Hotel Restaurant Park Miercurea-Ciuc

... and it was hopping, and cold (probably around 50). We stopped for a few pictures of the lake, which is famous for tree stumps jutting out at a 45 degree angle from a landslide in 1837. Then we pressed on to Miercurea Cuik. Miercurea Cuik is in the heart of Székely land, ethnic Hungraians living in Romania. The road sings here were in Romanian and Hungarian, and most residents speak Hungarian.

... Miercurea Ciuc is a rather homely place. I would bet it was quite nice in the first half of the 20th century, but good ol' Communist "urban renewal" saw to it that little of architectural merit remains. At the heart of the square sits the worst of it, a totalitarian ensemble of civic buildings flanking the wide square of Piata Libertatii, which wouldn't look out of place in North Korea, I imagine. The cheap hostel I was planning on staying in turned out to be ...

... its Monday business - it's the moments like these that make traveling special. Apart from getting punched in the arm by an obnoxiously persistent gypsy kid, its been a good day. Nice, laidback sightseeing besides, the best event of the day was receiving an e-mail from Brânduşa, informing me that my travel journal had been found. It seems that after all it was confused with someone else's. Giacomo's assistant, Anca, picked it up under the mistaken ...

... his 5 o'clock shadow seemed to be going on its second day and his left hand was completely bandaged up, probably from whacking the last guy who brought his car back late. The girlfriend attempted to translate in broken English, and we signed the contract, which by the way, was entirely in Romanian. Fortunately for my improved Spantalian, I could more or less pick through it and crossed my fingers that I accurately determined its ...

... are taken out to pasture everyday, horse is the main mode of transport, and colorful folk costumes signify regional, age, gender and life stage differences. Csikszereda is a 97% Hungarian city, and apart from the odd government building sign, everything is in Hungarian. I toured the city museum, which describes the history and culture of the Csik region, one of the seven Szekler areas. A huge ...

TOP 5 BEST FOODS I HAD IN EUROPE 1. Pan Catalan, Spain 2. Klara's Cheese Stew, Czech Republic 3. anything cooked by my French roommate, Cyril, or the French farmer, Bernard (such as honey on goat cheese on toasted bread, or duck in red wine) 4. Haluski, Slovakia (but best cooked by Klara) 5. Laxona Dolmades, Greece 6. Full English Breakfast 7. Pork ...

"Vous etez optimiste! (You're an optimist!) You are laughing." A tanner-skinned man, who spoke with me English and French, responded as he continued to drive us north. Something stupid had recently happened. My blue backpack had fallen out of "Johnny"'s delivery truck as we were driving and been lost forever. I just now broke the solemn silence to tell my friend not to worry, that I still had clothes, because, after all, I was wearing a few ...

... stunning, the hills looking velvet, marked here and there by pine trees, cold fresh wind, miles and miles (kilometers and kilometers?) of smoky blue hills and heights. I felt like turning cartwheels, like flying! We were all grinning, and Agi got tears in her eyes and said, "My beautiful home!" Even to me it felt like home, the familiar embrace of the mountains and the high wide skyline. We found puffball mushrooms at our feet, and ...

Cemetaries are welcome with thier quiet. This one is at the very edge of town, just within sight of the last row of houses, and near a stable, from which horse carts come and go. I watch a man with his dog on the top of a nearby hill. They look out over the whole landscape. I will climb to the top too, I think, once they have moved on. I like the rural so much. The bustle of cities, thier nightlife and people watching, has charm of course. In the ...

When I was a little girl I would invent my own signs of luck. Some people have rabbits feet or four leaf clovers. I felt there was more luck to be had than that; fog, a rare sight in the desert, meant luck, as did bridges and white horses. The best luck was the sight of an open boxcar on a train - it symbolized freedom of movement, endless possibilities, ease of travel. I must have seen a lot of them. Luck, as well as ease of travel, seem to be with me. From Tirgu-Mures ...