Brasov

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The overnight train from Budapest to Romania was pretty nice and the bathrooms were spotless. I had a two person sleeper that I shared with a very nice Romanian woman, although there wasn't much room in the cabin. The train line went from Budapest to Bucharest but I got off in Brasov, a beautiful town in Transylvania. Also on the train line was Deva, and but we stopped there in the middle of the night, and even if I had been awake I wouldn't have been able to see anything.

I am pretty happy that they speak a Romance language here because I can sometimes make out what they say to me (hit or miss) and especially read some of the signs so I don't feel completely lost.

Brasov is a beautiful town in itself, but there are some great daytrips accessible by public transportation. I caught the bus to Bran to visit Bran castle (so-called Dracula's castle). The trip took around 50 minutes and cost only 6 lei (around $2) one way. I also walked to Poiana Brasov, a ski resort 12km out of town, although I took a shortcut. It still took me hours to get there and I caught the bus back. This weekend there was an outdoor concert on both Saturday and Sunday--very lively.

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