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Henri Coandă International Airport in Otopeni town (population 10,215) north of Bucharest is Romania's busiest airport.
During World War II, the airport in Otopeni was used as an airbase by the German air force. Up to 1965, it was restricted for military use and was one of the major bases of the Romanian Air Force.
Romania, especially Bucharest, has changed SO much since 1994. Back then, when I lived in the capital, the streets were cobblestones mostly, and broken sidewalks. Neighborhood roads were very narrow, and there were open farmer's and flea markets everywhere, as well as chickens and mini farms on people's houses.
Now it's very modern. It's kind of like Singapore, how in just 20 years, the country exploded and became more modernized. Away from the capital there's still some beauty and farmlands. I haven't seen all the pictures in this thread, but do you by chance have pictures of Oradea and the Transylvanian region? I'd love to see them.
Romania, especially Bucharest, has changed SO much since 1994. Back then, when I lived in the capital, the streets were cobblestones mostly, and broken sidewalks. Neighborhood roads were very narrow, and there were open farmer's and flea markets everywhere, as well as chickens and mini farms on people's houses. Now it's very modern. It's kind of like Singapore, how in just 20 years, the country exploded and became more modernized.
I'm surprised too about how good the streets became, you hardly can find a broken road. Most streets have taller than usual sidewalks and kerb stones in order to reduce the temptation of drivers to park on them perhaps, or to stop the dust to be transported by winds, and look robust. On the main roads in the center they plaqued (or are in process of doing) the sidewalks with white stone, it looks neat. Except some areas, is surprinsigly clean for a big city.
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Away from the capital there's still some beauty and farmlands.
Actually the contryside is extremely beautiful and diverse, ofcourse, the mountain and hill zones. Landscape (natural or semi-natural) is very different not only from province to province but between smaller zones (counties and parts of counties) which often contrast much even with neighbour zones). Together with the cultural diversity, makes Romania look more complex than any other European country. I'm not exagerating, is like several countries put together.
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I haven't seen all the pictures in this thread, but do you by chance have pictures of Oradea and the Transylvanian region? I'd love to see them.
Is hard to find decent license free photos of Oradea, below are some pretty old, before 2010.
My impression at my visit in last winter was that the city looked a little outdated and disconnected from modernity. The roads seemed to have been rebuilt some years ago, are in decent condition overall but they don't look very new and instead look dusty, perhaps because kerbs are so low. Some buildings have been restored or are in process and I was surprised to see how professionally and carefully they restore the smallest details and the original aspect, different from Bucharest where at restorations often details are removed or the buildings are modified.
The city has an atmosphere of a transit place, without a community very attached to their living place, different other cities in Transylvania which look more optimistic for this reason and which overall have a more shining and cleaner aspect. This is also because in intracarpathian Transylvania, a hilly / mountainous region, there is less dust then in the flat area where Oradea is, and the air and the environment are cleaner.
Nevertheless, there is a very intense night life and lots of young people on streets, especially at night. In the center there are perhaps 200-300 restaurants and clubs, all located in old buildings (there are streets where all the ground level spaces are only pubs), very discrete and elegantly decorated and which are all filled with young people, during weekend nights at least. And the population is the most westernized in all Romania in behaviour and mentality.
The park's most important features are the Bicaz Gorges, a deep canyon dug by the Bicaz River, the Red Lake - a natural dam lake formed in 1864 following landslides, and the Hăşmaş Mountains.
I like those pics too ( not knowing too much about the country.)
The only big downside to Romania I see is that it is a landlocked country.
I definitely need to see a shore somewhere... and preferably be close to it
These are great pictures! Romania has some fantastic natural scenery.
Thank you! There will be much more to follow.
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Originally Posted by erasure
I like those pics too ( not knowing too much about the country.)
The only big downside to Romania I see is that it is a landlocked country.
I definitely need to see a shore somewhere... and preferably be close to it
Is not landlocked and while we have only 245 km of coast, we have the busiest port of all countries at Black Sea, Russia and Turkey included - Constanța - which also, according to Turkey's prime minister, Erdogan, is the city with the richest history at the same area of Black Sea.
Constanța (Bulgarian: Кюстенджа, Turkish: Köstence) was established under the name Tomis around 600 BCE by Greeks from Miletus, a city in today Turkey. In 29 BCE Romans annexed Dobruja (the region where Constanța is) and the Greek cities from here (Histria, Tomis, Callatis, Argamum, Axiopolis, Aegysus etc) continued to have an autonomy, as other civitas peregrinae - cities ruled by the native population in the provinces of the empire.
In the year 8 CE, Ovid (one of the three greatest Roman poets) was banished here by Augustus, where he found his death eight years later. Here he wrote the most famous of his volumes, Tristia and Epistulae ex Ponto, which contains some interesting information about the local Dacian (Getic) population.
Tomis was later renamed to Constantiana in honour of Constantia, the half-sister of Roman Emperor Constantine the Great (274-337). In 4th century it became the main Christian center of the area and the bishops from here participated at at least two of the Ecumenical Councils.
In 7th century was destroyed by Slavs and Avars and was sporadically inhabited between 7th and 10th century. It will reborn with the return of the Byzantine rule in Dobruja, as other former cities and forts of Dobruja and in 13th century will become one of the settlements in the area controlled by Genovese.
Between 1420 and 1878, together with all Dobruja, will be part of the Ottoman empire, as a not very important town. After the annexation of Dobruja by Romania in 1878, it will develop and grew rapidly to be today the fifth largest city in Romania and the second largest economy after Bucharest.
Constanța has always had a mixed population, before 1878 being majoritary Turkish - Tatar and Greek. Today, from the 283,872 inhabitants (425,916 in the metro area), beside the Romanian majority there are Turks (2.6%), Tatars (2.9%), Roma (0.83%), Greeks etc.
The commercial port with Mircea - the training vessel (1938) of the Romanian Navy and some other Romanian military and coast guard ships.
Ovidiu Square with Carol I mosque (1913) in the middle of image, the National History and Archaeology Museum (a building from 1911) on the right and the statue of Ovid in middle of the square. The square was recently refurbished and is situated in the middle of the Peninsula, the oldest part of the city (see map at the bottom of the post), where the Greek and Roman agora once stood. The museum is the richest after the one in Bucharest among the history museums in Romania.
The Roman Mosaic Building was erected in early 4th century CE as a meeting place for commerciants and a space for social events, being the largest and most remarkable building of the ancient city.
The mosaic, extending on 2,000 square meters, is possibly the largest contiguous mosaic of the ancient Roman world, though only 700 square meters are preserved.
The Casino, built in 1909, is the finest Art Nouveau building in Romania and the symbol of Constanța. Abandoned for several decades and in a state of degradation, will be restored perhaps next year.
Last photo is during one of the winters when the sea froze, a phenomenon taking place in some years (and in most of the winters before the global warming).
Inside the Natinal Museum of History and Archaeology with pieces from the Sculpture Treasure, a group of fine sculptures dating from 2nd-3rd centuries CE representing pagan gods, hidden in 4th century, when Christians took control over the city.
With 611 km² is the largest national park (some natural parks are larger) in Romania. Is a mountainous area (cirques, mountain peaks, sinkholes, limestone pavements, caves, pit caves, valleys, waterfalls), that shelters a large variety of flora and fauna, some of the species very rare or endemic.
The relief is very spectacular with Cerna Valley and its tributaries having deep canyons covered from bottom to top in wild sub-Mediterranean jungle.
The black-pine is the most representative plant species, hanging on top of the cliffs.
The only big downside to Romania I see is that it is a landlocked country.
Constantia on the Black Sea is one of Europe's largest container ports. Containers are off-loaded onto river ships and taken right into central European countries via the River Danube.
Romania is a beautiful country, I have been there. They have preserved the old town architecture very well, one good point of the old Communist regime. A capitalist system would have ripped it all out for profit as seen in western Europe and especially the UK.
Last edited by CARPATHIAN; 10-15-2014 at 01:27 AM..
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and preferably be close to it 
