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lupestripeDue to staying out late last night, along with my cold which still shows no signs of abating, I ended up sleeping in until lunchtime today. After all this, plus travelling and my recent workload, I needed the rest and I am glad I took it. However, soon I was up and raring to go, ready to see Bucharest.
In all honesty, you can see the city in about two hours. As I mentioned before, it has been scarred by the Communist era but this isn't to say there aren't places of interest. The pinnacle of my sightseeing was undoubtedly Palatul Parlamentului (The Palace of Parliament), a testament to the meglomania of Nicolae Ceauşescu in the 1980s. Palatul Parlamentului is the second largest government building in the world after The Pentagon. It is truly massive, a building of such grandeur that it dominates the city. It is built on top of a hill and looks down a wide boulevard of exquisite fountains. On either side of this boulevard, a semi-circle of government buildings face the Palatul Parlamentului as if in awe to it. You only get a scope of its size by comparing it to the cars which whizz past the road beneath it. It is 86m high, 270m x 240m dimensionally. You can go on tours of the building but sadly, there was a political function on today and it was closed to the public. This is a shame as the marble, chandeliers and gold leaf interior is exquisite.
Another highlight was observing the Intercontinental Hotel, a Ceauşescu inspired building. This imposing brown Communist structure is typical of the vast majority of buildings in the city and is a legacy of how much Bucharest suffered during this time. This is located opposite Piața 21 Decembrie 1989, which I wrote about in my previous post. In December 1989, demonstrations against Ceauşescu took place in the city of Timișoara. Things reached a head in Bucharest on 21 December 1989 when, during a mass meeting on Piaţa Palatului (since renamed Piaţa Revoluţiei), revolution was instigated. This meeting had been designed as a stage-managed attempt by Ceauşescu to show that his people were on his side. However, this spectacularly backfired. Eight minutes into listening to Ceauşescu's speech, which he made from the balcony of the Central Committee Building (the former headquarters of the Communist Party is still an imposing building here), the crowd soon turned on him, starting to chant, boo and whistle over him. It was from this moment that it became clear the Ceauşescu regime in Romania was over as it fuelled protests across the country and was to result in his execution, four days later.
The Royal Palace is situated in this region too, and is a beautiful building in the Greek style. Next to this building is the similarly styled National Art Museum and across the road is Excalibur, a giant three-sided sword statue which looks like it is piercing a giant egg. That's the only way I can describe it really. In the car park adjacent to this weird edifice, and in front of the former Communist HQ, was an exhibit hosted by Red Bull entitled 'The Art of the Can'. It was on the back of an Austrian trailer and perhaps is a perfect symbol of how Romania has embraced free market capitalism. The exhibit was a collection of artworks made out of Red Bull cans. There was a Cheshire Cat sculpture, a flying wolf type creature, a crocodile, a bull fighting scene and a table football table entirely constructed out of old cans. The match was Red Bull against Red Bull Light. The whole thing was really quite impressive.
There are many monuments around Piața 21 Decembrie 1989 as this area played such an important part in the Revolution, particularly as it's right next to the university. There are many stone crosses in this area to remember those who died in the uprising. The most poignant is probably the black cross marking the death of Mihai Gătlan, who, at the age of 19, was the first one to be killed in the events of that month. This region also contains the National Theatre and Opera House, which are undergoing renovation. There was an interesting violin sculpture though, along with some other pieces of art adorning the entrance to the building. I also visited the site of an old hospital, which had a strong academic theme to it for some reason.
The one thing that struck me about Bucharest today was the sheer number of people getting married. There must have been about 15 brides I have seen throughout the day, all getting their pictures taken in front of the major tourist attractions of the city. There were some outside the National Bank, others outside the National Library and yet more outside the Athaneum. Granted, all these buildings are beautiful but it was a little odd. It must be a tradition in these parts.
One building that wasn't beautiful was the labyrinth that was the major shopping mall in Bucharest. I wanted some swimming shorts and discovered that this mall was the least spacious and most confusingly laid out mall ever. It must also be a massive fire hazard. Still, there was a good recreation area on the fifth floor and I did manage to find what I needed.
I am sure there's a load more stuff to tell but I think I have the majority of it. It's 1.30am here now so I imagine I should get some sleep. It's another busy day tomorrow.
In all honesty, you can see the city in about two hours. As I mentioned before, it has been scarred by the Communist era but this isn't to say there aren't places of interest. The pinnacle of my sightseeing was undoubtedly Palatul Parlamentului (The Palace of Parliament), a testament to the meglomania of Nicolae Ceauşescu in the 1980s. Palatul Parlamentului is the second largest government building in the world after The Pentagon. It is truly massive, a building of such grandeur that it dominates the city. It is built on top of a hill and looks down a wide boulevard of exquisite fountains. On either side of this boulevard, a semi-circle of government buildings face the Palatul Parlamentului as if in awe to it. You only get a scope of its size by comparing it to the cars which whizz past the road beneath it. It is 86m high, 270m x 240m dimensionally. You can go on tours of the building but sadly, there was a political function on today and it was closed to the public. This is a shame as the marble, chandeliers and gold leaf interior is exquisite.
Another highlight was observing the Intercontinental Hotel, a Ceauşescu inspired building. This imposing brown Communist structure is typical of the vast majority of buildings in the city and is a legacy of how much Bucharest suffered during this time. This is located opposite Piața 21 Decembrie 1989, which I wrote about in my previous post. In December 1989, demonstrations against Ceauşescu took place in the city of Timișoara. Things reached a head in Bucharest on 21 December 1989 when, during a mass meeting on Piaţa Palatului (since renamed Piaţa Revoluţiei), revolution was instigated. This meeting had been designed as a stage-managed attempt by Ceauşescu to show that his people were on his side. However, this spectacularly backfired. Eight minutes into listening to Ceauşescu's speech, which he made from the balcony of the Central Committee Building (the former headquarters of the Communist Party is still an imposing building here), the crowd soon turned on him, starting to chant, boo and whistle over him. It was from this moment that it became clear the Ceauşescu regime in Romania was over as it fuelled protests across the country and was to result in his execution, four days later.
The Royal Palace is situated in this region too, and is a beautiful building in the Greek style. Next to this building is the similarly styled National Art Museum and across the road is Excalibur, a giant three-sided sword statue which looks like it is piercing a giant egg. That's the only way I can describe it really. In the car park adjacent to this weird edifice, and in front of the former Communist HQ, was an exhibit hosted by Red Bull entitled 'The Art of the Can'. It was on the back of an Austrian trailer and perhaps is a perfect symbol of how Romania has embraced free market capitalism. The exhibit was a collection of artworks made out of Red Bull cans. There was a Cheshire Cat sculpture, a flying wolf type creature, a crocodile, a bull fighting scene and a table football table entirely constructed out of old cans. The match was Red Bull against Red Bull Light. The whole thing was really quite impressive.
There are many monuments around Piața 21 Decembrie 1989 as this area played such an important part in the Revolution, particularly as it's right next to the university. There are many stone crosses in this area to remember those who died in the uprising. The most poignant is probably the black cross marking the death of Mihai Gătlan, who, at the age of 19, was the first one to be killed in the events of that month. This region also contains the National Theatre and Opera House, which are undergoing renovation. There was an interesting violin sculpture though, along with some other pieces of art adorning the entrance to the building. I also visited the site of an old hospital, which had a strong academic theme to it for some reason.
The one thing that struck me about Bucharest today was the sheer number of people getting married. There must have been about 15 brides I have seen throughout the day, all getting their pictures taken in front of the major tourist attractions of the city. There were some outside the National Bank, others outside the National Library and yet more outside the Athaneum. Granted, all these buildings are beautiful but it was a little odd. It must be a tradition in these parts.
One building that wasn't beautiful was the labyrinth that was the major shopping mall in Bucharest. I wanted some swimming shorts and discovered that this mall was the least spacious and most confusingly laid out mall ever. It must also be a massive fire hazard. Still, there was a good recreation area on the fifth floor and I did manage to find what I needed.
I am sure there's a load more stuff to tell but I think I have the majority of it. It's 1.30am here now so I imagine I should get some sleep. It's another busy day tomorrow.
