Sighisoara II

So time changed without my knowing it (all of the announcements were in Romania, I'd bet). This made for me being an hour later to everything all day than I thought I'd be. I left the hotel at 11ish, ate a long, leisurely lunch, went carefully down the many, many cobblestone steps from the citadel to the rest of Sighisoara spread out below, walked around down there, lumbered my way back up the steps, and arrived at the museum of medieval torture right as it was closing! I thought I'd have another hour to see it! D'oh! Maybe tomorrow...

Not seeing that museum bummed me out, but I did find out from a guy I was talking to in the town square here that the citadel overlooking Sighisoara used to be the sight of public tortures, executions, and Europe's last witch burning! So they've got that going for them! As I look down on the cobblestone street from my third-story hotel window, it is quite easy to imagine angry peasants storming by, pitchforks and torches in hand, on their way to somewhere or other to dispense some old-timey mob justice.

I'm headed out of town at 11:30 tomorrow, bound for Deva. From there, it's a short taxi ride to Huneadaora (sp.), site of a particularly well-preserved castle that is reputed to be one of Europe's most hauntd spots! Sweet! Then I'll sleep in Deva Tuesday night and head back to Bucharest on Wednesday for my flight home early Thursday morning.

So Romania has old European charm with new European prices, I've discovered. My nine nights here are going to total something like $700 or so. True, I could have cut down on this by staying in hostels more, but I like sleeping alone (I have already been fearing that the snoring sounds eminating from my chamber might alarm the peasants). So, I had to pay for both parts of a private room three nights in Brasov, and here in Sighisoara there aren't really any budget options.

The killer, though, is Bucahrest: everything was double what was listed in the Lonely Planet Romania (copyright 2006) and I'm shelling out $118 for my Wednesday night hotel room, which needs to be near the airport, since my flight out leaves at 8 a.m. Henry Coanti Internatioal Airport is 16 miles from central Bucharest, and I don't want to take any chances with the city's horrible traffic, so...that's life!

Ah, but its all fun and I wouldn't trade these opportunities for the world. Overpaying for hotels while in Romania on Spring Break is why I work hard at the school and do all those newspaper stories: prices don't really matter in the end, compared to the thrill of being somewhere.