Our First PURE Guests

Every since our presence at PURE in November 2014, we’ve been kindly harassing the agents we met to come and visit Romania. What better way to get to know a country and speak about it to clients than to experience it in person? With that in mind, we were happy to get Elisa’s and Ana’s e-mail in February this year about their intention to visit in April. That was the beginning of a few months of planning; initially we worked on an itinerary only around Romania but then, together with Darina and the team at Villa Gella, another PURE member from neighboring Bulgaria, we decided to combine the two countries. In the end, it makes sense for people traveling from far away to get to know more than one country in the region.

But before I get carried away, let me introduce Elisa and Ana, our special guests and first PURE visitors. Elisa runs Geographica XXI, a bespoke travel agency from Madrid; she has a few decades of solid experience both as a traveler but also as a travel agent for truly bespoke and experiential trips all around the world. She is as excited as a child to discover new places, she engages easily with everyone she meets, and ended up leaving Romania with a new nickname: Elisabetae from Transylvania, after Romania’s homonymous queen.

Ana traveled all the way from Buenos Aires to check out our country. After a career as a school teacher, Ana’s enthusiasm for travel and discovery brought her to Garcia Fernandez Turismo, a team of highly experienced travel professionals working individually with their respective clients in Argentina’s capital.

Happy travelers: Elisa and Ana on their way to visit Rasnov citadel

Both Ana and Elisa came open to discover Romania and willing to share their feedback with us. Their tour included a few beautiful places such as Peles Castle, Brasov, Valea Zalanului (HRH Prince Charles private residence in Eastern Transylvania), Sighisoara, Saxon villages like Viscri, Malancrav, Cund and Copsa Mare, Sibiu and of course, Bucharest. What surprised them the most? Elisa loved the landscapes, the powdered tops of the Carpathians and the rolling hills of Transylvania. Ana enjoyed the medieval towns and the Saxon villages the most. They both seemed to enjoy the food and drinks and had a blast visiting one of the few people left that manually sow traditional waistcoats.

Elisa made friends in Dragus

Marcela’s deserts are just some of the delicious things they’ve tried while in Romania.

Traian and Giulia joined them in the adventure and made the itinerary we discussed on paper come to life. What impressions they’ve left with? Here is a quote from each about their days in Romania.

“I loved so much my experience traveling around Transylvania and meeting with the Romanian warmth that I’m counting the days to repeat this experience soon! Next time I will go to spot wolves deep in Nature, another marvelous experience to do with Beyond Dracula, professionals, and now friends, who passed on to me the magnificent variety of their country; I will be grateful forever.”  Elisa Alday (Elisabetae from Transilvania)

We’ve made a special request for great weather for them; and it happened!

“It is such an adventure to visit a new destination! I was taken care of by Beyond Dracula during my trip to Romania in April, and believe me, when I returned home it was difficult to get back to real life.

Romania is fun. Nature. Bright colors. Intense flavors. Incredible skies. Silent nights. Warm beds. Hugs and laughs. Going back to the basics. Enjoying each moment of life. It’s difficult to choose the words to describe how well it feels:  Multumesc !!  (thank you)La devedere !!! (see you)Ciorba!!! (soup)” Ana Checchi

At the end of the Romanian tour we drove South towards Bulgaria, stopping for a night in Sofia, and then for two nights in Villa Gella, all the way South in the Rhodope Mountains. We walked around Sofia to discover its beautiful architecture, yellow boulevards, and green parks to then drive to visit Bulgaria’s largest monastery: Rila Monastery. After a long drive South, we finally made it to the Villa where a home cooked dinner was waiting for us. After a day spent discovering the mountains and blessed with delicious meals at the Villa, we started our journey back to Sofia but not without a stop at the Bachkovo Monastery and Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s beautiful city that was home to Alexander’s the Great father.

Elisa, Ana and Raluca at Rila Monastery, Bulgaria.

When we reached the airport in Sofia, the trip had come to an end. Sadly, we said our goodbyes and each went back to her home: Elisa to Madrid, Ana to Buenos Aires, and me to Bucharest. Fortunately though, we’re working on a few things together, and when November comes…we’ll meet again at PURE. Or perhaps before…one always stays friends after fun trips 😉