Sarajevo - Days 131-133

For some reason I expected Sarajevo to be similar to Belgrade. Perhaps it was because of the relative proximity or the fact that they were both part of Yugoslavia, but I was pleasantly surprised by the vast difference.

The bus ride from Belgrade to Sarajevo took about 7 hours and passed through gorgerous scenery and windy mountain roads. Due to the bus schedule and availability of my host in Sarajevo, I didn't arrive until almost 11pm at night, but thankfully she lives pretty close to the station and met me half way so I wouldn't be completely lost. My host's name is Zoe and is originally from Turkey, although she reminds me at every opportunity that she's not actually Turkish but Ocetian. And me being my ignorant self had to ask "What?" when she first mentioned it. But Zoe is unique because she has autism/asperger and very open about it. She said to me when we first met, "I tend to talk AT people and not talk WITH them." It's been interesting hanging out with her and observing some of the quirkiness. She is very much a creature of habit and routine, but clearly she is high functioning since she holds a full time job as an English teacher and college administrator. Kudos to her for participating in Couchsurfing and forcing herself to interact with people all the time.

Sarajevo is situated in a valley and the city is basically laid out in a long strip with the river and tram lines running down the center from east to west; to the north and south are both mountains and ski areas a bit further away. Obviously there are great ski areas nearby since the 1984 winter olympics were held here, before the war started. The city was under siege by the Serbs for three years in the early 90s, but since then has rebuilt much of the city. There are brand new shopping malls emerging in the center, but reminders of the suffering and violence are evident throughout the city. Just walking along the river to the city center, I spotted numerous buildings riddled with bullet holes and spotted a couple of the famous "Sarajevo Roses." The roses are floral like patterns made from dropped mortars on the concrete. Many of them are erased as the city replaces the asphalt but I really hope they consciously preserve some of them as a memorial to the war.

Yesterday I took a 10km walk with Zoe at the foothills of the mountains and then she showed me this amazing little hang out cafe/bar called "The Golden Fish." It was possibly one of the most atmospheric establishments I've ever visited - filled with antiques, mismatched plates, old sewing machines turned into tables, etc. We also walked around the city center, which I've dubbed "Little Istanbul" because the Ottoman influence is so strong that you feel like you're in the Middle East sometimes. Today is my last day here and I will head to Mostar on an early morning train tomorrow.

Belgrade - Days 129-130

I have to say Belgrade is a really cool city. A great place for outsiders to visit, and I have a feeling it's also very livable for the locals. Again, like many other Balkan capitals, it's a crazy mix of architectural styles and influences. The old city center has a large pedestrian mall, tree-lined residential streets, baroque style buildings, and rests on the hilly side of the Danube. On the side is New Belgrade with communist style apartments that are literally named "Block 45", "Block 46," so on and so forth. And it's flat as a crepe.

My first full day in Belgrade started with rain as predicted. Armed with my rain jacket, I set out to explore the old fortress mid-morning and realized 30 minutes later that the rain jacket is only slightly water resistant. Luckily, the weather cleared up and everything dried out. By the time the sun came out, I was so happy to be not walking around wiping off my glasses that I overestimated my physical ability. Or maybe I underestimated the distance, because I ended up walking a good hour and half to another area called Zemun on the other side of the river. I realized about half way through how much further I had to go, but I was committed by that point. The whole walk was really pleasant because it was completely along the river bank, which was lined with dozens of floating houseboats converted into restaurants, clubs, and even hostels.

Zemun lies on the other side of the Danube; actually the other side of the Sava as well. The two rivers converge and there is an island between Belgrade and Zemun. I have no idea if that makes any sense... Anyway, it is another historical settlement with red roofed homes and a tower with a terrific vantage point. I was so thoroughly exhausted and sweaty after all that walking and climbing that I took the bus back.

More exploration of the city today, but I stayed close to the city center. Luckily my host Marija lives quite near so I can come and go during the day to hide from the sun or rain. Plus it's convenient to many small restaurants where I can grab some cheap local fare. Serbian food, and food in the Balkans in general, is very heavy - lots of meat and cream/diary products. I tried a typical burger here called "Pljeskavica" which was heavenly. There's something about the freshness and texture of the meat, and the fact that it's encased in a thick pita bread rather than the typical hamburger buns. Then today I tried cevapcici, another Serbian specialty. It was basically the same as the hamburger but formed into sausage shape rather than a patty, haha. Equally delicious.

Tonight I'm going out with Marija and her boyfriend Vladimir for a casual dinner and maybe after dinner drinks. A little taste of the famous Belgrade nightlife - the tame kind.

Timisoara - Days 126-128

The 5:30am bus to Timisoara was rought...nothing went wrong just super early. I've been waking up after 8am on most days so my body was protesting but it was really nice to see the city in the early morning. It was still dark when I left and to see the city square completely empty and embraced by early morning fog was a treat. 

The bus arrived in Timisoara before noon and yet again, a random stranger offered to give me a ride part of the way when I asked for directions. Little random acts of kindness and the trust from Couchsurfing hosts really help restore faith in humanity :) 

Timisoara is one of the largest towns in western Romania and is about as flat as Florida - a sharp contrast to the mountainous Transylvanian towns of Brasov, Sighisoara, and Sibiu. But it is dubbed the "City of Gardens" or "Little Vienna" because of the abundance of public parks and green space. It's a nice town to walk around and has its share of old town piazzas but personally I didn't find it as impressive or unique as some others in Romania. However, the hosts I stayed with were spectacular. Roman and Sorina are a young couple working in the IT industry but looking for a change. Sorina in particular is a theater buff and currently directing an independent play she created. I tagged along to a rehearsal and couldn't understand a thing, but it's always nice to see people live out their passions. Also, they live with another young couple who are equally awesome :) Despite having to sleep on a cot in a closet/storage room, I would have gladly stayed longer for the company. 

I've come to the premature conclusion that Romanians are very cultured people because after the concert and museums in Sibiu, my hosts and I attended more of the same in Timisoara. After the rehearsal, we went to a screening of a 1931 silent film called Tabu with live orchestral accompaniment then immediately went to another student play about AIDS. We walked out of that one though... 

At the moment, I'm in Belgrade, Serbia. I took a minibus transfer with door to door service; probably the most luxurious transportation of the trip so far. Weather forecast says rain for the next 3 days. 

Sibiu - Days 124-125

Apologies for being a bit behind on my blog - double entry for today.

I made my way from Sighisoara to Sibiu a couple of days ago but haven't really had computer internet access. Sibiu is the last of my three Transylvanian medieval cities and it was also a European Capital of Culture back in 2007. I didn't realize that meant anything until I arrived and discovered the non-stop events going on throughout the city. Plus I totally lucked out on location. My host has a tiny apartment that doubles as a nail salon right in the city center. I mean it is literally on the main square and about 15 steps from the hub of it all.

My first evening in Sibiu, Ovidiu (my host) and I attended a Mozart and Mendelssohn concert by the local Philharmonic. Cost a whopping $2. The next evening was a free, open air concert in the main town square by Loredana Groza, who is apparently the "Romanian Madonna." Perhaps the moniker wasn't derived from her level of fame but rather her age and chosen hair color. But she definitely had tons of energy and jumped around on stage for a good two hours. Then today began a weekend Baroque festival as well as a free museum night. During the day, I walked the town a bit more and attended a folk dancing show and mini concert. At night, all of the museums in town opened their doors to the public. At the moment, "free" is my favorite word, so I took advantage of all of them. First was the art museum, followed by the history museum, then an open air village museum outside the city, then finally the ethnography museum. City of culture indeed. Too bad I'm going to miss the theater festival, jazz festival, book festival, and documentary film festival...

Tomorrow, I'll catch a 5:30am bus to Timisoara, a town in western Romania, close to the Serbian border.

Sighosoara - Days 122-123

I love couchsurfing because you never know what experiences will come your way. Well, yesterday I was privy to a traditional Romanian funeral gathering in a small village.

I'm couchsurfing (or in this case - bewelcome.org) with a German fella who is doing voluntary work at a local guesthouse. The owner/manager had to attend a funeral yesterday in a village about 25 km away and offered to bring us along. Luckily I had something black to wear in my arsenal.

Romania has a strong mourning culture, so the moment we stepped into the family's home, people began wailing and hugging each other. Meinhard and I just stood awkwardly to the side with the flowers we brought. Despite initially feeling totally out of place and invasive, the family quickly embraced us (figuratively and literally) and included us in their celebration of life. We feasted on roasted chicken, potatoes, olives, homemade bread, etc... and the mood turned rather jovial. It was a very international gathering too. In addition to the Romanians, there was a German, two French firefighters, and myself. There were all combinations of languages spoken, and I even tested out my pitiful high school French.

Brasov/Sighisoara - Days 120-121

I totally did the typical tourist thing and went to "Dracula's" castle. It's actually called Bran Castle; creatively named because it's located in Bran, about 30 km outside of Brasov.

The day was a bit overcast with moody clouds, so it seemed like an appropriate destination. Plus, it was one of the few museums that was open on a Monday. There was a public bus that leaves every hour for Bran, but to get to the station, I had to take the city bus...and had a bit of a tiff with the ticket patrol. It was entirely my fault because I didn't validate my bus ticket when I boarded, but four, FOUR ticket patrol officers came around for the checks and wanted to give me a huge fine for not stamping my ticket. I don't speak Romanian, they don't speak English, but we were all speaking at the same time and they blocked all the doors and refused to let me off the bus until I paid the fine. I suppose eventually they realized I was stubborn enough to never pay the fine and one guy created a tiny opening, just big enough for me to squeeze through and run away. That's right, I ran. Partly because I wanted to get away, but mostly because I was really late for the hourly bus to Bran.

Caught it just in the nick of time and arrived in Bran an hour later. The Bran Castle was built initially to defend the Bran Pass and the Transylvanian territory. Eventually, it was given to Queen Maria of Romania and the royal family used it as a part time residence until they were exiled. Either way, it has absolutely nothing to do with Dracula or Vlad Tepes (the historical figured on which Dracula is based).

I cut the day short because it was raining and bought pizza for my hosts and myself. This time, my hosts are a young Romanian couple who both lived in Copenhagen for a few years before moving back to Brasov for an extended vacation. The girl, Irina, is a sociologist and teaches here and there. Her boyfriend, Marius, is a visual artist and works in marketing/branding. His family immigrated to Canada when he was 12, so he's very much North Americanized.

This morning, I bid my hosts farewell and caught the 7:50am train from Brasov to Sighisoara. Like I mentioned before, Sighisoara is another medieval town in Transylvania, and some call it the "Pearl of Transylvania." It really is a gem. The town is smaller than Brasov and is an UNESCO heritage site. So a few years ago, they started pouring money into restoration and tourism and it shows. The old town is called the Citadel and is located on a hill in the city center. Perhaps because it's more closed in and on a smaller scale, you really feel like you're stepping back in time. I went a little shutter happy and took too many photos. Oh, and some gypsy kids threw a rock at me today because I didn't give them any money - quite a welcoming committee.

I'm staying at a guesthouse as a couchsurfer for the next couple of days. My host, Meinhard, is a German guy who travels the world and forms bases in different countries. He does freelance internet programming and other work in exchange for free lodging and also hitchhikes quite a bit. Very interesting fella. He was sharing stories about his time in London living in a squat and dumpster diving for gourmet sandwiches and pastries :) I, of cousre, had nothing to contribute, except when I inadvertently dumpster dove for Upper Crust pizza in Cambridge.

Brasov - Days 118-119

It's not an overstatement to say that I'm absolutely in love with Brasov. And the town is especially appealing after the urban jungle that was Bucharest. Just a short train ride away from Bucharest, and I'm in Transylvania and the Carpathian Mountains. Insert Dracula joke here.

Brasov is a medieval town with picture perfect streets, town squares, and buildings in various hues. It's one of the few places I've been where the town is just as pleasant in the rain. The day started out with brilliant sunshine and by mid-afternoon had turned cloudy, and by evening it was sprinkling.

The city has a German section encircled in old city walls, and it's the hub of the city. The cafes, restaurants, and shops line the orderly laid out pedestrian streets. There is also a Romanian section of town called the Schei where the roads are winding and nothing is at a right angle. Historically, only Saxons were allowed to live within the fortified city, thus the two different areas. Both sit right at the foot of the Tampa Mountain (a little bit of home in Romania) and there is a cable car and various hiking paths that lead to the top. The mountain is even complete with its own version of the "Hollywood" sign. I'm not quite sure when it was erected, but if I had one criticism about Brasov, that would be it. It's not like I would forget where I am without it...

Fun fact about Brasov and Transylvania in general - the film "Cold Mountain" was filmed here and after the production wrapped, the cast and crew vacationed in nearby Poiana Brasov resort town.

A perfect start to my stay in Transylvania. Brasov, Sighisoara, and Sibiu are like the holy trinity of Transylvanian Medieval towns, and I'm overjoyed to be exploring them in the next week. I would move here in a heartbeat if there were decent jobs available. I did pass by Transylvania University today and saw a big "Confucius Institute" sign, so maybe there is hope?

Just kidding, I wouldn't do that to my mother. Speaking of, a big happy mother's day to my mom and all the moms out there. That includes the new and expecting mothers in my life :) I don't say it enough but I love you mama! One of my first writing assignments in the 4th grade when I arrived in America was to write about one person you admire the most, and like a good Asian kid, I wrote about my mother. I'm pretty sure I was the only one. The teacher showed it to my mom and I was embarrassed  beyond belief! I don't remember what I wrote but if given the same assignment today, I'd still pick my mom - no doubt. Thank you for being there for me and for giving me so many opportunities! The only reason I'm able to defy your wishes and travel around the world as an unemployed vagabond right now is because of you :) 

Bucharest - Day 117

The city map I got at the tourist information center included several 3 hour walking tours of the city, so as a result, I have been doing my fair share of walking. Can't say Bucharest is my favorite capital city, but it does have wide boulevards, beautiful architecture, and a lot of green space, which makes walking for hours in 88 degree heat more bearable.

I mentioned before that Bucharest is the "Paris of Eastern Europe" and today I walked by its version of the Arch of Triumph. Looks exactly the same to me, except for the Romanian flag. I also walked by the Palace of Parliament - a MASSIVE piece of architecture. It is the largest administrative building in Europe and claims to be the the world's second largest building in surface area after the Pentagon.

Of course I need fuel for all that walking and discovered that Romania has arguably the best pretzels I've tasted. They're thinner than US ones, but soft and chewy and oh so delicious when they're fresh out of the oven. And at 1 Leu (30 cents), a really affordable on-the-run snack. However, I have been on a carb overload recently in the Balkans with all the borek/byurek/spanakopita, other cheesy and sweet pastries, sesame rings, etc... and I'm pretty sure I've gained weight at this point. So I decided to go on a "strict diet" and had a cucumber and yogurt for dinner, but now 2 hours later I'm starving.

Bucharest - Days 114-116

As planned, I made the 20 hour journey to Bucharest - painless enough and uneventful. I have to admit that my favorite form of travel is by train and it saddens me a little that people are opting for faster or cheaper alternatives; myself included sometimes. The bus from Istanbul to Bucharest would have taken 12 hours versus the 20 (actually 21) by train, but there's something about the rhythmical clanking of the rail carts and the gentle swaying. The bus from Istanbul to the border was only about a third full and I ended up being the only person in a 6 person compartment when we switched to the train. 

Bucharest is a cool city, at least based on what I've seen so far. There's usually something about a place that surprises me. For Istanbul, it was how the city was so hilly and steep. For Bucharest, it's the sheer number of stray dogs roaming the streets. Bucharest has the highest number of stray dogs in Eastern Europe apparently and they are not all nice...apparently an average of 75 people are bitten everyday! My goal for the next couple of days is to avoid contributing to the statistic.

Bucharest is called the "Paris of the Eastern Europe"and it's apparent in parts of the city. It's an architecturally eclectic city. Many of the "beautiful" buildings were constructed between the two world wars and those are juxtaposed by the massive megalomaniac buildings constructed during Ceausescu's reign. Unfortunately, he destroyed much of the historic city center, and earthquakes took care of another large chunk. Today, the Old Town has shrunk to just a few blocks and up until just a few years ago, it was considered a bad neighborhood. But the city started investing money and renovating the center, and not surprisingly, it is full of bars and restaurants and is the choice hangout place for the young people of Bucharest. That's where my host and I, along with some other friends, went last night to "watch" the Europa Final in Bucharest between Madrid and Bilbao. 

Walking back to the metro station last night, some random guy pretended to be a wild dog and "bit" me on the back of the leg with his hand. Freaked me out but turned out to be quite a funny guy. The girls I was with concluded he wasn't Romanian because he was too friendly, but now I know that pretending to a stray dog is a popular Romanian past time for drunk guys. Yet another thing to avoid.  

Istanbul - Days 111-113

Friday night actually turned out to be not so bad compared to Saturday night in terms of sleep. Sure the bass is thumping and drunk people are outside yelling but eventually you get desensitized. Saturday night however, a group of 7 couchsurfers arrived from Ukraine at around 1am, and then took their sweet time getting settled and spreading out their sleeping bags. Then at 7am, my host Murat returns from the bar downstairs with the rest of the bar staff to eat breakfast and talk and SMOKE. I almost couldn't comprehend what was happening. But despite that total lack of consideration my host isn't bad, but I do think he has a mild case of ADHD - he is all over the place.

During the weekend, I visited Dolmabahce Palace, which is where the sultans used to live and also where Ataturk died. The place itself was amazing and ornate and located right on the water with a perfect view of the Asia side of Istanbul. However, the entire visit was one of the poorest organized affairs ever. You could only see the interiors of the building on guided tours and they basically breeze through everything and give facts that could have entirely fit on a trifold pamphlet. And of course, no pictures :)

Then today I took the ferry out to The Princes Islands. They're a set of seven islands, but I think only four are inhabited by people and accessible by boat. The ferry ride was about an hour but you feel as if you've escaped to a different time period. The islands have minimal auto traffic and most of the people get around by bike, scooter, walking, and also horse-drawn carriages. Although I'm sure the last one is only for tourists. I set off on what I thought was a short little walk to the monastery on top of the hill, but it turned out to be a two hour hike through the woods and I was impossibly lost. But it was really nice getting away from the hustle and bustle of Istanbul for a while.

Tonight I will take a 20 hour train ride to Bucharest, Romania. Unfortunately the section of the rail from Istanbul to the Bulgarian border is under repair so I will bus it and then switch to the sleeper train. Excited to go back to the Balkans!

Istanbul - Days 109-110

The thing about Couchsurfing is you're constantly making and giving first impressions - like a perpetual first date, so you're always on your best behavior. The degree of trust is established within those first 24 hours...and sometimes far far less. My first couchsurfing experience was in Paris seven years ago where the host presented me with a key and left for a 3 day international conference. I couldn't believe that people still trusted each other to that degree. Of course that's an extreme example. Most of the time I am given a key but the host is typically around during the evenings. I never ask but just sit back and wait for them to offer. Sometimes the host is more cautious and ask you to work around their schedule, which is perfectly understandable. I try to do this anyway to establish some good will :)

That's what I did here in Istanbul for the first couple of days, but then apparently proved to be trustworthy enough to be left alone in the apartment (with its collection of DVDs). I took full advantage of this and spent the better part of the day cooking meals and watching movies. There is always a little nagging voice in my head that says, "You should go out and see the city!" but sometimes you just need an off day.

Today is Friday and my host gets his young daugher for the weekend so I was scrambling for a last minute couch once again, but CS came through and I am now staying at the Indian Culture Center and the Hare Karishna Temple in the center of the city. You really couldn't ask for a more convenient location - it's right on the huge pedestrian street that I mentioned in my last post. I moved my stuff over here today and walked around a bit with my host and went to happy hour at a couple of local bars. As a non-drinker, happy hours are generally a little less happy for me than other people, but it's always interesting to experience the local culture, especially in this case. He really likes the rock and roll dive bars - the dark, grungy, and smoky type. I was the only female amongst nine guys in the first bar and half of us had pony tails...there's something awfully wrong with that.

Oddly enough the culture center/temple is located on a bar street and sandwiched between two bars with live music. This being Friday evening, I can basically bet on not getting much restful sleep tonight.

Plovdiv/Istanbul - Days 105-108

Sunday was my last day in Plovdiv and Zarko had the day off so we walked around town together and he showed me a couple of places which he thought was interesting...me not so much, but I appreciate the thought regardless. I guess for some reason he is really impressed by fountains and athletic fields, so we actually took a 30 minute bus ride out to the "Rowing Channel" and the surrounding athletic complex. The rowing channel itself was pretty cool I must say. It's a 2.3 km long Olympic "pool" that attracts a lot of joggers and such when it's not being used for competition.

The best thing about staying with Zarko is our daily cooking sessions. On my last night we made the typical Bulgarian Shopska salad with tomato, cucumber, pepper, parsley, and healthy pile of Bulgarian cheese on top. The main course was a special sausage from his hometown of Chirpan. I have 100% intention of recreating these amazing dishes when I get home, but hunting down some of the ingredients should be interesting. 

Monday was uneventful; transit day. 11am bus from Plovidiv and arrived in Istanbul a little bit after 5pm. I didn't do my research very well and just assumed I don't need a visa for Turkey, so I was completely caught off guard when the border agent said in a menacing tone "No visa!" Turns out I could purchase one on arrival for $20. Crisis averted. My host in Istanbul is Kenn, a construction engineer who has lived in the city for almost 20 years. My initial host canceled at the last minute due to a family emergency and I ended up sending out emergency CS requests the night before and Kenn kindly agreed to let me crash at his apartment. By the way, I suddenly realized this morning that he looks like a young Turkish version of Dustin Hoffman.

Istanbul is overwhelming and huge in comparison to the past few places I've visited. Just its public transit system consists of metro, bus, metrobus, suburban train, ferry, seabus, etc... My "commute" from Kenn's apartment to the city center by suburban train is about 30 minutes and that even bypasses all the surface traffic. By bus it'd probably be an hour or more. Yesterday, my first day in Istanbaul, I visited the Blue Mosque (known by locals as Sultanahmed Mosque), the Hagia Sophia, the Grand Bazaar and everything in between that links those places. Tons of walking. For some reason I had really high hopes for Istanbul and it doesn't disappoint but I'm having trouble accepting the hoards of tourist groups - and I AM a tourist. I can't imagine how the locals feel. But to be fair, the residential areas are less suffocating.

Walking around in Istanbul, the first obvious character is the numerous minarets dotting the city skyline. The mass majority of the population are Muslim and there are hundreds of not thousands of mosques in the city. The most famous of these are the two that I visited yesterday, and they're right next to each other. The Blue Mosque is still a functioning mosque and has free entry. Tourists line up to enter and there is an attendant who hands out plastic bags to everyone for their shoes - it breaks my ecological heart. The interior of the mosque is covered with blue colored iznik tiles, hence its name. Next door is the Hagia Sophia and that was converted to a museum I think as early as 1935. $15 entry fee but totally worth it. I was literally slack-jawed when I walked into the place. Hagia Sophia is unique because it houses both Christian and Muslim religious symbols and artifacts because it served as both throughout history. It was originally an orthodox basilica until the Ottoman Empire when it was converted into a mosque.

After those two I was a bit mosqued out and decided to grab some lunch in the Grand Bazaar area. An over friendly carpet salesman chatted me up and I ended up talking with him in his carpet shop for almost 2 hours. And HE looks like a young Turkish version of Stallone. It's not just me; his colleagues even call him Stallone. He showed me some gorgeous carpets and kilims and then showed me the horrendous price tags to go along with them. I knew they were expensive, but not $6000 expensive. Anyone out there interested in purchasing an authentic, handwoven Turkish carpet? If so, place your orders now :) I'm sure they all say this. but Hasan (Turkish Stallone) promised to sell to me at cost price and send door to door via DHL for free. I'm not under the illusion that it's free, but it's still cheaper than purchasing one in the US. He travels there for work frequently and says there's about a 500% mark up in the US. Who knows.

Today I'm exploring a different part of the city center - close to Taksim Square. It's a huge pedestrian street, and I discovered the section that sells musical instruments, so I was able to get a quick guitar fix. Right now I'm tying this on a MacBook Pro in an electronics store since I didn't have time to finish up last night. Off I go before the store attendants kick me out.