DAY ELEVEN

Goodbye Romania - out with a bang

Leaving Sibiu we used the motorway for the first time since arriving in Romania. So far, we had used a combination of main roads and country roads. Generally, both of these were of good quality. Only occasionally had we found roads which seemed to have had their top surface removed (Schotterpiste!), but twice, in relatively isolated villages (e.g. near to where the Harvest Festival had been) there were workers making a new surface to roads. Today´s motorway was of good quality with frequent small petrol stations with services - and free WiFi.

After taking a detour to Hunedoara we saw how some of the towns have suffered from not being able to compete economically: fairly substantial iron and steel works, empty and rusting. The town looked rather run down too. However, when we arrived at our destination - Wow (for me at least). The area before the castle was modern and being improved, a couple of gift kiosks, a smart restaurant and a new hotel. And it was not hard to see why. There in front of us was a fairy-tale castle from the 1400 and 1500s.


   



And in some of the many rooms there was a display of local art.


   

   


Retracing our route to the motorway, we proceeded to Timişoara. I had met some people from the city in 1990 and had always wanted to visit. I am sure it would have been tired and shoddy back then. Today, one year after it was on of Europe´s Cultural Capitals, it is a very pleasant city with lots of charm; and here the art nouveau (Jugendstil) is not as austere as in other towns and cities we have visited.






   

   

We left Timişoara and headed south and west, now along isolated country roads towards the border near Feoni. It seemed as though we were the only ones driving in that direction: and to some extent we were. At this small isolated border crossing, one young woman was processing the documents of the one car ahead of us. Within five minutes, the lady had taken our papers, processed them, returned them and wished us a nice day. Less than one hundred meters further, the second lady repeated the process and we were in Serbia. Quite honestly, I have neve entered a country quicker. I now expect disaster at our next two crossings!!!!

And now we are in our hotel at Novi Sad, and we have no desire to visit the city. Our hotel is situated within the old fortress looking down on the Danube River and it is quite delightful to just sit here on the terrace by the hotel and sip our beers! Perhaps tomorrow we will see the city.












Go to DAY ONE - CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY TWO - CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY THREE - CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY FOUR - CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY FIVE - CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY SIX - CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY SEVEN - CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY EIGHT - CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY NINE - CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY TEN - CLICK HERE.
 
Go to DAY TWELVE- CLICK HERE.
Go to DAY THIRTEEN - CLICK HERE.

For a list of my other (mainly map) blogs - CLICK HERE.



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