Brasov

A typical Brasov building, very pretty, but a little crumbling

Brasov station

Somehow, our train from Budapest to Brasov arrived two hours late. So we decided to have a relaxing day around town and just sort of get the feeling of the place. Before we left for the trip, R mentioned that she was hoping to go somewhere that felt different, and I think Romania satisfies that. The train station has a sort of left over Soviet feel, horse carts are used for work rather than tourists, and even the money is different: it has an unusual texture and each denomination has a transparent figure.

Creepy transparent clown

We took a taxi from the station to old town. The first cab we approached told us the ride would cost 30 euros ($45). We just laughed at the guy and told him we'd be taking a bus. We must have looked like hard core cheapskates because the price came down very quickly. The next guy in line quoted 30 lei ($10) so we went with him. Later we found out it should have been $3. Oh well. We were dropped off by our hotel right on the old town town square. On the hill above old town is the Brasov Hollywood sign.

S and I went out right away. We went to the tourist office in the main square, got a map, and then wandered around town. We went to the black church, but photos weren't allowed. Around town, I noticed that the buildings were kind of strange. You can see in the second picture below, that the ground floors of the buildings are generally in very good shape. The cafes, shops, etc, tended to be beautifully redone. But then the building gets more decrepit as you go up, ending with these strange concrete attic windows with no glass.

S and I took a wrong turn down an alley and came across some hairdressers chatting and smoking outside an empty salon. We ran around the corner to the hotel as fast as we could and got T. He was reluctant, but accepted the inevitable. S stayed at the hotel, and E, L, T, and I went to the salon. Once in the chair, T was happy. He chatted on and on to the hairdresser, who very sweetly pretended to understand him. The haircut cost $4.70.

After the cut, T collected on all the bribes he'd been promised when he was protesting the cut: a lollipop, bubbles, and a ride on one of the kiddie bikes for rent in the square (R came out to supervise that and taught T how to pedal.)

Finally, we all regrouped and headed out for a walk through town and dinner. We stopped at rope street, which is supposedly the narrowest street in Europe. I guess if you call it a street instead of a walkway or an alley it could be. It was still fun to see, though, and brought us to an area we might not otherwise have seen. 

I am going to let S dictate about our dinner. I am sure I can't do it justice. 

For dinner I had a nice Greek salad, R had some fish, Mama had fish, and Daddy had some meat. Other than our meal, the restaurant had some things that we would not enjoy eating. The meal began with a complimentary plate of pig fat. L loved that. On the menu they had delicious meals such as fried brains and brain omelettes. That menu offered about every animal part there is, including: mountain oysters, pig scruff (whatever that is), liver, bone marrow, kidneys, and so on. I didn't really look at the menu too much other than hearing about it because R said it was too gross. I thought I was going to barf. 

L really liked the fried pork bits. The stuffed cabbage was okay, but didn't meet her standards.

Our neighbor in PA makes the most delicious stuffed cabbage ever!

We skipped dessert at the restaurant. Instead we went to a little bakery that was really just a take-out window and got some really good, huge apple strudels for $0.60 each!