During a recent trip to Romania I was fortunate enough to stay in the country’s capital. Bucharest is a city of approximately 2 million people, with the hustle and bustle and cacophony of noises associated with any European capital. Likewise, as with any other capital city Bucharest comes with attractions and areas where tourists would be wise to take extra care or avoid altogether.
However, travelling through the city I was immediately struck by what seemed to be completely discordant elements; and the further through my stay there the more clashes I seemed to discover.
Romania was the last eastern bloc country to take steps away from communism in December 1989. In the following years Romania made steps to adopt free trade, an open society and to step in line with the democratic West. Such a drastic change in ideology can be seen symbolised in the drastically different appearance of different areas of the city, and indeed it is in Bucharest’s architecture that one of the first and most recognisable clashes can be seen.
Architecture
Old, dilapidated and sometimes abandoned concrete structures with their plain and uniform facades are the embodiment of the deceased communist regime. Such buildings can be seen all over the city, especially towards the centre. However, beyond the run down apartment blocks and offices, a number of new and expensive modern buildings can be seen towering proudly into the skyline.
Many of the concrete-faced buildings are nestled incongruously against beautiful examples of architecture dating from the inter-war and pre-Great War periods. One such example of the contrast can be seen on Calea Victoriei where the beautiful Grand Hotel Continental, built in 1886 in Renaissance style, stands proudly next to a drab, uninspiring, utilitarian concrete building on its left, and a similarly plain concrete block of flats on the opposite side of the road to its right.
The juxtaposition makes the hotel look completely out of place, and yet this is indicative of the clash of architecture in Bucharest. It gives the city an unusual character, and is one of Bucharest's most memorable elements.
The Palatul Parlamentului, or the Palace of the Parliament, lies in the west of the city centre. It is a tremendous building, and though it is of the communist era its appearance and scale seem to defy the ideology from which it was created. Though not in height, it is the second largest building in the world – only the Pentagon in the USA is larger. Its design has personality, and its size echoes more of capitalist reach and power than anything communist.
Perhaps the best structure to illustrate the clashes and changes in architecture is the headquarters of the Romanian Architects Association. Formerly the secret police building of the Directia V Securitate, the modern glass addition atop the old structure seems out of place and outlandish – a fitting building indeed for its current patrons.
Rich and Poor
A tourist from a relatively wealthy country may find that the prices in Romania, and even Bucharest, are quite reasonable. At the time of writing, £1 would exchange to about 4.3 Romanian Lei. The cost of a two course meal and drinks for two in a typical restaurant in Bucharest would likely cost less than the equivalent of £20 – a small cost compared to the average restaurant in Great Britain
Many of the souvenirs available to buy are inexpensive as well, considering the inflated price of buying from vendors already having hiked their prices for tourists in the capital. However this gives a false representation of the majority of Romanian people and their budgets. It is not likely that many Romanians would be found frequenting any restaurant to which tourists give patronage, and any tourist is likely to notice this at some stage.
Consider that a holiday budget of £500 (easily spent in 7-10 days of holidaying in Romania) equates to more than the average monthly income in Romania, and is in fact almost double the amount that the majority of Romanians earn in a month. It soon becomes clear that the once-supposed reasonably priced meals and goods are truly extortionate for most locals.
Signs of poverty are not hard to find in Romania, and because of the density of Bucharest the evidence is much easier to come across. Across Bucharest as with much of the rest of Romania many stray dogs can be seen, abandoned because their former owners could no longer afford to keep them.
Begging is a fairly common sight. The area where this is perhaps most prevalent is in Gara de Nord, or the North Station, where there is a higher concentration of travelling tourists.
People offering the simplest of services – helping load baggage onto a train, or offering information about the city, for example – may be looking for just a small payment to get them by. Others may be attempting to scam or steal from the unfortunate victim. Crime or otherwise, this is all impacted upon by the relatively low average incomes.
Infrastructure
To experience the huge difference in the quality of the transportation within Bucharest you have to see both above and below ground. Throughout the city the most widespread method of transportation is the bus. The buses are either conventional diesel or powered by overhead electric wires. There are also a number of trams prevalent in the southern section of the city. Though many of the buses are fairly modern, the trams are very dated and most have visibly rusting bodies.
The trams and buses are hot and crowded, cramped and uncomfortable to journey on at the best of times, but particularly so in the summer where the temperature can climb well above 30°C. They are a stark contrast to the underground network that runs throughout the city.
While these too can get very busy, underground trains are nevertheless very comfortable to travel on – considerably more so than other European counterparts. The underground system in Bucharest runs on a wider gauge track and is not separated off into individual carriages, which makes it feel surprisingly spacious.
Also, unlike the London Underground where you are shunted and rocked about almost incessantly as the train changes speed and direction, the Bucharest underground is seamlessly smooth to journey on. It seems remarkable that it is so comfortable and smooth - for want of a better word, modern – compared to the aging trams and bustling buses on the teeming streets above.
Unique Identity or Split Personality?
With Turkish, Russian and Austrian influences and efforts in the nineteenth century to gain independence, Romania’s national identity has always been a mottled one. Bucharest is very much eclectic. Being the sum of very different cultures, religions and drastic changes in ideologies the appearance of the city is really that of several different ones.
As the country accommodates an ever growing number of tourists, poverty is still an ever present concern for many. Recovering from the throes of communism Romania has adopted Western attitudes but is not yet fully westernised. In Bucharest the clash of old and new, traditional and modern, communism and liberty and affluence and poverty is more recognisable than elsewhere in the country.
Bucharest is therefore a city which has a lot to offer. Exploring certainly keeps you on your toes, and there is always something unexpected lying around the corner. The various clashes seen throughout are a source of great intrigue and they offer a large amount of cultural diversity for tourists to absorb. No tourist should give Bucharest a miss. There is so much to see beyond the impressive landmarks and the city’s unusual character makes a lasting impression and creates many vivid memories.
Sources
Stoica, S., Romania 1989-2005 – A Chronilogical History, (Bucharest: Meronia Publishing House, 2005).
‘Romania: Average Gross Salary and Salary Growth Rate’, in Romania Central, [accessed 16 August 2011]
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