Almost Here

The holidays are almost here. Merry Christmas and a happy New Year to all!
Irina

Night Walk

The old center of the town is a nice place for a night walk. Especially on a warm quiet evening. The night gives every building and every street a special charm, and if you can pretend not to hear the cars and the music, you can feel you went back in time. Here are some of my favourite places and buildings.

The Cismigiu Garden.

And opposite to it, the building of the State Archives.

The National Military Circle.

The Victory Avenue and the Capsa Restaurant.

The National Theater and the Intercontinental Hotel.
They will be waiting for all of you.

It's Autumn

“The autumn knocks/ into my window one last time./ Donnez-vous la peine d’entrer, Madame...?"
This was Ion Minulescu’s question under the same sun a century ago, among the same copper leaves whispering under the lovers’ steps, under the same feline moody weather.
In 1943, as he was writing this, on the beautiful autumn days, the dwellers of Bucharest were making the Victory Avenue very crowded. A carriage could hardly go by there between 11 o’clock and noon. From the fashionable Capsa restaurant till the Palace Square, the side pavement was a real exhibition of ….everything. But most of all, of ladies’ outfits.
Different worlds coexisted here: some entered a store and got out as quickly and preoccupied, some were brought here by business, others just strolled out of boredom. Some came here because they had to, the others made it a habit.
The autumn is far better shown by the Victory avenue than by the thermometer or the calendar. Just like a real lady, she’s always dressed accordingly to the sky’s caprices. As long as you can see light clothes here, the autumn has not arrived in Bucharest yet.
These days, the street’s face was changed. No blue sky, no white clothes, no open terraces. Big raindrops were knocking in the shops’ windows, breaking on the pavement.

But today, the changing autumn weather brought us back the sun and the coming ad going began again, from the Savings Bank’s Museum to the Royal Palace…

White Night

Bucharest turned last Saturday night into a huge stage. The sleepless had the opportunity to take part in the first such event in our city, at the same time as the dwellers of Paris, Rome, Madrid, Bruxelles and Riga.
The day coincided with the 548th anniversary of Bucharest's first mention in an official document. After nightfall, the House of People became a huge screen for the lasers displays of the artists of "Urban Art". The ones who prefer concerts, theater shows, acrobats, extreme sports, huge dolls, parades or craftsmen could also chose according to their taste. There were contests and demonstrations, fireworks, grafitti, a multimedia show on Dambovita river and even an homage to Pavarotti. The museums were open all night long for their visitors. You could look at the town's panorama from he top of the Arch of Triumph.
Those who sacrificed a good night's sleep say it was worth it. Maybe I'll go too, next time, and tell you more about it.

A new beginning

Here we are again. New books, new students, new tasks. Lots of work to be done concerning our common project.
The Comenius project is going very slowly in our school because I have not met the teachers in our team. The general timetable has not allowed it yet. On the other side, we have not received the financial contract. So, we have not booked yet.
What about the rest? I only know about Irina.
Hope we can really start working.

A Beginnig: the Theatre

The Romanian theatre was born in 1816, in the residence of the Caragea family. The famous princess Ralu, the ruler’s daughter, had this initiative. At that time, she had already translated a book about he history of Greece, she was reading Schiller and Goethe and she was listening to Mozart’s and Beethoven’s music.

She improvised in her own quarters a stage where the pupils of the Greek school acted. They performed “Oreste”, “Daphnis and Chloe” and a few other plays.

It was a success, so she thought to found a real theatre. In 1818 the legendary “Cismeaua Rosie” (The Red Waterpump) appeared on the street then called Podul Mogosoaiei (Mogosoaia’s Bridge), now Victory Avenue, the oldest street in Bucharest. Its name came from a red brick well near the still existing White Church.

The theatre burned in1825, but we still have its description written by a great historian, V.A. Urechia: ”There was a stage and in front of it a big red velvet sofa. Benches, small and big, in rows, musicians in red clothes and the fireplace was lit by wax candles in enameled candlesticks. The entrance fee was one ducat for sitting on a big bench and one “leu” for a small one. The audience could have sweets, refreshments and brandy at each one’s will.”

On this first stage plays as Schiller’s "The Thieves, or Goethe’s "Faust"
were performed for the first time for the Romanian audience. It’s been a long time and Bucharest has now many theatres, famous actors and very dear memories.

Impersonal

I'm not so fond of these modern buildings that have appeared in Bucharest the last years.
Of course they seem modern, functional and "Western" and they look better than the old grey blocks of flats, but they do not say much.
They could be anywhere in the world and shelter anything. They have no personality, just a lot of glass.
I like the old Bucharest buildings more, with their "wrinkles" and their past.

What do you think? How about your place?