Still just Ethan
Year 2.1
The End
We start heading back to North Carolina tomorrow. We are all excited to see family and friends, but Matthew and I dread the chaos that will come with reentry, as well as the thought of returning to the States at this time.
I woke up early today and decided to post a few photos from our travels. These are not necessarily the best or most memorible photos, but those that I happen to grab while slurping down my oatmeal.
Foix and Mirepoix, France
We had seen the entirety of Andorra within our first few days here, so we spent last weekend in France. Our first stop was Foix, chosen because the drive was not too far and it has a castle on a hill.
A house on the route to the castle
View from one of the castle towers
The town square had interesting entertainment. It appears the man is playing a cow. Later a man showed up and played a smaller animal (?sheep). It sounded about as good as it looks.
The next morning we hiked up a nearby hill which provided the view of the town seen in the photo above.
Ethan on the hike
On Sunday we headed to Mirapoix, a medieval village.
The carvings on the beams above date back to the 14th century.
Even though Logan complained that some of the performers had “dad vibes,” we enjoyed the music, juggling and antics more than any of us expected.
Watching the show
Mirepoix, France
Arrived in Andorra
Andorra is a tiny country in the Pyrenees, nestled between Spain and France, that is known for skiing, hiking and shopping. It takes less than an hour to drive through the entire country. We retreated from Spain to Andorra in search of cooler temps, hikes and faster internet.
It delivered on all of our criteria. But the consequence of staying in ski lodging is a fairly compact apartment. The right side of the photo captures part of Matthew’s office.
A sculpture.
Photos from our hikes
Barcelona
Barcelona did not grab us as some cities have, although to be fair, we prefer smaller ones (Ljubljana!!!). But we had a great time spending a few days with David, Pamela, Vala and Atli.
La Sagrada Familia (above) is worth a visit. Construction started in 1882 and, as you can see, it still isn’t finished. I have lost count of the number of churches we have visited this year. And although this was not the most impressive, GaudÃ’s design is notably unique.
Inside La Sagrada Familia
Atli and Vala
We went on two walking tours of the city. The first was of The Gothic Quarter and the second, “Barcelona Uncensored”, wandered through the El Raval neighborhood, which is described as more artsy and edgy. Our guide told us that officials clean graffiti off the walls. This has had the effect of encouraging artists to glue their art on, which appears to be allowed to stay (above).
 
Artists also paint the shop doors. Since most doors are closed in the afternoon for hours during siesta, there is plenty of opportunity to see the art.
Part of a Keith Haring mural on AIDS
Street in The Gothic Quarter
Las Ramblas
Barcelona Cathedral
Inside Barcelona Cathedral
Gothic Quarter Street
Ethan does this wherever we see this mannequin. Oddly, she has appeared in a number of cities across the world.
In many cafes in Barcelona, churros come with a thick cup of melted chocolate. This was our second time enjoying churros. What is not in the picture is David slurping down the cup of chocolate he ordered without churros. Not sure if he was the first to do it, but it appeared to make him happy.
Hike to Estany de Sant Maurici (twice)
On our second hike in Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park, we departed from the parking area near Espot. We enjoyed it so much that we decided to repeat it with David, Pamela, Vala and Atli.
Group photo from our second trip.
Logan gets into the spirit of taking photos.
Lunch spot on our first hike.
We hiked to a second lake, Estany de Ratera, on our first trip.
Food in Spain
Matthew and the kids liked the food in Spain, but most restaurants we visited did not cater to vegetarians, so I ate my share of patatas bravas (which are tasty). The biggest problem, however, was simply finding a restaurant, any restaurant, that was open when we wanted to eat. This proved to be impossible near the small town where we were staying. We wanted to go out to dinner, but since all the restaurants were closed between 4 pm and 8:30 pm, we didn’t. It appears dinner starts near my bedtime.
The first few dishes are from the campground restaurant near our house. Surprisingly good for a campground.
Matthew first ate snails in China and liked them. In Spain, they were always sized to share. Thanks to Atli and Vala for bravely eating a few.
I ordered a salad with cheese. It tasted more like cheese with salad.
The three photos below are dishes from tapas in Barcelona. It appears we got hungry after the first few dishes and neglected to take pictures of all the meat and fish.
Store at La Boquieria market in Barcelona
From a beach restaurant in Barcelona
And desserts…
Crema Catalana
Churros with chocolate
Hiking Mu Gorge
We previously hiked to a peak of Mu Gorge and thought it was worth a return visit. So we headed back with David and family for a sunset hike on a different route.
When David and Matthew initially started planning for our families to meet up in Europe, there was talk of the trip being a celebration of both of them turning 50 this year. They neither look or act like what I thought 50 would be.
Atli and Logan posing, while the adults discuss why teen boys have high accidental death rates.
Kayaking at Mont-Rebei Gorge
We were so happy that David, Pamela, Vala and Atli were able to make the trip from Iceland to visit us for a week in Spain. After giving them day to recover from jetlag, we headed off for a day of kayaking and hiking at Mont-Rebei Gorge.
Pamela and Vala (above)
Matthew and Logan
Unfortunately, our itinerary did not allow us to climb the wooden stairs pictured above.
Entering the gorge
The path we hiked back is pictured above, cut out of the rock wall on the right.
David and Pamela (above). Pamela, who claims to be afraid of heights, was fearless.
Ethan, Atli and Logan near the end of our hike.
Cooling down after the hike
We opted for the boat ride back to our base instead of paddling another 7km against the wind.
Hiking in Aigüestortes and Lake Sant Maurici National Park, Spain
This was our second hike in Aigüestortes and Lake Sant Maurici National Park. It is a two-hour drive from our house in Sant Llorenç de Montgai, but the scenery and drop in temperature made the trip worth it (twice).
Logan under a snow pack.
You can find Matthew above if you look closely.
Above is our lunch break stop.
Ethan managed to scramble up a boulder for a pic (above).
On the plateau, we discovered that all the poo on the trail that we thought was due to a horse trip belonged to a herd of cattle. We were happy we did not drink from the waterfall.
Arrived in Spain
We arrived in Spain two weeks ago and were happy to meet Gaby, Itai, and Madison for dinner in Barcelona.
The next day we headed to our Airbnb in Sant Llorenc de Montgai. Below is the view from one of our balconies.
The town feels quite hot coming from Brașov but has some nice views.
It is in Catalonia. By the number of yellow ribbons and signs in town, it appears to be pro-separatist. The sign below says “free political prisoners.”
Below are photos from a hike we took nearby.
Matthew turned 49 in Ecuador at the beginning of our adventure. He turned 50 here in Spain. When I ordered the cake, the baker asked me if I wanted to pick it up at 8:00 in the afternoon. The schedule of meals (or life in general) in Spain does not easily mesh with our families’ habits. Happy Birthday Matthew!
Goodbye to Brașov
We left Brașov a few weeks ago, and I miss it. The city was charming, the surrounding mountains were lush, and it had just about everything we needed within walking distance; multiple markets, restaurants, and paths to hike and run.
The Black Church (above).
Logan hiking up Tampa mountain.
View of the city from Tampa.
Above and below are photos of our hike to Poiana BraÈ™ov. The kids were worried as we started off that we were going on one of our ‘forced family death marches.’ These usually involve a plan for a quick hike without bringing enough food or water, and end up with us trying to see ‘just one more trail’ while starving and dehydrated. I assured them that it was only 4 miles to Poiana BraÈ™ov where we would have lunch and catch a bus back. Unexpectedly, this was one of two days a year where the road is closed for a car race, so we did hike back. I wonder why they don’t trust us.
Early in the hike, we passed this quartet. Odd, but quite nice.
But one of the hardest parts of leaving BraÈ™ov was saying goodbye to ‘Dog-O.’ He lived next door but was banished to a small bit of concrete day and night. Just about everyone who knows us is aware that we do not like dogs. However, this one was so sweet that I not only bought him treats, but I even pet his head (which he preferred to treats). When we walked by his yard for the last time with our luggage, he went nuts barking and banging himself against the door. He knew we were leaving. And for the first time in my life, I was sad to leave a dog.
Bucharest
While in Brașov we took the train to Bucharest for a long weekend. We loved Kiev and hoped we would feel the same about Bucharest. We enjoyed some tours but the ambiance was lacking. From Uber drivers to tour guides to the extremely lonely security guard in the grocery store, we heard stories of how hard life was without hope that it would improve.
We took two tours during our stay. The guide above is from the free walking tour. She told us about Vlad Dracula, a.k.a. Vlad the Impaler, whose name is the inspiration for Count Dracula. His statue is behind her.
Our guide vividly described with specific detail how Vlad impaled his enemies. Maybe it was the heat, or that I was hungry, but as she explained the step by step instruction to impaling, along with the process of dying over the next two days, I had to sit as I was uncertain if I was about to pass out or vomit.
Our second tour was a Communism tour. So far this year, we have been on Communism tours in Munich, Ljubljana and Hanoi.
Above is the Central Committee building where Ceaușescu gave his last speech on the balcony on December 21, 1989. It is worth watching on youtube because the look on his face when he realizes that he has lost the support of the crowd is priceless.
Ceaușescu knocked down much of Bucharest with the goal of rebuilding it in a Communist style. The Palace of the Parliment, which he started (above), is the second largest administrative building in the world, including its nine stories underground. The last is a bomb shelter to survive a nuclear war. The combination of communist-era buildings beside empty lots that were destroyed and not rebuilt left the city feeling piecemeal.
CeauÈ™escu didn’t mind razing churches and destroyed many. However, architects convinced his wife to allow relocation of a number of them. They built train tracks and hoisted the churches up, then rolled them to new locations out of the path of destruction.
Our lunch spot above, and more churches below.
Above is a monument to those who died in the over throw of Ceaușescu. We recalled the uprising as coming from the people. However, both tour guides said the story now seems more complicated and that it was more likely a coup from within. Per our tour guide, the design of the monument was not popular, and the construction was marred by corruption. It seemed nothing had a happy ending in Bucharest.
Food in Romania
Food in Romania is not tailored to vegetarians (surprise!). Luckily, I am happy to eat cabbage and polenta, and my family likes meat. I won’t bother to name all the meat since I don’t pay enough attention to it to even identify the animal. But you can see below… they eat a lot of meat.
AND they have one of the best desserts ever (pictured above). Papanasi is a dense doughnut with sour cream and fruit. I don’t particularly care for any of those ingredients, but the combination left me craving more.
Above is Sarmale (minced meat in cabbage rolls)
Above is the biggest dough-boy (as we call something similar that we make on the campfire) ever seen. They called it a Kürtöskalács Chimney Cake.
Above is my favorite, cabbage with polenta.
 
 
Above is a chicken shepherd’s pie. It is worth a photo because Logan not only ate it (including some of the potatoes, which she does not eat), but asked to go to the restaurant again.
Above is fried cheese. I was excited to see it on menus but disappointed when I discovered they forgot to add flavor.
The plum wine I tried in Bucharest is beside the kid’s lemonade. Logan was not a fan of this one as it lacked sugar.
Dracula’s (Bran) Castle and Râșnov Citadel
Bran Castle is a short trip from Brașov. We were in the process of taking an Uber to the bus station when our driver offered to be our guide for the day. So we headed off with a new itinerary and, once again, stressed to the kids that later in life they should not accept rides into the countryside with strangers.
Per the official website for the castle, “Because Bran Castle is the only castle in all of Transylvania that actually fits Bram Stoker’s description of Dracula’s Castle, it is known throughout the world as Dracula’s Castle.” I think “throughout the world” may be an exaggeration but is does have plenty of Dracula memorabilia.
Its labyrinth of rooms and neat features, like the claustrophobic staircase below, make it an apt site for a Halloween party which, of course, it hosts yearly.
Below is the view from the castle.
In the village surrounding the castle.
Because the Uber driver ended up as our tour guide, we went to see a bear santuary that he highly recommended. Oddly, we have already seen a number of bear santuaries this year, but can you really visit too many?
Our last stop was at Râșnov Citadel.
Below are the houses inside the Citadel.
View from Râșnov Citadel.
As an aside… it is part of our social studies curriculum to learn about the lives of strangers in other countries. Our Uber driver said he makes 400 Euro a month working as an Engineer; therefore, he drives Uber on weekends. He was upset about how Europeans view Romanians, confusing them with Roma (to which he felt they were superior). But he was quite happy to disparage every other immigrant group in both the USA (where he has spent some time) and Europe.
From our observations, he is correct that many Europeans dislike Roma. We have been warned to look out for “them” many times this year. Our favorite was in Rome when we were told that we wouldn’t ever see them pickpocket our valuables, but somehow, once we noticed we had been robbed, we could be sure that it was a Roma who was responsible.
Chernobyl, WWI and Yanukovych’s former house in Kiev
There are tours that you can take to Chernobyl, but we decided to visit the museum in Kiev dedicated to the disaster instead of visit the site… mainly because it didn’t come with warnings about how to avoid contamination with radiation.
The audio guide and exhibits highlighted many personal stories from the days, weeks and months following the tragedy. The museum represented the disaster as occurring mostly due to a design flaw. It stressed the heroics of those present at the time who attempted to mitigate the consequences, in some cases knowingly giving their lives.
However, quite coincidentally, we later met a Canadian nuclear power worker in Bucharest that informed us that the Ukrainians made many mistakes and that the accident was preventable.
Below are photos from Victor Yanukovych’s estate when he was Prime Minister and President. It is now a museum displaying his excessive expenditures while in office.
We could not read all of the exhibits in the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War (below), but it was still worth the visit. It remembers the 8 to 14 million Ukrainians that died during the war.
Food in Ukraine
After six months in Asia, Logan was missing ice cream. Kiev provided a large one, wrapped in a waffle cone.
I was missing potatoes. I love potatoes. All kinds. For my birthday in High School, instead of decorating my locker with streamers and lots of candies, my friends filled it with unwashed Idaho potatoes. They also handed me potatoes as I walked through the halls and attended classes. Every time I opened my locker, potatoes rolled all over the floor. Did I mention I love potatoes?
Unfortunately, my family does not share my love of potatoes. This led to me just about breaking down and yelling at them as I wanted to order five different potato dishes at one meal but had no one to help me eat them.
But here are a few of the dishes (above and below) that I did manage to try.
Below is borscht that Matthew had.
Below is my cabbage salad. I love almost all cabbage salads.
Below is some sort of meat my family ate. I forget what.
And below is Logan’s favorite food in Kiev. She managed to eat it at least three times during our short stay. It is basically a large, deep-fried doughnut with a hotdog in the middle. The stand that sold it always had a long line, so it seems she was not the only one that liked it.
Some meat we picked up at a fair.
No one needs cotton candy that is much larger than your head. But, as you can see, it made Logan happy.
Food at an outside fair.
Hot bread with cheese… delicious in any country.
Kiev
Our stay in Ukraine was short, only three days, but we loved Kiev. We stopped over after leaving China on our way to Romania.
I may have looked like I had a broken neck when I arrived as I had not seen such blue skies in months and kept staring straight up.
With any country we visit, we get an impression of what it must be like to live there, which may or may not be correct or representative. And, of course, our perceptions are strongly influenced by the few taxi/Uber drivers, Airbnb hosts, tour guides, waiters, etc. that we meet.
In Ukraine, I felt those we talked to were angry, strong, defiant, and discouraged while at the same time still a bit optimistic (unlike in Romania where it felt that all hope for a better future was gone). They were angry about successful revolutions followed by further corruption and the war with Russia that continues killing their young. But they were proud to have fought back. How can you not want to root for people that covered a charred building from the 2014 revolution with a banner stating “Freedom Is Our Religion”?
The photo below shows pictures of those killed during the 2014 revolution. It is, and felt, very recent.
Another monument to those killed in the protests.
But all of our tours and wanderings were not a “daily dose of depression” (as Logan often calls our Social Studies lessons).
Below are murals painted in the past few years.
Logan and then Ethan in Landscape Alley.
St. Michael’s golden-domed monastery
Below is a locally famous cat that died in a fire. They felt it needed a statue.
Communist-era construction below (strongly ridiculed by our tour guide).
PeleÈ™ Castle
On one of our day trips from Brașov, we took the train to Sinaia to see Peleș Castle. It is quite new by European standards (built between 1873 and 1914), and it was unbelievably crowded. Yet still, the tour was worth the wait and the worry that if a fire broke out, we would all be killed in a stampede.
It had a number of fun staircases and secret passages.
The decor was impressive, even though I am not one who is particularly interested in decor
Ethan’s favorite part was the floor to ceiling mirrors.
We walked through the woods/craft stands heading back down to the train station.
We planned to stop at the monastery (above) on the way down. We didn’t plan to hang out there for an hour or so, but we did. It poured… for a long time. And, as usual, we didn’t bring our umbrellas. We finally made a mad dash across the street to a cafe to have hot chocolate and warm up while they called us a cab to take us back to the train station.
