Suceava, Romania

Good: I was able to store my luggage for free at Irene’s Hostel in Suceava even though I wasn’t going to stay there for the night

Not-so-good: No buses from Gura  Humorului to Voronet Monastery so I ended up walking about 10km roundtrip to see the monastery which was barely worth it. I would have taken a taxi but the friendly staff at the tourist information office at Gura Humorului said the walk was “easy” and “many people do it”. On the way, I saw only two other groups of people walking as well, but it could have been due to low season. Interestingly, I didn’t see taxis making the trip either, but there were bus loads of tourists at the monastery on organised trips. I paid 2.50 EUR extra for taking exterior photos (for comparison, the student entrance ticket was 0.50 EUR), which I think nobody else did despite snapping away. I’ll have to remember to keep my camera out of sight of ticket counter staff in future.

Noteworthy food/drink: Mamaliga cu branza, a cornmeal mush generously topped with salty sheep cheese, for about 1 EUR at a self-service cafeteria. Portion was huge and heavy, and I could not finish everything despite taking a fancy to it. It’s like a mix between dry porridge and pudding, and the cheese gives the flavour for the otherwise bland staple.

Extra interesting fact: Suceava manufactures a nationwide ice cream brand called Betty Ice, but I’ve seen ads with “Betty Blue” so I shall remember it as Betty Blue Ice. After sighting the factory along one of my bus journeys, I just had to eat some of it in Suceava. I ended up having one ice cream cone (0.60 EUR) and one ice cream stick (0.40 EUR) within an hour of each other.

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Kolomyya & Chernivtsi

Good: University town Chernivtsi. Finding accommodation at an unplanned stopover; strolling around town in the cool of the night munching on a 0.95€ toasty chicken panini; watching English MTVs on a big screen in a small square with surround sound. A pleasant place with a youthful vibrance in the air.

Not-so-good: The 4.30am bus I had planned to take from Kolomyya to Chernivtsi didn’t seem to exist, and I had to change plans in order to make the once-a-day 7.10am cross-border connection from Chernivtsi to Suceava. In the end I decided to forego my private room booking in Kolomyya (no penalty), and pushed on to stay the night in Chernivtsi, somehow.

Noteworthy food/drink: The cornflakes I ate at The Georgehouse Hostel were thick enough that there was still a lot of crunch despite being soaked in milk for some time. Crunchilicious.

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Compact Lviv

Good: Lviv sights are pretty close together and thus I was able to finish my sightseeing early with some time for a late afternoon tea break. Following a recommendation from a brochure picked up at the Tourist Information Office, I found myself having a “local” Cheesecake with Pears (1.60€) & a Coffee and Banana Milkshake (2.50€) at one of the supposedly “popular” dessert cafes. Dining alfresco, I was able to watch the world go by, as well as observe the Ukrainians at the next-door restaurant use really interesting chopsticks. The chopsticks are connected by a little spring at the top end – sort of like tongs – which apparently makes it easier for the users.

Not-so-good: The 1.60€ cheesecake turned out to be 1.60€/100g cheesecake, and ended up costing 3.50€. Ouch. And I didn’t really like the powdery style either.

Noteworthy food/drink: 0.65€ borshch (soup) & 1.25€ holubtsy (cabbage rolls) from a Ukrainian cafeteria chain. Yummy.

Extra interesting fact: In the evening, there were groups of visibly-old men playing chess at the Prospekt Svobody, the city’s most popular boulevard. The thing that struck me most was that these weren’t leisurely games of chess to pass the time, but sharp and lightning fast play with chess clocks to boot. I wouldn’t want to challenge any of them…

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Unhappy Feet

Good: Fresh linen provided for sleeper on overnight train.

Not-so-good: Sights are spread out requiring lots of walking over hilly terrain, despite the city having an efficient Metro system.

Noteworthy food/drink: Expensive varenyky (7€ Ukrainian jiao zi) at a sit down restaurant, a recommendation of Lonely Planet. I actually like the chewy skin and the hearty meat filling better than a lot of dumplings I have eaten before, but I’m sure there are cheaper alternatives here in Ukraine.

Extra interesting fact: The metro train system is so deep underground, that for one of the stations, it took about 5 whole minutes on two separate fast-moving escalators for me to get from train platform to station exit. Imagine if the escalators are not working… Oh, I didn’t see any elevators.

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Kyiv, Ukraine

Good: The gold domes of St Michael’s Monastery glowing under the rays of the setting sun.

Not-so-good: Finding out too late that the exchange rate for Euro to Hryvnya is better at the airport than in downtown.

Noteworthy food/drink: Warm and toasty perepichky (hot dog pastry) for €0.55.

Extra interesting fact: The lift at the hostel is so tiny you can fit at most two average-sized people or just one person and a luggage.

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Eastern & Central Europe

Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Germany. The journey begins.

Good: Being able to charge my phone with the USB port on the plane. Every seat has one!

Not-so-good: Not managing to find time to cut my hair before the flight.

Noteworthy food/drink: Champagne in Economy Class. It is Air France after all.

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Datong & Environs

Next on my photo to-do list is my recent Beijing, Datong & Pingyao trip, and the first album Datong & Environs is ready for viewing. Highlights include the Hanging Monastery and Yungang Grottoes.

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Suzhou & Environs

This batch of photos/videos concludes my Shanghai, Huangshan, Hangzhou & Suzhou trip in April 2012. You know where to click to view them by now.

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Hangzhou

Who would have thought the next batch of photos would be ready in just one day? There’s also a nice video at the end. Click on “Places Been To” now!

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Huangshan & Environs

Next batch of photos released! Click on “Places Been To” on the left menu. 🙂

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