Serbia

We entered Serbia and headed straight for Beograd.  We had been accepted by a couchhost in the center of the city, and made our way to his place.  I will never forget him.  He was a big guy, who considered himself ethnically Austrian - not Serbian.  He was nationally famous in Serbia as a radio comedy show host.  He was always laughing and making jokes, and if you asked him he would use his radio voice.

Our time with him and his brother was great.  We made jokes, cooked food, shared recipes, and learned about Serbia.  Over the next couple of days we spent a lot of time together.

One of the buildings bombed by NATO during the Kosovo War.  There are many buildings in the center of Beograd that have not be demolished or repaired from damage during those bombings.

On the second day in Beograd our host asked us if we wanted to go visit his hometown in the south of Serbia.  We thought this would be a great adventure, so we all jumped in our car.  A few kilometers from his home we stopped in another village to see a friend of his.  His friend was the manager of a cave.  Since our host was so close with this friend we were offered the opportunity to take a cave tour when normally it would be closed.  So, without any fee, the four of us went to the cave.

We only spent one night in this town with our host.  We were running out of time, and we needed to move on.  We left our host with his family and headed back up north.  We stopped in Novi Sad and then continued on to Subotica where our next host was. 

As we entered Subotica we got caught in a speed trap.  It became a huge ordeal for us, because to prevent us from leaving the country without paying the piddly fine, they police took my passport.  It took us all evening and part of the next day to get it back.

The young man we stayed with there considered himself ethnically Hungarian (an apparently common thing in the north of Serbia).  Before the First World War this city was part of the Austral-Hungarian Empire.  After the war it was taken by Serbia and the other Slavic kingdoms to the south.  This man's family had been in that city since before World War One, spoke Hungarian in their household, and with recent political acknowledgement held special rights to Hungarian nationality.

Recipe: Gazpacho

It's summer, the temperatures are rising, and on long days playing and working out in the sun, it's nice to have some cool refreshing food.  Our favorite is gazpacho; a Spanish cold raw vegetable soup.  For many people, this soup is an acquired taste.

Ingredients:

• 5 tomatoes
• 2 bell peppers
• 1/2 large onion
• 1/2 cucumber
• 1 garlic clove
• salt
• vinegar
• olive oil

* You will need a blender (stand alone or hand blender).  

Wash and quarter the tomatoes.  Blend these first so there is liquid in the blender.

Wash and cut the other vegetables into large chunks.  If you get heartburn, you may want to use less onion and leave out the garlic.

 Put the rest of the vegetables in the blender.

Blend very thoroughly.  I often work it up to high power and then leave it on for a few minutes.  Then you can add the vinegar, olive oil, and salt to taste.  I put about 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil and a teaspoon of vinegar, but you can add these ingredients to your liking.  Once you've added the oil, vinegar, and salt, you should blend it thoroughly again.  The final product should be creamy and frothy like the photo below.

Other ingredients you can also include dried bread and hard boiled egg.  If you add these two, just blend them with the rest of the ingredients. For garnish, you can chop up onion, green bell pepper, and cucumber to sprinkle on top.

Chill the soup in the fridge until you are ready to eat!

Timisoara: Hosted by a man of many talents.

Timisoara is a small town on the western border of Romania.  The town itself is not really very interesting, but our host in that area was. 

To get to his house, we had to drive far outside of the city past melon stands and cow pastures.  We made it to the village he lived in, but it was so dark we could not find his house.  We began walking up and down the single street looking for numbers and failing to determine the correct house.  Eventually we spoke with an old couple who for sure had been watching in amazement as we walked back and forth.  How could you get lost in a town with one short street?  With luck the old man spoke German.  Javier began discussing with him who it was we were looking for, and eventually we found the place.

Our host was very diverse in his interests.  He was a computer programmer that worked from home and did very well for himself, but he had also taken up a bit of backyard farming as well.  In his yard he had: two pigs, four ducks, many chickens, meat rabbits, milk goats, and a garden packed with vegetables.  With cheese made from the milk of his goats he showed us how to make Sirnitsa.  It was absolutely delicious. 

We unfortunately could not spend much time with him.  There wasn't much to do in the area except help with his animals and chat, but it would have been nice considering what a wonderful person he was.

Transfăgărășan

The Transfăgărășan is one of the most famous roads in the world.  Romanians that are interested in criticizing the inefficiency of the current government, or even proud (crazy?) enough to highlight the achievements of former communist dictator Ceaușescu always bring up this road.

This very twisty road was built in the 70's as a strategic military road to allow crossing of the Carpathian mountains in case of invasion by Soviet forces.  It is quite impressive.

We picked up a hitchhiker and stayed at her house!

 

There is nothing more pleasing for me than overcoming language barriers and the kindness of strangers.  We were near Sibiu when we began to worry that we might run out of gasoline before getting to the next town.  In a small village we stopped to consider our options, and we saw a group of three young women hitchhiking by the side of the road.  It is not that they were hitchhiking because they were rebels, but rather because this is a normal way of getting around.  We spoke with one of them who was conversationally fluent in Italian, and she told us that her uncle had some gas we could buy.  We bought two liters of his gas, but we thought we might repay the woman for her help.  We asked where she needed to go, and when she said Sibiu we told her we could take here there.

We began to drive towards Sibiu.  We spoke in Spanish and she spoke in Italian.  She asked why we were in the area. We had been looking for a certain landmark and she told us she would guide us there.  We spent an hour checking out this site before we continued to her city.  

The reality for us was that we did not have any place to stay, and we were hoping she might invite us to stay with her.  We were not let down.  We went to her apartment where she lived with her sister.  We spent the evening doing our best to get to know each other.  We ate dinner together over a conversation in two languages.

The next day we said our goodbyes and parted ways.  To this day this experience is one of my favorite memories of Romania.  It is amazing the connections you can make.

Brasov, Bran Castle, and the most impressive Palace of All

Awe, central Romania.  This country really is one of my favorites.  The people are lovely, there are beautiful mountains, colorful towns, and impressive castles.  In Brasov, we spent quite some time enjoying the city.  It is not large, but it is quite cute.  I was pretty happy to get some super cheap soft-serve ice cream.  Not that it was oppressively hot.  I just really like ice cream.

Near Brasov is Bran Castle, a fortress often referred to as Dracula's Castle.  In reality the castle doesn't have any connection to Vlad the Impaler.  The castle is maintained as a museum, and you can walk through its many furnished rooms.  There was one room dedicated to the different myths and folktales that contributed to modern tales about vampires.

South of Brasov is a castle very different from Bran Castle - Peleş Castle in Sanaia. While Bran Castle is a fortress, Peleş Castle is all about luxury.  Of all the luxurious castles we have visited in Europe this one is the most impressive of all.  Unfortunately we have no photos of the inside.  We took a tour, but cameras were prohibited.

The interior is fine woods and luscious fabrics.  Every surface is made of the highest quality materials.  Unlike palaces filled with marble, Peleş does not feel cold and unfriendly.  The warmth of the wood and silks make it feel hospitable.  It is most definitely my favorite castle.

The Painted Monasteries of Romania

In the northeast of Romania, in a region called Moldavia, are a series of beautifully painted monasteries that were erected between the late 1400s and late 1500s.  We took a tour of more than a dozen of these churches, and we were amazed at what we saw.

The plastered outer walls of the churches are intricately painted from top to bottom with scenes from the old and new testaments.  Inside are carefully carved statues and equally impressive paintings from the ceilings to the floor.

It is a shame that so many of the exterior paintings have been worn away by weather and sun.  The southern walls have seen the most damage, many of them now completely blank.  What is left of these paintings are precious.