Romania - Bucharest stopover

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We arrived to Bucharest via overnight train early in the morning. Some of the group had booked a tour guide to show us around the city before our flight later that afternoon. I initially did not join as I was unsure how tired I would be. Plus, i have always intended to visit Romania; i mean this is the land of Vlad the Impaler and my childhood hero: Nadia Comaneci. But one lady dropped out and they asked if I wanted to join and I figured why not. I'm so glad I did! Dan the tour guide was awesome - so passionate about his city and his guiding us around. He picked us up at 7:30 from our same cafe at the train station and we piled into a large van.

Our first stop was to visit the Romania Athenaeum. The sun was just starting to come up so while it was cold and empty, it was a lovely site. We did not get to go inside, which apparently is even more lovely than outside. It was built in the neoclassical style in 1888 to house a center of art and science and is now a concert hall. We moved on foot past the statue of Carol I, former King of Romania. Then we walked past the "New and Old" building, which is a mix of old and new architecture.

Revolution Plaza

We ended up for sometime in the freezing cold while Dan told us a detailed history of Revolution Plaza. While we shivered, we thoroughly enjoyed the history. In 1968, former president (dictator?) Nicholae Ceausescu met the crowds at the square in front of the former government building to great acclaim after refusing to invade Czechslavakia despite the Soviet request. This was an indication that he saw Romania as more independent of Soviet control and that he was working for the common good. This was in direct contradiction to the next mass assembly in 1989 when his presence initiated the revolution. People had been disgruntled for years due to the expense of basic living costs such as food and electricity. There were uprisings in various areas of the country, but the one in Timisoara sparked public outrage and 100,000 people assembled in the plaza. During the beginning of his speech, government paid 'supporters' cheered, but the main group started to boo him and he seemed genuinely shocked at the reception. He was promoting communist achievements while czechoslovakia had become independent from the communist regime only days before.

The speech was being broadcast nationwide and soon the official rioting / protests began, so his bodyguards hustled him back into the building. They were stuck there for about 24 hours while the crowds outside grew and became more angry, and were even joined by the security forces. On 22 December, his minister of defense died under mysterious circumstances, which sent the rest of the country's armed forces to side with the people. Ceauşescu tried once more to calm the crowd, but they were committed. The revolution had begun. He and his unpopular wife, Elena, retreated back into the building and escape via helicopter with one as a decoy (according to Dan). They flew to the countryside, then stole a car (according to Dan) but were caught by police and turned over to the military. On Christmas Day, they were put on trial - a sham (according to almost everyone). They were found guilty of gathering wealth and genocide and immediately taken out back and executed via firing squad.

We were outside freezing but enthralled with this dramatic story. It sounded like a movie but it had all happened.

Palace of the Parliament
Ceauşescu ordered the construction of the new parliament building during the height of his popularity. It is the heaviest building in the world and the second largest administrative building. It holds the two houses of Parliament ( the executive and judicial offices are located elsewhere) as well as three museums and the international conference center. It is huge! We cold only look at it from below, as it is perched on its own constructed hill, with rooms extending just as far down as up. Apparently, Ceauşescu visited the construction site weekly as expected, but Elena came too. She was not popular or welcome - I guess she made frequent changes and often on a whim.

Romanian Orthodoxy

We had driven behind the Parliament building and saw the construction of the new church, slated to be the largest and tallest eastern orthodox church in the world: People's Salvation Cathedral. It was very impressive, but I guess it is also very expensive. It is set to house the Patriarchal seat when completed. I would come back to see this and the Parliament building.

The current Romanian Patriarchal building is located on Patriarchal Hill in the city, a small but natural high point. Here is the main Cathedral, Patriarchal palace, chapel, old cells now offices and the bell tower. It is dedicated to Saints Constantin and Helen. We went inside the Cathedral, which was impressive. I did not even want to try to take pictures as this was an active church with people praying and it felt disrespectful. Instead, I just absorbed the beauty.

Old Town

Next we were taken to the old town area, which used to be in a state of complete disrepair, but now it is being gentrified. Part of it looks fairly complete with nice restaurants, boutique hotels, and clearly some nightlife. One area we were shown had buildings that were still ruined but seemed to have plans for the future. The architecture of many of the buildings was really cool. I would love to hang out here for a couple nights.

There are a few little churches here that were quite lovely on the outside and we got to visit one on the inside: Biserica Stavropoleos. This church was actually an active nunnery, with a cute courtyard, right in the middle of a populated area. The other churches were Biserica Dmitru and Biserica Buna Vistire. We also saw a huge restaurant, Manuc's Inn, that apparently has been in business for over 200 years.

Part of our group stayed behind for lunch and shopping as they had a late flight, while four of us were taken to the airport. I don't usually count layovers, but during this 5 hour stop, I saw and learned a lot!!

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Romania is on our short list
I was excited to read this blog as we hope to go to Romania soon. We saw a documentary on it a few months ago and we were surprised at all it has to offer. We will follow your travels closely.