Travel report: Romania
Country ranking by area: #82
Country ranking by population: #59
Date of Visit: April 2018
After travelling to Macedonia and Georgia the previous month, the weekend in Romania was the third trip to Eastern Europe/Eurasia in only four weeks. “This will be the last trip to the East for a while” I told Matt as soon as we arrived at Henri Coandã Airport in Bucharest. Usually, I like to vary the direction. One trip to the South, one to the East, one to the North etc. It was rather a coincidence that three consecutive trips took place in Eastern European/Eurasian countries, as the trip to Skopje was a spontaneous one and a reaction to a late cancellation of a trip to Dublin in early March.
Anyway, we just entered my 71st country, Romania. 80 countries until the end of 2018 I promised, when I returned from country 64 Kosovo. 16 new countries in one year. Not an easy goal but doable. Especially, since I’ve already travelled to 7 new countries in the first 3.5 months of the year. Another goal is to travel to all 6 inhabited continents in 2018 by the way. I’ve already visited Europe, Africa and Asia this year, three more to come.
Entering Romania
Romania is one of the poorest countries in Europe. Only Bulgaria has a lower GDP per capita in the EU. A colleague, who worked as a flight attendant, told me she was shocked about the poverty when she travelled to Romania in the 90’s. She said back then she didn’t even know that a poverty like that was possible in Europe and the situation in Bucharest was comparable to cities in Africa. Times like these are over fortunately, but Romania is still one of the poor houses in Europe.
So, what could we expect from a short trip to Bucharest? Honestly, we both had low expectations. Some people call Bucharest the ugliest capital in Europe. However, some of my last trips got me to ugly destinations too. These trips sometimes turned out to be even more fun than the trips to the beautiful cities.
The reason why we chose Bucharest as a destination was its nightlife and that this city would be good value for money. Moreover, Matt seemed to be interested in Ceausescu’s Parliament Palace, the second biggest government building in the world after the Pentagon. It was a short weekend, as we stayed only from Saturday evening to Monday morning. But as always, we tried to make the best out of it. And we did.
Spotlight: together we shine
Bucharest provided a nice surprise, when we entered old town shortly after sunset. The receptionist of our hotel told us something about a festival in the city centre. And there it was. The festival was called Spotlight and numerous buildings were illuminated.
The highlight was the light show on the building of the National Bank. They showed a show created by artists from six different countries and each theme looked different. A great way to start this trip to Romania.
The city centre was very crowded, as no one wanted to miss this spectacle. To be honest, I have still no clue what this was all about, but it looked impressive. We enjoyed the show for approximately 45 minutes, but suddenly we got thirsty and time had come for drinks…
Nightlife in Bucharest
I immediately fell in love with Bucharest’s old town. Some travellers call this part an awful tourist trap, but I liked it right from the beginning.
Old town is compact with numerous bars and restaurants close to each other. There is so much going on at night that it makes you feel like you’re in a typical (party) holiday destination. Hostesses are handing out flyers and try to get you into their bars and restaurants (or dubious massage parlours). I do not remember seeing an amusement mile like that in Eastern Europe before.
Matt and I moved from bar to bar. One drink here, one cocktail there. Bucharest got us. We wondered if old town was also as action-packed during weekdays or on Sunday. At least for Sunday we can confirm that the party is on at night. Bucharest isn’t for the weak though. At 4 AM, we gave up after having a Subway sandwich and a kebab as our last act. We were still hearing the beats down the street when we fell into our beds. After a few seconds, we were both asleep.
The morning after
“Good morning, how are you today?” a young lady in front of a restaurant smilingly asks in order to get us to her place. “Terrible” I groan. The lady as well as the guests in front of the restaurant laugh maliciously. They have seen it all. Foreigners who underestimated the destruction of Bucharest’s nightlife. I am now paying the price for having one drink or two too much. But what can you do when a high quality drink only costs €5?
Bucharest’s old town looks like a battlefield on Sunday noon. You can see vomit every few metres and the smell of urine doesn’t make you feel better. It reminded me of Newcastle upon Tyne. And I haven’t even seen hordes of stag parties the night before. Ok, to tell you the truth, I am exaggerating a bit, although you could clearly see that a party was going on the night before. Eight hours later, people were having breakfast or lunch in the restaurants under the sunny blue sky.
The Urbanist saved us eventually. It’s a small cafe and shop at the edge of old town. The food was crap, the coffee mediocre, but at least the orange juice gave me some energy. Besides, the bar is nice and one of the most picturesque places in Bucharest.
Sightseeing in Bucharest
Bucharest is not a great city for sightseeing simply because it lacks good sights. It’s still possible to spend 1-2 days seeing the highlights of the city though. In my opinion, the small old town is the best attraction and I would even go further and say that there aren’t many reasons to leave this part of the city. However, there is one exception.
Nicolae Ceausescu ruled Romania with an iron grip in the last century. The socialist dictator wanted to redesign Bucharest by building some massive and impressive houses. This should show the world how wealthy and powerful the destitute Socialist Republic of Romania was. The parliament palace was the only monumental building that was finished (it was finished after Ceausescu’s death by the way). It is the second-largest government building in the world after the Pentagon and has 1’100 rooms.
We arrived at the wrong side of the building and it took us approximately 20 minutes to get to the entrance on the other side. It is not possible to explore the building on your own. You have to join a tour. “Don’t leave the group or you might get lost. It’s Sunday, it might take some time until we find you. Maybe you will stay in this building forever.” the tour guide said.
The duration of the tour is 75-90 minutes and you will only see 5% of the palace. Given the fact that you only see this small percentage within this time frame shows how big this building is. The tour is quite impressive, as you will see some of the most impressive rooms in the building and learn something about the history of Romania. Definite recommendation.
And the party goes on…
As soon as we arrived back in old town, we were immediately welcomed by the techno beats. It was 4 PM! And there it was, right next to our hotel: a roof top bar that belonged to a hostel. It was time for the next round…
Matt and I were by far the oldest people on the roof top. The average age was maybe 22-23. Moreover, I was wearing a shirt and didn’t look like the other hipsters up there. Never mind. It was a cool place and ideal to kill time before dinner.
After a rather disappointing dinner (the only time we had bad food in Romania), we finished the day in Silk Panoramic Bar, another sky bar, which was not spectacular though.
Romania – is it worth it?
Romania is Europe’s 11th largest country by area and the country certainly has more to offer than just Bucharest. Many travellers rather skip Bucharest or spend a night only in the capital before heading to Transylvania. That’s a mistake in my opinion. Not that Bucharest is the ideal getaway for a romantic weekend with bae, but this city is vibrant, action-packed and fun.
So, is it worth it? I believe that Romania is a unique country, which is well worth a visit. Not only for a short weekend trip but also for a longer holiday. Romania is budget friendly and therefore a great country for backpackers. Moreover, the country is gifted with beautiful nature so that hikers might find their paradise there. Next to Bucharest there are more places worth a visit (like Transylvania, Constanta or Brasov). Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to visit them, but at least I have a reason to go back.
I was asked a few times whether Romania would be a safe country to travel. In my opinion yes it is. It might be one of the most criminal countries in Europe, but we’re talking about petty crime. The worst case would be that someone steals your wallet or you get ripped off by a taxi driver. There are some neighbourhoods in Bucharest, which should better be avoided, but I never felt unsafe in this vibrant city.
All in all, my country no. 71 was more a party trip and couldn’t provide too much of culture and sightseeing except for Ceausescu’s palace. Therefore, country no. 72 in May will make up for this with incredible nature and one of the best sights in the world…
Find the travel reports of the other countries I’ve visited here!
