Travel Mania! Airplane Mania! Ro-Mania!

Wham Bam
I’d have just 29 hours in Bucharest, so I’d hit the ground running. Actually, sleeping…as I landed at 3AM. My taxi got pulled over for speeding on the way to the hotel, so I wasn’t asleep as soon as I wanted to be, but it was finally lights out at 4:30AM. I packed in a solid 5.5 hours of sleep, which had me out the door around 11:30AM. I’d have just today to enjoy the city; Bucharest was my lost stop on this six-country, ten-day European trip.

First order of business: lunch. Usually I just wander and pick whatever place I stumble into, but this time I had insider info. My friend and colleague, Sandra, is from Romania and she couldn’t have been more excited that I was coming to her homeland. While she was disappointed I wouldn’t have more time to tour the majestic castles in the villages hours away, she was quick to give me a great, personal “to-do” list for Bucharest. Curated by a local (Sandra), it included parks, neighborhoods and the most importantly: food! Lunch would be my first stop.

I don’t know what’s happening here, but I like it.

The first thing I noticed was the architecture. Bad ass buildings all around.

CEC Palace, built in 1900, is headquarters of CEC Bank.

I loved the lines of the Union International Business Center.

The equestrian statue of Carol I, the first King of Romania, mounted on his horse.

Starvin’ Marvin’
With no breakfast in my stomach and at least a mile on foot so far today, I was so ready to eat. Sandra recommended one her favorite places called Lacrimi si Sfinti. Sounds good to me! I figured if I only had a day in Romania, I wanted the best; I didn’t want to take my chances “guessing” where to eat, so this recommendation came very well received, and would turn out to be a winner!

First up, the appetizers: Folded Cheese; goat cheese folded in honey marinated vine leaves.

Who could resist something called “Wonder Meatballs?” These guys are minced veal fillet and pork collar, seasoned with coriander and basil, served with homemade mustard and chile jam.

The main course: Sarmale “Forget me not.” These are traditional cabbage rolls filled with a mix of ground goose, pork and veal. It’s boiled in white wine and served with polenta, sour cream and chili peppers.

How Bazaar
After lunch, I happened upon one of my favorite things to see in foreign countries: antique markets. This little setup in the middle of the old city was fantastic and I had a blast browsing all the tables for at least half an hour. It was like a foreign and real-life version of Antiques Roadshow, with tons of old coins, stamps, artwork and even a couple of those old phonographs. I ended up buying something, too: an old, blank Romanian passport. I’ve always wanted my very own passport from another country…now I have one! I will affix my photo inside and have my name printed on it soon. There was live music being played on a nearby stage to add to the vibe. It was one of the coolest things I saw, and something not planned, which made it even neater.

The antique market was one of my favorite stops.

Dad Joke

A Walk in the Park
Next on my special list was Herastrau Park. It was too far to walk to, so I attempted the journey by bus and eventually wandered underground and found the subway, which I didn’t even know existed until this moment. It was nice to be out of the heat–it was a really scorching day–and the subway map opened up a whole new way to get around. I love subways!

Charles De Gaulle statue at Herastrau Park entrance.

Busts statues and trees lined the lake’s edges.

A nice day for a stroll in the park, with ice cream, snack and drink vendors èn-hand.

That’s the End?
Pretty much. I enjoyed exploring Herastrau Park for hours–the property is huge! I walked its trails, including around the lake and across little bridges, and through an area of cafés and outside bars. It was a really cool spot. I ended up ducking into one of the air conditioned bars to cool off and have a drink, then spent an hour or so finding my way back to my hotel. I got lost when I boarded a tram that took me to the other side of town, but that was okay. Half the fun was trying to figure out my way back! I had a light snack at the hotel before turning in. I’d have a super-early flight home tomorrow. Every vacation has its last day. Today was mine!

On my way out I asked immigration if they’d stamp my Romanian passport. They thought it was cool (one of the officers said she had one of those when she was a kid–the old style), but they ended up saying they couldn’t stamp it. Darn!

And Now…the REST of the (Insta)Story:

Ramblin’ Randy Approved Tours:
Romania was one of my stops where I definitely felt like I needed to stay longer, most specifically, to take a tour outside of the capital. I wanted to see Dracula’s castle so badly! Make sure to carve out some time to get outta Bucharest and see the castles. Here are some cool tours: