Susie's Report No 49

 

 

Susie’s Report No 49

 

 

 

Hello to All,

 

Continuing on…..

 

We are up at 5.30am to catch the Ferry to the Baltic States, Estonia being the first country.

 

We disembark in TALLIN, and our first stop after landing is L.P.G. and thank goodness it’s plentiful. I probably have mentioned our system is called Gaslo (not swap and Go) we re-gas straight into H.H’s side  (sounds painful but he takes it in his stride), we pay around 40 - 50 euro cents a litre. Some countries have different nozzles, we have a pack of 5 adapters. So that done, and we’re on the road again.

 

Our campsite is new and it’s only 20 kms from Tallin. Next day we hop on an excellent new train, each carriage has its own Conductor who wanders around with her hand held machine handing out tickets. It's the only way they can do this, as all stations along the way are unmanned. She’s kept busy.

 

We arrive in Tallin for our 2 hr English speaking guided walking tour.  We saw the new and the old town.

Estonia has only had its Independence the 2nd time, since 1991 and they very much hope it continues that way.  Everyone has had a go at trying to own and influence the people. Apparently, the Danish had control, then the Swedes, etc, along with the German influence, then, of course, the Russians, finally they gave the country back to the people. Now the lovely, Blue, Black and white Flag flies with a lot of passion over the town. 

 

 I even managed to get T.Lee into another church ( with a shove), it was Russian built so very impressive to the eye, but probably not the locals. Our guide has a great sense of pride and humour. Even the local Estonian Gull was looking for his photo opportunity, he kept turning around to give us his best profile - it was a nice informative day, so back on the train to H.H. we go.

 

It was a hot day so showers were taken, we sat outside and with a cold glass of wine and a beer and watched a very erratic Hot Air Balloon go up and down, behind  some trees, pop out again and then disappear around the bend of a hill.

I’m sure his passengers had an interesting flight or fright, I know it had us entertained for a while.

 

At our next campsite we ended up talking to a young lad who was trying to fly his “Drone” which ended up - upside down in the field, but I also thought we would be ducking for cover ourselves. He gave up on that for a while next we see him and his friend walking down the road with a double blow up mattress and a go-pro dangling from a selfie stick, needless to say, it came back deflated and so were they. So - its the “Drone” again, sometime later this lad comes to H.H. to seek help, his Drone has malfunctioned  ( so he says !!!) and ended way up in the top of a tree. So with much discussion ( his English is excellent) he asks to borrow a tow rope, let your imagination go for this one….  actually, this story could go on forever ——-Epilogue !!!!!! The owner of the campsite gets out his chain saw to cut the tree down (large one) but the blades were blunt.  On leaving the next morning the “Drone” it still high up in the tree, so we left David still contemplating his next move. He is 18 and into extreme sports, he already had so many cuts and abrasions, and lots of skin missing, he hit a tree, doing Downhill bicycle racing. Oh !!! To be invincible …….again… 

 

We motor past the old Border gates and into Latvia, these always look very sinister, with the old boom gates rusted and all the buildings dilapidated, all were painted in an indescribable colour and now left to fade away as a memory long gone…  

 

We learnt some new driving skills/techniques after crossing the border into LATVIA today. Basically, there are only two lane roads, with the run off/shoulder acting as a move over half way to let people pass lane, and then move back into play again. It's very interesting to watch BUT it works, it's like a dance. It becomes like a four lane highway with everyone doing their, move over, move back bit.

 

We are heading to RIGA  which is the biggest city in the Baltics. The traffic is horrible with huge roadworks in action for many, many kilometres. As usual it has its “old” and “new”.

We are also dodging Trams, Trolley Buses, and Buses and finally, we end up at our campsite, at the Marina along the river Daugava overlooking the town. We walked into the Old Town and along to the Central Markets these are a 7-day affair and are housed in 5 hulking pavilions, each the size of a small football pitch.

These are reconditioned World War 1 Zeppelin hangars. Inside the stallholders sell top quality produce from all over Latvia.  Each hangar sells different produce, Fish, Meat and Poultry, Fruit and Veg, Cheese, Honey and Bread, Clothing and Shoes. So many stallholders to choose from.The old town is basically Art Nouveau style with a lot of ornamental folk symbols. The seafood wasn’t cheap!

 

 

We bought some Atlantic Salmon, salad and vegetables and it was a hot day so back to H.H. and put the fan on.

 

A couple of days later and we are passing through the old border of LITHUANIA. Their flag is Yellow, Green and Red. And again there Independence was obtained in 1990. And of corse there chequered History with you know who….each country has its share of grizzled ruins and fortresses, and have been battered by outside invaders (it was never ending).

 

 Another great sight is the Storks and their nests, folk wisdom is they promise good fortune, and the protection from fire and lightening. I’m not sure that the Storks would agree on that, but the babies in the nests are so cute.

 

We bypassed the Old Town of Vilnius. The roads in Lithuania were a shocker, very poor condition the main and alternate, the countryside beautiful, lots of wheat fields and tethered animals.

 

The price of fuel, food, fruit and vegetables is amazing in the Baltics as Scandinavia was horrendous, the last being double, sometimes triple the cost, but with them, it’s all cartage and logistics, here it’s just locally grown.

 

One of our next tourist stop is “The Hill of Crosses”, it's a memorial of Faith, Hope and National suffering. It really is unique and a strange attraction. It's worth a google……it contains ovre 100,00 crosses, mostly wooden.

 

It's been turned into a major focus of remembrance, lots of Pilgrims, it's very hard to describe, hopefully, Terry’s photo will help. It looks like a bonfire waiting to happen, as the majority are all wooden, this all started around 1831.  

 

It's now August 1st and we are leaving  EST. LV. LT this is how it reads on the their number plates and head for POLAND.

 

Just after going through the Border we stop as there are money changing (Kantor) shops everywhere, there are trucks lining the side of the road to do their currency change.  It is now Zloty, divide the Euro by 4, I now have to retrain my brain onto the 4 times table again, oh well at least it keeps it active. All the Polish trucks have baubles, beads and dangly bits hanging off the windscreen and rear vision mirrors. We don’t know how they can see around all their decorations. Maybe that’s why there're the Rosary beads also. They drive like maniacs, they leave no room for error.

 

We motored or I should say, bumped our way along to our campsite, the rural backroads are atrocious, poor H.H. The Polish people have severe urges to keep overtaking everything and everyone, it’s scary to watch oncoming cars in our lane….

 

We are in a National Park area which is near the Russian Border of BELARUS, the town was “Hainjowska” I think. Their local Tourist attraction is a “Bison Reserve”, but, what we found exciting was a local bike shop, we quickly walked back to H.H. and grab our bikes and so, with no English spoken Terry was able to buy a new front tyre and also get it realigned.   So the game of Charades is still alive and well, we pay our money, say our thanks and ride off for a bit of sightseeing, it is a pretty town, with wildflowers lining the roads and lots of tall trees.

 

We are heading to WARSAW. There are major, major, roadworks on the main highway and the number of trucks on the road is absolutely staggering.  We would say about 30% - 40% of the traffic is trucks.

 

The campsites we are now calling “RUSTIC” for various reasons. Ours was 10 km's  out of town and of course, they charge for that very reason. You end up packed like sardines, we had a car and tent pitched near H.H’s bumper bar. The standard rule is 4 metre’s apart, but that does not apply here.

 

We catch the bus into Warsaw town for our 2 hr guided walking tour. Our guide was a fabulous story teller, with a lot of humour and passion for history.  There is a lot of fun rivalry between the people of Warsaw and Krakow as it used to be the capital.

 

The city took horrific battering in the WW II, so most of the buildings and houses had to be rebuilt. It was decided to use an Italian painter, Bernado Bellotto’s 18th-century painting, to rebuild the city from its own rubble.

Original fragments of the Ghetto Wall still remain. There were originally 500,000 Jewish people forced into the ghetto and after the War only 1,000 were left. There are a lot of Monuments and statues signifying the Ghetto Uprising. It was the largest resistance act of the people and it lasted 63 days.

 

 I have some little tit bits for you - Poland has only had its Independence since 1989. “Chopin” the composer’s heart is embedded in one of the pillars of the Holy Cross Church. (his sisters choice) as he had a fear of being buried alive. So they made sure he was dead by cutting his heart out!

“

Madame Curie the most famous Polish Scientist was born here. “Wodka" is the drink of choice and The Polish Army Museum is an open-aired unique collection of tanks, aircraft, helicopters and missile weapons.

 

All in all, a very good day and then back to our “Cramp site”…….. 

 

Moving along to “SUCHEDNIOW”, a very pretty little site down by a lake, we stayed 2 days and were entertained by the local Ducks who had taken over a moored boat on the lake, no wonder they call it a duck board at the stern. It was their boat ….They also played very Patriotic songs around 5.00pm to commemorate the Warsaw uprising which was August 1st. 1944. (the camp not the ducks)……

 

Next stop was the town of “SANDOMIERZ” this little town has a so-called “Underground Tourist Route” with the deepest level at 12m. these were for the merchant cellars from the 15th - 17th centuries. And of course the usual castle and monasteries. Terry bought himself a rather “El Grande” ice-cream to ease the pain of being a tourist….

 

Poland has a huge trucking and farming industry, so, therefore, lots of slow moving tractors. So we bypass Krakow and head to “Auschwitz”.

 

 We stay in a campsite within walking distance to the “Concentration Camp/ Museum”, it’s pouring with rain, we arrive there to find organised chaos. It’s a huge Tourist Industry, so much so, we didn't realise you had to book your entry tickets on line.

The queues were unbelievable, along with the tourist buses and cars. The Info people didn’t speak very good English, this made the whole entry system very complicated. It was disappointing, but Hey!!!!!! We all know what went on there…So, we decided to push on into “Slovakia”,125 km away.

 

Driving Sth/West and the scenery changes dramatically from flat to mountains, very Alpine like, big houses with 3 - 4 story’s high.

 

We camp and then quickly pass through ZAKOPANE. It is the most southern point in Poland and it has Ski Resorts, Hiking and Walking facilities.  Very pretty, and very busy. It’s like the Gold Coast without the Coast.  The campsite we stayed in, outside this town, was very dirty and unclean, beside very poor drainage (it was pouring cats and dogs) the shower complex doors and walls covered in MOULD…… AAAgh!!!!! I’ve never seen anything like it…

 

We have left the Polish ZLOTY behind (more small change) and now we cross the border into SLOVAKIA  and back to Euro’s again, (my brain can have a rest, money wise). Yeah…..but of course it's still raining.  Gumboots to the rescue, I can safely stride through any torrents and puddles.

 

Unbelievably, the “Sun” is shining next day, we move through the countryside, with its stunning high mountains.

We reconfigured “Nigel” ( Tom tom ) to avoid motorways and tolls, so we ended up on the old road routes through towns and villages. It's extremely pretty and very green (no wonder as it rains a lot), no such thing as drought over here.

 

We end up at BREZNO. The campsite just outside this town is owned by a Dutch couple - so needless to say full of Dutch people (NL) plates everywhere. We are always the odd ones out….lots of free range chooks waddling around, and very picture perfect. Terry felt quite at home, as in the shower complex he was listening to “John Farnham” singing “You're the Voice”, hopefully John is getting some royalties from Slovakian Radio. Slovakia is a country of small dimensions about 400 x 150 km so next stop is back into Hungary again.

 

As we are entering “Hungary”  we have to buy a Vignette (road tax for non Hungarians), it costs (here goes my brain again) 5,950FL  divide by 350 = 19 Euros approx. It is valid 10 days. Their flag is Red,White and Green. We stay in a campsite at that has just had a Dog showing Comp, so guess what… barking dogs all night, and to top it off, a van camped beside us with crying kids. 

 

Hungary has lots of protected areas about 1/10th, with 39 protected landscapes, 10 National parks.

 

Heading E/NE we see acres and acres of Sunflower fields as far as the eye can see, and lots of people selling Watermelons on the side of the road 100fl per kg… less than 30 euro cents.

 

August 16th, and we cross the border into ROMANIA - we passed the checkpoint Charlie test, with passports and rego papers. The Customs Officer asked to come inside H.H. I had to open bathroom door, cupboards and the “Fridge”, heavens knows what I could have been hiding in there. And under the bike rack cover as well, but, we then heard the click of the passport stamp. Before that he had to make a few phone calls, while we silently held our collective breaths, we got the all clear and off we trundled. If we had of been declined, we would have had to double back through Croatia. 

 

The main roads are full off people selling home grown produce, the fields full of Maize and Sunflowers.

 

We arrive at CAREI. This is a Thermal Pool and Spa Town. Our campsite was across the road from the local Water Slide Pool. It played head banging music - ear plugs were needed, what a great invention. 

 

Anyway, it was 20 Lei night = 5 euros. It was clean and tidy and 2 of the 3 showers worked and so did the toilets.  (bonus)…

 

We amused ourselves the next day on our walk by taking a seat across from the bus stop and watching the local hitchhiking techniques. They all start in a neatly organised line and wave their arms furiously to attract the oncoming cars, it works…then we got bored, and had a look at the local Castle and Church, both very nice and old…..

 

Romania  has a problem with roaming packs of dogs, so if bitten, seek Medical advice straight away, Rabies shot required, so no patting cute strays……

 

The local drink is a very powerful (so they say) plum brandy which can be purchased on the side of the road, in pre loved soft drink bottles. ( home grown, home made) there are plum trees everywhere,  and often staggering drunks and men having a nap in the parks, the dogs too.

 

Driving in Europe has been a real education in road rules (mostly ignored) it’s a real challenge this overtaking, and sometimes very scary, especially when there coming straight at you!!!!!!! and some drivers actually flash their hazard lights to say thanks for moving over and nearly ending up in a ditch for me ( just so I could overtake) Its easier to get out of their way.  Speaking of one of the most dangerous things on the road is ……the grass cutting trucks….on the verge, these are large and take up 3/4 of the lane with a long arm out the side, with a flashing light if your lucky, and going very slow. This is done in all weather conditions, so everyone is busy overtaking them.

 

I think I can safely say that Red is the favoured hair colour dye for Women here, or maybe it was just on special this week.

 

Our little Trojan H.H. has been going up mountains full of roadworks and back down mountains with roadworks then onto bone jarring unpaved roads, and to top it all off, we end up driving into someones front yard (tom tom says - you have reached your destination) WHAT!!!! Right through their front gates……I said to Terry this is private property, we agree to disagree. A women holding a baby came out her front door. I get out and apologise to her, she doesn’t speak a word of English, but I think I got the message across and gave her a Koala Bear (thanks Matt) we did an 9 point turn, waved, and off we go again, to find the correct road,very slowly we arrived at the campsite, finally……..

 

Rustic and well worn is the best way to describe Romania…what really disturbs me is, driving through some very poor villages and standing out like a sore thumb, are these gleaming, richly decorated churchs!

 

And these are out in the middle of nowhere, where farming is extremely primitive, scythes, pitchforks, horse and plough etc.  The tedding (thanks Julian ) is incredible to watch. 

 

 

Back breaking work!

 

The classic statement …..’make hay while the sun shines’ is very correct.

 

The end result of all their hard back breaking work produced a haystack bearing a strong resemblence  to “Cousin IT”, for those of you who can remember.

 

 

 

The leftover times of the Communist era is still very prevalent, very old rundown housing, but, with lots of bright flowering plants to ease the doom and gloom. Then of course, the new side, very prosperous buildings and large housing complexes, the economy is on the rise. They have changed the tax laws for the better.

 

The next campsite at Nires, is run by Klara and Janos, who were so very welcoming.

They insisted that we were invited to attend a traditional annual festival where people working and living elsewhere return home to celebrate, this time with friends and family. This was in a village 10 mins away, we had lunch seated in the community hall. It was chicken and veg soup, then chicken and mashed potato, fruit platter and THEN……some of that brain numbing - rocket fuel (home made) it is 90% proof served from old bottles into shot glasses.  It was rude to refuse their kind offer.  One was a clear liquid and the other looked like ginger beer, but far from it, then a small highly sweetened black coffee. 

 

 It was so hot in the hall that I thought people would be going to sleep, but it had the opposite effect, a stimulant. people were wanting to dance. Only one person spoke English at our table, so the conversation was very interesting.

It was very mixed Religions even the local Pastor, said it could get very interesting later when the drinks start taking effect.  Most people that smiled back at us were either missing teeth or had not a lot left, they are hard working and happy. 

 

They are a mix of Romanian and Hungarian. There is a big Dutch influence in language spoken.

 

We arrive at Cirta, This campsite run by a Dutch and Romanian couple, this one very Rustic. I had an uncomfortable encounter with some local Gypsies, they stopped me to have a chat, BUT…wanted cigarettes, chocolate and of course money, there were four of them (what girl would carry around chocolate on a hot day, in her bag).. but seriously ….my legs were like jelly, but I stood my ground, I have never sped back to H.H. so fast, I shot through the entrance gate and Phew!!!!!!

 

Next day we drove up to the “Transfagarasan Highway up the mountain  road. “Top Gear” did a segment on this Romanian road, and named it “The Best Driving Road in the World”, so we thought H.H. would enjoy the challenge. Dodging the usual obstacles…we made it to the top.

 

. Well his little turbo was powering along up this extremely winding road, at first dodging horse and carts and then some cattle.  H.H’s temp was starting to rise as we were behind a slow car, we made it to the top, which was occupied by Tourist shops selling everything and anything. 

 

 Coming back down was fabulous, it looked like a kids Scale Electric track from our height.  I’m really glad we did this, poor H.H. was hyperventilating for a while, then he recovered on the downhill run, what a great experience……

 

Next we pass through TRANSYLVANIA: What does this word conjure up - Vampires and Dracula, and Herman Munster…..We had all good intentions of going to Bran Castle, we missed our turn off and got caught up in the most horrendous tourist traffic jam, there was no way to turn around and head back, the roads are so old and pot holed, I was able to take photo though.

You must ‘google’ Vlad the Impaler/Dracula and see what a nice, extremely brutal, beyond comprehension, cruel chap he was. We kept going through the most spectacular scenery and headed towards Bucharest.

 

BUCHAREST is your typical capitol city. Tall buildings, high end shops, and shops and more shops, the occasional old church and monuments. I’m sounding terrible but that’s just how it is.  

 

Our campsite was extremely ‘rustic’ again and expensive for what it was. We decided to give it a miss after one night - mind you, we saw so much of the city caught up in traffic jams coming into the city and leaving the next day..  The drivers are so impatient, and of course it was raining.

 

We say goodbye to Romania - a very interesting country with its old communist era and the very modern side, We are glad we came…the country side is very scenic, shame about the road conditions.

H.H.shook, rattled and rolled, above and beyond the call of duty!

 

Crossing into BULGARIA was a little easier than we thought. Their flag is White,Green and Red. The border is halfway across the river bridge, and the traffic was stopped half way across, with about 1/2 hr wait to get to customs.

All o.k. there, all we had to do was stop to buy another Vignette  (road tax) and back onto some more absolutely horrible roads again (give us a break, please…) some are like a patchwork blanket, just when you thought you were safe, boom, boom, our suspension is continually challenged.

 

 Bulgarian currency is the “Lev”, we divide by 2 for euros, that done, we motor off and arrive at our next campsite only to find that our engine won't start - dead.  So the owner Matt and his Japanese wife Keiko, along with daughter Skye, have to tow H.H. off the roadway into the site. Thank God he had a Pajero 4 wheel drive and we had bought a tow rope a while back. Well……it’s broken down in Bulgaria time….what to do……so with much discussion and jumper leads used, its decided the battery is “kaput” or, leads fallen off with all the pot holes we’ve fallen in and out of.

 

We jump in HH and try to start up... No luck with that, nothing. The kind owners, Matthew and Keiko tow us inside their campsite and we contemplate the options over a sunset drink. Matthew suggests a jump start to see if that helps. Bingo....the engine starts and we all think, "ah, it must be the battery". No problems we'll start up in the morning and drive into Haskovo 20 ks. away and get a new battery. 

 

Morning arrives, Matthews hitches up to jump start and.......NOTHING. The engine won't start at all. Oh well,  it's still seems like  the battery so we'll take it out and take it to Haskovo for a new one. NOT an easy task, but with a lot of hard work (mostly by Matt) the offending battery is removed and taken to town. 

 

Terry takes up the story from here as I remained behind to man the fort with Matthew and Keiko's daughter, Skye, (8 years old but going on 20)! Her 9th birthday is the next day. 

 

Terry: We arrive at the battery place and ask for the battery to be checked before we buy a new one.... Battery OK, nothing wrong with it, damn, back to square one. Matthew knows a good mechanics so we go there for advice. They check the battery, same result, OK. Matthew and Keiko had some shopping to do to buy Skye's birthday present so two of the mechanics decide to take me back to the campsite with the battery and see if they can find the problem. Great service but I'm sure it will cost. 

 

After an interesting ride back, Bulgarian style, (suicidedly hectic) they speak little or no English but they knew we were from Australia so after talking to each other for awhile they both turned back and said "AC DC"... And smiled, say no more. We know know what our greatest export is.

 

Arriving back at the campsite with the old battery, they look at the engine compartment and in broken English and gestures indicate, " are you sure this battery came out of here?"

Yep, sure did. After much scratching of heads, they quickly work out that the problem is a bad negative to the engine/starter motor. They get it started and through our interpreter, 8 year old Skye, soon to be 9, who already speaks three languages, (Keiko is Japanese) say, "to follow them down to their garage" in Haskovo", no problem. "What ever you do, don't stop the engine!"

 

While over the pit in the garage they call me over and point at the two broken rubber supports for the exhaust and a great big hole in the exhaust pipe! Great, but a great opportunity to get things fixed. Quickly a new section was welded in, good as new. 

 

The brake pedal had been having some odd pedal pressures so I thought this would be a good time to check them as well. Result....two front disks warped, the break pads shot to pieces! "Evidence of fire", were the only words they could say! Oh well, great time to get them fixed, hang the expense. Twenty minutes later, the disks and pads arrive and they set to work. All this with no break for lunch.

If this had have happened in France the workshop would have been locked up from midday till 2.30pm!

 

The owner of the garage's father, who had been looking after me, although he didn't speak a word of English, gave me a beer for lunch and then motioned to get in his car for an "excursion" of Haskovo. Very nice, but no doubt softening me up for the ensuing invoice! Once again this was done "Bulgarian style”, at great pace.

 

For trivia buffs, I now know that the tallest statue of the Virgin Mary in the world, is in Haskovo, Bulgaria!  On safe return, HH is ready to go, engine starting problem solved, exhaust solved, new front disks and pads, solved! Now for the invoice...Balaclava at ready for a quick bank holdup and I'd be right! At least the getaway vehicle would have good brakes!

 

The total price.... 400 Bulgarian Levs, 200 Euros or 300 Aussie dollars!!!  Where else in the world could this be done so cheap? So travellers, if you are going to break down, do it in Bulgaria!

 

The next morning on departure for Greece......the air conditioner failed. Bugger! 

 

Myself and Skye were left in charge just incase any other campers arrived, we were the meet and greet girls. Now, Skye is the most gorgeous child, she is 8 going on 20. She speaks 3 languages, English, Japanese and Bulgarian fluently, when the mechanics arrived, she was the interpreter for Terry trying to explain what he thought the problem was. She is a stunning young lady now, look out when she is older. 

 

I realised after H.H. was gone, that I hadn’t retrieved my Kindle to read, so Skye lent me one of her books. I read a story about the adventures of “Mildred, her cat and broomstick at Mrs. Cackles school for young Witches”. I would thoroughly recommend it….

 

I really don’t know what we would of done without the enormous help from this Family, we still could have been broken down in the alley way we were parked in just before arriving at the site!.

 

After 5 hours H.H. is back all better, we had stayed 2 days, and we make a decision to head for GREECE next day, its now September 1st. With many, many thanks and goodbyes, and Happy Birthday wishes to Skye, she turns 9 today, out the gates we go. 

 

I must also mention their dogs, “Happa” an english working dog, who still likes to round anything up and “Scruffy” the most luckiest dog in the world.  She was found a very badly injured puppy on the side of the road, thought dead by Matt, he went to check on her, her head slightly moved so he scooped her up, and off to the vet. She had broken ‘legs’ and numerous other injuries, 5 years on and she is able to run around with slight limps and a not so straight tail. Go scruffy……

 

Stay tuned next blog for Greece, we are really looking forward to seeing this interesting country..

 

Bye for now.. Susie, Terry & H.H.  X X X ….