Once we emerged from the Iron Gate gorge Romania was a mix of villages full of storks nesting on the telegraph poles, carts being plodded along by miserable looking donkeys and lots of people wishing to say hi, and towns encircled with derelict factories with not much improvement once you'd reached the centre.

Ed has enjoyed me cooing over the thousands of ducks and chicks that line the streets of villages with the added bonus that the chicks mean someone has done something to the dogs.

A little known fact about Romania is you may greet fellow road users in most European languages. Hola seemed to go down well.

We passed 2000 miles on Saturday and celebrated with a snickers.

Crossed the mighty Danube for the last time and arrived in Bulgaria this afternoon. Two days' ride to the Black Sea and a dip is eagerly anticipated.

Salut,
Lizzie

Location:Ruse, Bulgaria