2010 Rumeenia

Viimane õhtu enne reisi on nagu tavalisel pühendatud asjade pakkimisele. Enne tsiklimatka asjade pakkimine on üks suur valikute tegemine. Eriti veel siis kui reisida kahekesi ühe rattaga – nagu meie seda teeme. Kuigi asume sama varustusega teele juba teist korda oli neid asju, mis siiski koju peavad jääma, päris palju. Õnneks on meie väike reisiarvuti õnnelikult endale kastis koha leidnud. Seega on suur võimalus, et sellesse blogisse tekib veel edaspidigi kandeid 🙂

The last evening before the trip is, as usual, dedicated to packing. Packing for a motorcycle trip is one big decision-making process. Especially when traveling together on one bike – as we do. Although we’re setting off with the same equipment for the second time, there were still quite a few things that had to stay home. Fortunately, our small travel computer has happily found a place in its case. So there’s a good chance that this blog will continue to receive updates 🙂

Kui keegi arvab, et soojale maale on vaja sõita, siis on ta küll eksinud. Soe maa ongi siin. Seda võib peale tänast päeva kindlasti väita. Enamuse päevast näitas termomeeter temperatuuri üle 30 kraadi. Kes arvab, et see on mõnus, võib proovida musta värvi tuulekindlate riietega veidi ringi käia.

Tegelikult pole asi nii hull midagi. Kui 100 km tunnikiirusega sõita ja kõik tuulutuslukud lahti teha, on olukord täiesti talutav. Asi läheb karmiks kätte, kui kiirus tuleb alla võtta või tahad vahepeal seljasirutuspause teha…, seega me eriti peatusi ei teinudki.

If anyone thinks you need to travel to a warm country, they are mistaken. The warm country is right here. This can be said with certainty after today. For most of the day, the thermometer showed temperatures over 30 degrees Celsius. Anyone who thinks this is pleasant should try walking around in black windproof clothing.

Actually, it’s not so bad. If you drive at 100 km per hour with all ventilation hatches open, the situation is quite tolerable. Things get tough when you have to slow down or want to take a stretch break… so we didn’t make many stops.

Pikema lõunapausi pidasime Läti-Leedu piirilt 19 km edasi, selle koha nimi ongi 19 km, arvatavasti kõik, kes Leedu pole kunagi sõitnud on, teevad seal peatuse. Igaljuhul oleme seal alati palju eestlasi kohanud. Seal on ka pisike loomaaed, kindlasti teate seda kohta.

We had a longer lunch break 19 km past the Latvian-Lithuanian border, the place is actually called “19 km” – probably everyone who has ever driven through Lithuania stops there. In any case, we’ve always met many Estonians there. There’s also a small zoo, you surely know this place.

Igatahes on tänane päev edukalt seljataga, koos õhtuste äikesevihmahoogudega. Sellel aastal valmistas Leedu kämping meeldiva üllatuse. Eelmisel aastal ASCI kataloogis olnud kämpingut sellel aastal seal enam ei olnud. Ilmselt ka põhjusega, sest eelmine kord tundus küll, et öösel käis ka paar püssipauku. Praeguses kämpingus on aga väga mõnusad toad. Olime just eelmisest vihmahoost kuivaks tuuldunud ja kui nägime lähenevat suurt äikesepilve, siis otsustasime telki mitte püstitada. Praegu voodil lebotades ja vihma sabinat kuulates tundub see otsus (mille pani ette loomulikult pere peakortermeister Inge) väga mõistlikuna. Poola piirini on siit veel paarkümmend kilomeetrit. Seega homsed uudised juba Poolast.

In any case, today has been successfully completed, along with evening thundershowers. This year the Lithuanian camping site was a pleasant surprise. The campsite that was in the ASCI catalog last year was no longer there this year. Probably for good reason, because last time it seemed that there were a couple of gunshots at night. The current campsite has very comfortable rooms though. We had just dried off from the previous rain shower, and when we saw a large thundercloud approaching, we decided not to pitch the tent. Now lying in bed listening to the rain patter, this decision (which was naturally proposed by the family quartermaster Inge) seems very wise. The Polish border is still about twenty kilometers from here. So tomorrow’s news will already be from Poland.

Tänane hommik tervitas meid kõigest 18-ne soojakraadiga, igaljuhul oli see suurepärane vaheldus eilsele kuumateraapiale. Ja tegelikult oli kogu tänase päeva keskmine temperatuur 24-26 kraadi, väga mõnus motomatkamiseks!

Ma ei tea, mis minuga täna lahti oli, kas eilne kuumus andis tunda või on tööväsimus veel sees, aga mina kippusin Teedu turvalise selja taga magama jääma. Võtsin ühe energiajoogi, ei mingit mõju, tunni aja pärast ostsin teise purgi-ikka ei midagi. Siis ei jäänudki muud üle, kui tegime bensukas peatuse, viskasin ennast muru peale pikali ja magasin täiesti sügavat und ~ 30 min. See aitas, muidu oleks küll mingil hetkel lihtsalt maha pudenenud sealt ratta seljast. Ma ei tea, kuidas Teet jaksab, kohati tundub, et ta on mingi ironman

Tänane päev möödus siis Poolat läbides, teed iseenesest on heas korras ja autojuhid suhteliselt viisakad, aga me sõitsime mööda sellist teed, kus sõna otseses mõttes üks küla ajab teist taga. Paar kilomeetrit saad normaalse kiirusega sõita, tuleb asula, siis jälle mõni kilomeeter 100-ga, jälle asule ja nii terve päeva, terve tee. See venitas meie päeva niiii pikaks, lõpuks olime itäiesti tüdinud. Hea selle teekonna juures oli aga see, et suuri rekkaid polnud praktiliselt ühtegi…ja tegelikult näeb ju niimoodi seda päris õiget külaelu ja -olu ju hopis paremini.

This morning greeted us with just 18 degrees Celsius, which was in any case a wonderful change from yesterday’s heat therapy. And actually, the average temperature throughout today was 24-26 degrees, very pleasant for motorcycle touring!

I don’t know what was wrong with me today, whether yesterday’s heat took its toll or work fatigue is still in me, but I kept falling asleep behind Teet’s safe back. I had one energy drink, no effect, an hour later bought a second can – still nothing. Then there was nothing else to do but stop at a gas station, I threw myself down on the grass and slept a deep sleep for about 30 minutes. That helped, otherwise I would have just fallen off the bike at some point. I don’t know how Teet manages, sometimes it seems like he’s some kind of ironman

Today was spent riding through Poland, the roads themselves are in good condition and drivers are relatively polite, but we were driving on such a road where literally one village chases another. You can ride a couple of kilometers at normal speed, then comes a settlement, then again a few kilometers at 100, another settlement and so on all day, the whole road. This stretched our day out so long, we were finally completely tired. The good thing about this journey though was that there were practically no large trucks…and actually you see the real village life and conditions much better this way.

Mis meie päeva veel pikaks venitas, oli see, et üritasime meeleheitlikult wifi leviala leida, täiesti lootusetu ettevõtamine! Kahes suuremas linnas kulutasime kokku kask tundi, et oma kirjatükike üles riputada, aga mitte ei saanud asjale pihta. Ja nagu eilnegi kämping meid oma mõnusa toaga üllatas, nii ka tänane -wifi on siin olemas!!

What stretched our day out even longer was that we desperately tried to find a WiFi coverage area, a completely hopeless endeavor! In two larger towns we spent a total of a few hours trying to post our little writing, but couldn’t get it done. And just as yesterday’s campsite surprised us with its comfortable room, so did today’s – there’s WiFi here!!

Nii, et ärge pange siis pahaks, kui jutud väkese nihkega ilmuvad. Me oleme Eestis nii harjunud, et iga nurga peal on wifi levi, aga mujual pole see veel nii…Nüüd on see pikk väsitav päev õnnelikult õhtule jõudnud ja arvatavasti magame nagu lapsukesed õndsat und. Heade asjadega harjub kiiresti ära ja peale eilset mõnusat ööd ei tulnud mõte telkimisest enam üldse pähe, voodi on ikka teine asi, selle väikese rõõmu oleme ju ära teeninud!

So don’t be upset if the stories appear with a slight delay. In Estonia we’re so used to having WiFi coverage on every corner, but elsewhere it’s not like that yet…Now this long tiring day has happily reached evening and we’ll probably sleep like babies. You get used to good things quickly and after last night’s pleasant rest, the thought of camping didn’t even come to mind anymore, a bed is a different matter after all, we’ve earned this small joy!

Kolmas sõidupäev oli planeeritud kilomeetritelt kõige lühem umbes 550 km. Alustasime tavapäraselt kell 8. Liikusime mööda väiksemaid teid, mis oli ühest küljest väga huvitav, sest võimaldas näha poolakatest külaelu, samas aga mõjus see negatiivselt meie keskmisele kiirusele. Maapind muutus mägisemaks ja saime ka esimest korda proovida tõusu mööda serpentiine. Ilm oli sõitmiseks väga mõnus, pilvine aga ei sadanud.

The third day of riding was planned to be the shortest in terms of kilometers, about 550 km. We started as usual at 8 o’clock. We traveled along smaller roads, which on one hand was very interesting as it allowed us to see Polish village life, but on the other hand it negatively affected our average speed. The terrain became more mountainous and we got to try climbing serpentine roads for the first time. The weather was very pleasant for riding, cloudy but not raining.

Umbes 150 km pärast jõudsime metsaga kaetud mägedeni, kus asus Slovakkia piir. Piiri tähistas ainult silt, mingit inimtegevust (vähemalt ametlikku), seal ei toimunud. Slovakkia tervitas meid ilusa ilmaga. Teisel pool mäge paistis päike ja temperatuur tõusis kiirelt 30 kraadini. Loodus tundus Slovakkia poolel märksa ilusam kui Poolas.

After about 150 km we reached forested mountains where the Slovak border was located. The border was marked only by a sign, with no human activity (at least official) taking place there. Slovakia greeted us with beautiful weather. On the other side of the mountain the sun was shining and the temperature quickly rose to 30 degrees. Nature seemed much more beautiful on the Slovak side than in Poland.

Sõit kulges jälle juba harjunud rütmis – küla läbimine 60 km/h, kahe küla vaheline lõik tavapärases tempos. Ootamatult oli aga keset teed edasisõitmist keelav märk. Polnud tähistatud ka ümbersõitu. Jäime seisma ja ootama kohalikke autojuhte, et vaadata mida nad teevad. Esimene auto pani otse edasi. Teine jäi seisma ja autos olevad noormehed näitasid meile, et võib edasi sõita. Varsti selgus ka märkide põhjus. Vihmast tulenev maalihe oli tee suhteliselt hävitanud. Kuidagi moodi siiski läbi sai ja see õnnestus ka meil.

The ride continued in the now familiar rhythm – passing through villages at 60 km/h, the sections between villages at normal pace. Unexpectedly, however, there was a sign in the middle of the road prohibiting further travel. No detour was marked either. We stopped and waited for local drivers to see what they would do. The first car went straight ahead. The second stopped and the young men in the car showed us that we could continue. Soon the reason for the signs became clear. A rain-caused landslide had relatively destroyed the road. Somehow it was still passable and we managed it too.

Edasine Slovakkia läbimine kulges ilma vahejuhtumiteta. Kraadiklaas näitas temperatuure üle 30 kraadi ja päike kõrvetas. Sõidurütmi kujundas endiselt külad sage läbimine. Lõpuks jõudsime Ungari piirini, kus meid peatas sõbralik politseinik ja kontrollis dokumente. Tal oli kaasas ka kaks õpilast, kellele ta dokumentide kontrolli ette näitas.

The rest of the journey through Slovakia proceeded without incidents. The thermometer showed temperatures over 30 degrees and the sun was scorching. The riding rhythm was still shaped by frequent passages through villages. Finally we reached the Hungarian border, where a friendly policeman stopped us and checked our documents. He also had two students with him, to whom he was demonstrating the document check.

Arvasime, et Ungari teed on paremad kui Slovakkias, aga Ungari tervitas meid ühe väga konarliku ja aukliku teega. Seda oli küll ainult 8 km ja edaspidi teeolude üle kurta ei saanud. Ungari kohta eredaid mälestusi ei ole. Lõputud külad ja lõõmav päike. Huvitav on see, et näha oli päris erineva nahavärviga inimesi. Mõned olid valged, mõned üsna tumedad. Vaevalt et tegemist oli Aafrika Ungarlastega (või lihtsalt neegritega). Äkki oskab keegi kommenteerida?

We thought Hungarian roads would be better than in Slovakia, but Hungary greeted us with a very bumpy and potholed road. This was only 8 km though, and afterwards we couldn’t complain about the road conditions. There aren’t many vivid memories of Hungary. Endless villages and scorching sun. What’s interesting is that we saw people with quite different skin colors. Some were white, some quite dark. Unlikely that they were African Hungarians (or simply Black people). Perhaps someone can comment?

Rumeenias toimus piiripunktis dokumentide kontroll. See käis küll kiirelt ja Inge ei võtnud isegi kiivrit peast. Piiri ületamisega kaotasime siiski ühe tunni, seda mitte ootamise vaid ajavahe tõttu. Rumeenias oli külasid veel rohkem. Vahe eelmiste riikidega on aga see, et kiirust seal eriti maha ei võeta. Tees olid ka esimesed lõõkaugud, mida siiski õnnestus edukalt vältida.

In Romania, documents were checked at the border checkpoint. It went quickly though and Inge didn’t even take her helmet off. However, crossing the border cost us an hour, not due to waiting but due to the time zone difference. Romania had even more villages. The difference from previous countries though is that speed isn’t really reduced there. There were also the first potholes on the road, which we nevertheless managed to avoid successfully.

Helistasime ka oma majutuskohta ja informeerisime neid, et jõuame hiljem. Ilm hakkas minema pilve ja temperatuur muutus mõnusamaks. Kui GPS näitas sihtkohani veel 32 km, keeras tee mägedesse. Ronisime mööda serpentiine üles ja hiljem alla, kokku 20 km. Meie ees oli just läinud vihm, tee veel auras. Hakkas juba hämarduma.

We also called our accommodation and informed them that we would arrive later. The weather started getting cloudy and the temperature became more pleasant. When the GPS showed 32 km left to the destination, the road turned into the mountains. We climbed up serpentine roads and then down, 20 km in total. Rain had just passed ahead of us, the road was still steaming. It was already starting to get dark.

Viimased 15 km läbisime külasid. Nüüd olid nad üksteise küljes kinni, lihtsalt üks lõppes ja teine algas kohe samas kohas. Peale palavat päeva ja värskendavat vihma liikus ringi palju inimesi. Lõpuks ekslesime veel veidi otsides oma pansionaati. Ja siis olimegi kohal. Pererahvas, kellel olime helistanud, ootas meid väraval. Kõhud söödeti meil täis ja anti ka väike naps. Suhtluskeeleks kujunes huvitaval kombel prantsuse keel. Peale sööki võis asuda nautima ausalt välja teenitud und.

The last 15 km we passed through villages. Now they were attached to each other, one simply ended and another began in the same place. After the hot day and refreshing rain, many people were moving around. Finally we wandered a bit looking for our guesthouse. And then we were there. The family we had called was waiting for us at the gate. Our stomachs were filled and we were given a small drink. Interestingly, French became the language of communication. After the meal, we could settle in to enjoy a well-earned sleep.

Rumeenias kohal olles tegeleme planeeritult turismiga. Enne aga kui sellest ülevaadet anda, veidi piirkonnast, kus viibime. Selle nimi on Maramures. Ajalooliselt kuulusid need alad Austria-Ungari riigi koosseisu. Peale 1. maailmasõja lõppu jagati maa Rumeenia ja Tsehhoslovakkia vahel. Käesoleval ajal on osa ajaloolisest piirkonnast endiselt Rumeenia all, teine osa aga Ukraina koosseisus. Kõige suuremaks vaatamisväärsuseks on kohalik ehe külaelu. Lisaks veel ajaloolised puitkirikud ja üks väga omapärane surnuaed. Nüüd aga kõigest lähemalt.

Päeva alustasime lõbusa surnuaia külastusega. Tegemist on muidu tavapärase surnuaiaga, kus haudadel on väga omapärased ristid. Igale puust ristile on nikerdatud üks või kaks pilti lahkunu elust. Lisaks on pildi all luuletus, mis räägib tema elu olulistest seikadest. Luuletused pidid olema humoorikad ja elu jaatavad (ise neid kahjuks lugeda ei osanud). Neid riste hakkas 30ndatel aastatel valmistama üks kohalik meistrimees. Kui ta 1977 suri, siis võttis teatepulga üle üks tema õpilastest. Riste valmistatakse tänapäevani ja väidetavalt on neid tellitud ka erinevatesse maailmajagudesse.

Being in Romania, we’re engaged in tourism as planned. But before giving an overview, a bit about the region where we’re staying. Its name is Maramureș. Historically, these areas were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. After the end of World War I, the territory was divided between Romania and Czechoslovakia. Currently, part of the historical region is still under Romania, while another part is part of Ukraine. The biggest attraction is the authentic village life. Additionally, there are historical wooden churches and a very unique cemetery. Now for more details about everything.

We started the day with a visit to the cheerful cemetery. It’s an otherwise ordinary cemetery where the graves have very distinctive crosses. Each wooden cross is carved with one or two pictures from the deceased’s life. Additionally, there’s a poem below the picture that tells about the important events of their life. The poems were supposed to be humorous and life-affirming (unfortunately I couldn’t read them myself). These crosses started being made in the 1930s by a local craftsman. When he died in 1977, one of his students took over. The crosses are still being made today and reportedly have been commissioned to different continents.

Päeva teisel poolel vaatasime puukirikuid. Kõige suurem neis oli Barsana kloostris. Klooster oli väga ilus ja sellest suudavad kõige paremini rääkida pildid.

In the second half of the day we looked at wooden churches. The largest one was at Barsana monastery. The monastery was very beautiful and pictures can tell the story best.

Vaatasime ka kõige vanemat piirkonna puukirikut. See oli märksa kõrvalisemas kohas ja turiste oli seal vaid üksikuid. Vaatasime kuidas kohalikud kunstnikud restaureerisid kiriku puitseintel olevaid maalinguid. Kirik oli tõesti vana, esimest korda mainiti seda 1365 aastal.

We also visited the oldest wooden church in the region. It was in a much more remote location and there were only a few tourists. We watched local artists restore the paintings on the church’s wooden walls. The church was truly old, first mentioned in 1365.

Kui hakkasime kiriku juurest lahkuma vallandus tugev äikesevihm. Jõudsime kiriku ümber oleva surnuaia väravamajakesse varju alla. Sealt oli väga maaliline vaadata välkude sähvimist ja vihma ning rahesadu.

As we were leaving the church, a strong thunderstorm broke out. We made it to the shelter of the gatehouse at the cemetery surrounding the church. From there it was very picturesque to watch the lightning flashes and the rain and hail.

Õhtu lõppes korraliku kõhutäiega ja kohaliku rahvalaulu ja -tantsuga, mida pererahvas esitas kohale saabunud prantsuse turismigrupile.

The evening ended with a proper feast and local folk songs and dances that the host family performed for a French tourist group that had arrived.

Lõpuks veel üks tähelepanek kohaliku liikluse kohta. Teel võib näha väga erinevaid liiklejaid: tädikesed käsikärudega, kes viivad koju oma lehmale heina ja peedilehti, heinalised rehade ja vikladega, külamehed jalgratasetega, hobused heinakoormatega ja lisaks sellele muidugi autod, veokid, bussid ja mootorrattad ja -rollerid. Teed ise on kitsad ja kohati ka auklikud. Kõik need tegelased suudavad koos väga edukalt liigelda. Siinsetele autojuhtidele meeldib sõita suhteliselt kiiresti ja nad tunnevad rõõmu kui saavad sust mööda sõita. Samas on nad tähelpanelikud teiste suhtes ja annavad juba kaugelt märku, kui ees politsei oma tööd teeb.

Finally, one more observation about local traffic. On the road you can see very different kinds of road users: elderly ladies with hand carts who are taking hay and beet leaves home to their cows, hay wagons with rakes and forks, villagers with bicycles, horses with hay loads, and of course cars, trucks, buses and motorcycles and scooters. The roads themselves are narrow and sometimes full of potholes. All these characters manage to move together very successfully. Local drivers like to drive relatively fast and they feel joy when they can pass you. At the same time they are attentive to others and signal from far away when there’s police working ahead.

No nii, mõtlesin vahelduseks ka oma muljeid kirja panna. Tundub, et Teedu ja minu emotsioonid teatud elementides siin reisil on suhteliselt erinevad. Neljapäeva hommikul jätsime armsa pererahvaga Maramureses hüvasti ja suundusime järgmise sihtkoha, naljaka nimega linnakese – Gura Humorului poole. See maakond (Bucovina) on maailmas tuntud omapäraste värviliste kloostrite poolest, mis on ka UNESCO pärandisse kantud.

Well then, I thought I’d write down my impressions for a change. It seems that Teet’s and my emotions about certain elements on this trip are quite different. Thursday morning we said goodbye to the lovely family in Maramureș and headed towards the next destination, a small town with a funny name – Gura Humorului. This county (Bucovina) is world-famous for its distinctive colorful monasteries, which are also included in UNESCO heritage.

GPSi järgi oli kloostriteni kõigest 220 km, mõtlesime, et tuleb selline mõnus rahulik sõidupäev. Aga taaskord polnud me aru saanud, et teekond nii pikalt üle mägede kulgeb, me sõitsime seda väikest lõiku kokku praktiliselt kuus tundi.

According to GPS it was only 220 km to the monasteries, we thought it would be such a nice relaxed riding day. But once again we hadn’t understood that the route goes so far over the mountains, we rode this small stretch for practically six hours in total.

Täiesti uskumatu! Iseenesest oli see mägitee imeline oma lummavate loodusvaadete poolest, teisest küljest võttis kõhu alt õõnsaks küll, kui paremat kätt haigutab kuristik ja vasakul pool kõrgub kivine kaljusein. Ja peale selle, et tee oli nii sinka-vonkaline, kui veel olla saab, oli see pealekauba ka auke täis. Teedu sõnul oli see ka üks hullemaid teelõike, mis meie reisidel kunagi ette tulnud on. Loodetavasti ka viimane! Mägedest allapoole jõudes muutusid teed küll paremaks ja laiemaks, kuid kurvilised sik-sakid ei kadunud. Teet silmnähtavalt naudib sellistel teedel sõitu, mina veel mitte. Aga meil on siin Rumeenias aega veel 5 päeva, võib-olla pikapeale hakkab mullegi meeldima, kes teab! Gura Humorului on armas, pisike puhas linnake, väga suur kontrast eelnevatele küladele ja linnadele, mida me Rumeenias olles läbisime.

Absolutely incredible! In itself, this mountain road was wonderful with its captivating nature views, on the other hand it definitely made my stomach hollow when there’s a ravine yawning on the right and a rocky cliff wall towers on the left. And in addition to the road being as winding as possible, it was also full of potholes. According to Teet, this was also one of the worst road sections we’ve ever encountered on our trips. Hopefully the last one too! Coming down from the mountains, the roads became better and wider, but the curvy zigzags didn’t disappear. Teet visibly enjoys riding on such roads, I don’t yet. But we still have 5 days here in Romania, maybe gradually I’ll start liking it too, who knows! Gura Humorului is a lovely, small clean town, a very big contrast to the previous villages and towns we passed through while in Romania.

Meie ööbimiskoht on linna servas ja siin oleme küll ainukesed külalised. Kui eelmises kohas oli peale meid mõlemal päeval veel suured turismigrupid, siis siin saame uhket üksindust nautida. Peretütar räägib ilusat inglise keelt, perenaisega saab jällegi prantsuse keelt harjutada. Teeduga just arutasime, et kunagi ju ei tea, kus mingi asi võib kasuks tulla, ma poleks iial osanud arvata, et Rumeenias võiks minu piskust prantsuse keele oskusest abi olla!

Our accommodation is on the edge of town and here we are the only guests. While at the previous place there were still large tourist groups on both days besides us, here we can enjoy proud solitude. The family’s daughter speaks beautiful English, with the hostess we can practice French again. We were just discussing with Teet that you never know where something might come in handy, I would never have thought that my small knowledge of French could be useful in Romania!

Üllatav on siin see, et meie kaasavarutud OFFi pudelid pole kordagi kasutuses olnud, siin lihtsalt pole ühtegi tüütut putukat, kes meie õdusaid õhtuid häiriksid. Eile istusimegi poole ööni terrassil, jõime kohalikku veini, nautisime ritsikate sirinat ja tõdesime, et seekordseks reisiks sai õige sihtkoht valitud. Reedene päev viib meid Brasovisse, oleme kohapeal 3 päeva ja majutust pakub meile üks eestlanna. Temperatuur on stabiilselt +30 ja kõrgem, ühesõnaga on PALAV!!!

What’s surprising here is that our packed OFF bottles haven’t been used once, there simply isn’t a single annoying insect here to disturb our cozy evenings. Yesterday we sat on the terrace until midnight, drank local wine, enjoyed the crickets’ chirping and concluded that the right destination was chosen for this trip. Friday will take us to Brașov, we’ll be there for 3 days and an Estonian woman will provide us with accommodation. The temperature is steadily +30 and higher, in other words it’s HOT!!!

Tänane päev oli täielikult pühendatud sõidule. Me ei teinud isegi ühtegi pilti. Seega tuleb ka jutt üsna lühike.

Sõit kulges läbi tavapärase Rumeenia maastiku. Külad teeääres olid praktiliselt kokku kasvanud, mis viis keskmise kiiruse alla. Ületasime ka ühe mäe, mis tõi üksluisesse sõidurutiini veidi vaheldust.

Kuna päev oli palav ja üksluine, siis tundsin päeva teisel poolel, et tagaistmel hakkab tasapisi tekkima plahvatusohtlik olukord. Kui siis lõpuks plahvatus toimus, oli see kardetust palju tagasihoidlikum. Ka oli see suunatud rumeenlastele, kes ilusad peatuskohad prahi ja väljaheidetega ära lagastavad, mitte siinkirjutajale.

Brasovis oli meil peatuskoha leidmisega veidi seiklemist. Kõigepealt selgus, et olin GPSi osanud sisestada küll õige tänavanime, kuid see asus Brasovi eeslinnas. Siis leidsime üles õige tänava. Kuid selgus, et meid on paigutatud teises kohas asuvasse majja. Peale pererahvaga lobisemist suundusime juba õigesse majutuskohta.

Õhtule pani punkti mozarella salat koos valge veiniga varjulise õunapuu all. Elu on ikka tegelikult ilus!

Today was completely dedicated to riding. We didn’t even take a single picture. So the story will be quite short too.

The ride went through typical Romanian countryside. Villages along the road had practically grown together, which brought down our average speed. We also crossed one mountain, which brought some variation to the monotonous riding routine.

Since the day was hot and monotonous, I felt in the second half of the day that an explosive situation was gradually developing on the back seat. When the explosion finally occurred, it was much more modest than feared. It was also directed at Romanians who trash beautiful rest stops with garbage and waste, not at the writer here.

In Brasov we had some adventures finding our accommodation. First it turned out that I had managed to enter the correct street name in the GPS, but it was located in a suburb of Brasov. Then we found the correct street. But it turned out that we had been placed in a house located in a different place. After chatting with the family we headed to the correct accommodation.

The evening was topped off with mozzarella salad along with white wine under a shady apple tree. Life really is beautiful after all!

Meie elamine Brasovis on suurepärases kohas. Vanalinna on 10 minutine jalutuskäik. Lähedal on väike poeke, kus on kõik vajalik olemas ja kus müüjad meid juba ära tunnevad. Ukse ees kasvab varjuline õunapuu, mille all on hea nii hommikukohvi juua kui ka õhtust süüa.

Täna me tsiklit ei puutunud vaid tegelesime tõsisemalt vaatamisväärsuste vaatamisega ja vaadata on siin tublisti, sest Brasovis on väga ilus vanalinn. Transilvania on olnud pikka aega ungarlaste võimu all ja lisaks sellele on siin olnud märkimisväärne Saksa kogukond. Need olidki keskajal siin tegijad. Rumeenlased olid talumehed ja neil suuremas osas õigused puudusid. Isegi linnaväravatest sisse lasti neid ainult päeval ja õhtuks pidid nad kadunud olema. Linna vana nimi oligi hoopis Kronstadt.

Our accommodation in Brasov is in an excellent location. It’s a 10-minute walk to the old town. Nearby is a small shop that has everything we need and where the sellers already recognize us. In front of the door grows a shady apple tree, under which it’s good to drink morning coffee as well as eat dinner.

Today we didn’t touch the bike but dealt more seriously with sightseeing, and there’s plenty to see here because Brasov has a very beautiful old town. Transylvania was under Hungarian rule for a long time and in addition there was a significant German community here. They were the ones who were the doers in the Middle Ages. Romanians were farmers and mostly lacked rights. They were only allowed into the city gates during the day and by evening they had to be gone. The city’s old name was Kronstadt.

Juba enne olime kuulnud, et linna ümbruses elavad karud. Täna puutusime sellega ka ise kokku. Jalutades linnamüüri ääres metsa servas märkasime algul lõhki rebitud prügikotti. Siis nägime ühte meest, kes seda ja eemal olevat veidi porist muruplatsi pildistas. Siis kui kuulsime korratavat sõna “ursa”, taipasime, et tegu on karu tööga ja et muruplatsil on karu jäljed ja isegi karvatuustid.

We had already heard before that bears live around the city. Today we encountered this ourselves. Walking along the city wall at the edge of the forest, we first noticed a torn garbage bag. Then we saw a man photographing it and a somewhat muddy grass area in the distance. When we heard the word “ursa” being repeated, we realized it was the work of a bear and that there were bear tracks and even fur tufts on the grass area.

Erinevalt Tallinnast asub Brasov mägede vahel. Ühe otsa viib köisraudtee. Ülevalt, kus on ka Hollywoodi stiilis Brasovi silt, avaneb linnale suurepärane vaade. Tallinnast näeb nii ainult lennukilt.

Unlike Tallinn, Brasov is located among mountains. A cable railway takes you to one end. From the top, where there’s also a Hollywood-style Brasov sign, an excellent view of the city opens up. You can only see Tallinn like this from an airplane.

Linnas asub ka Euroopa üks kitsamaid tänavaid, mille nimeks on Köie tänav. Selle laius on 1,3 meetrit.

The city also has one of Europe’s narrowest streets, called Rope Street. Its width is 1.3 meters.

Õhtul käisime kirikus orelikontserdil. Kirik pidavat olema Ida-Euroopas üks suurimaid ja mahutama 5000 inimest. Üks mõnus päev 🙂

In the evening we went to an organ concert at the church. The church is said to be one of the largest in Eastern Europe and can hold 5000 people. One pleasant day 🙂

Tänase päeva eesmärgiks oli läbida Transfagarasani maantee. See on Rumeenia kõige kõrgemal asuv asfalteeritud tee. Räägitakse, et see on kõigi mootorratturite unistuste teekond 🙂 GPS näitas kõrguseks umbes 2000m. Selle maantee lasi 70ndatel ehitada Ceausescu, kes kartis, et venelased tungivad sisse Rumeeniasse (nagu 1968ndal aastal Tsehhoslovakkiasse). Tee ehitati valmis 4,5 aastaga. Lonely Planeti andmetel kulutati sealjuures 6 miljonit kg dünamiiti ja ehituse käigus hukkus mitteametlikel andmetel 38 teed ehitanud sõdurit.

Today’s goal was to traverse the Transfăgărășan highway. This is Romania’s highest paved road. It’s said to be every motorcyclist’s dream route 🙂 The GPS showed an altitude of about 2000m. This highway was built in the 1970s by Ceaușescu, who feared that the Russians would invade Romania (as they did Czechoslovakia in 1968). The road was completed in 4.5 years. According to Lonely Planet, 6 million kg of dynamite were used, and according to unofficial data, 38 soldiers building the road died during construction.

Tee oli tõepoolest väga maaliline, mööda mäekülgi looklev ja ühes kohas nägime isegi lund. Tegemist on tõesti populaarse turismiobjektiga. Igal pool oli palju telkijaid. Mäetipus läbib tee umbes 900 m pikkuse tunneli. Elus esimest korda sõitsime tunnelis, mis oli valgustamata. Päris jube tunne oli, sest nähtavus oli hoolimata tuledest kehv.

The road was indeed very picturesque, winding along mountain slopes, and in one place we even saw snow. This is truly a popular tourist destination. There were many campers everywhere. At the mountain top, the road passes through an approximately 900 m long tunnel. For the first time in our lives we rode through a tunnel that was unlit. It was a really terrible feeling, because visibility was poor despite our lights.

Mäe teisel küljel laskus tee ilusa Vidraru paisjärve äärde. Eriti muljetavaldav on tamm, mille taga järv seisab. Selle kõrgus on üle 160 m. Tammil oli ka platvorm benji hüpete tegemiseks, aga meie ühtegi hüppajat ei näinud.

On the other side of the mountain, the road descended to the beautiful Vidraru reservoir. Particularly impressive is the dam behind which the lake sits. Its height is over 160 m. The dam also had a platform for bungee jumping, but we didn’t see any jumpers.

Varsti jõudsime Poienari kindluse juurde. Hoopis see pidavat olema õige Dracula kindlus, sest siin toimetas 1450ndatel Vlad Țepeș, kelle hüüdnimeks oli Dracula. Kindlus asub kõrgel mäe otsas ja selleni jõudmiseks tuleb üles ronida 1480st trapiastmest. Meie tsiklikostüümides ei olnud see sugugi lihtne ettevõtmine. Kui me üleval kindluse müüril vett jõime ja pirukat sõime, tundus nagu oleks kuulda olnud eesti keelt.

Alguses arvasime, et oleme mäkke ronimisest nii kurnatud, et asjad hakkavad viirastuma. Selgus, et nii hull asi siiski ei ole ja meie kõrval tegidki pilti noormees ja neiu Eestist. Nemad olid läbinud meiega analoogilise teekonna läbi Poola, Slovakkia ja Ungari, kuid kuid teinud seda hääletades. Hea oli eesti keeles reisimuljeid vahetada.

Soon we reached Poienari fortress. This is supposed to be the real Dracula’s castle, because Vlad Țepeș, whose nickname was Dracula, operated here in the 1450s. The fortress is located high on a mountaintop and to reach it you have to climb 1480 steps. In our motorcycle gear, this was not a simple undertaking at all. When we were up on the fortress wall drinking water and eating pastries, it seemed like we could hear Estonian being spoken.

At first we thought we were so exhausted from climbing the mountain that things were starting to appear as mirages. It turned out that things weren’t that bad after all, and next to us a young man and woman from Estonia were indeed taking pictures. They had traveled a route similar to ours through Poland, Slovakia and Hungary, but had done it by hitchhiking. It was good to exchange travel impressions in Estonian.

Viimane päeva vaatamisväärsus oli Bran’i loss, milleni jõudsime läbi vihmasaju. Brani loss, mida nimetatakse ka Dracula lossiks ei ole tegelikult Vlad Țepesiga eriti seotud. On võimalus, et ta veetis seal ühe öö, aga seegi ei ole kindel. Hoopis olulisemaks lossiga seotud isikuks on Rumeenia kuninganna Marie, kes elas lossis 1920ndatest aastatest kuni oma surmani. Loss nägi välja väga kena ja üldse mitte sünge.

Kuninganna Marie oli väga muljetavaldav naine. Tal oli kuus last, ta oli hea sulega (tema eluajal avaldati 15 tema raamatut) ja kuigi teda eriti poliitika juurde ei lastud, teenis ta ära diplomaatide austuse 1. maailmasõja järgsel rahukonverentsil.

The last attraction of the day was Bran Castle, which we reached through rainfall. Bran Castle, also called Dracula’s Castle, is not actually very connected to Vlad Țepeș. It’s possible that he spent one night there, but even that is not certain. A much more important person connected to the castle is Romanian Queen Marie, who lived in the castle from the 1920s until her death. The castle looked very nice and not at all sinister.

Queen Marie was a very impressive woman. She had six children, she was good with the pen (15 of her books were published during her lifetime), and although she wasn’t really allowed into politics, she earned the respect of diplomats at the peace conference after World War I.

Täna on meie viimane päev Brasovis. Kuna eile hommikul alustasime oma teekonda mägedesse kell 6 ja koju jõudsime ~ kell 19, siis täna premeerisime end pikema une ning mõnusalt rahuliku päevaga.

Käisime Brasovi lähedal Sinaia linnas, kus asuvad kuninganna Marie kaks residentsi: Pelesi ja Pelisori lossid. Mõlemad muljetavaldavalt kauni arhitektuuriga.

Today is our last day in Brasov. Since yesterday morning we started our journey to the mountains at 6 o’clock and got home around 7 PM, today we rewarded ourselves with longer sleep and a nicely relaxed day.

We visited the town of Sinaia near Brasov, where Queen Marie’s two residences are located: Peleș and Pelișor castles. Both with impressively beautiful architecture.

Sealtsamast lähedalt viib kõrgele mägedesse köisraudtee. Täna oli selline sombune ja udune päev, nii et palju seal pildistada ei saanud, pidevalt tuli mõni pilv ette, aga üldmulje sinna üles sõites ja seal ringi jalutades oli küll võimas.

From right there nearby, a cable railway takes you high up into the mountains. Today was such a gloomy and foggy day that we couldn’t photograph much there, clouds kept coming in front, but the overall impression while riding up there and walking around was truly impressive.

Homme (teisipäeva) varahommikul stardime Doonau delta suunas, öömaja on meil broneeritud Tulceas, teekond sinnani on 380 km. Õnneks on ilmad jahedamaks läinud, eile ja täna oli keskmiselt kõigest +20-23 kraadi, meile sobib see hästi!!

Mis mägiteedel sõitmisesse puutub, siis hakkan nendega juba harjuma, mitte et just väga naudiks seda, aga … inimene harjub ju kõigega 🙂

Tomorrow (Tuesday) early morning we start toward the Danube delta, we have accommodation booked in Tulcea, the journey there is 380 km. Fortunately the weather has become cooler, yesterday and today it was on average only +20-23 degrees, that suits us well!!

As for riding on mountain roads, I’m already getting used to them, not that I really enjoy it very much, but… people get used to everything 🙂