The Merry Cemetery in Sapanta

Last night we stayed in Sapanta up near the Ukrainian Border. Sapanta is best known for the Merry Cemetery. Stan Ion Patras carved, painted and added the sometimes irreverent verses. 



Here I lie to take my rest
They call me Gogea George
Green leaf of Dogwood
I was a young man
I liked the bicycle
Since I was a child
But here’s what happened
I was slashed by a knife
And died on the spot 
Death you have an ugly name
For you carried me off young
And my life you took away
At age 22 D. 2942



Under this heavy cross
Lies my poor mother-in-law
Three more days she would have lived,
I would die, and she would read this cross
You, who are here passing by
Do not wake her up please try
Cause’ if she comes back home
She’ll criticize me more. 
That she’ll not return from hell. 
Stay here, dear mother-in-law!

This is where I rest
Pop Grigore is my name
I loved my tractor the most
And drowned my sorrows in the bottle
All my life I was miserable and sad
Because my father left me when I was just a child
Maybe this was my fate
To die young. 

Șurdești to Breb

Ruth: Today we climbed over a 1070 meter pass and descended into the Mara valley. This is the heart of the historic region of Maramureş. Things are suddenly much more traditional. Horse drawn carts are common, as are the traditional wooden homes. 

When we are not climbing in the Carpathians or drinking the strong blueberry liquor we are usually exploring wooden churches. Today we stopped at Budești to see another 17th century UNESCO listed church. 

Our accommodation the last few nights has been sensational. There are many rural bed and breakfasts in this area. We had two great dinners and breakfasts at our last one and look forward to a meal tonight at the farmhouse where we are staying in Breb. 

In Surdești our hosts spoke very good French so we were able to chat at length.  At our current pension there is little common language, which is unfortunate, as we and are hosts would both like to talk to each other.  Gordon can say a few things in Romanian, but he needed to spend more time on Duolingo.

This afternoon our current hosts headed off with their handmade wooden pitch forks and rakes to turn and stack their hay in the fields.  We were told that they have two cows, three pigs and a number of chickens. Almost everything they need comes right from the farm. 

A walk around Breb included another wooden church and a glimps of a property with a number of buildings that were restored with funding from Prince Charles. 

Southern Maramures

Gordon:  Yesterday we left the comparatively flat roads of Transylvania for the hills of Maramures.  Travellers come here for two reasons: to see one of the most traditional cultures remaining in Europe, and to visit the UNESCO designated wooden churches sprinkled across the region.

We dropped in our first wooden church yesterday.  Within a minute of parking our bikes, a beautiful young woman materialized with the keys to the church, and proceeded to give us a detailed tour in English.  

Sibiu

Gordon:  While we are waiting for our bikes and gear to arrive we have taken a sidetrip to the town of Sibiu, which is perhaps 200 kms south of Cluj.  We came by BlaBlaCar, which is a rideshare app popular in Romania.  A BlaBlaCar ride is faster and cheaper than the bus, and affords the opportunity to have some social interaction with locals.  We had a lot of fun on our trip, as well as gaining some insights into the protests currently underway in Romania.

Sibiu was the largest of the seven Saxon cities in medieval Transylvania.  (The Saxon name for Transylvania translates as “Seven Cities”.)  Many of the towns in Transylvania have three different names, reflecting the three different ethnic groups (Romanian, Hungarian and Saxon) that have coexisted here for 800 years.  As a result, Sibiu is also known as Hermannstadt and Nagyszeben.

Sibiu was the European Capital of Culture in 2007, and continues to be one of the most popular tourist destinations in Romania.  It is a well-preserved late-medieval city, with a charming streetscape.  A number of the towers and sections of the defensive walls still exist, as well as well as street after street of 14th to 18th century buildings.  A notable feature of the buildings are the “eyelid windows” that ventilate the attics.  It feels as though many eyes are watching you as you walk along the streets, which may not have been far from the truth under Ceausescu.  Despite some rainy weather, we are having a lovely time in Sibiu.

We have learned that our baggage has been delivered to our hostel in Cluj.  We will return there tomorrow, hopefully early enough to get in a short day of riding.

Lufthansa Lost Luggage: Day 4 and no information

The number is listed as “Customer Relations,” and the message that repeats with the electronic music assures us that they understand that our time is valuable. Forty five minutes into this process I begin to feel that I am playing a role in some twisted psychological experiment. With too much time invested, I can’t give up in spite of the anxiety and anger welling up in me. The music by this point is pulsing through my bloodstream as my brain is sucked into a moment of hope each time the music stops before the loop begins again. When Gord suggests I just hang up and try another time I want to blow. 

Finally a tired but friendly voice from Manila comes on. She has no information about our bikes and boxes, but at least corrects our last name so that we can look online for any updates in the status of our bags. She offers to give me another number but then puts me on hold for fifteen more minutes. New music, but equally disturbing. When she returns she gives me a number for the Cluj airport, a number I already have.

Our extended stay in Cluj has given us the opportunity to visit essentially all the sites of tourist interest in the town.  We have been to the excellent Ethnological Park, which is like a Romanian Upper Canada Village, as well as the local art gallery.

Life without Luggage: Cluj- Napoca

Our bikes and bags are still missing in action. Today I am buying deodorant and shampoo, but it is amazing how little we can manage with. Fortunately, we have our camera, chargers, and a second pair of socks and underwear. Cluj is also a lovely city, but we are both anxious to get our bikes and start riding. 

Yesterday we met up with Vlad, an Art History professor at a local university who we connected with through the Warmshowers cyclist website. We enjoyed a lovely lunch with him in one of the last remaining old restaurants in the old town. We both tried the local cabbage and minced meat dish : Varză a la Cluj served with sour cream and a fresh hot pepper.  We returned to the same restaurant today for more of the Varza, as well as sarmale (cabbage rolls) and mamaliga (polenta).

Lazy days and restless nights leaves lots of time for painting.

 

Cluj Napoca , Transylvania

We made it to Cluj-Napoca after travelling roughly 24 hours door to door. Our forty minute transfer in Toronto made us scramble, but we made our flight to Munich and on to Cluj. Our bikes and luggage were not so lucky. If all goes well they will be delivered to us at our hostel and spare us the aggravation of finding a cab big enough to transport everything.  Still, until I actually see Cecilia ( my Surly Troll bike) I will worry about when we will be reunited and how she is managing on her travels. 

It is the middle of the night here and we are wide awake and looking forward to exploring. Cluj is a lovely, laid back city, and a good place to recover from jet lag.