To Alba Iulia, Romania
Today was a short 40 mile, mostly downhill ride. But despite being short, it was both beautiful and eventful.
Now that we are in Romania, we are on Eastern European Time, so breakfasts start a bit later. We gathered to put our luggage in the van at 8:00, then sat down for our breakfast.
As soon as we got out of the village, the scenery was fantastic.
With the sun on my left side, you can seem my shadow as I snap a photo to the west as I ride.
I stopped by the side of the road to take this panorama. I could have started the photo in any direction and had a wonderful shot.
We exited the valley through a gap in the mountains with cliffs on both sides.
We are cycling in Transylvania. I saw this castle on the hill and was reminded to the beginning of Rocky Horror Picture Show when Brad and Janet get engaged, have a flat tire in the rain, seek help at a castle, and meet a “sweet transvestite, from Transsexual, Transylvania.” Of course, Dracula famously lives in a castle in the Carpathian Mountains of Transylvania as well. So many opportunities for good story lines…
Of course, if Dracula is chasing me, there are always churches around.
And around,…
And around…
Part of what made this ride “exciting” was that I hit the deck, not once but twice. Combined, I just have a bit or road rash on my left elbow and a slightly sprained right thumb. On the first instance, I was shifting from the road to a bike path which ran parallel, and there was a bit of a lip that my front wheel cleared with a bunny hop, but my back wheel skidded out sideways sending me down. In that accident, my derailleur hanger bent. This is a piece designed bend to protect the expensive derailleur. In this photo, taken by Kate Proctor, one of the guides, I am replacing my hanger with a spare that I brought. Later in the ride, there was a bit of sand on a downhill corner just after a shade line. I did not see the sand, and my rear tire skidded out. I had a very small amount of road rash after the first slide, but in the second, I slid along the very same part of my elbow. The result is a 2” by 3” section of rather abraded skin. I have cleaned it multiple times, put antibiotic cream on it, and have it well bandaged. It should be fine in about a week, but it still sucks. Tomorrow, I am planning on riding very cautiously. Either of those spills could have caused much more damage. We have a mantra in our family, “No trips to the ER.” I plan on following that great advice on this trip.