Gradina Zoologica
And this is where any razzmatazz or commercialism ends; before you even get inside. There are no cafés or gift shops, not even a postcard or a bottle of water; it's quite refreshing really.
Bucharest zoo is small, old and underfunded but the care for the animals is obviously excellent and they often have to take rescue animals at short notice. For example, an illegal zoo was found earlier this year and Bucharest took on a bear and two lion cubs. I think the lions were rehomed - so to speak - it was hard to tell because they were indoors out of the sun although making an inordinate amount of noise - but the bear is still there.
The bear has a wonderfully big enclosure with a den to be inside or on top of or just to use to scratch your itchy back, and a waterfall and pool to cool off in . He was very active while we were and even executed a wee pirouette for us.
Last year, it was evident that Bucharest had more than its fair share of tigers although I love tigers and the seven they had were very entertaining and individual. We only saw two yesterday and they were both chilling in the sun so it may be that more were lurking behind the scenes.
The lemurs, marmosets and meercats were all very cute and we watched them while eating our picnic lunch in the thoughtfully provided covered picnic area. It never fails to amaze me how well used Bucharest's parks and outdoor areas are used. The zoo is always busy and, at certain times of the year,they have special days for children when it is positively heaving!
There are signs that the authorities behind the zoo are making an effort to care for their animals and raise awareness of the animals and their habitats and environments. There is a state of the art classroom with computers, interactive whiteboard which has no big posters or signs telling you what it is used for but there was a little notice for a 'Children's Club'.
I think, like many other worthy or educational causes in Romania, a great deal of PR and sponsorship is required to raise awareness and funds to improve the zoo. They are doing their best but they very obviously need help.
Below is a selection of images from the zoo; you'll notice tigers figure largely, I like tigers.
Bucharest zoo is small, old and underfunded but the care for the animals is obviously excellent and they often have to take rescue animals at short notice. For example, an illegal zoo was found earlier this year and Bucharest took on a bear and two lion cubs. I think the lions were rehomed - so to speak - it was hard to tell because they were indoors out of the sun although making an inordinate amount of noise - but the bear is still there.
The bear has a wonderfully big enclosure with a den to be inside or on top of or just to use to scratch your itchy back, and a waterfall and pool to cool off in . He was very active while we were and even executed a wee pirouette for us.
Last year, it was evident that Bucharest had more than its fair share of tigers although I love tigers and the seven they had were very entertaining and individual. We only saw two yesterday and they were both chilling in the sun so it may be that more were lurking behind the scenes.
The lemurs, marmosets and meercats were all very cute and we watched them while eating our picnic lunch in the thoughtfully provided covered picnic area. It never fails to amaze me how well used Bucharest's parks and outdoor areas are used. The zoo is always busy and, at certain times of the year,they have special days for children when it is positively heaving!
There are signs that the authorities behind the zoo are making an effort to care for their animals and raise awareness of the animals and their habitats and environments. There is a state of the art classroom with computers, interactive whiteboard which has no big posters or signs telling you what it is used for but there was a little notice for a 'Children's Club'.
I think, like many other worthy or educational causes in Romania, a great deal of PR and sponsorship is required to raise awareness and funds to improve the zoo. They are doing their best but they very obviously need help.
Below is a selection of images from the zoo; you'll notice tigers figure largely, I like tigers.
Winters and Springs
From this...
...to this...
...in exactly four weeks!
The weather in Romania can be fabulously gentle or horrendously harsh both summer and winter. Temperatures can range from -25°C in the depths of winter to 40°C+ at the height of summer.
It doesn’t drizzle; there’s no such thing as soft rain. When it rains, it is usually torrential, winter or summer. We laughed the first year we were here because every time we went to Baneasa Airport to pick anybody up, we ended up drenched in June and December; there is nowhere indoors at Baneasa to wait for people. Thankfully, said airport which our apartment overlooks, is now closed to commercial traffic and we get to meet people in the heated/air-conditioned comfort of Otopeni.
As this year so perfectly showed, spring and autumn tend to be short and sweet but while the winters are bitterly cold, they tend to be bright and dry. There is a lot, sometimes an awful lot, of snow and, while it is deep, it is rarely disruptive. Over the last eleven years, the school has had three snow days and all of them have been while I've been here!
Our first two winters, the snow seemed to last forever. In 2010-11, each snowfall packed down and froze and there were successive layers of iron-hard ice underneath every fresh fall. The roads round where we lived at the time never got the sun and they had deep, deep ruts which cars wobbled along barely missing the parked cars on either side of the road. Driving out of the ruts or onto the kerb to park could be incredibly tricky. One night, I had the wheels locked to the left, the four wheel drive on and the car just would not go up the kerb; it carried on going straight up the road. I had to be helped by a very kind Romanian who was brave enough to stand directly in front of the car, on solid ice(!), and even stayed there after he told me to stop, almost on his toes! This clever man had spotted that there were no cars parked opposite our space therefore I could reverse back and drive straight into the space. I was so grateful because I really, really hated driving in the snow and ice. So much so that the following year I gave up completely and used public transport.
In 2012, we didn’t have much snow to speak of until the end of January but once it arrived, it arrived with a vengeance. On the day of February 13th, we had to close the school early and get everybody home and the snow didn’t let up all night. It’s insidious the snow, we rarely have big, fluffy flakes. The snow is so fine that we often think it has stopped but it hasn’t; if you peer closely at a street light, you can just see it falling.
We were all right. We had a snow day but half of Romania was buried especially south of Bucharest. When I say buried, I mean buried; it was the worst snow since 1957. Whole villages were completely cut off and the army mounted a huge aid operation. The collected donated supplies in the car parks of the major shopping malls and trucked it out as soon as each truck was full. It was amazing, watching the news to see how people were coping in the countryside and watching huge security guards and soldiers delivering supplies to people who were living with their animals and proceeded to dispense typical Romanian hospitality by offering their visitors the little they had. One journalist went back - she though secretly - to one home, a tiny little one room house where she had been overwhelmed by the old lady’s hospitality - to bring more much needed supplies. None of this was official; the authorities were, as ever, no help at all.
The 14th February was a beautifully sunny day and so quiet. There was so little traffic. And ironic that at the end of our street were two diggers doing nothing! There wasn’t much snow after that but there was so much of it that it was well into April before the big mounds disappeared completely. At school, maintenance finally broke up the huge walls of snow on either side of the drive and spread it over the lawn to speed up the process.
It doesn’t drizzle; there’s no such thing as soft rain. When it rains, it is usually torrential, winter or summer. We laughed the first year we were here because every time we went to Baneasa Airport to pick anybody up, we ended up drenched in June and December; there is nowhere indoors at Baneasa to wait for people. Thankfully, said airport which our apartment overlooks, is now closed to commercial traffic and we get to meet people in the heated/air-conditioned comfort of Otopeni.
As this year so perfectly showed, spring and autumn tend to be short and sweet but while the winters are bitterly cold, they tend to be bright and dry. There is a lot, sometimes an awful lot, of snow and, while it is deep, it is rarely disruptive. Over the last eleven years, the school has had three snow days and all of them have been while I've been here!
Our first two winters, the snow seemed to last forever. In 2010-11, each snowfall packed down and froze and there were successive layers of iron-hard ice underneath every fresh fall. The roads round where we lived at the time never got the sun and they had deep, deep ruts which cars wobbled along barely missing the parked cars on either side of the road. Driving out of the ruts or onto the kerb to park could be incredibly tricky. One night, I had the wheels locked to the left, the four wheel drive on and the car just would not go up the kerb; it carried on going straight up the road. I had to be helped by a very kind Romanian who was brave enough to stand directly in front of the car, on solid ice(!), and even stayed there after he told me to stop, almost on his toes! This clever man had spotted that there were no cars parked opposite our space therefore I could reverse back and drive straight into the space. I was so grateful because I really, really hated driving in the snow and ice. So much so that the following year I gave up completely and used public transport.
In 2012, we didn’t have much snow to speak of until the end of January but once it arrived, it arrived with a vengeance. On the day of February 13th, we had to close the school early and get everybody home and the snow didn’t let up all night. It’s insidious the snow, we rarely have big, fluffy flakes. The snow is so fine that we often think it has stopped but it hasn’t; if you peer closely at a street light, you can just see it falling.
We were all right. We had a snow day but half of Romania was buried especially south of Bucharest. When I say buried, I mean buried; it was the worst snow since 1957. Whole villages were completely cut off and the army mounted a huge aid operation. The collected donated supplies in the car parks of the major shopping malls and trucked it out as soon as each truck was full. It was amazing, watching the news to see how people were coping in the countryside and watching huge security guards and soldiers delivering supplies to people who were living with their animals and proceeded to dispense typical Romanian hospitality by offering their visitors the little they had. One journalist went back - she though secretly - to one home, a tiny little one room house where she had been overwhelmed by the old lady’s hospitality - to bring more much needed supplies. None of this was official; the authorities were, as ever, no help at all.
The 14th February was a beautifully sunny day and so quiet. There was so little traffic. And ironic that at the end of our street were two diggers doing nothing! There wasn’t much snow after that but there was so much of it that it was well into April before the big mounds disappeared completely. At school, maintenance finally broke up the huge walls of snow on either side of the drive and spread it over the lawn to speed up the process.
This winter brought a fair amount of snow, the last fall being on March 26th (very top photo) when we did have a snow day but since then spring has sprung on rockets and now we are in summer. All the spring flowers and blossom are finished, gardens and forests are fully green and everything is growing unbelievably fast. Everything has to be at least a month ahead as at the same time last year.
We had a heat wave at the beginning of May but the temperatures have settled to a much more seasonable level. It can be very hot, upwards of 30°C, during the day but once the sun goes down, it’s been lovely and cool and we definitely still need the duvet at night.
The summer will very hot but we’ll come to that another time.
We had a heat wave at the beginning of May but the temperatures have settled to a much more seasonable level. It can be very hot, upwards of 30°C, during the day but once the sun goes down, it’s been lovely and cool and we definitely still need the duvet at night.
The summer will very hot but we’ll come to that another time.
Paştele (Easter) and Sibiu
The Romanian Christian Orthodox Easter is very often at a different time from the Christian Easter and this year, it’s not until May 5th which means we have to wait another month before we can have lamb because it’s really only available then. I shall be buying a whole lot and stashing it in the freezer for later.
Two years ago the two Easters coincided and we went to Sibiu in Transylvania for a few days where Easter festivities were in full swing with a little market in the Piaţa Mare (Big Square) complete with sheep with lambs and rabbits with kits. Painted eggs were everywhere as well as little trinkets to give as presents. The weather was beautiful and everybody was out walking and sitting in outdoor cafés.
Sibiu itself is a beautiful city. Once called Hermannstadt, it was at the heart of the Saxon community in Transylvania. The fairly large German community in Transylvania meant that there were significant numbers of blonde, blue-eyed people around and the legend was born that the lost children of Hamelin reappeared from the ‘Almasch’ caves near Bran in Eastern Transylvania. I love that story, it appeals to my imagination although the reality is that they were 12th century immigrants from the Mosel. There are still loads of fortresses and fortified villages and churches across Transylvania which are testament to their presence. Curiously, a lot of them returned to Germany after the demise of Ceacescu - after almost 800 years!
The fortifications around Sibiu are impressive but by no means complete. Having frequented many, many German mediaeval fortified towns and villages, I can see the resemblance in design and architecture. The centre of the city has been beautifully renovated, presumably in preparation for the European Capital of Culture status in 2007 - the brand new manhole covers - over a new drainage system? - bear witness to that. You don’t have to wander far from the main roads though to see what it was like before - during the Communist times, there was little attention paid to the upkeep of the infrastructure - but, hopefully the new drainage system spans the whole of the centre.
We had a fantastic few days there - sunshine, nesting storks, sheep in churchyards, mediaeval forticications, the Liar’s Bridge; it was all fascinating. We’ll definitely go back.
Two years ago the two Easters coincided and we went to Sibiu in Transylvania for a few days where Easter festivities were in full swing with a little market in the Piaţa Mare (Big Square) complete with sheep with lambs and rabbits with kits. Painted eggs were everywhere as well as little trinkets to give as presents. The weather was beautiful and everybody was out walking and sitting in outdoor cafés.
Sibiu itself is a beautiful city. Once called Hermannstadt, it was at the heart of the Saxon community in Transylvania. The fairly large German community in Transylvania meant that there were significant numbers of blonde, blue-eyed people around and the legend was born that the lost children of Hamelin reappeared from the ‘Almasch’ caves near Bran in Eastern Transylvania. I love that story, it appeals to my imagination although the reality is that they were 12th century immigrants from the Mosel. There are still loads of fortresses and fortified villages and churches across Transylvania which are testament to their presence. Curiously, a lot of them returned to Germany after the demise of Ceacescu - after almost 800 years!
The fortifications around Sibiu are impressive but by no means complete. Having frequented many, many German mediaeval fortified towns and villages, I can see the resemblance in design and architecture. The centre of the city has been beautifully renovated, presumably in preparation for the European Capital of Culture status in 2007 - the brand new manhole covers - over a new drainage system? - bear witness to that. You don’t have to wander far from the main roads though to see what it was like before - during the Communist times, there was little attention paid to the upkeep of the infrastructure - but, hopefully the new drainage system spans the whole of the centre.
We had a fantastic few days there - sunshine, nesting storks, sheep in churchyards, mediaeval forticications, the Liar’s Bridge; it was all fascinating. We’ll definitely go back.
Rugby România
How is that for a view through the goal?
We showed some pictures to a friend recently and then, later, we were talking about Romania's international stadium and she asked where it was.
We said, "We told you, near the Arcul de Triomf. We showed you photographs."
"Oh," she said sheepishly, "I thought you were kind of kidding."
Our first rugby game here was the last World Cup Qualifier in 2010; Romania v Uruguay. The ground was packed that night (they had even built a teeny weeny extra stand behind this goal) and there was a fabulous atmosphere. Tickets cost 10 lei (standard price) which equates to £2 - bargain. We were amazed by the ground and the crowd and had a fantastic time. Sitting in the front row on the half way line not a metre from the touchline was a real thrill. As it turns out, that's where we always sit. There are no screens but that's fine, we don't need them, we're practically in among the action.
The picture on the left was taken at the Romania v Russia game which was one of their World Cup warm up games. My friend and I were in the queue for tickets and got talking to the people around us. One man asked if we were here to see Russia. To say we were taken aback by the question would be an understatement and I'm still not sure why he asked that but we were at great pains to point out that no, we were here to see Romania win.
The church in this photograph is a local parish church built in 1935. It is the Biserica Caşin - Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil or the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel and is Romanian Christian Orthodox. It is as beautiful inside as it is out with gorgeous paintings and mosaics.
I'm happy to report that Romania won both of these games hands down but lost to Spain. You can imagine my consternation when Scotland's first game in the World Cup was against Romania! And both countries have the same patron saint - St Andrew!
We've also been to some club games with the Bucharest Wolves who really don't do so well!
We showed some pictures to a friend recently and then, later, we were talking about Romania's international stadium and she asked where it was.
We said, "We told you, near the Arcul de Triomf. We showed you photographs."
"Oh," she said sheepishly, "I thought you were kind of kidding."
Our first rugby game here was the last World Cup Qualifier in 2010; Romania v Uruguay. The ground was packed that night (they had even built a teeny weeny extra stand behind this goal) and there was a fabulous atmosphere. Tickets cost 10 lei (standard price) which equates to £2 - bargain. We were amazed by the ground and the crowd and had a fantastic time. Sitting in the front row on the half way line not a metre from the touchline was a real thrill. As it turns out, that's where we always sit. There are no screens but that's fine, we don't need them, we're practically in among the action.
The picture on the left was taken at the Romania v Russia game which was one of their World Cup warm up games. My friend and I were in the queue for tickets and got talking to the people around us. One man asked if we were here to see Russia. To say we were taken aback by the question would be an understatement and I'm still not sure why he asked that but we were at great pains to point out that no, we were here to see Romania win.
The church in this photograph is a local parish church built in 1935. It is the Biserica Caşin - Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil or the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel and is Romanian Christian Orthodox. It is as beautiful inside as it is out with gorgeous paintings and mosaics.
I'm happy to report that Romania won both of these games hands down but lost to Spain. You can imagine my consternation when Scotland's first game in the World Cup was against Romania! And both countries have the same patron saint - St Andrew!
We've also been to some club games with the Bucharest Wolves who really don't do so well!
Cabbages
In October 2010, so not long after we had arrived in Romania, we went to Transylvania for half-term. It was fabulous, gorgeous and colder than we had been in years but more about all that later.
On our way back, we chose, or rather our Satnav, Chip, chose to take the non-motorway route. So we were not on the main road from Piteşti to Bucharest but it's still a major road. We came across the heart of the cabbage harvest and were held up for an hour as overloaded vans and carts lumbered from all directions to meet at exactly the point we wanted to cross.
It was quite an amazing sight. I was fascinated with the perfect pyramidal structures on the carts and the more modern vans right down on their axles. The village we were in had almost a festival atmosphere with people selling their own harvest at the roadside. There was honey, jams, walnuts, chillies and one woman even had four weaners hanging from a rack. Had I known that the traffic wasn't going to clear any time soon, I would have parked and bought one along with all the other produce there was available. Maybe this year we'll go back and see if we can find it again. We don't need to find the exact place, all over the countryside people are constantly selling what they produce on their wee smallholdings.
The funniest thing among all the cabbages was the sight of a man who had clearly driven to the spot and parked his car to sell what he had. He was standing beside the boot which contained his display of rather handsome cauliflowers. It was almost as if he was selling contraband! We had a good old giggle about that all the way home.
Cabbage is obviously one of Romania's major crops and possibly exports. There is a fair chance that when you buy a cabbage it has come from Romania. Don't worry about us though, there are plenty left over for us and they are massive. When there's only two of you, a quarter of one would be enough. Last week, by chance, I found what has to have been the runt of all Romanian cabbages - one that was just perfect for four.
When we moved here, we lived in the northern part of Bucharest proper; a district called Aviatiei which is considered to be moving upmarket. Now bear in mind that the flat was freshly decorated when we moved in. On the very first morning when we walked into the kitchen we were convinced there was a gas leak so we called the landlord but he knew what it was and immediately said, quite emphatically that no it was not gas. He didn't bother to tell us what the smell was but we worked it out: it was the accumulation of years and years of boiled cabbage which had impregnated the walls and probably the incredibly safe painted, polystyrene tiles covering the kitchen ceiling!
I don't use water when I'm cooking cabbage so I avoid that horrible boiled cabbage smell; the first time I cooked cabbage there, I opened the kitchen window wide and yelled, "That's how you cook cabbage, Bucharest!"
On our way back, we chose, or rather our Satnav, Chip, chose to take the non-motorway route. So we were not on the main road from Piteşti to Bucharest but it's still a major road. We came across the heart of the cabbage harvest and were held up for an hour as overloaded vans and carts lumbered from all directions to meet at exactly the point we wanted to cross.
It was quite an amazing sight. I was fascinated with the perfect pyramidal structures on the carts and the more modern vans right down on their axles. The village we were in had almost a festival atmosphere with people selling their own harvest at the roadside. There was honey, jams, walnuts, chillies and one woman even had four weaners hanging from a rack. Had I known that the traffic wasn't going to clear any time soon, I would have parked and bought one along with all the other produce there was available. Maybe this year we'll go back and see if we can find it again. We don't need to find the exact place, all over the countryside people are constantly selling what they produce on their wee smallholdings.
The funniest thing among all the cabbages was the sight of a man who had clearly driven to the spot and parked his car to sell what he had. He was standing beside the boot which contained his display of rather handsome cauliflowers. It was almost as if he was selling contraband! We had a good old giggle about that all the way home.
Cabbage is obviously one of Romania's major crops and possibly exports. There is a fair chance that when you buy a cabbage it has come from Romania. Don't worry about us though, there are plenty left over for us and they are massive. When there's only two of you, a quarter of one would be enough. Last week, by chance, I found what has to have been the runt of all Romanian cabbages - one that was just perfect for four.
When we moved here, we lived in the northern part of Bucharest proper; a district called Aviatiei which is considered to be moving upmarket. Now bear in mind that the flat was freshly decorated when we moved in. On the very first morning when we walked into the kitchen we were convinced there was a gas leak so we called the landlord but he knew what it was and immediately said, quite emphatically that no it was not gas. He didn't bother to tell us what the smell was but we worked it out: it was the accumulation of years and years of boiled cabbage which had impregnated the walls and probably the incredibly safe painted, polystyrene tiles covering the kitchen ceiling!
I don't use water when I'm cooking cabbage so I avoid that horrible boiled cabbage smell; the first time I cooked cabbage there, I opened the kitchen window wide and yelled, "That's how you cook cabbage, Bucharest!"
The Birds
We arrived in Romania in August 2010 and it wasn't long before we noticed the birds - you can't help it, there are thousands of them. Every evening at dusk, especially in the winter, the sky turns black and is full of large cawing black birds coming, from the west, in to the city for the night. It's amazing. In the city, every tree in every park, at the roadside or by the lakes is festooned with them. Every available perch is occupied and the racket they create is unbelievable. It reminds me of Glasgow in the seventies with the starlings but on a much larger scale.
When we lived in the city, the proximity of the other buildings meant that most of the time we just saw them flying overhead, now that we live on the outskirts we have had a much closer look at them. Everybody talks about 'the crows' but they seem to be a mixture of ravens, rooks, crows and jackdaws but I'd venture to say, mostly ravens.
I have no idea why this phenomenon happens nor why there are quite so many of them. I mean, where do they go during the day? Where are they in the summer? They're surely not wintering here - it's too cold.
The photo below is of the building to the west of us. Believe me, the same thing is happening around our building too. And all the other tall buildings in the vicinity. And all over the city. It's just amazing.
When we lived in the city, the proximity of the other buildings meant that most of the time we just saw them flying overhead, now that we live on the outskirts we have had a much closer look at them. Everybody talks about 'the crows' but they seem to be a mixture of ravens, rooks, crows and jackdaws but I'd venture to say, mostly ravens.
I have no idea why this phenomenon happens nor why there are quite so many of them. I mean, where do they go during the day? Where are they in the summer? They're surely not wintering here - it's too cold.
The photo below is of the building to the west of us. Believe me, the same thing is happening around our building too. And all the other tall buildings in the vicinity. And all over the city. It's just amazing.