2009 Dan in Romania

“Maybe you will see beer.” I wasn’t sure how to respond when the guy next to me on the train said this. So I replied carefully: “Beer?” “Yes, you know. Big animal that lives in forest.” “Oh, yes,” said I, “bear”. The train had gotten into the mountainous area of Transylvania, and the forest was indeed thick enough for bear, deer, or possibly even beer. We talked for almost the entire 3 ½ hour trip from Bucharest to Brasov. We talked about how our lives were similar and how they were different. The biggest difference is that he wants to leave Romania to make a better life for his wife and himself. He’s a welder and believes he can get a job in America, Canada, New Zealand or the UK. But the trouble is, he cannot get a visa. When it was time to part ways, he said God bless you and your family, and of course I responded in kind. There were detailed instructions on how to get to it. And the taxi driver bringing me into central Brasov also gave me directions. I ignored them all. “It” is the tram ride up the side of the mountain to look down upon the town of Brasov. I was sure you’d be able to simply see it and then walk over to it in order to ride to the top. And I thought I’d actually do it, for the good view of this medieval city. Of course I was right about seeing it – you can see it from anywhere in town. But I spent most of the entire time I was there trying to get to it. And I never really succeeded. The medieval streets don’t go straight at all. I later got a map and still couldn’t make it. I did eventually get to a park that I THOUGHT was at the base of the tram, but by then it was time to head back to the train station. And even then, I still couldn’t actually see where to get on the darn thing. No matter. The joy is in the journey. That’s what I say to seven hours in hot, stuffy trains, and a few hours wandering around in Brasov in the hot sun. 

 I did get to see the “Black Church”, the important Brasov landmark built between 1385 and 1477, and “blackened” by a fire in 1689. I also saw Piata Sfatului, the town’s beautiful “Council Square”. Besides the square itself, there were several other charming medieval cobblestone streets that I wandered around on. I also saw some of the walls and other fortifications that still remain in the village’s perimeter. And the park in the hills above was very nice and shady on this hot day. So next time my brother asks, “How are things in Transylvania”, I can answer truly, “hot”. When I came to Romania in 2008, I went to Sinaia, which is also in Transylvania, on Saturday, and wandered around the parks on Sunday. Brasov was only about 45 minutes past Sinaia on the train. So on my Sunday in 2009 I decided to wander the parks of Bucharest once again. I actually had been running in them quite a bit, but now it was time to make some more serious explorations. In the morning I ran to a park that’s not too far away, but one that I’d not yet been to: Parcul Carol. There is a tall, stunning monument in the center. I’m not sure what it’s about, but I believe it may be dedicated to Romania’s dead soldiers because there’s an eternal flame there. I later walked back to take some pictures. I also made it through close by Parcul Izvor, where Madonna will perform on her Sticky and Sweet tour on July 26, two days after I depart (maybe I’ll bump into her at the airport), and over to Gradina Cismigio, the Beautiful Botanical Gardens. Just like last year, they had music in the park, even the same old guy dancing in front of the gazebo to get everyone else out there. The Bucharestians were out in droves on this hot Sunday afternoon. What a great scene. Not wanting to get too much of a good thing, after enjoying the music for a while, I got onto the metro and went north to Parcul Herastrau. Too bad this park is so far away – I think it would be by far the best place to run in Bucharest. It is quite large, and includes a good-sized lake. Not to mention a huge statue of Charles de Gaulle. I’m not sure if it’s related, but there’s also an Arcul de Triumf nearby. That, and the long, wide, tree-lined boulevards are why they call Bucharest the “Paris of Eastern Europe”. Veronica is currently in that other city in France, so I asked her to find out if they call that one the “Bucharest of Western Europe”. I walked another mile or two over to Parcul Kiselef. Last year they had had some wonderful folkloric music, including a guy playing Enescu’s Romanian Rhapsody on a violin. This time they had some folklore music as well: a girl singing rhapsodic songs. And she sang extremely well. 

 There was one more stop, and it wasn’t a successful one. I wanted to finally do a tour of the Palace of Parliament. Yes, the one that’s close to my hotel. The one I can see from my hotel window. The one I’ve run around at least 12 times during this trip alone. Yes, that one. I’ve been repeating the Romanian superlatives about it’s being the largest public/administrative building in the world, and the second biggest building, overall, in the world after the Pentagon. Veronica disputed that with some Wikipedia information (I hate in pesky things like facts get in the way of a good story), but I found something else on Wikipedia that supports the Romanian view. Anyway, I didn’t get in – the next tour was too long to wait for, and too short to get something to eat and come back for. And I was beat. Next time I’ll need to plan this out better. For more on life in Romania from my strange perspective, see a day in the life, in my running blog.