Roaming in Romania

After recently spending time in Ukraine and Moldova, it felt odd to enter the polished streets of Bucharest with its sprawling boulevards and Arch of Triumph. It is a strange mix of western architecture and communist style buildings.

The Palace of the Parliament is the world’s largest civilian building, as well as the most heavy one. With construction initiated in 1984, Ceausescu intended it both as a private residence and housing of several national institutions such as the Parliament and Supreme Court. Unfortunately over 20 churches and a lot of the historical part of the city was destroyed to make space for the building. The destruction was so immense that the word “Ceaushima” was coined, sarcastically linking Ceausescu to the bombing of Hiroshima.

The building was almost finished at the time of his execution in 1989, but only the exterior design as much of the interior still consists of large empty spaces. Today the building is used by the National Museum of Contemporary Art among others.

Palace of the Parliament in Bucharest.