The spectacular end to my Romanian odyssey - 13/08/04

Hi all,

This should be the last part of my e-travelogue. Have not really been able to write much as I have been rushing from place to place and internet is not readily available when I feel like penning my thoughts down.

Well, after Sibiu, I was up at the northern part of the country checking out the painted monasteries in this area called Southern Bucovina. The monasteries are really cool with depiction of scenes from the Bible and religious life back then; with each one painted in a different primary colour: be they red, blue, yellow or green. The function of these monasteries were to keep the illiterate peasant soldiers occupied as they await marching orders for war against the turks. Besides the fantastic architecture, the tranquil surroundings of rural life, lush green flat plains, grazing horses by the streams, really makes one feel detached from the hustle of city life.

After all the running around, I finally went to the Black Sea Coast to this city called Constanta, the second largest city in Romania. This used to be a Roman city and as the turks had conquered this area before, there were lots of Roman remains and turkish influences like mosques, kebaps, etc. It was also at this city that I encountered what life must be like without water. Supposed to stay at this decent hotel but for some reason, there was no water when I was showering halfway one morning. Imagine having soaped yourself and then the taps simply don't work no matter how hard you turn them. How pathetic is that? In the end, the ever ingenious Jerry Gwee had to use sparkling mineral water which he bought the day before to wash himself. So, the moral of the story is to always have a handy supply of mineral water for contingencies such as these. Another tip for Lonely Planet travellers.

But the greatest fun to me was not so much the history not the architecture but this small little fishing village called Vama Veche which was 6km away from the Bulgarian border. This is really a very bohemian place with "sunworshippers" from various parts of Europe. People pretty much did what they wanted to here, and sunbathed in whichever manner they liked, be they young/old, fat/thin, male/female, etc. And as far as the eye can see, the Black Sea extends to the horizons which makes for a real relaxing atmosphere when one languishes on a deck chair basking under the bright summer sun amidst the cool sea breeze and great music from the mp3 player.

However, the fun is not just the sun, sand and the sea. Again, it was my interaction with the Romanians and the hospitality which they extended to me. Spoke to this guy who is pretty well travelled and had his own business and got a glimpse of how life was under the communists and how they tried to enrich themselves through various ingenious scams despite the supposed aversion to wealth under the regime. Also, the mentality of trying to beat the system to make ends meet also explains why many Romanians do not work as hard as they should now even when foreign companies offer them higher pay. If pilferage or profiting at the employer's expense will make them richer, you can almost always count on them doing it.

Language difficulties had made life a little tougher. Wanted to extend my stay one more night in Vama Veche and gave the rent to the landlord's wife which she thought was for my first night. In the end, my room was given to another couple. Taking pity on a poor backpacker like me, they actually offered their caravan to me for free though I paid a token sum of 100,000 lei (S$5) in the end. Truly, these Latin people can be quite nice to you when they want to, though poverty has conditioned them to be more focused on money at times. Other than that, these people are really a decent bunch.

Thought I would end my trip with a bang but today, took the wrong train and reached Bucharest on a very slow train. Train ride was terrible, with the heat simply quite unbearable within the stuffy confines of the train. Tried to do some last minute shopping and then catch my flight but in the end, reached about 20min before the flight take-off and they refused to let me on the plane. Counter staff at the airport for Turkish Airlines were really quite unfriendly with one even talking to me with a very accusing tone, attributing the 15min flight delay to my last minute showup at the airport. Really tired, hungry and angry. Had to do some last minute booking of hostel accomodation cos the hotel near the airport was simply too expensive (Eur120). Booking a cab also proved to be a tough exercise, with either no cabs or the operator taking some time understanding my English and me trying to understand their pidgin version as well. Then imagine the cab driver trying to shortchange me when I paid my fare upon reaching the hostel (common in Bucharest), rushing to find the nearest outlet for dinner (which just consisted of a tart and cream puff) and using the Internet to source for flight schedules for the next earliest flight home. Well, that's all for now with regards to my adventures in Romania, folks. Just remember, always be prepared for the unprepared though I guess it must really sound cliche by now...

Ciaos!
Jerry