Ruse, Bugaria to Snagov, Romania

What a day!!

We had a very nice breakfast overlooking the Danube.

Our plan was to take a taxi from Ruse, Bulgaria across the border to Bucharest, Romania where we would pick up our rental car. Duke had booked a taxi to pick us up at 10:45 and of course we had a rental car reserved near Bucharest Airport.

We waited in the hotel lobby but the taxi never showed up. The owner and staff at Ruse Boutique Hotel were wonderful. We even had a long talk with the owner who has been to Reno!

Eventually after making several phone calls and sending several messages we were notified that the taxi had been cancelled!

The desk clerk booked us a new taxi and in short order we were on our way to the ExpediCar rental car office about five miles from Bucharest airport. The taxi driver was friendly and we had a nice ride.

We had to call the rental car office again because they had no sign on the street.

After a few more phone calls eventually we were seated in their office. There were two guys behind the desk. I didn’t ask for their names.

They asked for papers. Everything started out fine.

Passport ✔️

Drives license ✔️

International drivers permit ✔️

Credit card ✔️

Things went down hill from there.

Our credit card was no good! They said it had to be an embossed credit card?!?

Embossed credit card ✔️

We met that requirement so they threw up a new hurdle. It has to have the word “credit” on the card !?! None of our credit cards say credit card on them.

So they wouldn’t rent us a car!?!

I don’t know what their scam was but there definitely was something illegal or at least shady going on. I don’t know if they weren’t happy that we didn’t want to buy their insurance or if they didn’t like Americans or if they wanted a bribe. Who knows! I am sure that if we had an embossed credit card with the word “credit” on it there would have been some other excuse.

As we were leaving I gave them my card and told them they can read all about or experience on my blog and watch it on my YouTube channel. He smiled and said don’t be too hard on us!!

So now we had to get to the airport. To get an Uber I had to download the Uber app. But eventually we got an Uber to the airport.

At the airport Duke booked another car with a pick up point a 15 minute walk away. We walked to the address but there was nothing there and then when Duke looked at his phone he had an email saying the reservation had been cancelled because they didn’t have a car!

So we walked back to the airport. On the way a security car stopped to ask why we were in such an empty part of the airport! But we got back to the airport and Duke rented a car at the rental car desk. Of course this is much more expensive than the original reservation.

So we have a car! The drive to our hotel was short. We got to our room and celebrated surviving!