The Black Sea

Leigha Ionescu

— 5 min read
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The Black Sea

Somewhere in a photobox, there is a stack of pictures featuring young Mihai at the Black Sea. They've aged in that specific way that only Communist Era photos do: the red lipstick, bathing suits, and t-shirts have deepened into a sort of dusky naphthol while everything else, sand, sky, and sea, have faded into ochre, the once crisp edges blurring, like an old memory.
For as many times as I've been to Romania, I'd never been to the Black Sea. Even when living here in 2011-2012, we never went. Largely that was due to the fact that we traveled to so many other places (Zike-Bike readers may recall we visited 13 countries during that period) but it was also because I had a persistent resistance to going there. Why this was so, I'm not certain. Mihai had nothing bad to say about it, but because of the coloring in the photos, which turn the air and water the color of polluted sludge, I'd formed an impression of crowded, dirty beaches and dingy hotels that hadn't been upgraded since sometime before 1986.
However, the logistics of 2026 vs 2011 shipping meant that our stuff arrived at the Port in Constanța, rather than Bucharest, which required we make the trip there at last.
Marian and his mom, who live in the region, were kind enough to let us stay at their house and Marian served as tour guide. What otherwise might have been a stressful, somewhat unpleasant experience (the logistics of shipping a vehicle and most of your worldly possessions is as time and energy intensive as you'd suppose it to be) into a genuinely lovely week.
Since we weren't sure how long we would stay, (read: how many snags there would be trying to get our stuff through customs) we couldn't make any hard and fast plans and just took each day as it came. This meant zero lounging and sunbathing (which was ok since my bathing suit had yet to be released by customs anyway) but lots of walking. In fact we walked from Constanța to the Bulgarian border—half the length of the Romanian coastline. One day we logged 11 km which was particularly advantageous since everywhere we went, we over ate.
What follows is a great many photos. I am back to my old Zike-Bike habits with this post however, my motive is not to just showcase the beauty, but to induce at least one of you dear readers to come and see it for yourselves.

Marian's hometown, about 2 km from the ocean
It doesn't seem like the sea is just over that hill
as you can see, the Black Sea is not actually black
An old Ceaușescu-era hotel that's seen better days, but I love the architecture
In the towns of Neptune and Jupiter (there's also a Venus but Mercury, Mars and Uranus did not make the cut apparently) there's a lovely estuary
Tourist season doesn't officially start until June 1 so right now most beaches are abandoned except for a few locals trying to spruce things up in preparation
Sections of some beaches are covered with shells
Celebrating a climb up the rocks on the causeway
A beach near the Bulgarian border. Unfortunately I didn't bring my passport so we couldn't cross and have a beer. Next time for sure
Locals going for an evening swim
Some towns have upscale resort hotels
Two stray kittens that I worried would end up in our suitcases...
The food highlights the Turkish influence in the region. It's so delicious
absolutely amazing rose Turkish delight. I wish we'd bought more to bring home
There's a Tatar community in Marian's hometown. I'm no expert on mosques but this is the first one I've ever seen with a neon turquoise minaret
Hanging out with Marian and Victoria in their garden. We can't thank them enough for their hospitality

After all the walking, eating, and catching up with old friends, did we manage to accomplish the thing we'd come for, namely, to get our stuff released from customs?
I'm happy to say that we did! We were able to drive home in our car (we traveled to Constanța by train) and are currently awaiting the arrival of pallets stacked high with our household goods. The latest estimate is "sometime on Sunday" which will keep us homebound and keeping a sharp eye out for any large trucks nearing the driveway.
Thank you for going along with us on this little trip and I hope that soon, maybe today, you'll have a chance to get out and explore the natural beauty that surrounds you.
Be well.

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