Neglect
As I have mentioned, Constantza has a beautiful old center area that unfortunately is in a bad state of neglect. I hesitated to go deeper into this topic, because it's not pleasant, but this example impressed me too much to keep it for myself.
It's called "Casa cu lei" (The House with Lions), and it's an imposing edifice built in 1897, in the Italian Renaissance style. It belonged to an Armenian lumber merchant and then to a judge who had an impressive art collection. This collection attracted a curious young Armenian boy who used to peep though the windows and admire the objects and one day, after conspiring with the maid, was able to enter and take a closer look. The boy would become our biggest art collector, Krikor Zambaccian. The house sheltered less innocent love stories, as later it became a famous restaurant and a lovers' meeting point.
The reason for its pitiful state is a common one: after the revolution, it was the object of a legal dispute, as the former owners' heirs claimed it. It was abandoned and robbed, and the luxurious furniture inside was stolen and probably used for heating.
The first two photos are mine, the third is from Wikipedia and the one of the dying apple-tree, eaten alive by caterpillars despite his branches heavy with fruit is just a sad symbol of neglect.
2 comments:
I understand how you feel. I have sometimes criticize the state of certain old houses in Ávila and then I have been given reasons that can, even, seem good. Owners inherit them, but they would need a lot of money to keep them. Nobody wants to invest on them and in the end windows get broken, doves enter the houses and everything becomes a mess.
How could governments help? With money, but other groups would say money is needed for more important isssues.
Really difficult! But it really hurts.
Maybe a rule should be given that special buildings are kept by the state and preserved in a decent state until the owners have the money to do the right thing. Like a custody. But I don't know if it would be right.
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