I was up early and had my breakfast in my hotel room before making my way to the JAN bus station a little before 8 am. Shortly after 8 am a minibus arrived with a few passengers on board and I enquired if it was heading to Mara. After first being told it wasn't (and being sure it was), I asked again and was told it was indeed heading to Mara! When the driver started the engine I thought we were about to head off, but all he did was reverse the minibus into the yard and then the other drivers proceeded to clean it! However, I couldn't really complain as we eventually left a little after 8:30 am.
On arrival at the village of Mara I paid the driver 5 lei and jumped off. Not long after I started walking through the village (in the direction of Desești), it began to snow quite heavily. As I was leaning over a fence to take a photograph of someone's garden and the wonderful ornate woodwork, an old man appeared and introduced himself and invited into his home for a drink! (Great timing I thought!)
As I entered the kitchen which was incredibly warm, (and a little steamy) I was introduced to the old man's wife, his son and his granddaughter. I was soon offered a glass of Țuică and I was also given a plate of what can only be described as a large block of semi-melted cheese! There was hardly any English spoken but it was a wonderful experience to be in somebody's home in Maramureş. After about half an hour I decided it was time to leave, (as I had a long trek ahead of me). As I was saying my goodbyes the charming granddaughter dashed out of the kitchen and soon returned and presented me with some apples and oranges to take with me!
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Luckily as I set off again it had stopped snowing. It didn't take too long to reach Desești with the wonderful surrounding mountains and the delightful church on top of a hill. After spending some time at the church I then headed off in the direction of Harnicesti, whilst admiring the wonderful surrounding countryside. I then continued to Hoteni and spent some time at the local church before heading up the steep road, (where children were sledging) and took the dirt track across some fields, (where the snow was quite deep). After about half an hour of wading through deep snow along the track, I finally picked up the road again for Ocna Șugatag and then followed the signs for Călineşti in the Cosau Valley, (and somehow missing the church!). After leaving Călineşti I then followed the sign for Cornești by which time I began to think about hitchhiking as I knew I only had a couple of hours of daylight left. Unfortunately the road wasn't particularly busy, and as I reached Ferești I spotted an old lady and a younger lady hitchhiking so I joined them and we all had a good laugh together! However I decided to walk ahead as I thought this was the decent thing to do!
By now it was about 4 pm and I thought I would have one last attempt at trying to find a restaurant with a non-smoking area, but after nearly an hour of roaming the streets I gave up and headed off to the supermarket! (Opposite the JAN bus station, where I popped in again and enquired about a minibus to take me to Săpânța in the morning. I was told a minibus would be leaving at 9:30 am.) At the supermarket I bought some fresh bread and a tin of Ciorbă, and later went back to my hotel room and cooked it on my stove!
On arrival at the village of Mara I paid the driver 5 lei and jumped off. Not long after I started walking through the village (in the direction of Desești), it began to snow quite heavily. As I was leaning over a fence to take a photograph of someone's garden and the wonderful ornate woodwork, an old man appeared and introduced himself and invited into his home for a drink! (Great timing I thought!)
26 km hike back!
The village of Mara
The village of Mara
The village of Mara & great hospitality!
As I entered the kitchen which was incredibly warm, (and a little steamy) I was introduced to the old man's wife, his son and his granddaughter. I was soon offered a glass of Țuică and I was also given a plate of what can only be described as a large block of semi-melted cheese! There was hardly any English spoken but it was a wonderful experience to be in somebody's home in Maramureş. After about half an hour I decided it was time to leave, (as I had a long trek ahead of me). As I was saying my goodbyes the charming granddaughter dashed out of the kitchen and soon returned and presented me with some apples and oranges to take with me!
A working kitchen!
A working kitchen!
Late breakfast!
The delightful family in the village of Mara
The delightful family in the village of Mara
Luckily as I set off again it had stopped snowing. It didn't take too long to reach Desești with the wonderful surrounding mountains and the delightful church on top of a hill. After spending some time at the church I then headed off in the direction of Harnicesti, whilst admiring the wonderful surrounding countryside. I then continued to Hoteni and spent some time at the local church before heading up the steep road, (where children were sledging) and took the dirt track across some fields, (where the snow was quite deep). After about half an hour of wading through deep snow along the track, I finally picked up the road again for Ocna Șugatag and then followed the signs for Călineşti in the Cosau Valley, (and somehow missing the church!). After leaving Călineşti I then followed the sign for Cornești by which time I began to think about hitchhiking as I knew I only had a couple of hours of daylight left. Unfortunately the road wasn't particularly busy, and as I reached Ferești I spotted an old lady and a younger lady hitchhiking so I joined them and we all had a good laugh together! However I decided to walk ahead as I thought this was the decent thing to do!
The village of Mara
The village of Mara
Mountains surrounding the village of Desești
The village of Desești
The wooden church (1770) in the village of Desești
The wooden church (1770) in the village of Desești
The wooden church (1770) in the village of Desești
Between the village of Desești & Hărnicești
Between the village of Desești & Hărnicești
The village of Hărnicești
The village of Hărnicești
Heading to Hoteni
The wooden church (1657) in the village of Hoteni
The wooden church (1657) in the village of Hoteni
Heading to village of Cornești
Between the villages of Cornești & Ferești in the Cosau Valley
Shortly after leaving the village of Ferești a car stopped and inside was the old lady and the younger lady I'd met a little earlier! I jumped inside and the old lady asked me where I was staying and so I told her the hotel Coroana. She then seemed to give the driver firm instructions on where to stop in Sighetu Marmației! On arrival outside my hotel the driver clearly wanted paying, and the old lady paid 10 lei and told me I only need to pay 5 lei. However the driver did not seem too happy with this and so I just gave him 10 lei which he was more than happy with. After getting out of the car I thanked the old lady and headed off in search of somewhere to eat. By now it was about 4 pm and I thought I would have one last attempt at trying to find a restaurant with a non-smoking area, but after nearly an hour of roaming the streets I gave up and headed off to the supermarket! (Opposite the JAN bus station, where I popped in again and enquired about a minibus to take me to Săpânța in the morning. I was told a minibus would be leaving at 9:30 am.) At the supermarket I bought some fresh bread and a tin of Ciorbă, and later went back to my hotel room and cooked it on my stove!
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