Roaming Across Romania

Rural Romania can make you feel disconcerted, even upset. It's a combination of all the poverty, the poor sanitation and lack of clean drinking water, and the sight of the elderly sometimes engaged in heartbreakingly difficult physical work.

An elderly woman struggles home with water collected from a well.

Take the latter first. As we rode through southern Romania today we passed two handcarts laden with odds and sods. One was being pushed by an elderly woman. She had manoeuvred the cart so that the right hand wheel had become bogged down in the mud on the side of the road.

I wanted to get off the bike and help her, but no sooner had the thought come to mind than she heaved the cart in the opposite direction and freed it. 

We swept by feeling guilty. What on earth was a woman of her age doing pushing a cart like that on her own? What kind of world lets this happen?

And isn't membership of the EU meant to bring benefits to the citizens of the member nations?

A shepherd looks after his goats. It's a simple life and may seem idyllic. But EU membership has made it easier for outsiders to buy up farmland and prices have skyrocketed. 

Then there are the toilets, which we rate as worse than the worst we encountered in rural SE Asia. Judy encountered one today that was so bad she wouldn't use it and ducked outside. As she was braving the loo, I was drinking coffee and deciphering a Romanian newspaper which carried a story about the country's high rates of hepatitis - caused by unsanitary conditions. Judy returned to the table grim faced - "no running water", she announced and went off to the bike to get our water to wash her hands.

A woman draws water from a well in a region where the water table is known to be contaminated. Efforts are said to be underway to try to improve living conditions, but the results are not obvious.

This evening she's been hunting around on the internet and has discovered that the area we have been riding through has some of the highest hep rates in the country. Part of the reason is that many toilets are simply a shallow hole in the ground and the water table becomes contaminated. People still draw their drinking water from the many wells that dot the roadside.

Decay on the outskirts of Corabia, southern Romania. Under communist rule, efforts were made to develop the town as an industrial centre but now many of the factories have closed and people have moved away to look for work.

As for poverty - the signs are everywhere. Houses are falling down and whole factories abandoned. Yesterday we cycled into a village that was like something out of the Middle Ages. A group of mostly women were sitting and standing in front of a dilapidated building. They barely moved, as if frozen in time. A horse and cart were stopped on a dirt side road. The tones were monochrome - a combination of peeling paint, dirt, dust and a grey sky. We didn't stop.

But for all this grimness there is an upside. Riding the tandem here is fantastic. Many of the roads are quiet, if bumpy, and the people are wonderfully friendly. It's taken us a couple of days to figure that out, but we have come to the conclusion the locals are often shy. They will ignore us until Judy initiates a wave or a cheery "salut" or "ciao". The response is immediate. Weathered faces crinkle into beaming smiles and their greetings and best wishes follow us down the road long after we have passed them.

We cycled into a truck stop and asked if they sold coffee. The man in the centre soon produced some and we settled down for a lengthy discussion that took in the merits of EU membership, corruption in Government, a comparison of average earnings in Romania and New Zealand and the statement that "Romanians, we love our country". We never learned his name or that of his friend. They wouldn't let us pay for the coffee.

Last night we stayed at a campground in a cabin - yes, the only toilet and shower were terrible and we had to ask that the water be turned on. It was a party night - in a thunderstorm, a teenager was having his 18th birthday celebration in the campground "restaurant" - a huge, garage like space with beer and wine fridges and room for table tennis. We went to sleep to the sounds of traditional Romani music - lilting with an upbeat tempo that made us smile at the sheer joy it evoked.

Notes from the Road

Despite all we had heard, Romania's dogs are not causing us any problems. There are certainly lots of them roaming around but the vast majority have shown no interest in our limbs. We now carry a dog "Dazer" which emits a high pitched tone. We've tried it a couple of times on dogs that looked a bit threatening and it does seem to work - good insurance for the nervous but given our experience so far, it's probably not necessary.

Horse and cart - a common sight in southern Romania.

Finding accommodation in southern Romania can be tricky. We have followed the main EV6 route since crossing the Iron Gate at Sip and have passed through Calafat and now Corabia. It's required a little planning to ensure we end each day with somewhere to stay (click on EV6 - Places to Stay at top of this page). Our best source of information has been the 1: 100000 maps of the Donau Radweg published by Huber. Campgrounds are practically non existent, but accommodation is considerably cheaper than in western Europe. Free camping is another alternative for those prepared to forego a shower.

We stayed at a campground with cabins at Zaval, Romania. This is the morning after a night of violent thunderstorms and traditional Romani music.

Be careful about drinking water. Either buy bottled or filter/sterilise it - just because a local says it's safe to drink doesn't mean you will escape a stomach upset.

There is a risk of waterborne diseases in the Danube River area, Romania.

Buying food is easy. Lots of coffee shops/bars and bakeries. Some small supermarkets.

The main EV6 route has been sealed all the way so far. Most of it has little traffic, but at times the road is narrow and bumpy or potholed. Delightful cycling.

Tandoids

Current Location: Corabia, Romania

Distance this trip (from Munich, Germany): 2,175 km

Longest day this trip: 104 km

Worst loo: Bar at Ostroveni, Romania

Road kill count: lost track of the dogs bowled in Romania

Come on Romania: It's time to switch from wine corks to screw caps. Not everyone carries a corkscrew.

Where's the fire? Cigarette in mouth, this man had his horse clip clopping at a fine pace.

Senses Assailed

We feel on the verge of sensory overload. The past few days as we have ridden the tandem from Belgrade, Serbia, along the Danube and into Romania have been the most rewarding of the trip.

The cycling, sights, people, stories we have heard, friendly waves - they've all added up to something special.

Judy the Stoker tucks into a local speciality in Serbia - kacamak, which is a doughy goo a bit like polenta, accompanied by grilled cheese. Hmmmmm...

In no particular order, here's a random rundown of a few of them.

Two German cyclists met on the top of a Serbian hill. "What were the dogs like in Romania," asked Judy the Stoker.

"No problem," one of them answered. "We heard all the stories about being attacked, but just whack your panniers loudly and they stop chasing"

Next day we meet a Belgian couple on a 1,300 cc motorcycle.  "What were the dogs like in Romania," asked Judy the Stoker.

"Terrible," he said and goes on to explain how they rode through a tunnel where a pack of wild dogs lived. "Twenty chasing from behind, five in front. One got my leg, we wobbled but I was wearing my leather trousers so wasn't injured. But terrifying."

As a precaution we bought a version of a dog Dazer (see photo for details) before we left Belgrade. Haven't had a chance to test it in anger.

In need of a dog Dazer? After so many stories from fellow travellers about dangerous dogs in Romania, we went in search of a Dazer in Belgrade, Serbia. We found a similar device which emits a high pitched tone, unpleasant to dogs but inaudible to humans. The shop is known as Snijpar, at Prizrenska 13, near Hotel Moskva.

Scenery through the Iron Gates must be among the best on the entire EV6 from Nantes, in France.  The river narrows to 150 metres at one point and for a couple of days we have rejoiced in blue sparkling water. Hills remind us this is a bike ride, though nothing over 10 per cent gradient and all rideable. Had to stop once on a downhill to allow the tandem's brakes to cool down.

The ruins of Cetatii Tricole, a former Habsburg castle, which was partially submerged  when the Djerdap 1 dam was built on the Danube to generate hydro electric power.

Weather hot - mid 30s with sudden thunderstorms, particularly in the late afternoons.

Memorable moments include riding into a sleepy village and having a large dog bark rather too enthusiastically at us. We asked its owner - an elderly man - if there was a cafe where we might buy coffee. He indicated no, paused for a moment then waved us into the shade of a verandah. A woman we later discovered was his daughter-in-law emerged from the house and there was a brief discussion. Before we knew it we were drinking lemon juice and coffee and eating chocolate cake and learning that the man's sister had migrated to New Zealand and lived in Wellington.

Judy used a stick to nudge this turtle away from the road and out of harm's way.

Another memorable moment - man proudly shows us a campground cabin which we are considering renting for the night. He yanks the window open so enthusiastically it comes away from the wall and he almost drops it on his foot. We took the room. There was netting over the window so no mozzies, which was all we cared about.

This monument to the Dacian king Decebalus (reign from 87 AD to 106 AD) is on the Romanian side of the Danube. It was made in the early years of this century and paid for by a Romanian industrialist.

We rode into Romania at Sip yesterday, across the Danube which creates a natural border.

On the final stretch of the Serbian side we could see what looked like a brand new freeway across the Danube and were grateful we were missing all the heavy traffic.

Romania is one of the newer members of the EU (2007) and while it is making economic gains the gulf between west and east Europe becomes a chasm here. Although we were prepared for it, we were still surprised by the empty, falling down industrial buildings on the outskirts of Drobeta - Turnu Severin.

Two prostitutes were looking for business among the long haul truckies, one of the women stood so far out into the road we came close to hitting her as we barrelled past.

Mangy dogs rambled about but we didn't discern a marked personality change between them and their cuzzie bros a kilometre away across the river.

The Danube at its narrowest point in the Iron Gates - 150 metres.

Once in the town, things looked better but it took time late in the day to find somewhere to stay. Have ended up in a small 3 star hotel which we have taken for two nights. Celebrated the border crossing with a meal in the hotel's outdoor restaurant with beer and wine and collapsed into bed. Judy managed to find the Tour de France on the TV and watched stage 18.

TANDOIDS

Distance: about 2/3 of the way from Munich, Germany to Constanta (on the Black Sea), Romania.

Punctures this trip: 1

Distance Cycled This Trip: 1,923 km

Distance to Constanta: approx 875 km

Current Location: Drobeta - Turnu Severin, Romania

A stop to snack on roadside blackberries. The tunnel behind is 371 metres long and unlit. However, it does have a footpath (cyclists' escape route).

Quotable Quotes

We have spent more than a week with kiwi friends in Belgrade and Sarajevo, and they came up with some quotes worth sharing. 

S talking about the number of unnatural blondes in Belgrade. "They must sell hydrogen peroxide in industrial quantities here."

S poses a question: "What is the difference between erotic and exotic?"

Answer: "Erotic is with a feather, exotic is with the whole chook."

Life's a Breeze

    Mike with Exped air mat. When size is everything this packs up small.

Laughter spilled from the tent. "I feel like I'm crushing a small child. I want to apologise to it".

I peered inside and there was Judy the Stoker rolling up my new air mattress. This is version three and at last I've found one that meets our criteria. First of all it packs up small - much smaller than even a small child - and on a bike, size matters. It's also comfortable, and quick to inflate and deflate.

The mattress is just one of several changes we've made to improve our equipment for this trip east along the Danube to the Black Sea and hopefully beyond. A new iPad Mini is lighter and smaller than its predecessor, a Kindle has gone and we have shed some clothes. Somehow our front panniers are half empty so when we stock up on food each afternoon we have somewhere to put it. It may be our imaginations playing tricks, but the tandem feels lighter too.

We arrived at Munich airport on a cool, cloudy afternoon and found a quiet spot outside the terminal (to the right as you exit), under cover and with a couple of steel benches - perfect for assembling the bike.

    Assembling the tandem outside the

   terminal at Munich airport. 

By the time we had done that, plus changed money, drank coffee and climbed into our cycling clothes, three hours had vanished.

                 Judy with Jasper, our Airbnb host at Erding, near Munich.

 But the GPS worked and led us the 15 km to our Airbnb accommodation in the town of Erding. We spent a couple of nights there, just enough time to explore Munich before we headed off to join the Isarradweg, the cycle path alongside the Isar River which runs north to join the Danube.

It was perfect cycling - a path mostly for bicycles and pedestrians, lots of "nature" as the Germans say to us, and plenty of places to buy food, even if we did have to leave the cycle path for a couple of kilometres.

    Landshutt, Germaby, where we met a man who told us it was 3,333 km

   by road to Tiblisi, Georgia from Passau, Germany. He knew - he had 

                                            driven it.

We have slipped back into touring mode as though we never left it. Once again we are governed by life's essentials - food, water and somewhere to sleep. 

                                             Ferry across the Danube.

For those contemplating the route, there are campgrounds near Eching (Kurz Welher), at Piflas in Landshut (shown on our map but unsighted by us), at Mamminger-Schwaigen and at Rosshofen near Osterhofen, despite what the Tourist Office people may tell you in Munich.

On the fourth day we lost the Isar as it drifted through wetlands and emptied into the Danube. 

            First Eurovelo 6 sign of this trip - we are on our way east.

Suddenly we saw our first Euro Velo 6 sign, then the Danube itself and knew we were back in familiar territory, having been this way two years ago. Hopefully these EV6 signs will help guide us for the next 2000+ kilometres to Constanta and the Black Sea.

With the Danube came cyclists - dozens of them. The next stretch from Passau in Germany to Vienna in Austria is the most popular section of the ride. 

    French solo cyclist Maud at Passau. Her trailer is called Froggie and

    she is carrying several cuddly animals to give to children in Romania.

We've already chatted at length to an Aussie/Kiwi couple (Chris and Margaret from Oamaru) and to a solo Frenchwoman (Maud) who has been collecting snails off the bike path and dousing them in water for five days to cleanse them before cooking them with garlic, butter and herbs. She's towing a trailer called Froggie, and like us is bound for the Black Sea. Maud spent a year in New Zealand and summed it up this way - beautiful, a good place to retire to and have a garden. As for us men - we are "gumboot men", which I took to mean lacking in sophistication. 

                     Fellow cyclists in the campground at Passau.

If the cycling sounds fun and idyllic it is - Germany must be one of the easiest countries in the world to tour by bike. But this is just the start. The weather will get hotter and we expect the EV6 will deteriorate the further east we go. After that, who knows what will lie ahead.

Tandoids at 8-6-2014

Location: Passau, Germany

Distance this trip: 255 km

Total distance: 16,436 km

Backsides: Mike 6 (when 10 is bliss), Judy 1 and going in search of a gel cover for her saddle.

Quotable Quotes from Judy the Stoker

"My bum's got bother. My 18 month golden run appears to be over."