with Dracula-themed gifts and souvenirs. We had a quick drink in 'Skeleton's Tavern', with tables shaped like coffins and odd music playing (Michael Jackson, Romanian Folk Music and JLo).
Going into the castle itself, it was beautifully kept, we had to wear strange slippers over our shoes to make sure we didn't mark the wooden floors (or, as M put it, a cheap and easy way for them to keep the floor polished). Lots of rooms filled with various items of furniture, (we were stuck behind some Harley enthusiasts, dressed to the nines in leather, taking numerous pictures of every single room with very expensive cameras - no idea why) and a secret staircase hidden between the walls, which was only discovered a few years ago.
Went to a little pizzeria just out of town for a bite to eat before catching the bus back, lovely pizza but the waitress didn't speak english. Asked for the bill, paid, then realised we had given them 10 leu too much (an extra note - fiddly little things) - asked non-english-speaking waitress for the money back, she refused, she consulted with a waitress who did speak english, she refused, lost 10 leu. Still, teaches us to check our money before giving it away!
Now - so you all know, as we're sure you're following our itinerary to the button... we are no longer going to Bucharest tomorrow. A decision we reached after reading other travellers' experiences of the city, it seems to be a party town, with little to see during the day, apart from grimy streets and pickpockets. So.. we have decided instead to go to Bulgaria early, and are catching the train to Veliko Tarnovo, in Northern Bulgaria tomorrow morning. We will be staying two nights and moving direct to Plovdiv by bus on 21st. Slightly worried about weather from Bulgaria onwards - it will be low 30s in VT/Plovdiv, rising to 38/39 degrees in Belgrade! But we will cope - we're making the most of the cool mountain air for our last Romanian night.
Hope you're all well - Zegna, Chris & boys, have a lovely holiday in Cyprus, hope you get lots of sun and let us know when you're back.
Auntie Gwyneth, great to see you're reading this, really nice to see your comment! Hope you're doing ok, H will email Adam (Gpa gave me his address) if he has access?
Lots and lots of love to all of you
From Us xxx
posted by the travellers at 4:29 pm
5 Comments:
wow! well done my brainy little sister! At least one us did the parents proud with results!!
Sorry been bit quiet on the blog, been out lots on evenings, and work is soooo hot upstairs (where computer is) that i have been taking refuge in the basement.
The bear watching sounds very dangerous, but sounds like Eugene had your backs. So sweet that they are taking such good care of you.
Been talkign about you lots today, and saw Hannah who sends her love to you.
Look forward to the next installment!
Love Lydia xxxxxx
Good evening, you law breakers,you!
But how exciting... Now that's not your every day experience... Really QUITE intrepid! (You can tell I'm impressed, can't you?)
Less impressed with the pizza eating (did you have fries with it,H?) What is the Rumanian national dish? Pancakes? Love Martha & Eugene for taking care of you. Tell them, thank you from the parents.
Have a good trip tomorrow, make sure you get the right bus and don't end up in 'Anywhere'.. ha ha.
Love and miss you, can't wait to see you in Italia. Will email when we have a firm date. P & L are thrashing it out as we speak!
Take good care, Mxxxy XXX
Just a quickie tonight.
Well done Mali, you must be very, very proud. Are you two in competition?
H - it was SO good to talk to you. The bears sound amazing - can you bring one back (a baby that won't grow up!)?
Sorry the train won't go all the way to VT, but taxis are very good - but you must HAGGLE. AND you have to give drivers directions - they're useless, so keep your eyes on the signposts!
VT has LOADS of history, so see as much as you can.
Lots of love
M,A,G,T&T
Hello girls!
Well done my brainy little sister! (just seen that I have written the same as Lydia!) Still that is what you are!We are very proud of you!
Bless Eugene for looking after you both while taking you bear watching, sounds a real sweetie! Good to hear that his Mother is feeding you up to!
Anyhow we are off to Cyprus tomorrow so I wont be able to check your blog for a couple of weeks, so I'm hoping you have a fantastic time and look forward to catching up when we get back.
We love you lots and are missing you lots!
Big Kisses
Zegna, Chris, Samuel and Leo xxx
Dear Helen & Marli
We shall be sadly missing your BLOG for the next ten days as we are just off on an East Anglian tour - but we hope to catch up quickly on our return.
Congratulations on the professional touch that comes through the BLOG, and on the sensible way you are coping with an amazing variety of people and situations (from Sylvania to brown bears!)
You're daily in our thoughts and prayers Gpa & Gma XX
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