This story didn’t surprise me: confusing Bucharest with Budapest is apparently one of the most common mistakes made by Brits when booking travel ‘abroad.’ After all, Britain (England especially) remains a place where vast swathes of the population think the world consists of just two countries: England and Abroad. A member of my extended family [...]
Posts from ‘May, 2009’
Train from Gara de Nord to Otopeni dies quick death
It looks like the train from Gara de Nord to a field near Otopeni airport, opened with so much fanfare not so long ago, is about to be consigned to the history books. It is attracting few passengers and losing money (but then so is the whole of Romanian railways). Four trains will be cancelled [...]
Bucharest In Your Pocket: 10 Years On
What can only be described as Eclipse Fever was gripping the nation when the first Bucharest In Your Pocket was published, at the end of May, 1999. Bucharest was, you see, being heralded as the best place in the world to view one of nature’s rarities: a total eclipse of the sun scheduled for August [...]
Let’s make life in the countryside worth living. Then we can worry about preserving it
If you follow us on Twitter (and you really ought to) then you would have noticed we had a thing or two to say earlier today about Prince Charles, currently visiting Romania to launch a programme dedicated to ‘preserving Romania’s rural traditions and village culture.’ According to this Associated Press report the Prince views Romania’s [...]
Surprisingly, Bucharest’s problems go beyond the need to change a few kerbstones
And they’re off. The great Borduriada 2009 is under way in at least two of Bucharest’s six sectors, with local mayors eager change the kerbstones on as many streets as possible, because, well, because it’s cheap and relatively easy.
To the casual observer (and there is no observer more casual than Bucharest Life), the urgent need [...]