On my last night in Budapest hit the town with my new friends, Lamri (riding a bike from Netherlands to Indonesia!!!) and Marian, all equally drunk on wanderlust, beer and palinka. Another must see are the “ruin bars”, heritage listed buildings protected from renovation so instead turned into bars – take note world! Good luck to Lamri and Marian on your adventures, it was an honor to meet you both and I’m sure our itchy feet will have us crossing paths again.
From Budapest headed into the Bukk mountains to trade city for forrest. Spent a few days soaking up the fresh air (and a touch of rain) and getting hopelessly lost walking around for hours. Found a premo hikers’ shelter to use as a camp which was awesome.
Once I’d worn out my feet I decided to hit up Romania. Farewell Hungary for now, how I have grown fond of your wonderful capital, cheap prices and amazingly friendly, helpful people.
The border crossing started with a lengthy, but courteous, check of my passport and vehicle documents. My first impressions from Satu Bare were not altogether positive, fortunately things picked up as I headed into the Maramures.
It’s like stepping back into time as you coast through small farming villages I could have plucked out of a guidebook. The stacks of hay in the green fields and the farmers working away with their scythes take on a timeless quality that makes you smile serenely. The mountainsides are comparable to those of the alps, it’s a pity that the roads aren’t the same (infact all the roads I’ve been on so far – where did they get their construction notes? From Rocky road chocolate?). Get too lost in the scenery up here and you almost assuredly will crash.
Romania’s drawcard really seems to be its countryside and nature, so I’ll be heading into the Carpathian mountains for a bit. After that I’ll head to the centre to Brasov (of Dracula infamy) and the much lauded Transfagarasan, before checking out Bucharest.
Rosies’ been taking a bit of a battering from the roads and I’ve had to be on my guard from the local drivers with no road manners (not to mention wild animals, horse and carts, construction galore and errant roadside people). Still fiddling around with the maps.me app for offline GPS mapping, seems promising so far, cheers Lamri and Marian.
Infact, cheers once again to everyone I’ve met on my travellers. I’ve said it before – you’re one of the main reasons I travel and get home safe, just so I can do it all over again.
Love to everyone
– Kenny
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kenny overland 