Most people want to go to the City of Lights. To see the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre, the Notre-Dame de Paris, among other famous Parisan landmarks. While I do have some regrets over not going to Paris, I'm happy enough to visit Little Paris!
Bucharest București, is the capital of Romania and earned it's nickname because of the city's architecture and the elite and high life reputation it has. It even has its own Triumphal Arch (Arcul de Triumf). Unfortunately, it was under renovation and I was not about to post another photo of a piece of cloth again.
There were lots of delays along the way into Bucharest and it meant there was no time to explore much. But when you're travelling in a race against time, you take what you can get.
Seen here is the Romanian Athenaeum which is among the iconic landmarks of the city. More about it when we get there again.
Still on the Danube Bridge but entering the Romanian half of it before driving straight through Giurgiu and onwards to Bucharest.
Staying along Bulevardul Unirii had one single benefit and that was to be able to see the Parliamentary Palace of Romania in full view.
This massive palace houses both chambers of the Romanian Parliament and serves several purposes. It holds a number of records including Most Expensive Administrative Building, World's Parliament Building and Heaviest Building. The neoclassical palace was completed in 1997, having taken 13 years to build and costing a whopping 3 million €uros!
Not necessarily the symbol of Calea Victorilei but it is certainly distinctive enough to immediately tell anyone who's been to Romania that you are along Victory Avenue. Besides being the avenue where most of the landmarks were, it also houses multiple luxury brands, which I had no money to bother and clearly no interest in seeing.
Located opposite the National Museum of Romanian History is the eclectic-styled CEC Palace. CEC stands for Casa de Economii şi Consemnaţiuni, the state-owned bank.
The dome at the top of the palace is quite unique in that its made of both glass and metal. The domes at the 4 corners are Renaissance domes that do not resemble the one on the top. The front entrance has an arch that ends with a twin of columns.
Located diagonally opposite the CEC Palace, is the Zlătari Church (Biserica Zlătari), an Orthodox church that has been listed in Bucharest's Historical Monuments list. I reckon it's not easy to miss because it stands out from all the commercial buildings surrounding it.
Going further down Calea Victorilei, you'll see the Cercul Militar Naţional. It translates to Palace of National Military Circle. It houses the National Military Library as well as the headquarters to the National Military Circle (the Romanian Army's cultural institution).
This architectural beauty is unmissable and is yet another iconic landmark of Bucharest. The eclectic style is seen clearly in the twin columns at the front of the building. It was believed to be the most beautiful and most impressive palaces built back then. Maybe that's why they needed to up the stakes for the Parliamentary Palace.
It's a long avenue... And after Bucharest's Odeon Theatre, you'll see a very unique church called the Kretzulescu Church (Biserica Crețulescu). It's just beside the Royal Palace next door and the Palace Hall. Incidentally, Julio Iglesias was in town for a big concert at the Palace Hall that night. Pity there weren't any tickets left.
The Brâncovenesc style that it is built in is a hybrid of 4 different styles, namely Baroque, Byzantine, late Renaissance and some Ottoman influence.
Also seen here is a memorial bust of Corneliu Coposu, identified by locals as one of the "greatest Romanians of all time".
The Central University Library of Bucharest (Biblioteca Centrală Universitară) with King Carol I's statue. He was the one who declared Romania as a sovereign country after the Russo-Turkish War, although it must be noted that he was not King yet at that time. Another interesting fact that links back to the time I was at Burg Hohenzollern in Germany, Carol I was also the "founder" of the Romanian branch of the House of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen.
Located opposite the library is the Royal Palace/Romanian National Art Museum.
The Palatul Regal (Royal Palace). Probably didn't do justice to the palace with this photo but I was kinda limited because the roads were in a mess and there was no way to get a good shot of the Palace so this was the best I could get.
The neoclassical styled palace was home to the monarch until 1947. The last king, King Mihai led a coup from inside here against the pro-Nazi government during WWII. It is now the Romanian National Art Museum, while the Palace Hall at the back is used for performances (like the one by Julio Iglesias that night).
Here we are, at the Romanian Athenaeum (Ateneul Roman). Built by French architect Albert Galleron, the Athenaeum is famous for being funded by the public, through the "Give a penny for the Athenaeum" campaign. It was built with a high dome 6 distinct Doric columns at the entrance.
This Neo-Classical and Romantic-styled beauty is the iconic symbol of not just Bucharest but Romania as a whole. It is the home of the Romanian George Enescu Philharmonic and is widely regarded as one of the best concert halls in the world with world-class acoustics.
The Headquarters to the National Bank of Romania, the central bank of Romania. The equivalent of the Federal Reserves in the US, Bank of England in the UK and the Monetary Authority of Singapore. It issues the Romanian currency, leu and manages both the national reserves and the exchange rate.
The signature Citrus Lemondade at Caru' cu Bere. They describe themselves as "a true living legend and one of the oldest breweries of Bucharest". It was jam-packed with people, but I still managed to get everyone in for dinner ;)
Back at the Parliamentary Palace where it's illuminated by the night lights. The darkness at night doesn't make it any smaller because it's still huge! I think they've got to have employed some of Romania's best builders to finish this giant.
The Village Museum is an ethnographic museum much like Etara in Gabrovo, Bulgaria. Drove by here after seeing the Triumphal Arch covered in cloth. I guess one ethnographic museum was enough.
Headed back to Bulgaria, towards Pleven...
Needed to rush back to Bulgaria for the night because we were staying in Pleven so that we could be closer to Sofia...
Power plants in Ruse on the way across the Danube Bridge.
Through the Bulgarian border and en route to Pleven.
Pleven was more of a stopover before we headed back to Sofia. Figured that it was the right thing to do though because a direct drive from Bucharest to Sofia would have been impossible.
The one thing I remember clearly from Pleven was the place we stayed in. It was right in the middle of Kaylaka which to us, meant in the middle of nowhere. We experienced yet another episode of Bulgarian helpfulness and friendliness in the best possible way!
While searching for our home for the evening among the Kaylaka Nature Park, we got to meet this incredibly friendly and helpful Bulgarian man. Even though he couldn't understand a single thing we said but did us a favour by driving us through the trees to get us to our place for the night. He was only supposed to pick up his wife after work but took a 30 minute detour, just for us. Thank God for sending us this guardian angel!
This was next morning on the way out of Pleven and to Sofia. Somewhere near the town hall I believe. Honestly, I wouldn't consider myself as having been in Pleven cos it was just a rest up for what was to come.
I was initially supposed to join the rest to bring them up to Slovakia and Czech Republic but there were some complications. So I had to meet them in London on the 30th, almost a full week later!
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