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Brisbane to ManchesterBrisbane to Manchester
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Brisbane to Manchester

February - June 2024
The journey to Manchester via Asia and Eastern Europe Read more
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  • 13countries
  • 109days
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  • 2videos
  • 28.6kkilometers
  • 11.1kkilometers
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  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    Day 58–60

    Istanbul: Stop Over

    April 25 in Turkey ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    📌 Time to head back to Istanbul and to start making our way West into Europe. We caught an interesting flight from Yerevan airport with Flyone, a budget Maldovan airline. The airport sucked but luckily the flight was short and straightforward without any extra charges or bags lost.

    📌 We landed in Istanbul and pushed through a long transfer from airport to accommodation with all the bags during peak hour. We eventually made it to the hotel and were keen to eat dinner by this time. A true blessing came across us when we found a small family owned authentic Indian restaurant that was super cheap and incredibly delicious, the perfect meal after an afternoon of transit.

    📌 We started the day with our fav Turkish breakfast, kaymek (cheese and honey) and then spent the rest of the day in Istanbul ticking off some admin tasks as we can only receive texts in certain countries (Turkey one of them) thanks to Aldo mobile. So we had to book some trains whilst we could recieve bank codes to authorise payments. We bought a few souvenirs and then headed out of the city for our overnight train. Taxis are horrible in Istanbul, so it meant a long walk up the hill with our bags to get to the train which would take us to the overnight train. We got there after a tough slog and we were keen to get into our private sleeping cabin. The cabin was quite comfortable and clean, it even had a few snacks, possibly better accommodation then some of our Vietnam ones 😂 Next stop, Bulgaria!    Read more

  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    Day 60–63

    Plovdiv

    April 27 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    📌 A long overnight train took us into Plovdiv. A comfortable and clean journey, just one disrupted 3-4 times in the space of 3 hours for so many passport checks 😂

    📌 We arrived in the city after checking in and it was very beautiful, it is home to the longest pedestrian street in Europe. This is lovely to walk down as it is lined by colourful buildings rather than communist style architecture.

    📌 As per usual we did a walking tour, which was quite fascinating given Plovdiv may be one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Europe. As a result they have a great deal of Roman ruins, most buried under the city. Additionally, we learnt about the history of Bulgaria, empires that have been through and communism.

    📌 We particularly enjoyed the old town, with many traditional old houses and also a trendy bar and restaurant district. Another standout was all the wild tulips we saw around the area, the most we had seen in our travels so far.    Read more

  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    Day 63–65

    Sozopol

    April 30 in Bulgaria ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    📌 We spent a few days down on the black sea coast, a popular thing for Bulgarian locals in summer. We road tripped down to the coast through some beautiful forested areas, towns and saw plenty of wild tulips.

    📌 It was offseason and day 1 was pouring rain, not ideal weather for the coast. However, we were there to not do a great deal and the hotel was comfy and warm, perfect for some supernatural and truly relaxing. When we emerged into the rain we had a beautiful dinner looking out right onto the black sea.

    📌 Day 2 involved a relaxing day, a wonder around old town, browsing some shops and a struggle to find lunch which turned out to be great as dinner was phenomenal. One of our Bulgarian highlights, a small 10 table or so restaurant perched up on a cliff overlooking the black sea. We enjoyed fresh seafood pasta and some delicious stuffed peppers with Bulgarian cheese. Sozopol was a great little trip that broke up the sight seeing which had started to become a little repetitive.    Read more

  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    Day 65–68

    Sofia

    May 2 in Bulgaria ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    📌 A bus to Sofia meant arriving late around dinner, we were staying in a comfy large Airbnb a little bit out of the centre. We found a small food truck park which seemed to be the local 18 year old hang out, but we enjoyed a drink, dumplings and pizza in the trendy Bulgarian capital.

    📌 Another walking tour gave us a great insight into the city and a bit more if an interesting insight into their communist era. Most interestingly, Bulgaria never joined the Soviet Union and were rather their own communist regime. We saw some old communist buildings, some former churches and mosques from the Byzantine and Ottoman ages, and some beautiful Austro-German architecture that survived WW2 bombings.

    📌 Day 3 we visited a an old communist era flat that was telling the story of the locals that lived there. It was such a different museum because you felt like you were in their house and you could open cupboards and look at old relics etc. This day also involved a short visit to an illusion museum to mix it up and kill a few hours, it was fun to be tricked out by illusions and it was a nice change to regular sightseeing.

    📌 Funnily enough, Damien McShane (from East Bentleigh) was in Bulgaria and we caught up for dinner and some drinks. We talked for hours over some beers and delicious traditional Bulgarian food about vet and travel. It was great to catch up with someone as we hadn't really had much conversation with anyone else since Vietnam, Damien is also such a great person to chat with.    Read more

  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    Day 68

    Rila Lakes & Rila Monastery

    May 5 in Bulgaria ⋅ ⛅ 7 °C

    📌 We set off with a hire car to the Rila Lakes, a national park in the south of Bulgaria. We intended to stay the night but the day was Easter Sunday and when we rocked up at the accommodation around midday nobody was there and there was no response. We decided to cancel (thanks free cancellation) and then try somewhere else, the language barrier was difficult and appeared there was no room and minimal staff due to the orthodox Easter celebrations. Ultimately, we made it a day trip and would return to Sofia late.

    📌 We headed for the lakes and got on a chairlift amongst beautiful pine trees, as we were ascending we realised we were greatly unprepared ( I had shorts on and no backpack) as we were soon passing snow covered ground and heading for higher areas of snow. We had about 3.5 hours before the last chairlift so we decided we would walk as far as we could of the loop.

    📌 The hike was difficult as there was so much snow, luckily we had hiking boots, some people had sneakers. We walked about 6km and saw 6 of the 7 lakes but we wouldn't have had time to make it to the 7th. Ultimately, we saw everything and more on this gorgeous hike. The snow was blanketed so soft and flat, the mountains poking out were jaggered and vast, but the best part was, there was nobody around and it was so quiet we could actually hear small avalanches. We descended down slowly, slipping over in the slushy hard compacted trail other hikers had created and enjoyed the slow quiet chair lift down the mountain.

    📌 We went around the mountain and through some quaint little hillside villages on a way to the Rila Monastery. The Monastery still functions and it was Easter Sunday so it was reasonably busy, even at 6pm. It was lovely to see the complex in the afternoon sun, the colours with the mountains in the background and the rushing mountain rivers nearby made it a special place. We were starving and found some delicious Nutella and jam doughnut balls outside (thank you tourist stalls for once) and then we headed back to Sofia for a late dinner and check in    Read more

  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    Day 69

    Sofia

    May 6 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    📌 Our last day in Sofia was a bit of a day of nothing planned, we had to check out of accommodation, get rid of the car and get an overnight bus to Romania at 11pm.

    📌 I woke up looking like an idiot, the snow had gotten the better of me and my unpreparedness. I was sunburnt all around the areas the sunscreen hadn't gotten and where the sun reflected up off the snow. Ultimately I had a very sore neck, ears and around my eyes! Super embarrassing!

    📌 We started the day with a delicious pastry and coffee shop before ridding the bags at luggage storage and we began wandering around the city. A few visits to malls and shops for us through to lunch which was a mission as every recommendation was closed due to Easter, this was super frustrating after waking 1km trusting google opening hours ☺️

    📌 The evening involved a spontaneous visit to the IMAX to watch The Fall Guy. This was a great choice in the end, it was hilarious and entertaining, the imax screen was huge and the sound was great! We found dinner in a recommendation that was actually open, so we enjoyed some delicious pizzas! We had one last wander around the city at night admiring the architecture before heading to our overnight bus, a night of minimal sleep ahead 😴    Read more

  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    Day 70–73

    Bucharest

    May 7 in Romania ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    📌 Welcome to the capital of Romania, we arrived after an average overnight bus (the bus driver kept the radio on the whole time). We had to wait around a little bit for check in, so we perched ourselves for a few much needed coffees in a cafe.

     📌 Bucharest walking tour on day 1 was very interesting, again it was great to hear more about a country that often flys under the radar in Europe when you're Australian. We were shown some great architecture and laneways. We found the French influence and Italian influence on Romania most interesting as this was very different to the rest of the neighbouring countries. We also heard about the revolution against communism which was very difficult to comprehend.

    📌 Our highlights of Bucharest were the architecture, some beautiful parks and the delicious local cuisine. This included viewing many french or austro-hungarian influenced buildings, the heaviest building (a huge building intended for the prev communist dictator) and some cheap weekday lunch deals at restaurants of history. One of these being the first brewery in town with an amazing interior and another being the oldest hotel in Bucharest (an old fort/Inn type structure). The Romanian doughnuts were definitely a highlight.    Read more

  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    1
    Day 73–77

    Brasov

    May 10 in Romania ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    📌 Leaving the city for a smaller region of Romania was nice and smooth via the train. We arrived in Brasov and the first impressions were that it was a very picturesque colourful old town. The old town was completely pedestrian friendly and the houses and shops lining the cobblestone lanes were colourful and historical.

    📌 We did our own walking tour using an app which was fun and flexible, we explored the old church, square and the old walls that surrounded the town in the 14-1500s. The old town was one of the most picturesque towns we have seen.

    📌 Brasov is very close to the Carpathian mountains so we utilised this to go and see bears in the wild. We went with a ranger to the forest to try and spot bears one evening and were fortunate enough to see two males. We also visited the libearty sanctuary, known as one of the best animal sanctuaries globally. This was a great experience to support people doing good work but also sad to hear the torment the public and tourists subject these bears to in the past and most likely the present still. Many were rescued from roadside restaurant cages or circuses.

    📌 Another Brasov highlight was the castles around the area. Pele's castle was extremely lavish, the decorative rooms and intricate wood furniture was amazing. A visit to the castle of the fictional character Dracula was also interesting, however being an old fort and not a royal residence, it was less lavish. Driving throughout the countryside areas also was a highlight as some of the towns were very quaint and colourful.

    📌 Brasov was a great city to visit and definitely one to recommend to people visiting Europe.    Read more

  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    Day 77–78

    Sighisoara

    May 14 in Romania ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    📌 A short stopover on the way to Sibiu in one of the oldest continuously occupied mediaeval citadels of Europe. The town was a saxon town (people sent from the Austro-hungarian empire to establish a town) that is renowned for its old town beauty. We caught the train in and due to the small size of the town, we didn't have to lug the bags too far which was a relief

    📌 Sighisoara was a very beautiful town, the houses all have coloured fascades, the old gothic style clock tower is almost visible from anywhere and the cobblestone streets are quiet and charming. We wandered around the town, following the streets and the old walls of the city before finding dinner at a old post office which served delicious woodfired pizza and pastas.

    📌 Most of the 24 hours we spent in this small town was without a purpose, simply drinking coffee or eating tasty food. We did include a run and a workout along the river to get some energy back at one point ☺️ Overall, a nice place to stop for a night.    Read more

  • TravelerBrisbane to Manchester
    1
    Day 79–82

    Sibiu

    May 16 in Romania ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    📌 Our final stop in Romania, a larger town but not quite a city, at the base of the Romanian mountains. Sibiu was another colourful beautiful town to wander through with its large squares and its unique and renowned roofs with eyes (small windows in the old roofs).

    📌 We explored the town on foot climbing the old clock towers, visiting a few churches and squares and enjoying the warm weather. One of the highlights was the food, one night we visited a large beer house type location where we enjoyed schnitzel, goulash and several drinks whilst time for away and the waiter had to ask for payment because her shift was finished ☺️

    📌 We decided to pick up a car on the final day and explore the mountains. We drove on the famous transfagarasn mountain road until the closure point where we visited a waterfall. The hike was tough but the area was beautiful. Unfortunately we were hungry after and decided to have a Langos near a tourist area, a bit of a mistake as it was gross, although I'm sure the street dog enjoyed it. Ultimately, we should have stuck to our rule of not eating near tourist hotspots.

    📌 As we headed back and onward to a castle we noted some bears on the road which was awesome to see but also sad as they come out to the road because idiot tourists feed them. We drove to Corvin Castle, Romania's largest castle and it was different to other ones we'd seen. A very large gothic style castle with many towers that gave mediaeval vibes. Eventually we headed back for dinner and enjoyed our last papanasi before getting on the overnight train to Budapest.    Read more

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