Saturday 20 June 2026 - Bucharest (4)

Today we enjoyed our own walking tour.

Apartment to coffee break at Casa Capsa via Calla Victoriei and via a short section by the river, where a Little Tern was busy fishing just next to us.

The red plaque indicates earthquake damage that could cause the building to collapse. 

Holocaust memorial

Then we continued along Calla Victoreie to its terminus at Piata Victoriei.

After that we turned down Bulevardul Lascar Catargiu ro reach Piata Romana.

Then down Bulevardul Magheru for lunch at a French café, before continuing to Theodor Aman Museum, the private home of the artist, Theodore Aman.

Finally, by late afternoon, we were back at the apartment enjoying a pot of tea after returning via Cismigiu Gardens.

I think the pictures are in order but the text may be a little out of order. To be edited at home.

An evening meal outside Energiea rounded off the day nicely.

Here's Sue's take on the day:

Sat 20 June
Breakfast of croissants and yogurt in the apartment before leaving around 9, to walk the length of Calea Victoriei, as recommended in our guidebook. Going south we went past the Holocaust memorial to the river, then met Calea V at its end, closed to traffic on a Saturday. We passed the National History Museum and dived down the pedestrian street past Caru’ cu Bere to revisit Stavropoleos Monastery. Nearby is the Macca-Villacrosse Passage, curved with a glass ceiling, joining Calea V with the Romanian National Bank, where coins are minted.
After admiring the Military Club and its fountain, we found a shady seat outside Casa Capsa, for coffee. With the road closed we saw our first joggers and stalls were being set up for festivities.
We revisited Piata Revolutiei but crossed the road this time to look at the Cretulescu Church, built in the 1720s but restored after being damaged in the revolution.
Continuing north, we stopped to admire the frontage of the Novotel, which used to be the national theatre. A Romanian woman discussed with us that the theatre had not been bombed in the Second WW (as we’d been told on our tour) but suffered a fire.  The facade is apparently a replica, rather than what remained after the bombing.
To our right was the Athenee Palace Hotel, which featured in the Fortunes of War book we’ve just read. The Roman Atheneum is a concert hall, with circular form and a domed roof, with pillars and a garden in front.
Other notable buildings were the former home of George Enescu, composer, with ornate stonework and art nouveau entrance.
At Piata Victoriei, we turned south again, along a busy boulevard to Piata Romana.
Lunch was a sandwich under the trees on a side street, after which we went into the Theodor Aman Museum, his house painted with his own murals and home to paintings , sketches, copper plates, portraits and carvings. It was cool and there was some exquisite work.
We returned via Piata Universitatii, and Cismigiu Park, at around 4ish, glad to have the aircon replacing the 32 degrees of heat outside.
Lemon tea was also welcome. 
Ate outside Energiea, a restaurant fairly close to the river about 15 mins walk away. Burger for M and chicken with orzo for me. Lovely chocolate cheesecake with cherries too. First Romanian white wine - lovely!
Back for 8ish. Still 31 degrees! Read till 9.45pm.

Friday 19 June 2026 - Bucharest (3)

Today was hot. Again. That didn't stop us from catching the Metro from Piaţa Romaną to Aviatorilor and walking to The Spring Palace, before it became known as The House of Ceauşescu, the dictator's opulent home for himself and his family. The place is restricted to guided visits with no indoor photography allowed. There's a massive swimming pool and a cinema in which we watched a film about the dictator after our guided tour of the building.

Outside, a present to Ceauşescu of two peacocks has now multiplied to a flock of 26. Here's the garden.

After lunch in the Museum of Recent Art...

...we made our way through Herãstrãu Park, past a statue of Charles de Gaulle, 

to The Village Museum. This is a collection of buildings brought to this site from the Romanian countryside by a Royal Decree in 1936. It's like a more extensive version of the Highland Village between Newtonmore and Kingussie, but on a much bigger scale and perhaps indicating that life was a little more civilised in southern Europe. 

I may add to this when back home, but here are some of the structures.

After refreshments at a café we returned to the Metro station via nice woodland, an empty lake, and the Arc de Triumf that was first built of wood in 1919 as a War Memorial. It was replaced in stone from 1927.

We planned to eat at the Sera Eden Restaurant that both Collett's and our apartment's landlord recommend, but the path goes through Bun Restaurant and we accidentally stopped there and spent the evening being serenaded by Whistling swifts and Melodious blackbirds. The meal was excellent. 

Finally, whilst we were enjoying life in Bucharest, Sue and I were remembering the good times we spent with Gary Beighton, whose funeral it was today. Happy days with him and his daughter Jenny in the Dolomites, and, in an earlier era, hiking with Tech Domski Hiking and Hostelling Club, as well as a variety of family holidays with Isabel and the children. RIP Gary, and condolences to all the family.

Also, on the same day, we said goodbye to Jennifer (nee) Parks, an old friend from schooldays in Guisborough. Not seen for many years, but that vibrant short-skirted girl was in mind today. RIP Jen.

Here's Sue's take on the day:

Fri 19 June
Made tea around 8.30. Breakfast was coffee and a good croissant at a cafe about 20m away! We had 11.30 tickets for the House of Ceausescu (previously the Spring Palace), north of the city centre. A 12-min walk to Piata Romana, the nearest Metro station, where we purchased a 24h ticket, which turned out to be a bus ticket! So, a few problems swiping in, but it was a quick two stops to Aviatorilor then another  walk of under 15 mins. This area appears much more upmarket and was where all the communist elite lived before 1989. As we were early, we looked round the small garden (they now have 26 peacocks from the original two bought by Ceausescu), then sat in Herăstrău park, overlooking the lake till 11.15.
We had a guided tour of the opulent home of Nicolae and Elena C and their three children, who each had their own suites within the home. There are Merano glass chandeliers, lots of wood, including parquet floors, and an indoor garden for the winter months. An extension housed a sauna and a large swimming pool with beautiful mosaic walls. We watched a film in their cinema, about their reign and downfall.
Along the road we had lunch of hot baguettes on the cool ground floor of the Museum of Recent Art, before walking through the park again and past Bucharest’s Arc de Triomph, to reach the Village Museum. This is a large site with many buildings that have been transported here from all over Romania, the oldest being from the 1600’s. There were two wooden churches, including one built in 1722, which had a frescoed interior. There were agricultural buildings as well as homes, such as wine and seed presses, a fish processing hut, and two windmills.
We had cold drinks before heading back through Herastrau Park (where the lake to the west of the road had been drained for repair work) to the Metro.
Once back at Piata Romana, we headed for Sera Eden, a ‘garden restaurant’, and sat down in a lovely shaded spot. It turned out not to be Sera Eden but Bun, a different restaurant and bar! We had cold beer and a lovely meal of aubergine with goats cheese (s), calamari (m), salad and bread, chatting a little to a Romanian lady at the next table who had never left after coming to university in Bucharest. We decided, having had a walk through Sera Eden in our way out, that we had had a better experience.
Not far back, with a supermarket visit to Mega Image on route for breakfast provisions.