We left Stara Zagora headed towards Ruse, the border town on the (river) Danube separating Bulgaria and Romania. The distance to Ruse is just over 200 kilometers and with normal cycling it would take two days with an overnight stop to reach it, but this time it took us three days as we had to deal with the Balkans ( the mountain range stretching across Bulgaria ) to reach it. To non cyclists it may seem easy enough like driving up to Cameron Highlands from Tapah or from Simpang Pulai to Kampung Raja. I have cycled those routes before and though it was certainly not an easy task I managed to tackle it without much difficulty. This time around however, I must confess that at several stretches I had to push the bike for up to 1 kilometer before continuing to ride again. The total weight of the loaded bike was just too much . Most of the time Aede and me were not within sight of each other because of the countless numbers of corners and bends although in actual fact we were no more than 500 meters apart. We made two overnight stops at Gabrovo and at Polski Trbesh before reaching Ruse. We reached late at both places and too tired to even bother to look around the towns.
WE spent two nights in Ruse to recover our strength and also managed to see a good part of the city. We did not encounter tourists and there are no backpackers joints, so a budget hotel room is about RM100/-. At this point the Danube is about 1kilometer wide and the riverfront is quite pleasant as you can walk or cycle along the banks . For the moment most of the trees are still without leaves but it would be beautiful with greenery and flowers a month from now and right through the summer. The weather is now warmer and when the sun is out people begin to come out, without the heavy overcoats and jackets, crowding the public parks and city squares . There's certainly more colour around.
The bridge joining Bulgaria and Romania is about 10 kilometers from Ruse and on the day we left Ruse the sun was up and cycling was pleasant, you could even ride in short sleeves. The total length of the bridge is about 3 kilometers while the actual span over water is about 1 kilometer. The bridge built between 1952 to 1954 has two levels, the bottom for railway train and the upper deck for motor vehicles. It is narrow and does not have a cycling lane, so for safety reasons we did not ride on it but instead pushed our bicycles using the pedestrian walkway on the side. For that we took about an hour to cross it. A few hundred meters further up is the Romanian Immigration border post and the procedure couldn't be any easier. Our passports were stamped for the entry into Romania but there was no stamp to show that we had left Bulgaria.
The highway that led to Bucharest has a cycling lane so riding was pleasant but motorists drive very fast so you need to be careful not weave towards the motor lane. After about 15 kilometers on the highway we stopped at an outlet serving food and drinks for motorists and truckers and after having our drinks we asked about the cost of the dishes offered and after deciding that they were too expensive we were about to leave when the Chef called us back in and laid out a simple meal FOC. You see, the Chef, Ali ( 60, a Turkish ) heard of my cycling adventure and felt that giving us a free meal is his way of showing his admiration. The rest of the way to Bucharest was pleasant with no hills but the interesting thing was that in some places along the way there were still snow on the ground that hadn't melted although it was already spring and the temperature was around 20 degrees Celsius and the sun shining. At the height of winter we were told that the snow on the ground were a meter thick.
Bucharest is a city with wide boulevards and a number of large squares and parks. There are many interesting spots for tourists to visit but as usual we only saw all those places from the outside. We did visit the most famous orthodox church in the centre of the city and the much documented Palace Of Parliament, one of the many buildings built during the rule of the dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.This structure is said to be the second largest building in the world, the largest being the Pentagon in Washington. It is also said that under the building is an underground city with a series of tunnels that can accommodate the whole population of Bucharest in time of a nuclear war. Ceausescu and his wife were tried and executed during the revolution. Not many people like to talk about Ceausescu but many will tell you that during Ceausescu's rule people have work, have a roof above their heads and food on the table. Now, many people are unemployed, without houses and food. What is evident apparently are the high rate of crime, drug menace and unemployment. What is worse they say is that the the present ruling elite are the same people who were the high ranking Communists officials under Ceausescu. Such history is familiar eh!.
I consider Bucharest a bicycle-friendly city as everywhere you go the streets have cycling lanes and as the weather is now warmer the are many cyclists cycling around. The squares and parks are also crowded with children and youngsters enjoying the sunshine roller-blading or skateboarding. Many people are also out exercising, walking, jogging or just walking their pet dogs and young mothers pushing the prams .
We visited two bicycle shops to have our bicycles checked and to get certain things fixed and it is during such visits that we get to learn more of the local happenings especially regarding the cycling community. There are more than twenty bicycle outlets in Bucharest ,so there is actually quite a large cycling community here. There are many types of bicycles to choose from, from the highly specialized and branded versions to the basic utility bicycle. According to Bogdan Parvu and Cristian Mihal, the managers of two different outlets that we visited some cyclists here see branded mountain bikes as a status symbol rather than for sports. Cost wise the bicycles and the spare parts here and in Malaysia are about the same. At Bogdan's outlet we were given discounts for the parts purchased and no charges for labour while at Cristian's outlet Aede was given a free gift. According to Cristian , we from Malaysia are the furthest people who have visited his outlet. He has seem many from Europe.
We are told that in our journey towards Hungary we will encounter two more areas where we have to deal with the highlands, but we are also assured of some beautiful sights, so such information is indeed useful. We have not decided which way to take as we have a few options. The locals always advise us to be vary of suspicious characters we meet along the way and to be extra careful with our belongings and not to be too trusting.
Laurenteu, 19, and Alexander, 20 , are the two other people that I must mention here as they spent an entire afternoon showing us around Bucharest walking with us to the various locations . Laurenteu runs a second hand store and Alexander is studying Law at the local university. Young as they are, they are familiar with singers and songs of the fifties and sixties. As we were walking in the park we hummed or sang together songs by Frank Sinatra , Dean Martin, Elvis Presley, Louis Armstrong, the Beatles, etc. Alexander also plays basketball and takes ballroom dancing. Laurentiu who is well over six feet tall is also a boxer but says that in Romania one needs to have money to move up in sports before one can be taken seriously. I consider these young people matured and cultured for their age and they know what they want in life. Laurenteu hopes to make enough money and before the end of the year go to England to try to earn a living there, not came back to Romania if things turn out well for him. As a parting gift Laurenteu gave me a pair of pants and a cap. Such is the bond we share in spite of the brief encounter. Our next stop?. We'll sleep on it and decide when we get up. Zzzzz.
Ruse ,with the Blue Danube in the background
Huge squares and statues
Before crossing the bridge into Romania
On the Bridge
On the way to Bucharest, snow at 20 celcius
Don't say you don't have a choice
With Alexander and Laurenteu at the
Palace of Parliament
The Centre Of Bucharest - Km 0
With Bogdan at his shop
With Cristian
Cycling lanes in Bucharest
Remnants of snow
My protective friend Laurenteu
The 5 Star Intercontinental in Bucharest
Syrian traders in Bucharest
Capitalists' affluence
Basking ??
Location:Bucharest
