First speedy drive in Romania 🚙💨💨

Picked up my rental car this morning. I used a local rental company and let’s say it’s just a bit different to your normal Hertz or Thrifty. I called them from the airport and they collected me in van and drove me to their office in a paddock nearby. His English wasn’t great, my Romanian non existent but I got a lot of “good… good” so I assumed it was all good.

After all the ID checks, “good, good” he says “you wait outside. I get car”. I go outside for him to follow me and say “I give you very good car… free upgrade”. I must be the only person who hates being upgraded to a bigger car. Oh well no little golf for me, big Nissan instead. He puts a cross border permit, at least that’s what I think he said it was in the glove box. “What do I need to do with that?” I ask. “Very important. Don’t loose”. I guess it will just stay there until I return it later in the week.

In a way leaving from a paddock in the countryside was less stressful than the airport where it is busy. In my mind as I turn onto the road I’m saying “keep right! Loose left, tight right”. Tight right it was. I notice the petrol tank is only 1/4 full, so the first stop is a petrol station where it’s 7.47/L - about $2.50AUD.

I couldn’t get Apple car play to connect but managed to at least have audio from my phone. I plug in my first stop into both the car and phone gps. They both find the same route. For the rest of the drive I have the two GPS systems battling it out in Romanian and English.

Once on the freeway the driving is easy and fast. The speed limit is 130km/h and soon I’m driving like a Romanian zooming past slow cars. Trucks are limited to 90km/h and stay in the right line. This means that unlike
Australia where you have trucks zooming up your arse, here I fly past them. Speaking of speed limits, I’m glad the car tells me what it is as it changes so often it’s crazy. Most people seem to only consider it a suggestion.

The freeway kinda just ends for about 15km and I detour via a crowded road through small villages. Between the towns every few hundred meters is a roadside stand selling fruit. If you were to stop, I don’t know how you’d renter the traffic.

Back on the freeway and 2.5 hours total drive time later I arrive at my first stop for the day and finish my first drive in Romania. 🥳Leia mais