We have just spent 10 nights in our last Romanian city - Timisoara (Timmy-shwa-rah). We have been vulturing again... culture-vulturing that is (thank you to Marilyn & Dennis in the USA for the new verb). In fact we've been told by another friend that it is possible to overdo culture - be it opera or yoghurt. We have explained to him that we have 3 months coming up in Australia/New Zealand - the sort of tickets we've been paying €10-€20 for between us... more like €300-€400 for opera seats in Sydney. So we are saving cultural events like squirrels saving nuts for winter. For those who have heard of the Christmas 1989 revolution in Romania, this is where it all began. The people were protesting in a very small fashion about starvation, hunger, lack of electricity, oppression, lack of freedom to leave the country and 2 hours of State run TV per day, and the slight possibility that communism might not be all it was cracked up to be. Ceaucescu couldn't be bothered to make the huge (hour and a bit) flight up from Bucharest to tell them to calm down and it's all OK. He sent troops with orders to shut them up as quickly and effectively as possible. Being well trained party members, they got on the ground in Victory Square, saw the protesters in front of the Orthodox Cathedral and decided on the low-hanging fruit - 32 children. Things didn't go as planned and that was the final straw for the protesters - in the end the revolution spread to Bucharest and nationwide and the rest as they say was history. It was my final year in high school and I had other things on my mind - but sheesh... I sure missed a lot of world news in 1989. We certainly heard about the Berlin Wall coming down - but I'm not sure the Romanian revolution made news at all in NZ. Our first day here in the heart of the revolution ended up being quiet - our early morning departure from Cluj and the world's shortest flight (25 minutes!) had us on the ground and at our new apartment by 10 am. We ironed out a couple of kinks with the owner then headed off into 19 degrees and blazing sunshine to walk to town (all of 5 minutes away). We tripped over a great Carrefour supermarket within 2 minutes, just across the park and fizzled out there - bought all our groceries and a roast chicken, along with a bottle of Romanian white wine (7 lei... A$3... €2) and trundled home. Early flights... what can we say. The next day dawned drizzly, which turned into rain, which turned into heavy rain - Perfect Day for our Walking Tour! (Said no-one. Ever.) But hey - it was free and it was booked. We were initially thinking we were the only two on the tour, but as it turns out 5 lovely French speaking Belgians turned up to the English tour too. Which turned the 90 minute tour into 120 as our very talented, Syrian born guide patiently waited whilst his every word was translated for the one woman who couldn't follow the English tour. He actually spoke French... but not unreasonably stuck to the tour in English - otherwise the tour would have blown out to 180 minutes. Because the previous day had been a Romanian heatwave - 19 degrees, we'd both eased up on the warm clothing - it being the 1st of March (and the 1st of Spring) - so of course were pretty cold by the end of the tour. We were still smiling though. We'd popped in to the Symphony Hall to buy a couple of tickets for the show on the 3rd... Do you take credit cards we asked Mrs Happy at the ticket window. Yes. OK - two tickets to the show... So the tickets were duly stamped and seats allocated then we handed over the card. No! Cash! Should have known something was up since it's not possible at all to book online. Ahhh well. As the Spanish would say, "Manana" once we've exchanged a few euro for some more Romanian lei to get us to the end of the trip. The 2nd of March (no walking tour today) did of course dawn bright and beautiful so we enjoyed lunch in the park opposite our flat and then trundled off to the Symphony again with cash in hand. Success! The lunch in the park was part of our Timisoara strategy. Every town and city has had something we've found hugely economical and/or particularly yummy. Here we are close to a shopping mall with a tiny food court - only 4 shops. But the food is super fresh and a large meal each is only €2.70 / A$4... and that's including a charge for the takeaway container. So we have been buying 4 meals at a time and that does us for two dinners and exactly what each of us likes... With a glass of wine in the comfort of our own dining nook. Then every third night we cook ourselves. Friday the 3rd saw our first vulture-fest here in Timisoara - finally attending the symphony. We were super impressed with the one in Sibiu but this performance blew us away. The hall was very Art Deco - completely different to the grand opera houses we've seen so far. The performance was conducted by an Austrian gent who was entertainment himself - very energetic (Friedrich Pfeiffer) and the pieces were Symphony No. 8 by Schubert and Concerto for orchestra and cello No. 1, Op 33 by C. Saint-Saens. We'd never heard of this piece but since the performance have even listened to a version on youtube. It was that good. The soloist made his cello sing, laugh, cry and run Olympic sprints - it was brilliant. The intermission just came too soon. The second half saw Beethoven's Symphony No. 7, Op. 92. Now we are familiar with #5 and #9 - but 7 was new for us and again we have listened to it at home since. It was phenomenal to go to a performance and hear 3 so thoroughly enjoyable pieces by a world class orchestra. And all for the grand total of €9/A$12.50. It's enough to make you cry. As are the seats at the actual opera house here in Timisoara! We had a good rest on Saturday, mooched about town, relaxed and the Sunday evening we nipped just down the road, all of five minutes, to the Opera House. The fact that this one building houses three National Operas (the Hungarian, the German and the Romanian) contributed in no small part to Timisoara being nominated European Capital of Culture for 2021. And like the European Capital of Crippled Opera Patrons... having said all that (I know.... it's not as though we paid a fortune), this was the best opera we have ever, ever seen - the leading soloists voices were massive - they could have launched planes with them if they weren't so busy giving an ovation worthy performance of Madama Butterfly. And just when we were thinking nothing could out do the Symphony. Monday 7th saw a rest and recovery day from the horrors of opera house seats - thankfully we were in a completely different section for our final vulture event - a Verdi opera called Nabucco on the 8th. We actually splurged on 2nd best category seats... €14/A$20. Yep. Last of the big spenders. Initially we were a bit luke warm on the idea of Nabucco - after all, big biblical themes, never heard of it etc. Sounded a bit 'bleh'. But then we referred to the font of all knowledge, Wiki!, and found it was considered the opera that created Verdi's career. OK then. As it turns out (and heavens knows why we're surprised), it was brilliant. Huge! Boofy! Overly endowed women who looked like Vikings sang a lot! There were massed choral pieces getting pounded out by the huge cast. And we were in the second row - heck, any closer we would have been in the band. After the opera we took the chance to walk off the show and have a final look at Timisoara. After a late, late dinner at home (10.45 pm) we sat for a while and digested the music in our heads before finally hitting the sack. Our last full day (Thursday, today) was, you guessed it, packing day! And, unusually, grocery shopping & packing. We have 2 nights in hotels first off then will be in a little self-catering cabin in the countryside with no groceries for miles. We're stocking up here on packet soups, sauce bases, dried & filled ravioli and tortellini - a few basics to take the edge off the grocery bill in Reykjavik... where a single roast chicken from the supermarket will cost almost A$20...  "Iceland is Cheap" - Said no-one. Ever. But oh boy, it's going to be one of a kind. Immediate plans - We'll taking a short flight to Bucharest early Friday morning, then spending Friday night at an airport hotel before heading to Iceland very early Saturday morning - Can't wait!