Eastern Europe

I went sightseeing in Amsterdam, as I had to wait for my flight to Bucharest for 5 hours. I walked along the canal while taking many photos. I reminisced about my last trip in 2006. It was hot so I should have worn summer clothes.

BTW, I stayed in Vienna House near Otopeni Airport due to a late-night arrival. I got the hotel bus from the parking at the arrivals. I could find the bus quickly, but other guests didn’t show up there. They might have got lost. *14/09/19

After enjoying an abundant breakfast at the hotel, I went to Sinaia directly by bus. I reached there at 9am. I climbed up a hill and beautiful German new-Renaissance Castelul Peleș appeared suddenly in front of me. I was glad I came. Next, I went to Brasov by train. The city was more bustling than I expected. There were many German-style buildings, so it didn’t feel like I was in Romania yet. The local dishes tochitura and ciorba de fasole were tasty.

BTW, I should have climbed Tâmpa without the cable. *15/09/19

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a direct bus to Chisinau in the morning, so I headed to Iasi tentatively. My coach was so crowded, as there were few buses on the route. Most views from my window were vast cornfields. The bus made a pit stop at cities. Directly I arrived at Iasi, I changed to the minibus for Chisinau. I was afraid of the hassle at the border, but I passed there smoothly. It took 10 hours to reach Chisinau. I’ve had a long day.

BTW, I had tasty zeama and drank local wine. *16/09/19

It looked like rain. Anyway, I visited Orthodox Churches. Mănăstirea Ciuflea had a nice contrast of gold and blue. I came across mass at Catedrala Nașterea. The hymn was clear, and I was so relieved. Next, I visited Piata Centrala. Various types of vivid vegetables were sold there. Then I headed to Odesa. The minibus run along the vineyards in Ştefan Vodă, picking up and dropping off passengers on the way and finally crossing the border in Palanca.

BTW, I had a tasty Kyiv cutlet at Cafe Izyum. *17/09/19

I was scared at Derybasivska. A crazy young woman with a pager bag followed me around and she finally got into my hotel. I came across her in the evening two days in a row. Apart from that, I came here to see the Black Sea. While I was at it, I visited Potemkin Stairs. Both were quite good.

BTW, I had every meal at Cafe Izyum, because I could order by pointing at a window display. I had tasty original borscht and drank unique tasty uzvar. *18/09/19

The train to Kyiv left at 5:40. It was getting bright outside. It run at 120km/h and reached Kyiv in 7 hours. Anyway, I headed to my hotel by metro. My guidebook alerted me like “Beware of pickpockets in the metro”. Nevertheless, I had no valuables in my pocket, so I let my guard down. Suddenly, a thief put his hand in my front bag while I was checking my destination on a map. I could brush his hand away, but I almost got involved in trouble.

BTW, I had tasty Вареники at Puzata Hata. *19/09/19

As the thief looked just normal, I rather had to take special care of everything. Apart from that, I visited the Sobor Sviatoyi Sofiyi. The shiny golden icon overwhelmed me. Next, I visited Uspensʹkyy Sobor from Арсенальна station, which is the deepest station in the world. The view from Sofiiskaya Belfry was great. Also, Mykhaylivs’kyi was nice.

BTW, I used Puzata Hata every time without hesitation. Everything looked so good. I couldn’t decide! *20/09/19

The train to Minsk left at 10pm. My compartment was a quad and full of ladies. Their chat in Belarusian was lively. I needed a visa to enter Belarus. Although I had prepared it, I was nervous. Eventually, I reached Minsk at 9am. It was freezing! I needed a coat. Anyway, I visited Holy Spirit Cathedra. In a crowded church, I was moved by the hymns.

BTW, I had tasty green soup at Zolotoy Grebeshok and had tasty draniki and machanka at SVOI. *21/09/19