Bears and The Transfăgărășan

Thanks for a good time Bucharest... but it's time to head for the mountains!

Bucharest at night.

Enjoying the warm summer evenings in the capital.

I had just returned to Bucharest after an amazing few days up north in Maramureș county. I'd used overnight trains, caught irregular local buses, walked miles along country roads and even did a spot of hitchhiking. I never felt in danger with any of these things as the people are genuinely extremely friendly and open, even when they didn't speak English. I ad the chance to discover this part of Romania in a relaxed and carefree way, finding accommodation where and when I wanted without a hitch, and moved I even around quite freely considering I didn't have a car. I would have loved to have had a car, as it is pure freedom in cases like this - but I felt very proud of myself, how I was able to get around and work everything out, and do it alone. So, after waiting nearly 4 hours for the night train by hanging out and sharing beers and stories with a few locals, I was very tired and ready to sleep. There were no bunks available for the trip back, but I was so weary that it really didn't matter and before long I was waking up as the train pulled back into the capital. I grabbed the metro back to the centre and had some breakfast, then a much needed shower and load of washing. I had 3 more days left in Romania before and so my mind was already at work, trying to figure out where I could go. I'm sorry to say that staying in the city wasn't really an option for me - after the beautiful countryside of Maramureș, staying in a big, bustling (and dirty) city, it would have just depressed me. I needed something different, something new, something with adventure. Ideas were coming to me, plans being formulated and searches on Google made.

To the mountains!

Curtea de Argeș.

Curtea de Argeș.

The cathedral in Curtea de Argeș.

By lunchtime, a decision had been made. The plan was to rent a car, head out of the city tonight, Friday, be back late Saturday night and ready to leave for the airport on Sunday. I asked a few friends and locals about places to go, and one place kept coming up - Curtea de Argeș. The County of Argeș isn't far from Bucharest, a drive of an hour and a half (with good traffic), and I was told it is very beautiful, with a lake and lots of mountains and forests. I was heading off with my Summer Camp colleague (and good buddy) Glenn, but as he was working till 5 it was my job to get the car. There is also the fact that he doesn't drive. Fine by me - I love driving, and in a foreign country makes it a little more exciting! I got the airport bus from the centre, which is very cheap (less than 2 euros!) and efficient, jumped off at the airport and got a lift from the car rental place to get my car. For some reason these guy's don't have an office at the airport, they just stand near the florist with a sign, which may seem a little strange but that's how it works here. The company, Klass Wagen, was fantastic - they spoke English, had good prices and their services was great. I don't normally plug companies like this but these guys deserve it! So before I knew it, I was in my ride for the weekend (a white Dacia something or other) and driving back to the city to get my travel buddy for the road trip. It was much easier, faster and safer with the airport bus to be honest - Romanian drivers are mad! Bucharest drivers even worse - madmen on a mission! As I excited the road and slipped onto the highway, I realised that I wasn't heading back to the city and so pulled over at a petrol station to check. It was true, I was continuing north and there was no sign of a way to go back. I did what anyone else would have done - I followed the locals. We queued in the middle of the road, facing the oncoming speeding cars, waiting for a break in the river of vehicles to do a U-turn! 5 minutes and a bucket of sweat and a few swear words later, I was heading back to the city centre.

Poenari Castle.

Lake Vidrau.

Castle closed due to bears. Excellent!

Castles and clouds in the moutains.

Things were quickly packed, and we got in the car and were ready to head off. It was around 6pm and we looked at the GPS - it had been a 1.5 hour trip, but now we were told more than 2.5 hours! Looks like everyone was leaving the city tonight as well. We chose to relax and have dinner before we left, hoping that the traffic would settle down. We chose a little neighbourhood restaurant, away from the busy, tourist centre, and weren't disappointed - local food at local prices! Romanian Mici, grilled, spicy pork sausages and chips with a beer (0.0% for the driver of course) was just what was needed. We got back in the car and the traffic had died down to normal standards, so we set off for the weekend road trip north! Driving was ok, mainly highway driving, and we cruised along, stopping once for a bathroom break about half-way. Of all the times and places to stop, we ran into 2 friends who were also getting out of the city for the weekend! Small world! Along the way, Glenn was on navigator duty, as well as being in charge of finding accommodation. With a few wrong turns in the dark and late 'turn left NOW' directions, we made it to where we would be sleeping for the night. That part he did fantastically well and we scored a nice little hotel in the mountains at a bargain price too. We enjoyed a beer on our balcony while playing our favourite card game "loser," before retiring for the night very excited about the day ahead. Just before sleeping, we read some reviews of a castle just down the road from us - bears had been spotted and was closed until further notice! This is exactly what we wanted to hear - wild bears on the lose! What a way to top off a great time in Romania by seeing some furry little creatures in a real wild environment.

A shepherd and his dog.

The flock grazing on a mountainside.

Selfies on the dam.

More selfies.

The weather wasn't great as we set off, following the windy little road through villages towards Lake Vidrau. It was cloudy and a little grizzly, but we had expected this and chose to bear with it... with the hope of seeing bears too! That's all we could think of to be honest - we could bearly contain our excitement! I step too fur with the bear puns? We stopped for  abreak at Poenari Castle, a ruin at the top of a misty mountain, and were greeted by a sign stating what we'd read before - closed due to dangerous wildife. Excellent! Bears we actually in the area! The pressure to see one was bearing down on us quite heavily (last one, I promise!). We continued up the road, zig-zagging back and forth to reach the top of the dam for a look and some photos. By this time, the weather was clearing up and we could see the blue sky. Even the temperature was warming up a little. It was a nice walk across the dam, apart from way too many tourists driving and taking selfies, some driving and taking selfies at the same time. The police were patrolling the road but without much success in stopping people being idiots. The Vidraru Dam was built in 1966 on the Argeş River and is quite impressive - 166 metres tall and arching around for 305 metres, giving you a great view of the lake on one side, and a stomach churning drop on the other. If you're a fan of the BBC show Top Gear, you'll remember one episode filmed here, when the boys drove an Aston Martin, Farrari and a Lambo in search of the unpronounceable road that is the Transfăgărăşan Highway. Glenn and I realised at this time that this famous road, considered one of the most beautiful roads anywhere in the world, was only about 50kms away. This wasn't far considering how far we'd already driven... and the fact that he's a Kiwi who lives in Poland and I'm an Aussie who lives in Spain. There was no choice really! A quick early lunch break just across the dam and then we hit the road to see that view and that famous road! We climbed the winding road, forever heading up and up, round and round, pushing the little Dacia to it's 4-cylinder pertrol engine to the limits. Not a bad excuse to stop occasionally for photos, so we did, and it was beautiful. I saw a shepherd standing on the edge of the road, wrapped up in a big raincoat, wearing a strange, peaked cap and holding a crook. This was something that I couldn't miss photo-wise - I got out of the car, walked up to him and asked him for a photo. Let me just say - if you don't ask, you'll never know... I got a few great photos there! There were also waterfalls along the way, the narrow roads parked out on both sides with people walking there too, all to get photos. This was dangerous enough, but some people went the extra mile and crossed the barriers to that Instagram moment.

Clouds and disappointing views.

The Transfăgărăşan Highway.

The Shepherd.

The Bear.

As we neared the top, the clouds and rain set in again, and we started to have doubts. Would we see this road? Was this drive worth it? Where are the bears? At the top, we parked on the side of the road and battled the hordes of people, tack shops and weather to get inside a restaurant for a beer. We couldn't see much, it was cold and we were wet. Slightly disappointed, we headed back to the car, but then the clouds just started to open up for a minute - enough to get a couple of shots off. It wasn't the amazing view that I had expected to see - but then again, it was a road in cold, rainy weather. Happy with the fact that was probably the best we'd get, we turned the heating up to dry out and de-fog, and headed down. Did I mention that we wanted to see bears? Well, no more talk about wanting to see bears... we saw out first one just around the corner. We were confused at first as all the cars in front of us stopped, then people starting leaning out of windows and screaming. We had no idea what was happening at first, but then the penny dropped as we heard them yelling 'urs!' The bear was hiding in the bushes and we could only just see it and it's head. It was bigger than I'd expected! I managed to take a few photos and after driving past, we stopped to enjoy the fact that we'd seen a bear in the wild! We were quickly on Whatsapp and social media, telling everyone we knew what we'd just witnessed. The modern age! After about 2 minutes of further driving, we came across 2 more bears. This one was eating something on the side of the road while cars stopped very close to it, all full of people hanging out the windows with phones. This bear seemed quite upset and even swiped the lead car. The third was a very close encounter - the bear was out in the open, sitting in front of his 'audience' of paparazzi iPhoneographers, clearly distressed by the attention. Glenn and I saw this clearly, but the other people either had no idea or just didn't care - they got out of their cars and got closer and closer, throwing bread towards the bear even, trying to get it to 'do something.' I did take photos, but from a respectable distance and without making noise or trying to feed it. We moved on, parked and got out for a breather - we had just seen 3 wild brown bears in Romania within 5 minutes! As much as I hated missing out on a good view of the Transfăgărăşan, that weather made the bears come out I think and we were both happier to have experienced that.

Very cute... and very dangerous! Never get out of your car!

Looking right down the lens.

An incredible sight. Bears truly are beautiful.

I could barely drive for the adrenaline that was pumping its way around my body. There is no way I will ever forget this day. Nothing else could top this for today or this trip. Seeing an animal in the wild like this is something incredible. I've been to South Africa and on a few safaris, and that was amazing - seeing animals from a David Attenborough documentary up close, including a leopard. This will remain on that same list of things that I have seen and will always remember in my life. I was very fortunate and am very thankful to the bear gods that made them come out that day. We stopped off in the city in the area, Curtea de Argeas, without much excitement to see it, even though it is a lovely place. We walked around the Curtea de Argeas Cathedral, a beautiful 19th century building, but all we could think of were the bears. We had dinner and then drove home, still thinking of the bears. I was flying home to next day, completely satisfied with my time in Romania this year - it had been busy and very fulfilling indeed. Thanks for being a great travel buddy Glenn - we make a good team, me driving, you on social media and directions... who knows who brought the bears, but it doesn't matter, they were there. Until next time Romania!

Goodbye and thank you for the bears.

Until next time Romania.

Remember to also follow me on Instagram at:

https://www.instagram.com/myuncletravellingmatt/

MyUncleTravellingMatt. August 2019.

Maramures Part 2 - Churches and Countryside

Good morning Maramureș!

Who are you?

Oink!

So I'd been travelling up in the North of Romania for the last day and a half, and absolutely loving it. I caught an overnight train to get to Baia Mare, a mini bus early in the morning to see some wooden churches, some country hiking trying to avoid angry dogs, and now it was time to do some hitchhiking! I made it up to the main road and to a bus stop, a few houses on the road and not much else, traffic included. Without times or anything that I could understand anyway, I figured the bus that dropped me off wasn't coming back in a hurry, nor would there be another possibly until the next day. I've hitchhiked a few times, in Argentina, Chile and Romania as well, but to be honest you could count how many times on my fingers. I stuck out my thumb, stood up straight and smiled. It didn't take long at all, about 4 cars in fact, before someone pulled over and offered me a lift! There is something exhilarating about successfully getting a ride, your heart beats faster and you get excited that someone has actually decided to let you in their car. There is also the part where they could be a serial killer, but hey, they are probably thinking the same about you! I jumped in the van, a guy clearly a delivery driver of some sort, and off we went, whizzing through the green countryside. We didn't chat, as he spoken no English, but I told him where I was going and get took me there in record time. 26kms later and around 30 minutes, I said thank you in my best Romanian and hopped out, ready to walk through the next small town to my next small wooden church. I walked down into the village of Budești, to the first of 2 churches here. I was the only foregner as far as I could tell (although I saw the French couple, from the first church, in their van as I was leaving), and it was a very authentic village of wooden houses, decorative gates and even a guy walking down the street with a scythe. Yup, you don't see many of these tools, but here in Romania you have to watch out for your head when walking and taking pictures, as they are still very much used in farm work and people do carry them around over their shoulders.

Budești Josani Church.

Inside the church.

The holy log.

Cows waiting to be milked.

The weather was warm, the sun shining, shirt sleeves rolled up and I was sweating, but a happy sweat as I was completely free, enjoying the weather and my surroundings, and I wasn't even worried that I didn't have accommodation for tonight. I have to apologise if I get the names of these churches wrong, but the names are difficult to pronounce and write, and I think even Google was a little confused here. The first church, the wooden church of Budești Susani, was up a hill and a little away from the centre, but I found it and glad i did. Although closed, I was able to walk around the church and the grounds and admire it in peace, as there were no people here at all. This church dates back to 1760, the iconostasis (the decorated wall that separates the nave from the alter) is even older (1628) and the main building is said to have been built in 10 days. I wasn't able to see the beautiful paintings inside, but the next church in the centre of town was open and I did go into that. The Church of St Nicholas, or the Budești Josani Church, is open to the public for a small fee and photos are even allowed inside. I waited with a group of Romanians to be let inside and and go exploring. The walls are filled with paintings dating from when the church was built back in 1643, and although the interior was a little dark, you could still see everything clearly with the light let in by the tiny windows. This could be a reason why the paint has survived so well in fact, as they looked quite new and fresh. The whole church was timber and in some parts it felt a little unstable, but I guess if it's stood for this long, it wouldn't fall when I decided to climb the stairs to see the second floor. Inside, there was a cabinet with a glass front, displaying a split log with a burnt crucifix on the wood. I read the description and it said that the log was found in Budești on the 30th of March 1998 as it appears here: "Neither the chainsaw and ax have broken no sign so dear to all Christians Holy true. God deigned to give us this wonderful sign in the Holy and Great Lent just of Easter." After walking around and taking some photos, I went to the supermarket (at least this place was big enough for one!) and waited for the bus to take me to the next town.

Traditional methods.

The main road of Săpânța at sunset.

Wooden roofs.

Brightly coloured graves.

I have to mention these 'buses' that I caught all around up here. They weren't what you normally of as buses, more minibuses or just big vans with loads of seats in them. Sometimes you get them from a bus depot, sometimes just on the street. In fact, one time I had been waiting at the stop and cars just kept stopping and picking up people, who I assumed they knew. It kept happening and I worked out that these cars were 'buses' too. I asked a police officer just to make sure, and he looked at me like I was an idiot, which passed for 'of course this is the bus, why would you ever doubt it.' Other times I go the bus from a 'real' depot, but still it was a little weird and I never knew exactly when the bus would arrive, or if, as there wasn't much in the way of timetables or spoken English. What I also found was that the drivers acted as a local postal service too and were delivering small packages to people when they stopped to unload their human cargo. I find this really quite interesting! My next stop was the The Merry Cemetery in the village of Săpânța, something that had been recommended to me and was my first, real tourist destination along this route that I'd chosen. I got off the bus after a lovely drive through the countryside and found myself on the main road of town. I decided to find accommodation here first, to be able to dump my bag and walk around freely. The place I had in mind, Casa Vlad, was just across the road to where I'd got off so I went to investigate. Run by a jovial old lady, who was all dressed up in traditional clothing, including the head scarf. She also didn't speak a word on English, so my teaching skills were put to the test, relaying meaning and gaining understanding of what I was being told as well as answering. I mustn't have done too badly as I scored a big room, located the bathroom and got a decent price. I dropped by bags and headed straight for the cemetery. So far, I'd seen very few, if any, tourists, but this was about to change - as soon as I turned the corner to the only other road in town, I started seeing mini-buses, cars with families, roadside stalls selling tat as well as more and more people everywhere. To be honest, it wasn't that bad, not like it was Barcelona in August in front of the Sagrada Familiar, but for Romania, and especially this part of the country, it was heaving! I paid the small entrance to visit the site, even though I could clearly see over the wall, and started wandering around and admiring the strange site that is the Merry Cemetery. The thing that makes this place 'merry' are the brightly painted 'headstones' - wooden crosses with pictures of the 'occupant below' doing what they loved in life. There are pictures of some people working on their farm, having dinner with a friend, and even one with a a guy driving a car. I did start to wonder if the scene depicted was how they person actually died, and as I can't read Romanian, I wasn't sure so decided that it was in fact the things they did in life rather than how they go to where they are now. These markers were in various states or repair (or disrepair), but all colourful and interesting, completely matching the church with it's nearly too colourful roof and decorations. Sadly work was being done on the inside and I couldn't see much, but still, I think people came for the graves more than another church.

Colours everywhere in the Merry Cemetery.

The Merry Cemetery.

More wooden churches.

Church spires in the distance.

I had a late lunch and wandered over to the Peri-Săpânţa Monastery, a short walk from the village. Although only completed in 1997, it was built in the same, wooden style as all of the churches in this region and was very beautiful. There wan't much information and only 2 buildings to look at, one of which was closed (possibly for the monks or priests who lived there), but one man spoke to me to practise his English and told me a little about this place. The church spire is 78m tall, supposedly making it the tallest wooden church in the World, and is a UNESCO site, along with the other wooden churches. There really was't much here, but it was very pleasant and not too full of tourists either. I decided to go for a sunset walk after this, as I'd seen some spires in the distance and decided to check them out. I walked out of my lodgings and headed East. Basically a 2 road town, forming a T intersection at the bus stop, I didn't have much choice, but I was happy just to wander along the road and see what I see. It was lovely, as I saw people go about their normal lives, old ladies gossiping to each other, knitting wool on the roadside, people cycling home and even a farmer cruising down the road on his tractor. I came to a rise and walked off the road, walking through tall grass to find a lookout point with a view of the river Tisa and the Ukraine. I'm not sure what town it was but I could see the very distinctive Russian-style church towers, which I think look like onions, just across the river. I admired the view, the peace and quiet, watching the sunset and thinking how lucky I was to be here, at the edge of Romania. It felt like the edge of the World to me at the time. The next day was going to be a big one, so I went to bed after my walk and slept. There also wasn't much to do around here once the sun went down to be honest. I grabbed a bus early in the morning, got off too late to easily get the next bus (the driver was quite surprised to see me still sitting on his bus as he was nearly home!) but managed to find the depot and walk there, seeing a little of Sighetu Marmației along the way.

Peri-Săpânţa Monastery and its 78m spire.

The countryside of Maramureș.

the Carpathian Forest Steam Train.

The Peri-Săpânţa Monastary.

I caught my next bus and made it to the town of Vișeu de Sus. This town was far busier than anything I'd come across on my whole trip up here so far. A bustling main road, shops full of people, traffic and just lots going on, I started to think that I'd made a mistake. I came here to see the Carpathian Forest Steam Train, a narrow-gauge railway that twists and turns its way through the wooded mountains, which you can't get to by car - there is also wild bears and wolves roaming around. It was built in the 30s and designed to carry empty logging cars up through the mountains, following the river, picking up logs and then making its way back down. I wanted to check out the timetables for a ride, but wasn't planning on it to be honest - I mainly wanted to see this little train in action, not sit on it for hours with a carriage load of tourists. I found the road leading to the station and walked there in about 30 minutes, reached the station and discovered that I had a 30 minute wait for the train - the perfect amount of time to wander and take some photos of the relics in the yard, and sip a beer in the shade. The train arrived, huffing and puffing its black smoke skywards, trundling down the railway to sit at the station. I took some photos and admired the last operating forest railway in Europe before heading off for my 'normal' train back to Bucharest. Although I'd enjoyed myself immensely up here in Maramures, the other places that I wanted to see are quite remote and hard to get to. Places like the Bârsana monastery and much further over in Moldova, would have to be missed - I also had a flight to catch in 4 days time. I left the steam train as it smoked its way back into the mountains and walked to my train station for the overnight train back. Vișeu de Jos, the next town, was about an hour's walk away and I decided to walk there as the weather was lovely. That and I couldn't find a bus to take me there. I made it to the station, even enjoying the walk (apart from the car exhaust as I walked on the side of the road), bought my ticket and then had to wait 3.5 hours for it to arrive. The train station was absolutely bare minimum of everything - including seats. There were also more stray dogs there than passengers waiting for their train. It looked liked it was being repaired but not much work had been done yet (and there was even a scythe in the bathroom!), so I went across the road to a bar. I spent a bit of time sitting at the local bar, having a few beers with the locals, 2 guys in particular were really interesting. Vlad and Ion, neither who spoke English, were great company - we shared beers and chatted away, using hand signals as well as a mix of Spanish, Italian and English (for my own benefit only). We had a storm hit us while I was waiting, and the shopkeeper kindly hustled us inside to wait it out. It was a wonderful experience of Romanian kindness and genuine friendliness, and the best way to finish of my trip in Maramureș.

Sunset on the Ukrainian border.

Drum bun! Farewell!

Remember to also follow me on Instagram at:

https://www.instagram.com/myuncletravellingmatt/

MyUncleTravellingMatt. August 2019.

Maramures Part 1 - The Journey North

Sunset in Bucharest.

My bunk for the night.

I love train travel.

July had flown by! I don't know if it felt the same for everyone else, but for me it was over before I knew it. Work at the camp was over for another year, and although sad to see the students for the last time, as some of them wouldn't be coming back due to age restrictions, it was good to be free! We loaded up our ride back to Bucharest and jumped in, ready to chill for the 3 hours it would take (in good traffic) to reach the hotel. I had a week before heading off on my real holidays, a week to kill in Romania, and I wasn't exactly sure what the plan was. I'd spent plenty of time in the capital, so much so that I wasn't really that interested in another day even, sorry to be said. Last year I caught a bus down to Bulgaria as well as spending some time in Sinai and Brasov. A few years back I worked my way up by train to Sibiu and Sighisoara and loved it. I was hard pressed for somewhere I could go, by public transport, and something that wouldn't be just another city to walk around. I really wanted a little outdoor time, to enjoy the countryside and the sun at the start of August. So I got speaking to some of the Romanian teachers during the drive down and decided to follow their advice and head North. Far North, right up to the border of the Ukraine into Mureș County, the historical region of Transylvania. After getting back to the city, I crashed at the hotel for a bit before heading back out for dinner and a beer with the other teachers. It was good to get out of camp, have a proper, non-camp meal, and a few beers. Plans were talked about and it was decided - a train to the North! I made a trip to the train station the next morning to check out times and prices, and ended up booking an overnight, sleeper train to Baia Mare for the same night.

All aboard and let's go!

One of the many churches in this city.

A big brick church.

Baia Mare.

I'd been on trains in Romania before, and they were always interesting, but this was my first time on a sleeper. I got to the station around 9, a few snacks already bought, and got on my train. I found my carriage and bunk easily enough, folded my bed down and made myself comfortable. Only 2 more people were in my carriage, which was good, as the last thing I needed was for it to be packed, hot and sweaty and even noisy or smelly. As the train started off into the night, I got my book and started to read a bit before trying to get some sleep. My bed was surprisingly comfortable and I soon started to get sleepy, enjoying the movement of the train and the steady clickity-clack of the wheels on the rails. My cabin mates were also getting comfortable, but not quite ready for bed. There was an older woman travelling with a man, mother and son I thought, and while she had gone to bed, he was on his phone and was happily looking at photos of semi-naked women. I have no idea if it was Tinder or Facebook (or some other app), but he was unashamedly scrolling through loads of photos of girls in skimpy outfits. Each to their own I guess, even when your mother is sleeping above you. I turned over and went to sleep and hours later I awoke to the steady noise of a moving train and the sun just peeking over the horizon and into my face through the window. Not a bad way to wake up, not quite going to sleep in one country and waking up in another, but I'd soon find out that this part of Romania is very different to what I'm used to. I got off at my stop, after quickly re-folding my bed, and walked out into Baia Mare, 600 kilometres from Bucharest, 70 km from the border with Hungary, and 50 km from the border with Ukraine. Let the adventure begin!

My first wooden church in Maramures... but there's more to come!

Stephen's Tower in 

Building in the centre - looks like an old theatre, now a supermarket.

Baia Mare - pretty but not much to do.

The hunt for accommodation began as soon as I stepped off the train. I hadn't booked anything before getting here as I wanted to know the lay of the land first. Having no idea where I was, or even what I was going to do, I headed more or less for the centre, checking out Google Maps for places to sleep along the way. There wasn't much in the way of hostels or cheap stays. I spotted the Hotel Mara, a big concrete building shining white in the sun, which looked quite fancy even though I think it had seen better days - it was still definitely out of my price range. I kept going, following Google to one place but then found myself in front of a slightly shady looking apartment building and nothing more. I managed to find a good deal at a small motel for a third of the price of the Mara, with an en-suite room, air-con and a 5 minute walk to a big supermarket. This would be be spot for the night, my place to cool down after walking all day and put together my plan of operations - I still had no idea what to see and do! The plan was to walk into the old centre, find a tourist information spot and get some ideas. I know what you're thinking - why get an overnight train to somewhere if you have no idea what to do? I did have some idea of what was here and what I wanted to see, just how I was going to go about it was the problem. In this part of the country they are famous for their wooden churches and rustic countryside. I wanted to see some of these churches and do some walking. The town centre was a little disappointing, but then again I wasn't sure what I was expecting. It was quiet and just a few bars and restaurants in the main square. Some buildings were quite nice but most were a little run down and nothing really special. The only thing of note is Stephen's Tower, a 40m tall, stone, Neo-Gothic stone tower. Originally the bell tower for the church built in the late 14th Century, it was rebuilt in 1559 and restored in 1619 and a mechanical clock was finally added in 1628. It sits in a small square with a (closed) museum and 2 churches. Nice for a few pics but not much else.

The Tower and churches.

The River Sasar that runs through the city.

The Butcher's Tower - last part of the old wall.

A very large church.

I found the tourist information in the square as well, although it was easy to miss. Google kept pointing me in the general direction, and I always seemed to over-shoot the target, until I discovered it was down some fairly well hidden stairs. After all that work, there was next to nothing in regards to pamphlets and things to do in the area, so I moved on. I walked down to the river and found the County Museum of History and Archaeology, but was also let down by this as there was nobody there and didn't seem to be anything on display. I walked in (for free) and wandered around for a bit, only to find locked doors and not much else. Feeling hot and a bit bothered, I decided to walk to the tour agent which I'd found and see what deals they had. This was the best thing I'd done all day as I walked right past another tourist information kiosk, this one in the local council chambers. The people here, both of whom spoke English extremely well, were very helpful and gave me plenty of ideas. I now had more of a plan of attack and also had to do it on my own - I found that tour agency and everything was already booked out. I walked back to the train station, where the bus station was also, and enquired about a bus to where I needed to go to start my do-it-yourself wooden church tour. The building, which must have been built in the Soviet days, was interesting in an ugly, concrete, half-falling apart kind of way. The guy there didn't sell me a ticket, and there was only hand-written information (all in Romanian), so he just told me that you can buy one of the bus and that the bus will be here around 6:30am. He wasn't exactly sure of the time (but told me not to worry), which didn't give me a great feeling, but figured if I'm 15 minutes early, luck would be on my side. It was a productive day and I felt good having organised everything myself from scratch. I did get up early and got the bus too, and that was the start of my real adventure into this part of the country!

Stephen's Tower.

The town centre of Baia Mare.

Interesting sculpture in the centre.

Big bells.

The bus picked up people along the way, anywhere along the road as far as I could see, and let people off as well. I couldn't see the system to it, but I'm sure there was one, an unwritten country law between bus driver and passenger. I was watching on my mobile to see where I needed to get off, as nobody spoke English well and I couldn't pronounce the name of the town properly either. The little red bus drove through Baia Spire and down to Șurdești, my stop. I asked the driver to let me off, and he didn't really believe me that I wanted to stop in the middle of nowhere at 7am in the morning. A lone tourist with hiking boots and backpack isn't a common sight here I don't think. I pretty much jumped out and immediately felt the fresh air of the countryside after being jammed in with (already) sweaty and smelly people. To be fair, I was offered a seat by a gypsy family at the back and I ended up sharing half a seat with and old lady, I shouldn't be so nasty about how they smelt - it was probably the old bus to be fair. I found my first wooden church within minutes, although I don't think it was one of the old ones on the route. There was nobody there, and the lock on the gate was a simple stick passed though a hole, so I walked in and even climbed the small bell tower for a view of the surrounding countryside. Already feeling fantastic and free, I hiked off down the road to see the next church. I saw 2 other churches, tall, wooden structures that were built nearly 300 years ago! The Biserica Penticostala Șurdești (Church of the Holy Archangels) was a particularly impressive sight, and I was there practically alone, apart from 2 couples in camper vans who'd slept in the car park overnight. Although I couldn't go inside and see the 18th century paintings, the outside was amazing enough. Black in some parts, the newer roof 'tiles' were fresh and a light brown colour, showing the restorations taking place. After some quiet time and some photos, I walked up up the hill, aiming to hit the road and somehow get 18kms to the next town and my next church. I walked through little hamlets, Romanian homesteads with farm animals and dogs everywhere, fruit and vegetables growing everywhere, green grass and freshly stacked hay in fields - the postcard scene of Romania that I love. I even saw a huge pig in his little pen, built right up against the house and barns with cows ready to be hand milked. Gorgeous countryside and something I'll never forget. 

The country life.

But my adventures here weren't over yet - I still had more to see and do here. I had to hitchhike to the next town, do some more hiking along country roads, find more transport to get to a place where I could stay the night, as well as see the Happy Cemetery and more. This trip was going along very smoothly, and making it up as I went along was turning out to be just the right way to do it!

Maramureș County - The Real Romania.

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MyUncleTravellingMatt. August 2019.