A sleep in in Budapest meant we left the hotel about 11am and drove to Vienna via the motorway. We still arrived in time to spend the afternoon exploring the streets by foot. What a fascinating city. The buildings are very ornate from the churches and Parliament to the museums and Rathaus. Between these you see the horses and carts taking people for scenic rides.

We found a street side cafe for coffee and snack and then another lovely cafe later for glasses of wine and dinner.

On one occasion I heard the most beautiful music and followed the sound to where an elderly man was busking.I stood and listened and couldn’t help but give something for my enjoyment.

An early start tomorrow as we drive to Heidelberg tomorrow.

A late afternoon walk around Timisoara revealed lovely old buildings situated around public squares. We found our way to the main street where there was a magnificent orthodox church. Dinner overlooking this church and the main square gave a lovely ending to the day.

We then left the town, destination Budapest with the aim of arriving so that we had the afternoon for sightseeing. Morning tea at a service centre and as it was too early to check in, Ian and I  left our Vulcan at the hotel and did some exploring.

Walking up to the Citadel gave us expansive and beautiful views of the Danube and the city below.  We dined on local Hungarian food at a small restaurant at the top of the citadel. The citadel had references to the Olympics both in posters and in statues but with no English translation we are not sure what connection is to be made. The building itself was not opened but the view showed us why so many tourists were at the top of the hill.

Walking down and along the river gave us views of the palace and the beautiful parliament building. Bronze shoe sculptures along the walkway were intriguing. Why were they there…what did they represent?

Dinner at the hotel restaurant with a glass of wine finished off a delightful afternoon.

While we were dining, Vulcan was enjoying her time with the other cars in the hotel carpark.

Ian led today and it was decided to start at 8.30. Even the extra half hour was appreciated by these weary travellers! We drove to the edge of the Danube at a town called Orsava. A pretty town where we called a morning tea or early lunch break for an hour. There was a monastery on the top of the hill which some drove to while others picnicked or walked the foreshores.

The drive to Timisoara took about 3 hours from there as the trucks, with no overpassing lanes, made for slow going. However seeing storks nesting on telegraph poles, a different form of haystacks and beautiful scenery made up for it and the early 3pm arrival gave us an early break.

Of course a photo of Vulcan on the Danube (or at least next to the Danube) ends this post.

Today we exited Bulgaria and crossed over into Romania. An interesting crossing as the border was the river. There were many many trucks waiting to exit Bulgaria and after we exited we made a queue for the ferry. The ferry went every 2 hours so those trucks waiting had a LONG wait.

Sunflowers, used mainly for the oil produced were in flower and the fields were yellow.

It was a long day…so an early night was in order!