Horowitz Travel- May 12,
2017-
We retraced our steps
out of Bulgaria passing many towns we'd seen. Due to our desire to stay
multiple nights in some hotels, our itinerary was arranged so that we were a
five-hour drive from the border town, Ruse, where we were to meet our Romanian
guide. From there we had a two-hour drive to Bucharest.
The Valley of the Roses
and of the Kings sped by as we re-crossed the mountains through passes littered
with roadside snails for the taking. Escargot forever. Vestiges of snow caps
looked down holding on to the last of winter.
Due to our time table,
we had lunch at a Go Grill. Fast food on the hoof. We had spicy beef sausage
that was slid longways into holes in sub-like buns. Efficient and clever way to
eat what was essentially a hot dog. With bottled water, it cost $3.50 for three
of us.
We were mostly quiet
during the drive with some reminiscing about our trip. We told Patrick that
with all our travels including, India and Vietnam Nam, this was the most unique
and varied experience we'd had. In other countries, we went from temple to
temple, church to church, market to market. In Bulgaria, we climbed into caves,
up to cave monasteries, into a bunker, down a cliff to a rock church, uphill to
a Jewish cemetery, and learned about a civilization that previously had no
relevance to us.
We arrived at the
transfer point, the Ana Palace Hotel, found our driver, and hugged Patrick
good-bye. We all had a moment of sadness and insecurity as we left one keeper
for an unknown. Patrick gave us red and white braided friendship bracelets.
Traditionally they are to be worn until we see a stork delivering a baby.
Sweet. True to form, Patrick waited for us to pull away before he left.
Our driver was Silviu.
He was pinch-hitting for Radu Savu who will be our guide. We were treated to a
ride in a roomy BMW van and were happy to stretch our legs. Silviu turned out
to be an interesting man. He's about 28, works in the computer industry, is
studying for his PhD in physics, and builds and races dragsters.
Shortly after crossing
the Danube, we slowed at the checkpoint. Trucks can wait 4-8 hours, but we made
it across in 25 minutes. At one point horns began honking. In the din, we could
distinguish the cars from buses from trucks. I don't know if things sped up,
but it was an amusing pastime.
Romania uses the Latin
alphabet. Romanian is a Romance language. The problem is that we can read it
but still can't understand it. It appears to be a better maintained country,
but Silviu said there was a nostalgia for the economy and building projects
under Communism. Ceausescu is remembered for full employment and his building
program not for the full orphanages. Freedom under democracy is now favored,
but it brings some insecurity.
We drove down wide
boulevards past actual sidewalks that were neither buckling nor made of rocks.
Our hotel, Berthelot, is a modern, four-star facility. It's clean and the rooms
are well appointed. I love kitsch, but there's a place for modern.
On the way to the ATM to
get Romanian lei, we realized we needed bread for Shabbat. We'd gotten grape
juice at a gas station this morning. With no language at all, we asked a
proprietor if he had small bread (a roll). He said he didn't. We wanted to walk
into his tiny shop, but he told us "no." We thought he was closed and
asked him, "finished?" He shook his head up and down. In this area,
the head shake for "yes" and "no" are opposite from us. We
forgot that detail so thought he was closed. Then he pointed to the bread
display in the window. We pointed to the smallest loaf labeled
"baton." He agreed to sell it to us. We were ready for Shabbat.
We walked to dinner at
Varta, recommended by the hotel. It's typical Romanian fare. When we asked the
hotel manager what that would be, he said, "You eat chicken, we eat chicken."
We had sour soup to start. Mine was chicken and the others had beef. Quite a
nice tang. David had chicken schnitzel and Judi had a chicken dish with
polenta. I had a salad. Can't stuff anymore into my body.
Tomorrow we'll tour
Bucharest and head for Sibiu in Transylvania.
Toby
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| Friendship bracelets from Patrick |
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| Romania |
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| Border crossing into Romania |
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