A drive across Romania.

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Back in Romania and it's holiday time. For the next 5 days i'm embarking on a tour of Maramures in the very north of the country. Maramures is still a very traditional part of Romania, an area that seems to have bypassed the everyday things we take for granted. No internet, not many cars but plenty of monasteries, old churches, traditional costumes and of course the local moonshine - harinka!

Myself and Monica jump in the hire car at 10am and prepare ourselves for a grueling drive across Romania. This is the first time i've driven in Romania and its a daunting prospect. Romanian drivers can only be described as insane, and the roads are extremely windy and covered in potholes. We travel north through Sinaia, Brasov and the Transylvanian mountains and reach the beginnings of Maramures as night falls. It strikes me just how vast Romania is and you can see different influences in architecture as you travel through its regions.

We eventually find ourselves at our destination, a small historic village called Ieud at around 10pm. We are staying in a traditional Maramures house, made of wood of course, and are greeted with a smile by our hosts who offer us a glass of harinka, a traditional drink of the region which is made from plums and tastes a bit like grappa. I go to bed eager to see what the daylight reveals...