Bucharest

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Bucharest is Romania's capital and largest city, as well as the most important industrial and commercial center of the country. With its 2 million inhabitants in the city proper and more than 2.4 million in the urban area, it is also one of the largest cities in Eastern Europe.

	bucharest Travel Guide : 1 Districts 2 Understand 2.1 Language 2.2 Climate 2.3 Time 3 Get in/out 3.1 Metro (Subway) 3.2 Buses, trams and trolleybuses 3.3 Light rail 4 See 4.1 Old Center 4.2 Palace of Parliament 5 Sleep 6 Stay safe 7 External links

Districts

Bucharest is divided in 6 official districts (sector, plural sectoare), numbered from 1 to 6, each has its own mayor and council. They are counted clockwise, starting from Piata Unirii. An unofficial district system is in far wider use, as people refer to places by using the neighbourhood they are located in (cartier, cartiere). Neighbourhoods cover the entirety of the city, both slums and rich suburbs. A neighbourhood may cover 200.000 persons (such as Balta Alba) or 1.000 persons (such as Primaverii).

In alphabetical order, these neighbourhoods are:

• 1 Mai
• Aviatiei
• Balta Alb?
• B?neasa
• Berceni
• Centru (divided in Victoriei, Roman?, Universitatii and Unirii)
• Chitila
• Colentina
• Cotroceni
• Crânga?i
• Drumul Taberei
• Ferentari
• Floreasca
• Gara de Nord
• Giule?ti
• Giurgiului
• Iancului
• Militari
• Obor
• Orzari
• Pantelimon
• Prim?verii
• Rahova
• Titan
• Vitan

Understand

Bucharest is usually the entry point for most people into Romania. On the other hand, the city itself isn't particularly appealing to all tourists, and it is usually a matter of personal taste whether visitors like it or not. Some people adore it and think it really has a special feel to it, others feel uncomfortable due to the grey Communist-era buildings and lack of charm or tourist attractions. Yet again, others believe the urban myths about crime, homelessness and poverty, even though these are only what they state to be - myths. Bucharest offers some excellent attractions, and increasingly has the sophisticated, trendy and modern edge to it that defines a European capital. If you're in the region, it would be negligent to not visit it, even if just for the curiosity of seeing such a paradoxical city.

Language

The official (and native) language is Romanian. Most educated people born after about 1970 will speak reasonably good English; most educated people born before about 1970 will speak reasonably good French. The Gypsies speak their native Romany, as well as Romanian, and sometimes English. Other than that, you'll find some people who know German and Italian. Beyond that, as in any major city, there will be a smattering of other languages.

Climate

Bucharest has, like most of Romania, a temperate-continental climate with hot summers and cold winters. This region of Romania gets all four seasons, although spring is brief and falls mainly in April. The average high daily temperature in summer is about 28șC and in winter about 0șC. It can get really hot and dry during the summer (40șC) and really cold during the winter (-20șC). Best time to visit is April through June, September through October and early December.

Time

Bucharest is in the Eastern European time zone (UTC+2, UTC+3 from April to October).

Get in/out

Bucharest has one of the most extensive systems of public transport in Europe, even though it can sometimes be confusing and crowded.

Metro (Subway)

The metro, which has four lines and covers the city quite extensively, is usually a good way to get around even though there are surprisingly few stops in the city centre, since the system was originally built to transport workers and commuters from outlying quarters into the city. If you're staying outside the city center, or even if you want to travel within it, the Metro can be a very fast and convenient way of travelling to your destination avoiding the traffic jams and crowds that frequently characterise surface transport such as buses and trams.

The network is very frequent and fairly comfortable, reliable and easy-to-use. Since 2002, Bucharest Metro has embarked on a comprehensive modernisation plan, including the replacement of old trainsets with state-of-the-art Bombardier Transportation trains and the renovation of stations and tracks in collaboration with Alstom. Note that the Bucharest Metro is one of the only networks in Eastern Europe that does not use old Soviet-style train cars - all Metro cars were either built in Romania (in Romanian style) or bought from Bombardier (now they are being built in partnership in Romania).

The new line 4, completed March 1st 2000, is also very modern and clean. There are also currently many extensions in construction and planning, including a link from the city to Bucharest's Henri Coand? International Airport.

Buses, trams and trolleybuses

Bucharest has a very complex network of buses, trams and trolleybuses which is, at first glance, fairly confusing to the tourist. This is not because of any inconsistencies within the network, but rather due to the intricate web of hundreds of bus, tram and trolleybus routes found in the city. Once you know your way around the network, however, public surface transport can be a very good way of getting around since there is a bus, tram or trolleybus stop virtually everywhere in this city. The vehicles are usually very frequently, although they can also get terribly crowded at peak hours. Make sure you know the stop you're getting off at - in most trolleybuses or buses, following stops are announced automatically and displayed on a screen inside the vehicle.

Tickets can be bought from RATB kiosks at a significant amount of stops. Be warned that you cannot buy tickets in the vehicles and if caught by an inspector you could be fined with 50 new lei. If you're staying longer than a few days, your best bet is to buy a weekly ticket (abonament s?pt?mânal), which is cheaper and enables you to travel as much as you want.

Light rail

RATB, Bucharest's surface transport operator, recently unveiled a snazzy new light rail network, which they call "light metro", in the western part of Bucharest. The network is modern, fast and clean, although its reach is currently fairly limited. If you're staying in this area, though, it can give you the best of both worlds - the coverage and convenience of the bus network combined with the speed and comfort of the metro network.

See

Old Center

Although the Ceau?escu's regime has done a lot of demolishing, there are still a few streets which preserve the century-old buildings of the old Bucharest, which was known as the "Little Paris". Unfortunatelly too litle was done for the preservation and reconditoning of these buildings and streets.

Palace of Parliament

In the center of Bucharest, near Pia?a Unirii (Union Plazza) the tourist can see one of the biggest buildings in the world, formerly named "People's House" by Ceausescu.

Sleep

• Hotel Capitol, Calea Victoria 29, phone: (40 21) 315 80 30, fax: (40 21) 312 41 69. As of 2002, US$75 single / US$98 double includes breakfast and all taxes. You may be able to get a discount by paying cash (US dollars will do nicely): ask at the desk. Comfortable, though admittedly not quite hassle-free, 100-year-old three-star hotel with big rooms and enormous bathrooms, near Cercul Militar. The heat works. Little things like that do not go without saying in Romania.
• Visali , Str. Occidentului 25, phone: (40 21) 210 12 74, fax: (40 21) 210 12 74.If you don't need any hotel services, you can get a short term rental on a pleasant, centrally located apartment for a price comparable to a midrange hotel like the Capitol (with good discounts for long-term stays). The office staff speaks excellent English.
• Hotel Carpa?i, Str Matei Milo 16, phone: (40 21) 315 01 40; fax: (40 21) 312 18 57. By all accounts, Bucharest's one genuinely good, centrally located bare bones budget one-star hotel. As of 2002, singles US$11-17, doubles US$25-33 and a couple of apartments at US$40. Except for the apartments, expect to share a bathroom down the hall. Some of the rooms have balconies (ask). If you arrive on the day and they are full, they are likely to be able to tell you what else in the area is also relatively cheap and decent. They tend to be comfortable answering that sort of question because they know the only reason anyone would be looking elsewhere is that the Carpati is full.
• Hotel Continental
• Intercontinental
• Hotel Lido
• Hotel Majestic
• Hotel Ibis
• Hotel Parliament

Stay safe

Beware street scams, especially the maradona, in which fake plainclothes police will try to take your money or papers. No civilian dressed police officer is allowed to ask you for papers in Romania. Romanian police officers will almost never fine a pedestrian, but they almost always pull over foreign registered cars, to see if the drivers have all the papers ok. Bribing is very common, but generally it is not demanded directly.

Avoid crowded buses and trolleybusses as you may lose your money and/or your cell phone. Thieves that operate in mass transit vehicles are referred to as "suti" and they usually operate on the most crowded buses : 226, 336, 368, 32, 41, 70, 102.

Stray dogs remain a problem in Bucharest, even though their numbers are gradually decreasing due to projects by the City Hall. Rabies vaccinations are not needed for most travellers, since most dogs will not give you a problem unless you go out of your way to pester them, though they are recommended. There have been no rabies cases in Bucharest since 1999.

External links

• Joe Mabel's personal Bucharest guide (http://www.speakeasy.org/~jmabel/travels/bucguide.html).
• Joe Kelley (http://home.xnet.com/~jkelley/index2.html) gives an extensive account of his 1998 visit to Romania in his Bucharest Bugle (http://home.xnet.com/~jkelley/BucharestBugle.fldr/BuchBugle00.html).
• Bucharest in your pocket (http://www.inyourpocket.com/romania/bucharest/en/) can help you get around.

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