The Road to Bucharest

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"After peddling our way up to Varna, a beautiful Black Sea port city, we turned inland and managed to cover 276 km of mountainous terrain in just under four hours (with a little help from the Bulgarian Rail System). We wound up in a village called Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria's medieval capital. Lying in a valley, this romantic, cobblestone-lined town feels as though it is frozen in time (that is\133 when you are facing the views of the beautiful, ruined fortress on the adjacent hillside and not the ugly, modern city that has grown up behind).

Starting on high ground we made it to the Romanian border in one day of riding, leaving only a short stretch of highway (60 km or so) to Bucharest. In reality rain, wild dogs, and a chronically flat tire turned a four hour trip into eight hours of frustration. It turned out to be worth it when we finally arrived in Bucharest. Though it has seen better days, the capitol still carries itself with dignity and grace. The city has a strong turn-of-the-century look, contrasted with the monuments to greed associated with the Ceausescu regime of the late 80's, the centerpiece of which is the Palace of the Parliament. The second largest building in the world, the palace was built as a residence for Ceausescu and was extreme in its luxury (golden toilet seats for example) despite the fact that many Romanians were staving in the streets. The city also has some touching monuments to the many citizens of Bucharest that finally stood up and ousted the communist leadership.