RO: Cea de-a doua zi a fost poate ca cea mai asteptata zi din aceasta mica vacanta de intoarcere acasa. Si asta pentru ca avea sa fie si cea mai usoara (cu drumul impartit in doua bucati a cate 2,5 ore de condus) si cea mai frumoasa (pentru ca urma sa ne vedem cu niste prieteni dragi in Munchen). Ne-am trezit mai tarziu decat obisnuiam (dupa ora 8) si ne-am inceput ziua cu micul dejun la cazare (casa unde am stat cazati avea si o brutarie la parter, asa ca am avut tot felul de bunatati delicioase). Recunoastem ca ne era tare dor de un mic dejun in Germania, iar acesta ne-a amintit de o scurta excursie de acum foarte multi ani in satucul Kettwig, unde am mers doar de dragul unui mic dejun etajat 🙂

EN: The second day was probably the most expected one from this short trip on our way back home. And that’s because it was the easiest (we divided our trip in two parts of 2,5 hours driving each) and the nicest one (because we planned to meet with some dear friends in Munich). We woke up later than usual (after 8AM) and we started our day with a typical German breakfast (the place where we stayed had a bakery at the ground floor so we had all sort of goodies). We have to admit that we missed having breakfast in Germany and this one reminded us of one of our trips to Kettwig, a small village that we wanted to visit just because if had restaurants that served layered breakfast 🙂

RO: La ora 9:30 am reusit sa plecam spre Munchen si in mod normal am fi facut nu mai mult de 2,5 ore. Insa o autostrada inchisa (si neactualizata pe Waze – cu ocazia aceasta ne-am dat seama ca este mai bine sa folosim Google Maps, pentru ca Waze-ul nu este folosit prea mult, prin urmare nici actualizate traficul sau blocajele) si un blocaj pe drum din cauza unor lucrari la un tunel, in apropiere de Wurzburg (de kilometri intregi, in care am mers fie foarte incet, fie am stat pe loc), ne-au intarziat destul de mult drumul. Traseul initial spre casa ar fi ocolit orasul Munchen insa am vrut neaparat sa ii vedem pe prietenii nostri, chiar si doar pentru cateva ore. Si ne-a placut acest mic ocol, am vazut sate dragute de pe faimosul Romantic Road (chiar daca nu am oprit), am mers pe drumuri inguste si a parut ca suntem cu adevarat in vacanta. Chiar ne amuzam impreuna ca pe masura ce vom inainta inspre casa se va degrada treptat si calitatea drumurilor, ca sa nu avem un soc prea mare atunci cand vom ajunge in Romania. Daca este ceva ce ne va lipsi teribil de mult din Olanda, cu siguranta vor fi drumurile perfecte, de la cel mai mare si aglomerat oras pana la cel mai ascuns satuc.

EN: At 9:30 AM we were on our way to Munich and normally, it should have been a 2,5 hours drive away. But a closed highway (not updated on Waze – we realized that it was better to use Google Maps, as Waze is not so used here so the traffic and the gridlock were not updated) and a gridlock due to some road constructions in a tunnel, close to Wurzburg (a traffic jam for kilometers, where we either drove very slowly or even stand still), delayed our arrival quite a lot. Our initial itinerary would have avoided Munich but we really wanted to see our friends, even for few hours only. And we loved this detour, as we have seen some villages on the famous Romantic Road (we haven’t stopped though), we drove on narrow roads and it really seemed that we were on vacation. We were laughing that as we’ll get closer to our home the quality of the roads will degrade, so that we will not be in a complete shock once we will get to Romania. If there’s anything that we will certainly miss from The Netherlands, that’s definitely the perfect roads, seen everywhere, from the busiest city to the most hidden village.
RO: In Munchen ne-am vazut cu niste prietenii nostri pe care nu i-am mai vazut din decembrie. Am petrecut cateva ore cu ei, pe terasa apartamentului, apoi am mers impreuna la o terasa din apropiere. A fost pentru prima oara cand am simtit cu adevarat restrictii cauzate de corona virus. In Olanda am stat foarte mult timp izolati si chiar daca am iesit la mare sau in diverse plimbari prin alte orase, am evitat complet locurile aglomerate si nu am fost niciodata la restaurante sau terase. Si in Olanda au fost implementate masuri de siguranta, insa purtatul mastii nu a fost niciodata obligatoriu (doar de la 1 iunie in transport public). In Munchen a fost pentru prima oara cand am simtit pandemia cu adevarat. Terasa, care inainte de toata aceasta perioada avea intrare libera, fiind parte dintr-un parc, era acum imprejmuita iar intrarea se facea doar dupa completarea unui formular (toate datele personale si adresa exacta), dupa dezinfectat pe maini la intrare iar masca era absolut obligatorie (doar atunci cand stateam la masa puteam sa nu o folosim). Erau fluxuri de trafic, mesele distantate, indicatoare care cereau respectarea distantei sociale.

EN: In Munich we met our friends that we haven’t seen since December. We spent a few hours with them, on the terrace of their apartment and then we went to a nearby terrace together. It was the first time when we actually felt the restrictions caused by corona virus. In The Netherlands we’ve stayed isolated for quite a while and even though we have been to the seaside or visited other towns, we completely avoided crowded places and we’ve never been to restaurants or terraces. There are security measures implemented in The Netherlands but wearing a mask was never compulsory (just in public transport, after 1st of June). In Munich it was the first time when we felt the pandemic. The terrace, which used to be part of a park, was now surrounded and the entrance was allowed only after filling in a form (with all personal data and the exact address), after disinfecting the hands and the mask was absolutely mandatory (only when staying at the table it could be taken off). There were one way flows, the tables were separated, there were signs that were requesting keeping the social distancing.

RO: Dupa vizita in Munchen am pornit din nou la drum catre Austria, unde aveam sa inoptam intr-un mic orasel la o ora distanta de Hallstatt (Altenmarkt im Pongau). Nu a fost nevoie sa oprim la granita dintre Germania si Austria si nu au fost controale (desi vedeam pe marginea drumului politisti care verificau autocare, nu si masini mici insa). Drumul a fost destul de usor, mai ales pentru ca a fost fragmentat in doua parti (drumul de dimineata pana in Munchen si apoi cel de dupa amiaza pana in Austria), iar peisajele absolut superbe! Atat de mult ne dezobisnuisem de peisajele cu munti (in Olanda fiind numai campie), asa ne-a placut enorm drumul in Austria. Stiam ca preturile cazarilor in Hallstatt, un orasel atat de turistic, erau exorbitante si inainte de pandemie insa acum pur si simplu nu puteam alege nimic, asa ca am hotarat sa stam in Altenmarkt im Pongau. Am ales tot un apartament AirBnB, care sa aiba neaparat bucatarie.

EN: After our visit in Munich, we were on our way to Austria, where we had our next accommodation in a small town close to Hallstatt (Altenmarkt im Pongau). We didn’t have to stop at the border between Germany and Austria, there were no controls (even though we’ve seen police checking the buses, but not the normal cars). The entire trip was quite easy, especially because it was divided in two parts (the drive in the morning to Munich and the one in the afternoon to Austria) and the scenery was amazing! We haven’t seen mountains in such a long time (as NL is a flat) so we really enjoyed the drive in Austria. We knew accommodation prices were high in Hallstatt even before the pandemic, but now it was impossible to choose something, so we decided to stay in Altenmarkt im Pongau. We have chosen an AirBnb aprtment with kitchen.

RO: Initial nu ne facusem planuri mai departe de Viena, pentru ca am vrut sa asteptam sa vedem cum decurge calatoria cu Alexei in masina atat de mult timp. In functie de ce se intampla pe drum sau cat de chinuitor avea sa fie, ne gandeam sa alegem un zbor catre Romania pentru mine si Alexei (din Munchen, Viena sau Budapesta). Pentru ca totul a fost mai bine decat ne asteptam pana acum, am hotarat sa mergem mai departe catre Romania, iar urmatoarele opriri sa fie Viena si un oras in Ungaria, cat mai aproape de granita (inca ne gandim ce sa alegem). Asa ca in seara aceasta cautam cazari AirBnB pentru Viena sau imprejurimile sale 🙂

EN: Initially we didn’t have plans after Vienna, because we wanted to see how the road trip with Alexei will be. Depending on what was going on these days, we were to decide if me and Alexei would return with an airplane from Munich, Viena or Budapest. But because everything ewas good so far, we decided to continue our journey to Romania and the next stops will be Vienna and a city in Hungary, closer to the border (we are still thinking what to choose). So, at this moment, we’re searching accommodation for Vienna or its surroundings 🙂

To be continued