Spending the Weekend in an Armored Military Vehicle (Let's travel together #352)

It's been a while since I last shared a travel article, and of course, there was no way to return here other than showing off a really unique place which I hardly kept as secret since the moment we booked our stay two weekends ago. Obviously, those who follow me on Instagram have already seen bits of this place on my story as I know I have some followers from here on there too, but I really took the time needed to get this post ready the right way, because it's not something you see every day.

To start with the beginning, I already mentioned countless times that I haven't really travelled anywhere in the last (almost) 3 years from various reasons, so having my relationship anniversary coming over on 17th November, both I and my boyfriend thought it was the time to take some time just for ourselves because we were really getting lots of stress on our shoulders from our jobs and some other problems.

Being the first time in 7 years when we decided to travel during our relationship anniversary, we really wanted a unique place to celebrate this moment, and that's how I discovered Gaz66 the Pathfinder located around 180km away from where we are currently living.

While I usually aim for travel destinations where I can see plenty of things around it, this time, this didn't represent an important task as we really needed a location with lots of silence to reconnect both with nature and each other. Basically, to relax for a few days without keeping our brains busy with other things.

Good part is, that even so, we still managed to explore two places nearby, but I will share them in separate posts as I believe Gaz66 the Pathfinder really needs a special post just for itself.

Although the owners of the place were lovely enough to mention that we could make our check-in anytime which was also something we took in consideration since the daylight is quite short and we also wanted to enjoy the first day spent at Gaz66, we had a really bad start of the day with quite a few issues with the car so we only managed to arrive at our 'home for the weekend' short before the sunset.

Even so, while our mood was pretty down with lots of events taking place in the last moment, everything disappeared in a blink when we finally saw the unique destination, other than in pictures, where we were also warmly welcomed with a drink and some sweets. How lovely!

The interior design of the armoured military truck was minimalistically arranged, including pretty much everything one needs for a cosy and chill time spent in a caravan, which, by the way, was also our first experience of this kind, despite being big fans of camping and sleeping in a tent for at least 10 days straight every year, until a while ago.

Arriving quite late on the first day, we didn't do much other than spend the evening outside, enjoying the fresh air and minimal lighting that created a very cosy atmosphere despite the cold season that was putting us to the test, the truck being placed almost at the top of the hill.

Oh, and the illuminated globe you can see in front of the truck it's also owned by the same owners who rented us the armoured military truck, but where you will find a lovely wooden cabin that might serve as our next destination one day, who knows?

The next day started quite early, as I've always been a fan of sunrises, and there was no way to miss it in such a unique location. However, the mix between the warm sun and the frozen scenery, which showed how cold it was overnight, created a special feeling that put a smile on my face from the first hours of the day.

And if you are wondering how it felt to sleep in the truck during such cold temperatures (which is one of the main questions I received from both family and friends after hearing about my experience), find out that half of the night we couldn't sleep because of the HEAT!! Yes, heat! 😂

Along with being a truck very well insulated, which I believe could withstand cold temperatures very well on its own, there was also a single button we could press to turn on the heat and then adjust it to the desired temperature. At first, we set it up on 20.5°C, but it didn't take us long to figure out the perfect temperature for us was 19°C because the duvet and bed linen used were of great quality, already doing a great job to keep our bodies warm.

After a quick walk in the morning on the lake that I will show you in a future post, we returned to our 'home' for the weekend, where we got to explore the military truck more closely.

Gaz66 the Pathfinder is a historical vehicle dating since 1980, which was turned into a campervan. Although it comes with the “RO 1980” Oval Plate, which clearly shows the country identification symbol which was used to display when crossing borders before EU-style license standardisation, the “CCCP + Star” Plate reminds us of some further times where CCCP is the Russian abbreviation for the USSR showing off the actual origins of the truck, being, perhaps, widely used by the Soviet Army starting in the 1960s.

On an even closer look, because you can actually enter the truck and get in the driver's seat, we noticed all the writing is in Russian, which confirms my presumption about the actual origins of the truck, as there is no surprise anymore that many ex-military trucks from the USSR ended up serving in Eastern European countries during the Cold War.

It’s like the truck is carrying its passport on the front: one badge for its birth (CCCP), and one for its later home (RO).

The next 'task' of the day was to find a perfect spot where to enjoy both the sun and reading a book, which ended up being nowhere else but on top of the truck, where was specially arranged a floor for people to enjoy this activity.

Getting up is not the easiest part, especially if you are not used to climbing, but once you make it up there, you will hardly find motivation to get down too soon. From there, you get a perfect view over the lake and, surroundings, but also find the peace needed for cozy activities like reading.

After some good hours spent recharging with the Vitamin D and enjoying a warmer day than the previous one, the sun was slowly setting, which of course we couldn't miss either.

This is another part I absolutely loved about the truck, as its terrace offers a great view over the lake where the sun sets, while the actual door used to enter the truck offers a memorable view of the direction of the sunrise, which you can even admire from the bed if you are not a big fan of getting out too early in the morning.

The last day of our memorable weekend spent on a military truck began with feeling grateful for the memories we created here, but also for the peace we gathered in our hearts, which we felt like searching for so long lately. I also took this moment to stick my first Worldmappin sticker, received from @lizanomadsoul and @detlev, which I am so happy to have on such a unique and special location. 💚

Gaz66 the Pathfinder is located in a quiet rural area surrounded by hills and forest, named Moacșa village, in Covasna County, and even if it looks like a hidden spot, it can be quickly accessed if you add its name to your GPS, which will take you there depending on where you are coming from. There is a little slope at the beginning of a 150-meter-long unpaved path that you will need to drive, but as long as there haven't been heavy rains or snow in the previous days, there shouldn't be any problem accessing it. Gaz66 is listed on Airbnb, where you can book your stay by accessing this link.

^{Gabriela Travels is the FOUNDER of "Festival Mania" who started this community from the passion of attending various festivals and with the purpose of encouraging more people to explore festivals all around the world and share their experiences.
At the same time, Gabriela is an independent Graphic Design Freelancer since 2019 completing over 600+ orders in this time and collaborating with various businesses and people from all over the globe.
Additionally, Gabriela has her own corner on the internet since 2017 where she writes various articles for her blog, the most popular being the travel ones (300+ articles written on this field), but also approaching other topics as well, like game reviews, lets plays, movie and series reviews, photography posts, cooking recipes and more, boosting the total number of articles written to 750+ blog posts.
Gabriela is also a gamer since she was 11 years old and gaming remains one of her biggest passions along with traveling, owning a YouTube channel for each of the two.}

[//]:# ([//]:# (!worldmappin 45.88170 lat 25.94502 long One of the most scenic, chill, and unique location one can spend a few nights to completely forget about daily routines d3scr))