Bucharest

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Before going to Bucharest we stopped in the small town of Timisoara, Romania. We walked to our hotel, which was actually towards the outside of the city, but still a short distance from the train station. We paid 23 EUR per night for a very nice hotel room. It was a large room with two full size beds and a bathroom with a shower and a Jacuzzi. We arrived late at night, and wanted nothing more than to go to sleep, but that proved to be a bit of a challenge the first night. The hotel had a banquet hall that happened to be hosting a wedding reception that night. We could hear and feel the loud bass coming from next door until about 6 in the morning!

The next day we awoke at a pretty late hour and set out to explore the town center. Unfortunately it was pretty cold and rainy the whole time we were there, but luckily the whole town center could be explored in little time. On the walk there we first came upon some larger houses. Most of them had sturdy fencing with alarm keypads at the gate, and metal bars over the windows. Dogs barked at us as we walked down these streets, but they weren’t big dogs. Most of these dogs were smaller in fact, which led me to believe they were more like alarm supplements than guard dogs. As we neared the center of town we started to see more apartment buildings. I saw what I think was a sign selling condos. For 33,000 EUR you can own your own 1 bedroom condo… in Timisoara, Romania. Timisoara had the feel of a college town, but it still had its own tram system. When you see that even small towns have public transportation you realize how much more vital this is to communities. I would imagine to find the same thing in many small towns across Europe.

A small waterway separates the town center from the south side of town, where we were staying. For its size, Timisoara has a lot of park area. We had read that the parks were nice, but we were a little disappointed with what we found. The parks were big, and the layout had promising potential, but they were largely unkempt. To be fair, it was cold and rainy, and perhaps they wait to do landscaping at the beginning of the summer. The main square in the town center included some very old buildings surrounding a plague statue. We stopped in a small restaurant for lunch, and ended up talking to a local there. He introduced himself as Stephan, and told us he was sorry we came to Timisoara. However, he was happy that we did come. So much so that he offered us gifts to remember Timisoara. Reaching into his plastic shopping bags he pulled out a plate for a teacup for me, and a plastic Coca-cola ashtray for Travis. Before we left he told us a joke. Q: What was the gypsy doing on the computer? A: Searching through the recycle bin.

We awoke early to catch the train to Bucharest. The train took us alongside the river, which flowed through the mountains. The rising sun heating the morning dew cast clouds of fog around the green mountain tops. The widening river gave a great view of the vast mountain range in the distance. The train eventually pulled out of the mountain range and the latter half of the trip was mostly flatland. One very small village contained peculiar housing structures. The houses were closely compacted and a little misshapen. However, the walls were solid concrete and the roofs were made of terra cotta. These features suggested that the houses were once very nice, and this may have been a couple hundred years ago, but haven’t seen any maintenance since. I saw people tending, by hand, to fields surrounding the central housing area. The village had a train stop, but the train did not stop at it.

We arrived at Bucharest about 8 hours from departure. Bucharest was a much bigger city as we expected. There was lots of chaotic traffic surrounding the main train station. Stop lights seemed to be more of a suggestion than a mandate. Even when we properly obeyed the crosswalks and crossing signals, we watched for cars as if crossing the middle of a highway. Luckily, our hostel was very close, and so were most of the attractions in Bucharest. There were 2 boulevards running parallel that outlined the main corridor of the city center. Hotels, casinos, University buildings, and a very large shopping mall sat along this corridor. At the south end both boulevards opened into a large square with a small park and a fountain. Another boulevard came off the square heading West toward the Parliament building. The Parliament building is the second largest building in the world, in terms of floor space, next to the Pentagon. A short tour was offered through the Parliament building which was quite impressive. A guide took us through large hallways lined with marble pillars to lavishly decorated conference rooms. The first room was lit by a 4-ton crystal chandelier. Most of the rooms had marble walls framing silk tapestries. The average ceiling must have been about 50 feet high, some having opaque skylights almost as large as the ceiling. Curtains featuring interwoven gold and silver were pulled back to reveal windows stretching from the ceiling to the floor. Most of the tapestries and curtains were hand-made by local monasteries. The guide told us that Donald Trump made an offer to buy the entire building for 3 billion EUR so that he could turn it into the world’s biggest casino. That would be an interesting sight, but I think I’m glad the Romanian government turned him down. Towards the end of the tour we were led out onto a marble balcony facing and centered with the boulevard that led to the square. Twin buildings were on the near corners of this boulevard making for a very picturesque view of the city.

For dinner we followed the hostel owner’s recommendation for a small restaurant just down the road. There we found the normal sections of chicken, fish, and beef dishes on the menu. Also on the menu was a section dedicated to ram dishes. We each tried a different ram dish. Both dishes came with chunks of ram meat in a creamy sauce that may have overwhelmed the flavor of the ram meat, but both were very tasty. We ate at a couple other nice restaurants along the main corridor that were recommended during our stay. The food was delicious there as well, and cheap. The menu at many of these places separates the food into detail. The main dishes are not served with anything else unless you order your side dishes. I’ve become fond of this style of ordering as opposed to ordering a complete dish with sides included as back home. I know I can probably substitute the sides at most any restaurant I go back home, but this seems easier to me and I feel more free to compose any meal I want.

The next day we walked north from the main corridor to a large park by the river. I found this strange because this seemed to be the main river running through the city. However, unlike in other cities, the river was far off-center. Almost every city I have visited was most dense around the river, but this city had park surrounding the river, and the city was not very dense on the other side of the park either. On our way there we noticed lots of police and other officials lining the streets. We learned that wages for state employees had recently been cut, and protests were expected. As we walked along a main boulevard with very nice houses we noticed a large American flag waving in front of one. Looking around and seeing flags in front of some of the other houses, we concluded this was the American Embassy. We stopped briefly to take a look, but a Romanian official immediately asked us to move along. That felt a bit awkward. Romania’s Arc de Triumph sat in a roundabout at the end of this boulevard which bordered the park. The park was well landscaped and had quite a few statues. I saw a bust of Beethoven in one area, and a statue featuring a silhouette of Michael Jackson in another area. As we neared the lake we saw swans swimming in a small keep near a bridge. A cage further from shore held peacocks.

The highlight of the visit to Bucharest was hanging out with a crew of bona fide locals. One of my old roommates, Paul, was a marine stationed in Bucharest to guard the American Embassy there. While he was there he became friends with a man named Costin. Costin, who had lived in Bucharest most of his life, agreed to meet and show me a few night life elements of Bucharest. We went to a nice club where a greek band was playing. The band featured a lute player, a pianist, and a vocalist. The band members were some older guys, but the crowd was mostly young. Beautiful girls dressed to impress danced all around the area around the band. Then Costin took me to a Russian pub. The place was pretty empty, but the people who were there were quite interesting. When Michael Jackson started playing, 2 women began dancing on the bar with no shame. By no shame, I mean baring enough to get arrested in the US and showing much more than friendly affection towards each other. Needless to say, it was quite a show. Our bartender, Ivan, was more than happy to make us shots even though we only ordered beer. For one particular drink, Ivan poured Sambucca into a large wine glass. After putting just a few coffee beans into the Sambucca, he lit the surface on fire. While on fire, he poured the Sambucca into another glass. The fire went out on its way down, and I was told to drink the sambucca, and eat the coffee beans. As I ate the coffee beans he turned the wine glass upside down over a straw with one end inside and the other outside. He then told me to “smoke” through the straw. Inhaling the alcohol with the sweet taste of Sambucca was pretty smooth, yet hot. I couldn’t stop thinking about the elaborate display and steps to this drink, if you can even call it a drink being only part drinking, with part eating, part inhaling, and part visually stimulating.

The next night Costin invited us over to his place where he served us a delicious pasta dish and sweet wine. We talked music for a while, exchanging our favorite rock and metal bands with quite a bit of overlap. We both had a love for old Metallica. Costin said Metallica is an icon of sorts throughout former communist Europe. Apparently their music inspired many people to protest against their communist government. To back this, he showed me a youtube video of a Metallica concert in Moscow in 1991, just 2 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. With a crowd of 1 million people this was the biggest concert since Woodstock. A wall of soldiers about 3 men deep separated the stage from the massive crowd. Apparently AC/DC was supposed to play there as well, but didn’t show up. I’m going to go out on a limb and assume they are regretting that decision. Costin’s had a couple friends come over to join the party. We went from talking about our travels, to complaining about our governments (in eerily similar ways), to pondering why people fight so much. It was very interesting getting perspectives from people coming from very different backgrounds on the other side of the planet. We just stayed in drinking, talking, and listening to music, and I had a great time. As we walked back to the hostel I saw the familiar glow of sunshine in the distance.

I found Bucharest to be full of distinct character, much more so than the other cities I have visited so far. Bucharest has many hotels and attractions, yet it doesn’t feel as touristy. The public transit system seemed smaller, but with many taxi cabs to fill in the blanks. It wasn’t uncommon to see stray dogs roaming the streets and parks, sleeping in the alleys and taking shelter under the awnings during rain, alone and in packs as many as 10. It’s hard to believe that the dogs are disciplined enough to tune out the constant traffic including much horn-honking. Travis even saw a dog carefully looking both ways before darting across the street at just the right time. I didn’t approach any of them, but they seemed to harmlessly mind their own business. If you want a beer, you might as well enjoy one in a pub, because they aren’t any cheaper at the local market (but still cheap). There is slight tension surrounding the influx of gypsies, but the tension isn’t toward the gypsies. What happens is gypsies are gaining Romanian passports and going to Western European countries. The effect is that anyone with a Romanian passport is suspected of being a gypsy. This is where the tension begins, but I am impressed that the people of Romania aren’t blaming the gypsies for this. Instead, they realize it is the ignorance of Western Europe, and while I didn’t see much intermingling of the two groups, they seem to get along. I can’t say the same thing about the people and their government, but then again I can’t name very many governments that have great relationships with their citizens. In my experience, the people were very friendly in Bucharest. If you find yourself in Bucharest, I would encourage you to visit the underground bars and pubs at night. I found this to be where the people come together and the true character of the city shines.

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Photos

Timisoara
Boulevard off the Main Square

Smokey Mountains
On the train ride to Bucharest

Parliament
Second largest building in the world, next to the Pentagon

Parliament Conference Room
Four-ton chandelier

Bucharest
View from Parliament balcony

Russian Pub
The helmet is known as a Russian Coffin.

Costin's
Good times with good people.

Comments

[Paul]

Awesome
I am SO glad you got to experience Bucharest. P