Brasov, Romania

It was a shame to be leaving Moldova so soon but crossing into Romania caused little hassle. At the border, a Moldovan guy needed a vehicle to cross in so that he could get to his lorry on the other side. Having had a lot of generosity from his fellow countrymen, I only thought it right to return the favour and I was soon dropping him off on the other side and beginning the long trek to Brasov.

The roads in Romania are certainly an upgrade and they wind through some stunning scenery of hills and valleys while the rural farmland is full of golden fields of maize and sunflowers. Every so often though, you get a delay where bell collared sheep are escorted down the road or you get stuck behind a horse and cart piled high with logs or straw plus a little man precariously balanced on top.

It was late by the time I got to my destination, Darste Camping, but it's a nice site and after my first full night's sleep in a while I felt nice and fresh in the morning ready to explore Brasov. Welcome to Transylvania!

The city is a really relaxed and inviting place (and plenty of tourists are taking them up on that) with flower covered roundabouts, green park areas and little cobbled streets. The buildings are pretty and a mix of styles and there are plenty of little odd-ball sights like Strada Sforii, claiming to be Europe's narrowest street, where you can easily touch both sides at once.

Brasov is a city with an old medievil centre and right in the middle is the Black Church (not really very black though) and the Council House. The church is a big gothic affair which lords over the low city skyline. Inside it's relatively light and plain but decorated with countless Turkish rugs. The golden Council House, apparently haunted, sits in the middle of the pedestrianised square next to a big fountain. It is here where supposed witches were burned at the stake.

Going south from here brings you out at the Schei Gate, the main entrance through the old city wall, much of which is still in place. The wall seperated the inner city where the ruling Saxons used to live from the poorer outskirts where the Romanians were allowed. Continuing south brings you to St Nicholas Cathedral and the first Romanian school, now a museum.

Back at the main square, I took the advice of fellow budget-van-travellers Will and Clare and sat down to enjoy a "Medievil Skewer" - quite a monster of a meal and highly recommended!

While old Brasov is nice enough, there are a couple of things here which have been added recently which really make me cringe. The first is the plague of parasols all over the city proclaiming, in a Carlsberg sort of way: "Brasov, probably the best city in the world". Really!?

Second is the unmissable giant Hollywood-style sign in the hills which reads "BRASOV" in huge white letters. You can reach the top of the hill where the sign is by either cable car or hiking trail (both of which are a little unstable) and there are great views from the top overlooking the city and the land beyond.

On the other side of the city and just outside the walls are two guard towers, the White Tower and the Black Tower (again, not really very black though) which give nice views over the old town's red tiled roofs.

I left Brasov thinking it was a lovely old place with a wonderful relaxed atmosphere, so why are they doing their best to ruin it?