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Published: July 10th 2009
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Cycling on the Curonian Spit
Carol and the bicycles on the ferry to Curonian Spit This is my first blog.
We are in Romania on our way to Turkey. Its been very hot and humid most of the time. Tropical thunderstorms nearly everyday.
Since Tallinn, we spent a night at Joesuu east of Parnu in Estonia. We had intended going bog-walking and canoeing at Soomaa national park near Joesuu however when we arrived there was nobody in sight and the hostel hadn't been stayed in for over a year - it did look really good on the internet. We eventually found somebody who let us into the hostel and we had the entire place to ourselves - strange. The next day we caught the bus back to Parnu and then to Riga, Latvia.
Riga was a really nice place, very similar to Tallinn with a main town square with lots of restaurants, lots of churches and lots of cobblestoned streets. We stayed at the Naughty Squirrell Hostel which is run by an Australian guy. There was an area of Art Nouveau buildings which was interesting however most of them were really old and crumbling.
Caught the bus to Klaipeda, a seaside town in Lithuania, on the Baltic Sea. Another really nice town
Ferry to Curonian Spit
Lyn and bicycle on the ferry to Curonian Spit with an old town square, cobblestone streets etc. We hired bikes for a day and rode down the Curonian Spit. There is a dedicated bicycle path which goes through forest areas, a very good day.
Back on the bus to Kaunas and then an overnight bus to Warsaw (not keen on overnight buses). More town squares, old towns, cobblestone streets. Visited a nice park with a palace which appears to float on the water.
From Warsaw trained it to Krakow. Really liked Krakow. Did a day trip to Auschwitz and Birkenau - that was depressing.
Next stop Budapest. Stayed in a nice hostel called Budapest Bubble. It was very small and homely and Olga, who runs the place, was very friendly and treated all the guests as friends. She suggested we visit Eger, in the north east of Hungary, known for its wine. It was a nice town but the Valley of Beautiful Women where all the wine cellars are was a bit over rated and very touristy. The wine cellars fill any empty bottle you have e.g. plastic water bottles with the wine of your choosing and it is very cheap.
A challenge with transport
Thermal baths
Thermal baths in Budapest to get from Eger into Romania but eventually made it to Oredea on the Hungary/Romanian border. Then went to Sighisoara in Transvylania. I loved this place and could have stayed longer. It was small and the pensione we stayed at was great. Its near the mountains and with more time could have done lots of hiking. Just a beautiful area. From here we went to Brasov which we left this morning and arrived in Bucharest. We are only staying 1 night as we catch the train to Varna, Bulgaria at 6.25 am tomorrow. Varna is on the Black Sea, so a bit of a beach break before we go to Turkey.
Lyn
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Dianne Macey
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Great Adventure
Hey there Girls, it's a great adventure unfolding here. Keep on keeping on! Cheers from lil ol Adelaide. XX