Pictures from Transylvania.....

Thought I would post some more pictures of Romania.....it really is hard to put into writing our experience here so maybe pictures will do the trick. We have as much time as possible outdoors (until it decided to rain everyday last week)......

Above are some pictures of Poiana Brasov, the ski resort and hiking area located about 10 miles from the center of Brasov. It was really beautiful here and very modernized. 

The people of Brasov celebrate Juni fest every on the Sunday after Easter every Spring(most people here are orthodox Christians/they celebrated Easter last weekend).  The festival is a weekend long and includes street food, live Romanian music and the Juni parade. The festival celebrates the present day freedom of Romanian people have here in Brasov. Brasov was once under Ottoman and German rule, and the Romanian people (who lived outside the wall in a village called the Schei) could not enter the walls to the city center. The Schei people (hundreds of them) dress up in traditional Romanian costumes and ride massive horses through the Schei gate and parade through the city center during the Juni parade. It was a really interesting to watch, and although we did not completely understand what was going on, it was apparent that the celebration was incredibly meaningful to the people here. After the parade, families gather together to feast (it was hard to avoid envy as we smelled all the food being cooked and saw families gathering together). 

We found a few Romanian street foods that we love! Mici- pictured above is a traditional Romanian sausage- these were cooked on a wood smoker and served with sweet mustard- and traditional Romanian lager beer (its pretty bad). Also, the Romanian fried bread stuffed with local salted soft cheese and dill is pretty much to die for......

Here is a picture of armor from the Romanian castle at Bran:

And an amazing view of the Black Church and the town of Brasov from the Black Tower:

And a picture of the pedestrian mall filled with restaurants and shops in the center of town:

As soon as things start to feel normal, it is time to pack our bags and move again...we leave Friday for the Black Sea! Stay tuned for more thought and conclusions about our Romanian adventure.

Brasov, Romania

What have we been doing in Romania since Bucharest? Well I thought I would take a few minutes to catch everyone up on our time here in Brasov....

(Above: Brasov town square: Below: Hiking on Mt. Tampa in Brasov)

So, for the past 2 weeks we have been in Brasov- a medieval town in northern Transylvania in the foothills of the Carpathian and Bucegi Mountains. We did not really know what we were getting into coming here, but the pictures and reviews seemed promising, so we decided this would be home base for our month in Eastern Europe. We rented an apartment in the north of town for the month, and the weather has been great, so we walk to the city center nearly everyday (about 25 minutes away.)

                                                           (Above: View on the town from a hill nearby)

When we first arrived we were almost disappointed, for Brasov seems a lot more "normal" when compared to the crazy capital city Bucharest. But over time, we realized that Brasov might not be as shocking, but it's beauty and charm make up for it. This small city is definitely more calm and clean- it is a popular tourist destination with a lot of activities. (Not to mention, we realized that being anywhere staying busy on a small budget, without plans or obligations for 3.5 weeks, would be the challenge. We have been going non-stop for about 8 months now, so a month to relax is still kind of throwing me for a loop.)

(Above: Beautiful St. Nicholas Church in the Old City; Below: Gardens at Parcul Centrul- the park in the center)

The city center is really gorgeous and the hiking views of the mountains are stunning. So far, we have explored both the old town and the nearby Romanian village, hiked the mountain on the south side of the town several times, day tripped to Bran Castle (which is said to of inspired the Dracula novel), read, watched movies and even kicked a soccer ball around in the park. Tomorrow we are headed to hike deeper into the mountains, explore the local ski resort (Poiana Brasov) and village of Zurnesti. We also plan to make it out to the local pool a few times and make a day trip to Sibiu- another town nearby.

                                               (Romanian grave yards in the Schei District with a view of the hills)

 The worst part of Romania is my favorite part of most other places: the food. I hate to be offensive here, but it is pretty terrible. The grocery store is far stranger than the German store, and the produce selection is dreadful. The only things you can buy are tiny onions, old eyed crusty potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, old peppers, apples, pears and some frozen options- same selection at every store. (I am really bewildered why they do not grow more leafy things here.... seems like the climate would be suitable?) Anyway, I would kill for some kale, brussel sprouts, a spinach salad or an avocado! I know it could be a lot worse, but it has been hard for me to be creative with the same ingredients. The cheeses we have tried have been pretty gross (Nate bought a goat cheese that was sour) and the cured meats are incredibly expensive. The eggs and the chicken seem fresh and local, but we have not seen or eaten beef. When it comes to eating out, the food is also pretty mediocre but very inexpensive. (We ate out at a "Mexican" restaurant that was strongly recommended called Bella Musica  to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. I ordered an enchilada- which came out as 3 fried chicken tacos with a sweet pepper sauce- it was basic and pretty funny. We both had 2 beers each, chips and (weird) guacamole and 2 entrees for under 20 USD total!) All in all, besides the occasional meal out, we are surviving on Nutella on wheat bread, and basic pasta dishes.

(Above left: My "enchilada" plate at Bella Musica; Above right: Nathan at the Tampa trailhead; Above center: Bran Castle from below; Below: View from Bran)

More pictures and stories of Brasov, mountain views, Romanian night life and our trip to Vama Veche to come!! Stay tuned (and enjoy your vegetables).....

Bucharest, Romania

So, I am sure most of you are wondering- why the heck did they decide to go to Romania? Well, we were looking for a place nearby to travel outside of the Shengen passport zone during Nathan's break from school (as an American, you can legally only stay within this zone 90 out of 180 days with a passport) in order for me to stay in Germany while Nathan completes school. So, we were thinking of heading to Ireland, but this seemed the more unconventional and more affordable. So, we did some research and decided Romania would be an adventure (many Westerners have never made it to this region- mainly because it was not even a possibility until recent decades). We flew into Bucharest (the capital city) and enjoyed a few crazy days of city life before heading to the small mountain town of Brasov, where we will be staying the bulk of the trip. Bucharest gets mixed reviews, but I think everyone could agree that this place has something special to offer- it is super funky!

(Above: a super cool map of hand drawn Bucharest we found on a corner; Below: A Romanian military building with a fountain and restaurant in front)

Eastern Europe is healing from recent Soviet communism and Bucharest still has open wounds. When writing about other cities, it is easy to explain the beauty of the architecture and the culture-which can be appreciated at face value. I do not think you can truly appreciate what is going on in Bucharest unless you understand a bit of the history of the area. I am reminded of this every time we go to Eastern Europe, and it is refreshing because the political and cultural changes were so recent- the history is so tangible. Simply stated, the last century has been very hard on this beautiful city- known in the 19th century as "Little Paris". This area was in a state of conflict (civil war, world war and communist takeover) until 1989 when the Romanian people rebelled and the overthrew the Communist regime. So, for the last 27 years they have been coming to terms with their new found freedom and slowly rebuilding.

(Above right: a picture of what most of the apartment buildings look like; Left: a water feature at the park)

The apartment we stayed at in Bucharest is owned by a very interesting young Romanian woman who graduated from Harvard law school and practiced as a corporate lawyer in New York City for 10 years before recently moving back home. This was really fascinating to us because her generation of Romanians was the first to grow up in a capitalist economic system. Without a lot of direction from experienced elders about "what to be" or how to thrive, it is apparent that some became "lost" and some overcame the odds to become very successful.

(Above: All pictures from various location around the park where we stayed)

After a day of traveling, we walked around the Cismigiu park and headed to the University area (where the rebellion in December 1989 took place) to enjoy our first evening. This is one of the most populated and nicest areas of the city- with bakeries, pubs, book stores and restaurants- it was fun to watch the young multicultural crowd walking around enjoying their daily lives among the graffiti covered monuments and giant Pepsi-Cola billboards. We stumbled on a seafood restaurant with a nice sidewalk patio and enjoyed a strange (and cheap!) dinner of salmon, pork cutlet, french fries and mixed greens. The food was nothing special, but the server spoke broken English and was nice- and we were just happy to safely eat our cheap dinner outside in the summer-like weather.

(Above:We decided on the salmon and pork cutlet instead of ordering the tongue, heart, brains or mixed organs on this menu.)

The next morning we woke up to the sound of the wild dogs fighting in the park and birds chirping in the green trees outside our window. We ate a breakfast of Turkish pasties from local vendors at the market in the park, explored the book stores, and walked north on Calea Victoria( a long street with ancient churches, pristine museums and beautiful monuments). Parts of this street (and most of this city) are really bizarre- there are large war torn apartment buildings (complete with bullet holes) with expensive designer and high end jewelry stores on the street level. There are lavish hotels next to graffiti covered smelly allies. There are wild dogs laying on sidewalks and nicely dressed young women pushing around strollers. There are gypsies begging with babies in their arms and boutiques on every corner. As a westerner, you cannot help but to be shocked by the poverty, materialism, over-compensation and contradiction of this place. It is so shocking- it is hard to believe it is a reality.

(Above: a nice wild dog at the park; Below: Views around Old Town)

In the evening, we walked to the old town, where they have successfully refurbished the area north of the river. Here, below interesting ancient buildings, hoohak bars, nightclubs and small cafes with Coca-Cola advertisements line the cobblestone streets. We sat and enjoyed some beers at a local street-side pub while watching the parade of tourists and the homeless dogs.

                                 (Above: a beautiful building with a lot of history- where the symphony and philharmonic now perform)

Honestly, most of our stay consisted of walking around, soaking it all up and then heading back to our lovely apartment facing the park to process and talk it all over. The next morning we caught a train to the mountains where more adventures are waiting! Here we plan to explore Brasov, hike and relax, and eventually plan to head to the hippie beach town Vama Veche at Black Sea Coast before flying back from Bucharest. So stayed tuned for more Romanian stories-I have a feeling there will be more shocking stuff to share......

Spring Time in Munich

                                                            Spring has Sprung in Germany!

So- Nathan graduated from the WBA International Brewing Program last Friday....so he has a little break before he starts the Master Brewer portion of his program this summer!

To celebrate, we all headed to "Fruhlingsfest" aka Spring fest in Munich on Friday afternoon. Similar to Octoberfest, this festival celebrates Bavarian culture. Therefore, from my point of view it is a giant group of Bavarians dressed in traditional costumes, riding carnival rides, drinking giant beers and eating pretzels which eventually leads to singing and dancing to crazy German bands (and funny American covers). It was pretty rowdy to say the least. Here are a few pictures from early in the day at the Augustineer tent:

(Sorry I did not take more pictures- I guess I was a bit distracted!)
After a quick recovery- we packed our stuff and headed to Romania on Monday- pictures and posts to come later today!

More pictures of food and fun!

So I thought I would post some pictures I have taken both in Chicago and Europe of food and fun that had not made it to the blog yet....

(Above: Random fountain on the streets of Cologne; Below: Cake that we bought at a local bakery when we traveled to the Nymphenburg Palace in Munich)

(Above: Kwak served in this interesting glass- you hold it by the wooden part; Below: Amazing gnocchi/ bread with olive oil and salt at a Munich wine bar)

 

(Above: Cold day pictures at Cloudgate (the bean) in Chicago; Below: Apple Strudel at Ayinger Brewing in downtown Munich)

(Above: Giant hamburger and french fries that we shared at Kumas too in Chicago; Below: Nate playing with the fun dog at our favorite dive bar in Chicago)

Now I am all caught up on the picture posting- we hope you enjoyed them! We are headed to the land of vampires and gypsies on Monday the 29th for the month of May- more posts about life in Bucharest and Brasov Romania (should be crazy) to come!

Germans with Heart+ Kolsch= Cologne

                                                 ( A pub in Cologne that serves Kolsch- I loved the glass holder in the middle!)

Cologne (or Koln) Germany is located on the Rhine river in north western Germany near the borders of both Belgium and the Netherlands. Because of its location, Cologne is known for its international atmosphere, its "heart" and its Kolsch beer (Kolsch can only be brewed and enjoyed here.) Nathan has been on a two week tour of European breweries, brewing equipment manufacturers, brewing engineering facilities, pubs, and beer towns with the other guys in his program. I flew to meet him on his weekend break in Cologne to catch up and enjoy the city. As soon as I arrived, Nathan warned me that I would really love this city and he was right! After spending a month in Munich, I was pleasantly shocked at how friendly and laid back the Germans of this area were! We headed out to explore the city as soon as we settled in. We walked along the Rhine river from our hotel to the lush green park where there were hundreds of young people on skating on long boards, jumping on trampolines, swinging in hammocks, and enjoying the nice spring weather. We also explored the giant and elaborate Cologne dome and walked around Old Town.

      (Above: inside and outside of the Cologne Dome; Spring has sprung in the parks of Cologne- I loved the blooming trees! Below: Old Town buildings)

After taking an afternoon nap, we headed to the Belgian District, where there were many bars, discos and restaurants. We ate real beef hamburgers and Belgian frites for the first time since being in Europe. We headed to the main square we had heard about in the area after grabbing some Kolsch in a drink market. After some confusion, we found the square in front of a church and drank our beer with the hundreds of other young people who crowded the "platz" and spilled over onto the streets. (I love how in young European cities, where drinking on the street is legal and the drinking age is 16, young people seem to gather publicly and party in the open.) The vibe was so relaxed and fun- there was a really great feeling in the area- probably my favorite European social experience to date. After finishing our street beers, we decided to go downtown and drink Kolsch in the traditional fashion- at a big beer hall. We ended up at a Gaffel located near the Dome. Kolsch is traditionally served in small cylindrical glasses on top of coaster with the establishment's logo. As compared to a stein that gets warm before you finish it, the Kolsch in your small glass always stays cold and fresh. The servers promptly bring you a new 0,2 L glass of Kolsch every time you finish the one before, until you signal you are finished by putting your coaster on top of your glass. Not only is the beer amazing, but the traditional service is also fun to be apart of. Our server even sat down with us and told us about his life in Cologne. He said servers there do not make much money, but that life there was good. He claimed that the international community there was very welcoming to foreigners (he himself was from Albania) and that the city was more liberal and relaxed as compared to Munich- that "they had more heart".

On Sunday, we contemplated heading to Dusseldorf, a city very close to Cologne that brews famous Alt Beer. Cologne and Dusseldorf are both beer towns that have a healthy sense of competition- Dusseldorf is more conservative and Cologne more liberal. But from what we heard, the one thing in common is that the beer flows like water here and people love to party! You can only get Alt beer in Dusseldorf- not Cologne- much less anywhere else in Germany. Nathan was headed there Tuesday on the tour though, so we decided to save our money and just relax. We explored more of Cologne, watched street performers, ate excellent Indian food, and relaxed in Old Town with friends. I really loved our experience here!  (If you are into Museums there is also a famous Chocolate museum and the Ludwig Art Museum there as well- we passed them up due to limited time and money.)





Honestly, I am really happy I made the trip because it was really refreshing to see a different region of Germany. Germany is a really big European country and it makes sense that Germans have different regional identities. I would highly recommend Cologne on your next German holiday!

                             (Above: Nathan enjoying his Kolsch; Kolsch drinking in Old Town on the nice patio! Notice the coasters and 0,2 L glasses)