Until Next Time....

We had an early departure from Gagy today. It was harder for me to say goodbye this time.

The group goodbye photo: Ani, Rob, Sone, Maureen, Csilla, Michael, Magdika, Zoli, Jaffray, Udit, Istvan, Edit, and Mihaly.

Then it was back on the road for a quick stop in Sighisoara/Segesvar, where we reconnected with our guide Csilla Kolcsar and her husband John Dale. While I accompanied John on an errand to their hometown of Targu Mures/Marosvasarhely (which I'd never visited), the rest of the group explored the UNESCO World Heritage site of Sighisoara. It is a perfectly intact medieval walled city from the 16th century with nine towers, cobbled streets, burgher houses and ornate churches.

Charming square of shops, museums, and sidewalk cafes

We watched the drummer strike 11 times at 11:00 from this massive 13th century clock tower.

It also happens to be the birthplace of Vlad the Impaler, the "real" Dracula.

We all met up for a farewell lunch at Castel Haller on the way back to Cluj/Koloszvar, where we said so long to John and Csilla. We had one final fabulous dessert before climbing back into the van with Csaba.

The final sweet of a trip filled with sweet things (edible and not).

Tomorrow is the travel day as we return to Arlington. Everything went way too fast. We are looking forward to sharing our experiences here with everyone back home, as well as keeping in touch with all of our dear friends old and new in Gagy.

Contributions from Maureen and Michael.