Tag: Romania

The Best Posts of 2024 – A Year of Hidden Gems

2024 was an interesting year where I only traveled to eight different countries, four of which I had never been in before. I also hit the fiftieth country I have visited this year, and after all of the travel I have done, it is getting harder to find those places where I have never been before. Still, the new countries I went to, Georgia, Armenia, Slovakia, and Romania, are not the ones that many people put on their lists for travel. I found that they were some of the best traveling experiences I have had in a long time due the fact that the places were not overrun with tourists, and I was able to find some spectacular hidden gems out there. The interests of some of these sparked my readers’ interests as well, especially the country of Georgia, because this was the best year I have seen for this little blog that I write, and I appreciate that all of you come to visit to see what I am up to in this world.

Enough talking, here is the list of the most popular posts I wrote this year:

10. The Next Big Thing – Tbilisi, Georgia

This is the first appearance of the country of Georgia on this list, and it is not the last. My exploration of this country on the Baltic Sea captured the imagination of my audience throughout the year even though I was only there for a couple of weeks early in the Summer. It is not a place that is on the usual destination route for many Americans, but after being there, I think that this might change. The capital, Tbilisi is a great undiscovered city that I can see becoming the next big city that people will flock to. I loved the blend of the European feel with the old relics lingering around from the Soviet era. There is a reason that this country will appear on this list a couple more times.

9. Wadi Rum – A Photographer’s Paradise

Wadi Rum has gained in popularity over the years, but because of all of the unrest that is happening in the Middle East right now, it is not getting the tourists that it used to have. This means that the place is quieter, and it makes it feel like you are the only one there as you get explore the amazing landscapes. It was the second time I have made it to my favorite place in Jordan, and I am also amazed at the pictures I am able to get while there. It will only be a matter of time before people once again make there way out there to see its beauty.

8. Sighnaghi, Georgia

This is the second time that Georgia will appear on this list, and it will not be the last. Sighnaghi is not as big of a town as Tbilisi is, but it is one of the must-sees if visiting this country. This is the wine country of Georgia, and they are known as the place where wine originated. They still produce it the same way they did over 8,000 years ago in huge clay pots that are buried under the ground, and there are numerous wineries in this region that allow you to go and try out the unique blend that can only be found here. It was one of the more memorable parts of this trip and I can see why the post connected with the crowd.

7. A Day Trip to Armenia

Officially this is a different country than Georgia, but it was a day trip that I took while staying in Tbilisi. It was part of a day tour that took us through the majestic mountains of this country to explore its many monasteries. It was a great way to spend the day, and the landscapes out there were breath-taking. I also had fun getting to know the variety of people on the tour. They had come from all corners of the world with different beliefs, and ideologies, yet we were all willing to share in the beauty of the day.

6. Columbia Gorge Hotel – Hood River, Oregon

I was able to spend my wedding anniversary in Hood River in Oregon. It is a touristy town in the Columbia Gorge area that attracts many people who enjoy windsurfing. The town also boasts one of the oldest hotels in the state, the Columbia Gorge Hotel. We spent the night here, and enjoyed the accommodations. It was fun to take a little trip back in time while enjoying the landscape of the Gorge.

5. Gergeti Trinity Church – Kazbegi, Georgia

Yes, we are back in Georgia. This time we traveled to the border for the mountain town of Kazbegi. I remember taking this picture and saying, “I can see Russia from here”, and yes, we were that close. This post does not surprise me about its popularity. It talks about how to find the hiking trail that will take people up to the small church that sits on the peak of one of the mountains. This was one of my favorite days of the year taking this hike and staying in this small mountain town. I am glad that it was one of the bigger posts from the year as well.

4. The Foodie Tour – Bratislava, Slovakia

This was another one of my favorite days of the year, and also one that we had stumbled upon. Because of the recent turmoil in the Middle East, it had been difficult to find a quick flight to any place in Europe. Ryan Air had just about left the region, and the prices of air fare had grown a lot. We were able to find a cheap flight to Vienna, and we flew there to take a short bus ride to the town of Bratislava. We spent a long weekend in this small European town, and spent one of those days stopping at the various restaurants in town and having a drink and a small bite to eat. It was a great way to spend a day, and I would love to do it again in other small towns I get to visit.

3. Peles Castle versus Bran Castle – Transylvania, Romania

I was able to travel to other place other than Georgia this year, and another place I enjoyed was Transylvania in Romania. I did go to two of the bigger tourist sights, Bran Castle and Peles Castle, while I was there, and I did a quick comparison of these bigger attractions. Both of them were fun to go to, but they both had their own vibe and reason for going there. Many people found this post helpful as they made plans to make it out there on their own.

2. The Chronicles of Georgia

One of the strangest places I went to over the past year was also in Georgia. The Chronicles of Georgia is on the outskirts of the city of Tbilisi, and overlook the people as they move about their daily lives. It is actually a relatively newer structure that hints back to the days of Soviet occupation as it tells the history of the Georgian people. It was never finished, but there is enough going on in the carvings on the stone that it easy to spend half a day here looking at all it has to offer.

1. Arkham Horror, The Card Game – A Review

This is the post that surprised me the most this year. I have been writing board game reviews on the side ever since I got back into the hobby during the pandemic. Some of them have done well, but I never expected anything big to come out of it. I got this game because I knew I was going to have some time where I would be by myself and could play it alone. I really enjoyed the game, and posted the review. Apparently it is a game that many people are interested in because this was the post that is constantly being clicked on. It easily became the biggest post of the year, and has inspired me to write more board game reviews in the future.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

The following post also had a lot of traffic, but they were written in previous years.

A Quick Tuk Tuk Ride – Chennai, India

The Basilica Cistern – Istanbul, Turkey

The Dead Sea, Jordan – The Salt Flats

The Best Short Stories

Blue Wine – Cyprus

Wingspan versus Everdell

Denver International Airport – It is still weird

The Bat Cave – Railay, Thailand

Happy Campers vs. Go Campers – Iceland by Camper Van

Beyond the Mountain Road

No one will visit us in the country
As they have to drive up a windy road
Made of dirt, guarded by a horde of trees,
Not offering much room for a wide load.
We can nestle in our tiny chateau,
Listening to the low of the neighbor’s cows.
The wild grasses are allowed to grow;
As wind blows, they join in uniform bows.
The winter snows will eventually come,
Locking us in the valley until Spring.
The weather will continually drum
As we enjoy the freedom that it brings.
I’ll revel in the mountain solitude,
Not believing my escape to be rude.

A Transylvania Fall

I did have a couple of expectations when I traveled to Romania during the month of October. The idea of a creepy landscape with rolling fog and old world charm had to be around every corner, and it would be like walking into some gothic horror story. My expectations might have been a little too big, but what I encountered instead was even more exciting and exceeded the expectations that I did have.

Transylvania does have an old world charm to it, but not in the creepy gothic vibe that I was expecting. It is more of the walking through the country side on a crisp autumn day that allows you to feel the nostalgia of days past, and an excitement for the days to come. I was able to feel the joy of the season again which does not come with the places I have lived recently such as Jordan or Thailand. It used to be my favorite season, and I enjoyed being able to experience it again.

Transylvania is also a mountainous part of Romania that give spectacular views of the fall colors. There are many beautiful drives between the bigger cities in the mountains that take you through these mountains. At many times it is like driving through a tunnel made of large deciduous trees shedding their leaves on the road. There were also many spots along the roads that made for great pictures of the faraway landscape. A perfect picture was always around the corner.

There are two major cities that people visit in Transylvania and each of them offer their own specific type of charm. Brasov is a mountain community that feels like an older European city with a long and expansive walking part of the town. It has more of a medieval feel to it because of the old wall that protects this part of the city, and the old towers and churches that you can explore there. The restaurants and shops definitely cater to a tourist crowd, but it feels as if that crowd would come from a different part of Romania, and you do not see as many out of country tourists hanging out there.

Sibiu is the other major city in Transylvania, and it has a completely different vibe. There is still a huge walking part of the city that most of the tourists spend time in, but the platas, or squares are much bigger, and attract the usual crowds that can be seen in most Western European cities. There are numerous restaurants with tables spilling out into the square, and behind them hold various shops that tourists can be seen entering and leaving. Overall, it feels more like a typical European city rather than the mountainous Brasov, but both are great places to stay and enjoy the chilly atmosphere that this spot of the world offers in autumn.

Each place is a great place to settle down and then from there take day trips to the various places that are worth visiting in the region. There are historic churches and castles waiting to be explored, and beyond that there are so many paths through the woods that take you to the most unexpected places. Some of them are more populated than others, and you never know when you will run into a pop up shopping area.

There are many other things out there to explore that just add to the beauty of the region. Even the quiet solitude of a graveyard seems like it should belong on the typical tourist itinerary. It may feel a little gothic to even consider doing it, but somehow it belongs on this trip. It just adds to part of the atmosphere of the experience, and it is also interesting to read the history that some of these places hold in its grip.

I am glad that I have gotten to experience Romania in the fall, more specifically Transylvania. I was a little surprised to see that there were not more people out there enjoying the same experience that we were because it seemed like the perfect time to be out there. The fall colors were amazing, and I don’t believe that we hit the height of those colors. I could only imagine what it would have been like if we were out there then. The weather was perfect for most of the trip, and it just heightened the atmosphere of what the location is best known for. Maybe because of the smaller crowds, it made for a more memorable trip, but I could not imagine another time to come out to this beautiful part of the world. I hope that someday you can find the time to understand the joy that I found by coming out to Romain and seeing what it has to offer in the fall.

Autumn Days

The fog puts its dirty paws on the hills,
So it can creep to the valley below.
The vibe of summertime is what it kills
As it weaves through the forest really slow.
It brings with it, its chilly friend, the mist,
To cover the ground with a film of dew,
Taking the season in its mighty fist
To a routine that we forgot we knew.
It just means an extra layer today
Before I venture outside of my door.
I know that this monster is here to stay
Until it returns to the land of yore.
I guess I should enjoy these autumn days
When the clouds descend upon us to graze.

Peles Castle versus Bran Castle – Transylvania, Romania

Transylvania is known for one creature that stalks our nightmares, Count Dracula, and it is the main reason that people come to visit. The good people of Romania play this up, and it is hard to find a place where the inspiration for this legend, Vlad the Impaler, does not show up somewhere. It makes for a great place to visit during Halloween, and many people who come out to Transylvania make sure that they tour the place where Vlad ruled from, Bran Castle, but is that the best castle to check out?

There is another place that brings many people to visit as well, Peles Castle. It is a more modern take on the medieval masterpieces with this one being built in the late 1800’s, and early 1900’s. It still has the feel of a fortress that could hold back the invading hordes, but it comes with modern conveniences such as running water and toilets. Both of the places housed the royalty of Romania, but are both worth the visit? If you came out to Transylvania and you only had time to go and see one of them, which one should you go? Well, that is the question I will be answering for you today.

There is a stark contrast between the two places. Peles Castle still has the feel of a large sprawling building with many twists and turns with secrets and ghosts hiding around each corner. However, the castle has a lot of the modern conveniences that would make living there very easy. The only problem is that there is so much money that has been put into the place that there is no possible way that only but a select handful of people could ever think about living in a place like this.

Each room showcases the amount of money that King Carol I had when he had the place built. The walls are covered in expensive paintings, specially designed leather wallpaper, and intricately carved wood. I would have spent more time looking at the walls if it wasn’t for all the furniture that was also supplied in the place, each one handcrafted to fit into the room where it now resides.

The pieces don’t only come from Romania either. King Carol I lived during a time where international travel was starting to become more of a thing for people in power, and he took full advantage of that fact. He not only traveled all over Europe, but spent a lot of time in the far eastern part of Asia. There are many art pieces that come from India, China, and Japan that help to decorate this place, and though they come from all over the world, they never feel out of place in this palace.

If the interior of Peles Castle is not enough to enjoy, taking a stroll out on its massive grounds is also worth the visit. Right next to the castle there are manicured gardens that have spots where you can sit down and enjoy the day. Beyond this are forest paths that can take you to the town down below. It is a beautiful walk on a fall day, and there are stalls set up along it where merchants sell their own handcrafted art, or the typical souvenir. It is an impressive place to visit though there can be crowds that will cause some delay to get in to see what the place has to offer.

Bran Castle also has large crowds that go and see it every day. However, it is dramatically different. The most obvious is the connection that the place has to the famous horror character, Count Dracula. He did not live in this castle, but the inspiration for the character, Vlad the Impaler did, and they play that up at any opportunity they can. It is a little bit campy, but when you are out here during the month of October, a little bit of camp can be fun.

It is an older castle, built in the 14th century, and it does not hold the modern conveniences that Peles Castle does. The rooms are also simple compared to the other castle, but it still offers a feeling like people could have actually lived in a place like this, as opposed to Peles Castle where everything is so extravagant that it is hard to believe that anyone ever lived like that.

The furniture is also not nearly as elegant, but then again, it comes from a time when even royalty looked more to practicality rather than showiness. It would still have been greater than anything that could have been found in a house from the locals living off of the land, and its durability highlights how something like this could have lasted throughout the centuries.

Its grounds are not as immense, but it is situated in a hilly part of Transylvania where the views from the windows are spectacular. If would offer a simpler kind of lifestyle, but it would still be elaborate enough to know that you are in the house of royalty.

All in all, both places are great to visit. Peles Castle is a little more memorable because of how extravagant everything is there, but that does not mean that Bran Castle does not have a lot to offer. It basically comes down to whether you are really into the vampire legends or not. If this is your thing than you will really enjoy the camp of Bran Castle over Peles. My biggest suggestion would be to plan for a long enough trip where you could visit both of them because they are both worth it.

Until next time, go out there and see as much of the world as possible.

Brasov in the Rain – Transylvania, Romania

It was a chilly October day, and there was a constant drizzle coming from the sky all day long. Every once in a while, the rain would pick up for a bit, but it was never for very long. As long as I planned the day well, I could stay relatively dry as I ventured out for my first full day of Fall Break. There was no way that I was going to let a little water falling from the sky from keeping me from enjoying the day. The city of Brasov was waiting and I wanted to get out there to enjoy what it had to offer.

It was early in the season for fall colors, but they were just starting to peek through, and there were plenty of parks where the leaves were falling from the trees and covering the ground. Walking around the old part of town was a pleasure because we would run into one of these parks and would have to walk under the canopy to get the full flavor of what the season had to offer.

The main streets had a lot to offer as well, and the rain kept the crowds at bay, especially on a Saturday when even the locals would come out and enjoy this part of town. Despite the cold and wetness, there were still plenty of people having a beer and some food underneath the umbrellas in the middle of the street, so it still had that European feel. The walking market area also had a lot to offer but my favorites had to be the book stores and the restaurants. I went into a couple of the book stores, and they had a lot of options available including many English options. There was a beautiful one on the main drag that even sold records and board games. If I lived out here, it would be a place that I would visit often.

There are also a couple of great sights that are located in the old part of Brasov. They are pretty close to each other and it makes for a great day to make it around to them to see how many of them you can find. My favorites were the Catherine’s Gate and the park that surrounds it, and the Black Church that sits in the middle of the old town.

The Black Church is an impressive sight, and it looks even more gloomy when the rain streaks down its facade. It is the easiest building to spot because it looms over the rest of the town, and its gothic architecture begs for a visit. It survived a fire in 1689 which adds to its appeal, but unfortunately many of the treasure that it once held did not survive. It is cool to look at fro the outside, and if you are really into architecture, it is worth a visit inside. Otherwise, it is best to look at from the outside, and you can skip going in.

If it gets a little cold wandering around the town, there are plenty of good restaurants to pop into for traditional Romanian food. They boast some hardy cuisine of soups, and roasted meats. I went in to La Ceaun for some food, and had a bean and ham soup served in a bread bowl. It warmed me right up, and gave me a little rest from all of the rain that was coming down.

It was the perfect way to spend a drizzly October day. The was cool, and rainy, but also had the perfect feel of a fall day. I enjoyed the start of the trip, and look forward to the other adventures that await me while I travel around Transylvania.

Where to Travel in October – Transylvania, Romania

It has been a long while since I have had a true autumn experience. I have not been able to travel to the places in the world that explode in the fall foliage as it spreads its blanket across the earth. It used to be one of my favorite times of the year, where I would wear jeans and long sleeved shirts as I ventured out to experience the change of seasons. Since I have moved overseas, I have lived in places where autumn is not a season. It is either a continuation of the hot weather that I have lived with all year long, or it is a short two week jaunt into a colder, unbearable weather. So when I had the opportunity to go on a long fall break, I looked around the area I was living to find that perfect location where I could go and enjoy fall. Some place with the leaves, the crisp weather, and if at all possible, a little of the creepy feel that comes with Halloween being right around the corner. There was one place that fit the bill, Transylvania. It is perfect. It has the hilly mountains filled with deciduous trees. The cool, crisp weather comes with low hanging clouds that will blanket the land in a fog that adds to the creepy atmosphere. There is also the legend of Dracula that looms over the whole region that makes it feel like I have walked into a scary movie. It has every thing that I would look for in a vacation of this type.

So I am off for a week full of the autumn experience. I can’t wait to experience that cool, crisp air, and walk through the lanes full of fallen leaves. I hope you can join me in the experience as I write about all things Romanian as I travel off to Transylvania for the fall.