Spring Break - Brasov

It was a miracle that the train only arrived forty minutes late in Brasov. All of the other trains that I took arrived at least an hour late to their destinations. It was dreary outside, but I didn't mind too much because I took a taxi to the hostel. http://www.kismetdao.com/index.html My map wasn't very good, so we got lost on some very narrow cobblestone streets, but that was no big deal because I was distracted by the misty mountains in the distance. The first two hostels that I stayed at were small and very nicely furnished, but this hostel was a typical youth hostel with several floors and lots of young adults. The hostel actually gave me vouchers for a free beer each night, but Drew caught a cold, so we just got water instead. After the rain cleared up in the afternoon, I walked around Old Brasov and went to the Black and White Towers, the Black Church, the city walls, and the main square. I also took a cable car up Tampa Mountain, which overlooks the city.

Just so you know, I've been listening to various French artists while I type: Coeur de Pirate, Jena Lee, and Christophe Maé. Songs make learning vocabulary so much easier.

Anyway, the following day I went to Peles Castle and then Bran Castle with a small group consiting of Drew and I, a German, an Australian, and our Romanian driver, who was fluent in English, German, and Romanian. The German man was the most eccentric character that I've ever met, and this blog wouldn't be complete without him. He revealed that he had gone to jail because his wife accused him of sexually assaulting their daughter. Afterwards, he worked with scrap metal in Romania. He found a lot of antique weapons, and he learned how to make replicas. This is how he made a living. He was from East Germany, and as we drove to the castles, he commented "Oh, the Communist factories--see how they crumble!" He mentioned that Communism destroyed a Czech company that made good shoes, which he somehow found and bought in Africa years later. He made a few insulting comments about Romanians and how they work as street vendors and perform menial tasks in Germany to make a living. He also kept pointing out Dacias, old Romanian cars. Somehow the topic of gypsies came up, and he seemed very interested. When we drove by their homes, our driver said "Look--a gypsy child" as if the kid was an attraction in the zoo. The German described Americans as extremely friendly and helpful as a result of his visit to the States. It was nice to hear that. Anyway, he must have been at least 65, and on three occasions he took off running, yes, running! First, he ran to relieve himself; then, he ran to buy a sandwich; finally, he ran to relocate two mating toads to a safe area. That about covers our German acquaintance.