Biblical Rain and Back to Bucharest

The weather forecast for Bucharest, less than 2 hours drive due south, was supposedly much better and we'd read that the Open Air Village Museum had a special festival on with food and craft stalls plus folk music, dancing displays etc so we decided to head for that as we still had most of the afternoon to kill before heading back to the airport.

So off we set and if we thought the rain at Peles Castle was bad it was nothing to what we encountered later in the journey.  In the last few years we've experienced heavy rain in England and in fact I drove through a mega storm only last month so I wasn't too fazed at first.  But it just went on and on and with the open roads flooding badly we were down to a very low speed.  Mostly we were on dual carriageways with a 6' concrete central reservation and at times the oncoming vehicles hit puddles so hard the water splashed up so high it came over the central reservation, hitting our windscreen like someone had chucked a bucket of water on us from close quarters.  And of course momentarily obstructing our vision, which was very scary.  The journey seemed never ending and whenever we saw a signpost for Bucharest the mileage left to drive didn't seem to get any less.

Finally the rain lessened and by the time we reached the outskirts of Bucharest the sun was shining as forecast.  The museum was more or less in the centre and when we finally found it of course we didn't have a clue where to park.  More or less by accident we found ourselves right at the entrance barrier to the museum itself which then opened and so we drove in.  There wasn't a car park as such, just a few cars parked along the side of the building and you could image it to be staff parking only but of course we had no way of knowing.  There was a security guard on site so we tried to explain why we were there and to check if we could park and if it was free - he had no English but rubbed his forefinger and thumb together a few times and so we explained we didn't have any cash (which was completely true) but he just shrugged and walked off.  We were none the wiser but decided to risk it and so headed into the museum, paid our entrance fee and wandered into the park.

Whatever festivities had been going on earlier in the day were now all over, there were a few stalls left but mostly we just wandered around looking at the buildings.  There is a vast collection of wooden houses, churches, windmills and other buildings from villages around the country; some original which were painstakingly moved here and reassembled and others are reconstructions.

I should imagine for a junior school outing it was perfect and a wonderful day out.  I hate to sound churlish but it was probably one of the most boring hours of my life.  Whilst there were no doubt important and subtle differences between some buildings, they were mostly just shells with no contents etc to show how they were used/lived in.

We'd seen haystacks this shape at the beginning of our trip so I can say with a degree of confidence that they are from the Sighișoara region.

I thought this contraption might have been some medieval torture instrument.

But it turned out to be a fairground ride.

Most of the stalls were starting to pack up but this lovely lady was still selling her honey products.

And these ceramic bowls were beautiful and very reasonably priced.  Sadly we really didn't have any cash or I might have been tempted.

The guy spoke beautiful English and explained that everything was handmade by his wife and that each of the designs was a traditional one and, like the houses, you could tell which area it would have come from just based on the design.

Presumably for those dressing in traditional costume.

Not a clue!

Time to go, I think.  Heading back to the car we saw the security guard at the far end of the car park but quickly got in the car avoiding eye contact just in case, but despite our fears when we got to the barrier it opened and we were out on the road phew!  The airport was just 11 kms due north and after stopping off to refuel we were soon back at Avis and having done the minibus trip from the airport we already knew which lane etc when we got to the complicated road layout near the airport.   The car was quickly signed off and I must say that although it was bigger than I wanted, it was a beautiful drive - we did 862 kms in the 5 days - not bad.

There was a minibus ready and waiting to take us the short hop to the airport and as we were hand luggage only there was no problem getting lounge access early.  It wasn't a particularly exciting lounge, but it was clean and the staff were very sweet.  We found ourselves a quiet spot near the charging station so we could recharge our batteries - both personal and IT - and settled down with a glass and a few snacks.  

A slightly awkward situation arose about an hour later when a group of 6 people, Romanian I think, sat down near us at the far end of the lounge and began using vapes.  The signage is quite clear and so on the pretext of going to the loo, which was outside the lounge, I got the chance to mention it to the receptionist who said her male colleague would deal with it immediately - and he did, bravo!

The flight home was on time and being upfront I had a chance to ask one of the pilots which route we would have taken on the way over.  "Oh, I don't know" he said "It was dark when we came, let's have a look at Google maps" which really made me laugh.  

We've had a thoroughly enjoyable 5 days; Romania has far exceeded our expectations in all respects, I think.  The countryside was beautiful, friendly people, nice food (and cheap!) plus lots of interest things to see - just our kind of holiday.  I certainly wouldn't rule out visiting further north if we ever get the chance.

Peles Castle

We woke to heavy cloud and rain hanging off the hillside and more or less decided that the cable car trip was a no go, so enjoyed a leisurely breakfast.   When we checked out our receptionist friend agreed it was probably a 50/50 chance that the cable car would run but there was no way to check and it just didn't seem worth the effort of a 20+ min walk from the hotel in the rain or the hassle of trying to park nearby only to find it closed.

Whilst we were talking to him a phone siren went off - exactly as had done on my phone half an hour earlier when I was packing only I didn't get to read the message before it vanished.  He told us it was usually a warning that bears had been seen in town but that this time it was wild boar (porkies!!!).

We'd also spoken to him yesterday about the drive to Peles Castle which we plan to visit en route to the airport as our flight isn't until 2105.  Although it was only about 30 miles Google maps were showing a journey time of about 2 1/2 hours so we wondered if there were road closures.  He explained it was simply volume of traffic and that at weekends the mad people from Bucharest (his words) have to escape the heat and come into the countryside.  Although that didn't really explain the lengthened journey time going south we took his advice and set off straight away prepared for a long journey.

Well the traffic wasn't too bad, apart from getting through the town of Busteni (nose to tail) but the weather was appalling with heavy rain and swirling mist.  We eventually arrived at Sinaia town and fortunately parking was organised with an expensive pay car park and a long, 20+ minute, walk up to the castle.

Built as King Carol I's summer home, Peles Castle resembles a Bavarian schloss and is better preserved than many Romanian royal palaces as it was used by the communist party as a guesthouse for important visitors.   Whilst it is acknowledged to be the Romanian royal family's private property, negotiations to return it to the current King (Michael) have been protracted as there are concerns that the king lacks the resources to maintain the castle.  

On first sight it reminded me a bit of Balmoral or was it just the weather making me think of Scotland.

This little old lady was busy getting her little baskets of flowers ready to sell.  We passed several others on the way up selling punnets of strawberries.

Pouring with rain in the outside courtyard which we had to queue around.

There isn't anything of particular note in the castle however the interior is lavishly decorated and no expense was spared on the fixtures and fittings, so much so that the King almost bankrupted the country.   It had a vacuum cleaner and an electric food elevator (this is in 1901!) and the room used as the royal cinema was decorated by a young Gustav Klimt.

The exquisite glass ceiling is about 3 floors up.

There is an extensive collection of weaponry dating back through the ages.

Beautiful stained glass doors.

The difference between this and Bran was marked; so much furniture and ornamentation here.

Just look at the fabulous twisting staircase in the corner linking the two floors of the library.

Rather a modern bathroom

I wonder if this was the world's first mixer tap?

We'd rather hoped the rain would have stopped by the time we finished our tour, but sadly not - it was chucking it down.  Instead of waiting for people to get out of my shots as I usually do I just took what there was and cloned people out where I could.

King Carol I and doesn't he look like George V and a few others.

What a shame it was such a dreary day, it must look beautiful on sunny days.

I couldn't manage a "sunny" edit so I've gone for another dramatic one. 

Back to my LOL and she was desperate to sell me a posy of flowers and I was keen to take her photo.  Unfortunately I didn't have enough lei left and so we had a bit of hard negotiation before she finally agreed to a photo.  I've learnt over the years not to take one quick snap and walk away but to take as many as I want from different angles - after all I'm paying!

Eye contact obviously cost extra and a smile was definitely out of the question.