Month: June 2023

Friday 2nd June – worst sleep last night – lots of dogs barking but nothing close by – no longer worried when I hear them but it still keeps me awake. I do drop off but then waken to a drip drip noise – assume it’s starting to rain but it’s only on one side – try to ignore it, but it’s constant and definitely only  on one side – unzip tent door – clear beautiful starry night – it’s definitely not rain I can hear – zip tent up but still can’t sleep. Unzip tent again, standing up with feet in tent and head outside (which isn’t easy) and look to otherside of tent but in the half light still can’t figure out where noise is coming from. Zip tent up again – feck noise has disturbed a much closer dog – I hear it woofing and it’s paws on the gravel outside my tent – it’s woofing draws attention to other dogs – there are least 3 other dogs outside – all have different ‘woofs” at least one circles round the tent, and I have to admit to being a wee bit nervous but then they move towards the road – there’s a lot of doggy toing and froing and there woofing triggers more woofing but they don’t seem to be interested in the tent or it’s contents! I do eventually nod off but keep waking up – one dog stays outside the tent and woofs intermittently – I keep as still as I can, thinking if I’m very quite he might go away but no – I think he might be guarding me – I suspect he is the nice wee labrador from the hotel itself but don’t want to open the tent door to find out as this might increase the barking? Bird dawn chorus starts and less and less noise from dogs and I get some sleep and feel surprisingly awake when I get up at 6am. Transpires that condensation has formed on roof of hotel, this has ran down and been dripping on pannier bag (which is on bike rack) and in turn dripped on side of tent.

I only cycled 20 miles but took me over another pass – The Ciumarna Pass – also known as The Palma Pass. “The “Palm” was erected as symbol of work and strength in commemorating the moment in 1968 when the two teams of road builders who met here coming from opposite directions shook hands to mark the completion of the road and overcoming of the difficulties of this work” – pinched from Wikipedia.

Loving the climbs – I’d done so much flat or very little incline that wasn’t convinced at all that I’d get up them – but I do – puffing and panting and sweating like the proverbial pig but I get there.

Saw one road cyclist yesterday, going the opposite from me – he gave a friendly as he zipped his way down.

Tent up nice and early at  the lovely wee Cristal Campsite at Sucevita and then went a wander to see painted monastery no. 2. Again the painting was amazing. There was also lots of embroideries from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries – the detail in the stitch work was incredible and all amazingly preserved – unfortunately, photo taking of the embroideries was not allowed.

Good company from the campsite cat.

Fantastic and very good value meal at the campsite – only a small restaurant and they had 2 big groups in so I was meant to have my meal before them but got in invited to join a lovely Romania family who also shared there home made wine and palinka (local traditional spirit and it is very good) with me.

Two of the ladies made this lovely flower wreath and all the girls had their photo taken with it on.

Thursday 1st June – set off from campsite after best sleep while camping in Romania so far – possible best sleep while in the tent of the trip so far. Perfect temperature and not much barking during the night. The campsite has a rescue service for motorbikes and Robert that runs it gave me his number in case I had any problems – really good of him but glad I didn’t need to use it. Don’t want to tempt fate but Bertie Bike seems to holding up and touch would so do I.

My wee sister introduced me to Marius, who she had met in Romania – Marius is a tour guide. Marius has been fab and given me a list of places to visit – The Merry Cemetery, the wooden churches of the Maramures and now the painted monasteries of Bucovina. Route planned – distances looked doable but somehow I thought I’d done my big hill for this part of the trip – no idea why I thought this – this was harder than yesterday and the sun was out so toasty hot – but so worth it – much more open today and the scenery was beautiful.

After the descent carried on to Vatra Moldovite where the first of the painted Monasteries – “Moldovita” is – following the signs to it and then quickly stopped when I saw a funeral procession, carrying the coffin from the church and starting to cross the road to the graveyard on the otherside – definitely not appropriate to cycle through and I headed back the way I came to find the elusive tourist info.

Didn’t find the tourist office and it was just a little town – think it may have just been a info board somewhere. Now wondering if I wanted to see another church – the quick glance I’d had, nothing particularly different about it – maybe I was all churched out?? Much dithering and googling then ensued – no campsite nearby – was the next one too far away / shouid I book room in hotel? Decided to have another look for tourist information and in doing so realised that the monastery was a little beyond the church I’d stopped at and it was definitely worth a look and glad I didn’t bypass it.

“The purpose of the frescoes was to make the story of the Bible and the lives of the most important Orthodox saints known to villagers by the use of images.” – borrowed from the www.

Monastery done – time to resume hunt for somewhere to stay. There is a hotel not too far away but I ask at the village shop / bar – the 2 often double up – if there is a campsite nearby – one fellow points me in the direction of Vila Lulu and tells me there is camping but when I get there doesn’t seem to be the case and all rooms are booked – however I’m allowed to camp on a wee bit of grass, have use of the toilet and have a good meal at the hotel.

The villages I’ve been going through over last couple of days have been pretty small and not much in the way of shops – the one in this village and at the one I stayed at the previous night have been 1/2 shop 1/2 bar – I think the bar does more trade than the shop – both shop and bar not very well lit – the shop very old fashioned and not a huge amount of choice and everything is done over the counter – hardly anything on the shop floor itself, not that there is much room to be fair – and even the biscuits are bought by weight.