Visiting The Vándor Fogadó

in Worldmappin3 days ago

We had a family day almost two weeks ago, on Sunday. I never got to post about it as time is never enough, there's always so much to do. Today I was trying to remember why we had that family day and couldn't. Shame on me as it's barely been 2 weeks, but this shows the reason doesn't matter, or matters less, what really matters is spending time together. Memories stay with you forever. After a few minutes I was able to remember the reason we had this event and I'm telling you this to not think I have Alzheimer :)

Visiting The Vándor Fogadó.jpg

It was an extremely hot day and even though the cars obviously had air conditioner, once you stepped out of the car, you met the scorching heat and no matter how well you tolerate it, it takes away a lot of your energy.

We decided to have lunch at a place I've never been to before, called "Vándor Fogadó", which in English would translate to "Wanderer Inn", situated in Vármező (Câmpu Cetăţii).

20250726_181303a.JPG

It is easily accessible, no matter which direction you come from and I'm pinning it to the map in case someone is going to need it in the future. We have a plan with gabrielatravels, to map Transylvania and I'm working on adding new locations to it every time I visit a place.

It's not a big venue, but it has a covered terrace, two actually and the interior is also not so small.

20250726_163253a.JPG

What I love the most is the rustic design. It's not a 7 star luxury restaurant, the name says clearly it's for wanderers and the majority of the guests are from other places as the village is small.

20250726_164016a.JPG

When I said rustic, I meant it. Tables, chairs, doors, windows are made of wood, beams on the ceiling and the cherry on top of the cake is the furnace, which most likely is not in use anymore, but makes the place more authentic.

What drives people here? One thing. Fish! There's a fish culture, a fish pond nearby and two restaurants (this is one) that serve fish and whoever comes here, eats fish.

I have a love-hate relationship with fish, or tolerate-hate relationship would be more accurate, due to my health problems (my gallbladder). This means I can eat it, but I'm not cooking it. If someone cooking fish for me, I say "thank you" and I'm more than happy to eat it, but you won't see fish in my kitchen. This is why I prefer to ear fish when I'm at the restaurant.

20250726_165543a.JPG

This is the fish soup, which was on my list, but had no courage to taste it. This dish is usually made wit hot pepper, or chilly and I'm not a fan of hot dishes. I'd like to try it out, but most likely I'll need more courage first. I was told it was really good, so maybe next time I'll give it a try.

20250726_172557a.jpg

This was my main dish, fish fillets with French fries. After I took the photo, I also added some garlic sauce on the fish, which I love, and although it's not recommended for me, once in a while I like to have it. It was really good.

20250726_172604a.JPG

This was another option on the menu, fish in corn flower, with French fries. Next time if we go there again, I'm going to try it out.

20250726_172634a.JPG

This was the pork stew with noodles, a very well known dish in this region. The person who had this had the fish soup, so they said one fish dish is enough.

20250726_172644a.JPG

Same here, this is pork knuckles with French fries, because the person had the fish soup prior to this. I was told it was good.

My plan was to have some dessert as well as they had the papanasi, wish I love, but there was no room for anything in my stomach unfortunately. The portions are decent, so you don't leave hungry, that's for sure.

20250726_193419a.JPG

After that, our next stop was Szováta (Sovata), which is a well known tourist destination, just a few km away from out initial destination. Unfortunately the tourist season this year is far from what it should be as the government cut the vacation vouchers this year and many can't afford to travel.

20250726_193511a.JPG

This is the main street that takes you to the salt lake called Medvetó (Lacu Ursu), which used to be packed all day that you could barely make some progress. Now it was basically empty. I've never seen this road this empty.

20250726_194106a.JPG

After meeting some friends for a drink and chat, we made a stop at the ice cream shop. This was a bit of a bitter sweet moment as I wanted to take photos of the ice cream we bought, but due to the heat, the ice creams were melting fast and the photo would have been ugly, so I gave up and focused on eating it, before melting. Maybe next time.

20250726_200322a.JPG

Here comes the particularity of the place. Everything for the tourists, right? And for the profit of course. You can take part of a tour of the place on this chariot. The funny thing is the price of the ride.

A friend of mine had some foreign guests and wanted to offer them an experience they never forget and thought a ride with this chariot would fit in nicely. He asked the owner what it would cost to rent the chariot for an hour and when he was told the price, he said, "I want to rent it, not buy it" 😆 You can read between the lines I hope. But even if it's not cheap, every time I go there see people riding in the chariot.

20250726_201326(0)a.JPG

If you prefer a ride updated to modern standards, you can ride Thomas, the train, which takes you on a tour for much less.

20250726_200806a.JPG

20250726_201331a.JPG

This train is always full, kids love it and it's a really fun thing to do for them.

20250726_200848a.JPG

I took this photo at around 8pm and I'm still shocked how empty those streets were (still are I bet). Regardless, it was a fun day.

If you're a newbie, you may want to check out these guides:


presearch

Sort:  

It is amazingly detailed post, of course with ton of images.
I wish I could say, added to my checklist of travel but I can't.
I am kind of homesick guy & can't take travel more than a day or two.
It doesn't mean I don't go. I take photos & stays stored in photos gallery.
I'm glad that you took time & shared with us.
Renting a chariot is reasonably cheap here at Empress Botanical Garden, Pune

image

Here they have same - toy-train ride, chariot ride, snacks corner, kids play area.
But if you go here in weekends, it's super crowded.


Your reply is upvoted by @topcomment; a manual curation service that rewards meaningful and engaging comments.

More Info - Support us! - Reports - Discord Channel

image.png
Curated by friendlymoose

I am kind of homesick guy & can't take travel more than a day or two.

This is shocking to say the least. You're losing a lot this way and besides, your home doesn't go anywhere.

Thanks for the recommendation but unfortunately your country is not on my bucket list.

Okay. No problem. I wasn't recommending. I remembered I went to place with similar activities.

via Inbox

The rustic vibe of Vandor Fogado makes it feel warm and homey, and those fish dishes look delicious and worth the trip. I hope I can try that dish soon. I believe you had a really nice day. To more of these blog!

Thank you. Another is coming soon as tomorrow we're going to have another family day 😃

I think I’d ride that train too even if I’m already an adult. That looks fun! hahaha
Surprised with the fish story. I kinda like the fish fillet looks appealing but it’s so deep fried I can’t stand it. Lately I’ve been thinking of incorporating fishes in the dishes I cook at home, which is so opposite to your kitchen being fish free. 😂

I think I’d ride that train too even if I’m already an adult. That looks fun! hahaha

One day I will too 😆

I kinda like the fish fillet looks appealing but it’s so deep fried I can’t stand it.

This is why I only eat such dishes at the restaurant once in a blue moon as I never fry anything at home. So when i go to the restaurant and order fried food, it looks bad 😆 but it's ok to commit this crime from time to time.

Unfortunately fish is not the main meat in my country, the majority is imported, unless home grown in lakes and it's expensive too. Japanese cuisine is is different, healthier.

It looks like a small town made of LEGO 😍, especially because of the cute colorful train! 🚂... Beautiful place and lovely post @erikah friend. Have a great Sunday, and thanks for sharing! 🙏

!discovery 30
!PIZZA

There are many interesting wooden cabins too, plus the train, so I can see why you would look at it as a LEGO playground 😂

Thank you my friend, have a nice weekend! And thanks for the tokens too.

Congratulations, your post has been added to The WorldMapPin Map! 🎉



You can check out this post and your own profile on the map. Be part of the Worldmappin Community and join our Discord Channel to get in touch with other travelers, ask questions or just be updated on our latest features.

What a beautiful and heartfelt post! 🥰 It really shows how the little things—like family time, good food, and spontaneous memories—are what truly matter. Loved the rustic charm of the Wanderer Inn and the honest review of the dishes! The empty streets do feel surreal, but I’m glad you made the most of the day. Thanks for taking us along on your journey!

I'm really glad you see it that way. Thank you!

This post was curated by @dimascastillo90 from the Visual Shots Team | Be part of our Curation Trail - Delegations are Welcome

Thank you @dimascastillo90 🤗❤️

Wow, what an interesting picture my friend, have a nice day 😘😘

Which one?

Congratulations @erikah! You have completed the following achievement on the Hive blockchain And have been rewarded with New badge(s)

You received more than 134000 HP as payout for your posts, comments and curation.
Your next payout target is 136000 HP.
The unit is Hive Power equivalent because post and comment rewards can be split into HP and HBD

You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word STOP

Check out our last posts:

Our Hive Power Delegations to the July PUM Winners

This post was shared and voted inside the discord by the curators team of discovery-it
Join our Community and follow our Curation Trail
Discovery-it is also a Witness, vote for us here
Delegate to us for passive income. Check our 80% fee-back Program

The fish dishes look amazing, even though I’m more of a ‘try it if someone else cooks it’ type too

It was delicious and really unhealthy too 😄

I'm sure you enjoyed the day. The Wanderer Inn looks relaxing, and even though you have a 'tolerate-hate' relationship with fish, the foods look delicious. And I also love their rusty design.

Yes, it was a nice day that will live in our memory for long.

Nice place for sightseeing. It would be nice to try and ride in the chariot.

If you can afford it, or better yet, willing to pay as much ... I could afford it, no problem, but don't see why I would pay so much.

What a lovely family day! 💖 This place looks so inviting, and the food looks amazing ✨ Your friend's story about the chariot price made me laugh! It sounds like a memorable day, despite the heat 💕

That story makes everyone laugh, even though it's rather sad, not funny, but if there are plenty willing to pay so much ...

Cool place to hangout with friends and family... Food looks tempting...

It is indeed. Most likely we're going to go back at some point and repeat the visit :)

Hiya, @lauramica here, just swinging by to let you know that this post made it into our Honorable Mentions in Travel Digest #2647.

Your post has been manually curated by the @worldmappin team. If you like what we're doing, please drop by to check out all the rest of today's great posts and consider supporting other authors like yourself and us so we can keep the project going!

Become part of our travel community:

Thank you very much and have a nice weekend!

You are very welcome @erikah! it was well deserved. ☀️
We are already looking forward to reading more about your adventures!

!BBH

It is always worth repeating these beautiful moments. It is the beautiful memories that remain.

I couldn't agree more.

Hey @erikah!
Here is a !PIZZA for you 🍕

I'm on diet. So no pizza for me.

Healthy Fruits

Healthy fruits in that case.

via Inbox

It was like a culture, we have also like that and we called it kalisa in Philippines, but it drive by a horse not a machine. Good experience though and I hope you still encounter more good experience there😊

Horses are not allowed on the road in my country, so the chariot is an exception and it's only allowed on a defined rout where tourists are visiting.

Everything looks great, the food, the pictures. The fish looks so delicious, bon appetit

 3 days ago (edited)Reveal Comment