Zalau is the sort of city that many riders cross without noticing, and that is a pity, because the capital of Salaj County is a lively, youthful place with a long past. Its population of over sixty thousand makes it the largest town in this part of north-western Romania, set in the valley of the Zalau river at the foot of the Meses hills, and it has a mixed Romanian and Hungarian heritage that shows in street names, churches and food. The Hungarians called it Zilah, and the poet Endre Ady, one of the great voices of Hungarian literature, went to school here in the 1880s.
The hill known as Dealul Dojii rises above the city, and the ridges around it belong to the Roman frontier that guarded the province of Dacia. Not far to the north, at Moigrad, are the ruins of Porolissum, a Roman town and military base with a reconstructed amphitheatre, forum and customs post, one of the best-preserved Roman sites in Romania. The frontier system, a chain of forts and towers along the ridge, is now a World Heritage property. In Zalau itself, the county museum holds finds from the area, including Roman inscriptions and tools.
For riding, the city is a gateway to one of the quieter parts of Transylvania. North and east, the roads climb into the Meses hills, with smooth bends through beech and oak woods, villages with long fences and the odd shepherd's hut. Traffic on the main roads is mixed, with lorries, minibuses and impatient overtakers, so it is better to take the back lanes, where cows, geese and horse carts set the pace. Be aware that dogs often run out at bikes, and potholes can appear after winter. A few surviving stretches of old cobbled road are slippery in rain.
Zalau has everything you need, with several fuel stations, supermarkets, repair shops and hotels, and its centre has a pedestrian street with cafes and bakeries. The local cuisine is Romanian with a Hungarian accent: stuffed cabbage, soup with sour cream, and sweet pastries, including kurtoskalacs, the chimney cake baked over coals. It makes sense to stock up here before going on to Muncel and the smaller villages, where services are fewer. Spring and early autumn are the best times, with comfortable temperatures and a landscape that is green or golden.