Gordon: If we do not have a specific attraction or city as our day's destination, we often select one based on its distance and the availability of accommodation. Today those criteria led us to a guesthouse in the village of Sâncraiu. While our guesthouse was the only one listed on Bookings, on a walk around the village we encountered no less than seven other guesthouses. ...
Gordon: For most of our trip across Europe we have had the benefit of relatively flat cycling. That changed today as we entered the first hills of the Carpathians. Ruth says that I get a special sparkle in my eyes when I am in the mountains, and I must admit that I am excited to be surrounded by forested hills.The change that we have experienced ...
Ruth: Our first two days in Romania have been an amazing surprise. The city of Oradea is home to a collection of Art Nouveau buildings that are being lovingly restored after a century of neglect. It is a city I would love to return to in a decade or two to see even further restoration progress. Gord and I only learned about the Succession school ...
Ruth: The Hungarian plains are the land of the bicycle. Not only is the area flat and well suited to riding, but everybody rides one. The more I looked around the small town we have been passing through the more I realized that the majority of homes do not have cars in their driveways. Oh of course there are cars on the road ranging from ...
Gordon: One of the delights of slow, self-propelled travel is the unexpected sights between the known ones. Today we had such an experience. We were poking along on a small road in the middle of nowhere when we spied an airplane in a field. "That's the biggest biplane I've ever seen" Ruth said, "I'm going to have a look at it." On approaching the plane ...
Ruth:No wonder the Ottomans were determined to possess this area, it's a geothermal gold mine. Every town we pass seems to have thermal pools. None of them anything like the ancient Ottoman one we visited in Budapest, but all promising a range of medical benefits from these healing springs. In order to maximize the placebo effects of these spas I have been remarking on how I ...
Gordon: We have read that the Danube valley is not the most interesting area of Romania. As a result we made the decision to leave the Danube in Budapest and for the past two days we have been heading east towards Transylvania.The plains of Hungary have turned out to be a pleasant cycling experience. The land is largely flat, with fields of ripening sunflowers and ...
Ruth: I love Budapest. We have been enjoying the city and our little apartment just a few blocks from the Parliament on the Pest side of the river. After two busy days of walking, art museums and sightseeing, this afternoon we shifted fully into rest and relaxation mode at the Király Ottoman thermal baths. Ahhh, now that was a true rest day. I really could ...
Yesterday was Gord's 59th birthday and I wanted it to be special so we cycled for sixty kilometres in steady rain. The forecast kept being revised throughout the day, pushing the time back on when the rain would actually stop. We were mostly up on a dyke with loose gravel that we had to wallow and plow through before we finally opted for the wetter ...
Gate in Hainburg AustriaRuth:As we said goodbye to Austria we were into Slovakia and Eastern Europe before even noticing a border crossing. Freedom of movement is now a reality in Europe and only traces are left of the Iron Curtain that cut of the Eastern Block from the West. Old town in BratislavaIt was a rainy day today, but only our third on this entire trip. ...