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Entry from: Brasov, Romania
Entry Title: "Probably the best city in the world"
Entry:
"Yesterday after Peles Castle we came to Brasov and parked next to a palace hotel. We couldn't afford it but the parking spot was free so we left the car there and walked around. This city is gorgeous and there are dozens of patio umbrellas advertising "Brasov: probably the best city in the world" throughout the old town. Super cool.
We found a really nice hotel for two nights and walked around the town square. We had some trouble finding the hotel parking for our car but it turns out it was due to very bad directions and not my own stupidity, which is nice to know. There are a few small detached garages like a house garage, in a crammed parking lot tucked behind a large building. The man at the front desk didn't mention any of those things when giving directions.
Once the car was safe we decided to have a beer at one of the many terrace restaurants in the large square directly across the street from our hotel. They were out of Guinness so I tried a local beer that our hot server recommended and it was really good (and cheap!) while Ally had a disappointing ice cream. I know, how can ice cream been disappointing? I hope to never find out.
Our hotel is pretty sweet except for the lack of air conditioning. This morning we were both awake at 8am because the sun was already overheating the room. The weather has been really warm and a bit muggy so far in Romania, and we appreciate it.
Today we woke up and had our complimentary breakfast before crossing the street to the tourist office. It was closed even though the door was open and it was 10 minutes after opening time. After awhile we learned that today is a national holiday and everything is closed. Ally somehow sweet-talked the guy at the tourist office to give us a map after he kept telling her "10 o'clock". I actually think that was the only English he knew and he just gave Ally a map in the hopes it would make her go away. (It worked).
Once we had the map we walked around the city centre to the sights that didn't need to be "open" to visit. We checked out some city gates and churches fruther up the hill. At some point we realized the gondola up the mountain was running so we went up that, wedged into the car with a couple dozen children.
At the top there is a Brasov sign much like the famous Hollywood sign and from the sign there are great views of the city below. Apparently you can hike there instead of taking the cable car but we are all about supporting the local economy and saving our energy.
Once we were back down in the city we got in our car and drove to a watch tower high up on the mountain opposite from the Brasov sign. Then we decided to test the GPS out and try to locate the fortress in nearby Rasnov.
The GPS got us to Rasnov and once we were there we could easily see the fortress (and a large Hollywood-esque "Rasnov" sign"). I started driving towards the fortress and we saw a few signs pointing us in the right direction. However the last one we saw pointed us in a direction that didn't make any sense to either of us so I kept on driving along the winding road that went up a mountain. We were pretty confident we were going the right way because obviously the fortress is near the top of the mountain, but then the road started winding downhill several minutes later and still no fortress in sight. After 8 kilometres or so more I decided to turn around and try that last sign we had seen. It turns out it was about 2 minutes from the fortress, pointing in the right direction.
Finally there, we got out and were very happy to find the fortress was open! We walked around and got more great views of the Transalvanian mountains and countryside. It was pretty cool but it would have been good to have more signboards telling us a bit about the fortress or a brochure or something. We like history. We did watch a video about Romanian fortified churches in general, but not this particular one. However as we were aboit to leave we did notice something intriguing: a sign ..."
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Photos from this trip:
1. "Main square in Brasov"
2. "Black Church in the main square"
3. "Brasov"
4. "Probably the best city in the world"
5. "Ally in the narrowest street"
6. "Me in the narrowest street"
7. "Cable car ride to the top"
8. "Brasov cemetery"
9. "St Nicolas Church"
10. "Black Church clock tower"
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