Ah, Romania! I have always dreamed of seeing the beauty and grandeur of this almost mythical land. When I set out on my journey there were pillar countries that even though I was having a wonderful time in whatever country I was I still looked ahead to those pillars. Greece was the first and the second...Romania! So, after wrapping up Bulgaria I headed to the capital of this pillar country and looked forward to starting off my Romanian adventure. Bucharest is a city much like other capitals which at first sight may not be what you expected. Like every capital it is a traffic jammed, graffiti laden mass of humanity. But if you take the time and dig a little deeper you will find a history rich city with beautiful parks and amazing little street lined with a mixture of buildings that represents the trials and tribulations that the Romanian people have endured. I was not expecting to like this capital city as much as I did. Let's face it it is very rare that the capital city is the one you remember the most, but Bucharest has an energy that will leave its marks. So let's get to chatting about all the cool stuff...
Accommodations...Sleep Inn Hostel
The hostel although a little difficult to find (BTW don't ask taxi drivers for directions they either don't know or just are not helpful) , which basically means I got lost trying to find it, was a nice little place. Location was everything with this hostel! It is situated within walking distance to almost all the main attraction of Bucharest including Old Town and Victory Boulevard. The Sleep Inn hostel had all the amenities you need...a kitchen for cooking, good Wi-Fi and a comfortable bed. The price of this hostel was the cheapest one I found so for all those goodies it was quite a bargain. Now that we have talked where I laid my head , let's get to the real good stuff...what I got up to while roaming these streets.
Things to do..
Every capital city has a whole slew of things to do. The capital is usually where all the big museums are and most of the major cultural events as well. Bucharest is no different. Though in my trip I concentrated in the monuments and history there are a lot of things that I did not do while there, so i will included them as well. I did see some amazing monuments and really began my journey of understanding the history of this foreign land. Plus I tried some amazing food too! So let's get to seeing some stuff...
Free Walking Tour...
I know I have talked about he advantages of the free walking tours when you find yourself in a new city or even when you just want to learn history and get orientated. So it should be no surprise when the very first thing I did when arriving to Bucharest is start googling free tour companies. There were a lot of them and that is something you will find in many of the major cities across Europe. The best way to decide which one works for you is to find the one that sparks an immediate interest. In other words go with your gut.
For me I found a new company called Unbelievable Bucharest. The thing that drew me to this company was that they described their tours as storytelling tours and that was all I had to read. It did not hurt that the meeting point was very close to my hostel. The tour was outstanding and given by a passionate local. I am not sponsored by this company but if you find yourself in Bucharest I highly suggest you look at these tours .
Parks...
Like most of Europe there are many green spaces spread throughout the city. Surprisingly once within the tree lined walk ways of these parks it is as if that hectic world is miles away. For me one of the best things to do while trying to see everything I have ever dreamt of is to take a day and just decompress with a park day. So on my last day in Bucharest that is just what I did.
I rambled through two parks and to be honest one was way more relaxing than the other. So let's start with the one that was nice but just not that relaxing. Izvor park is the well landscaped park just in front of the Palace of Parliament and is a nice park. But the one park I suggest you see above all else is Bucharest's Central Park otherwise known as Cismigiu Park. This park is so beautiful with its lake and tree lined pathways you will have no choice but to have a nice relaxing day.
There are so many things to do in and see in Bucharesr as in most of the larger cities of Europe that you may not be able to catch everything in one go. Unless you hvae plenty of time so the few things I talked about in this blog could help you at least get a good feel of this amazing city. As always Shadows until the next blog...
Safe Journeys,
Kim
P.S...
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