March 9, Day 13, Bucharest

We had a wonderful tour with GuruWalk, covering the old town, some of the newer parts, and a bit of history. Our guide, Elena, was amazing. She is a puppeteer by training, but during COVID, she shifted her profile and now does tours full-time. She brought her performance art and humor into this in a big way. At one point, she even put on a tiny puppet show for us, demonstrating how impaling works with a chopstick and a finger puppet.

It was amazing to see multiple places in town where, in a single block, you might find a medieval church, then a 17th-century inn, then a French revival mansion, and right next to them a Soviet brutalist monstrosity.

One of the places that impressed me most was the stunning Stavropoleos Monastery Church. Pictures do not do it any justice. The church was built in 1724 by a Greek monk named Ioanichie Stratonikeas during the period when Wallachia was under strong Ottoman influence but still deeply Orthodox. Architecturally, it is a beautiful example of the Romanian blend of Byzantine, Ottoman, Renaissance, and Baroque elements (also known as the Brâncovenesc style among critics). The carved stone columns, intricate arches, and painted decorations make it feel both delicate and ornate. The frescos are amazing. The small cloister courtyard with various bits of architectural debris behind it adds to the charm.

Elena’s presentation was as interesting and fun as the visuals themselves. She is very optimistic about Romania’s future and clearly a passionate Bucharesti. That enthusiasm came through and made us appreciate this fun, quirky city much more. Elena mentioned a few times the incredible progress the city had made since the 1989 revolution and invited the guests to come back in 10 years to see where it would be. It would be awesome!

A separate interesting element of the tour was a fellow participant, Max, who shares our origin story and now also lives in the US. We walked together and chatted a bit. He likes it here as well. According to him, Bucharest has the beauty of Western European countries but without some of the other non-native elements, if you know what I mean. He also commented that even the Roma population is “tamer” here and that, for a Slavic Orthodox person (ahem), it feels like a safer environment. And the girls are prettier too, apparently. It was a handful, but it is good to know he has his reasons for liking the place.

For lunch, we went to Caru’ cu Bere recommended by Elena. In fact we faithfully stopped by in most of the food places suggested by Elena :) 

Caru cu Bere is a beautiful historic beer hall from 1879, built in a Gothic revival style and famous for its stained glass, carved wood, and painted ceilings. Except we arrived during lunch hour, and it was complete chaos. We left an hour and a half later with only some of our food served.

It is worth visiting, but probably not at peak meal time. Maybe just grab a drink at the bar. It is fun to see the place alive with live music and crowds, but not the best time to try to have an actual meal.

After that, we chased it with a stuffed pretzel from Luca.

Next, we took a tram to Obor Market. Really lovely, organized, proper, and bustling. Contrary to our usual conviction never to stand in line, we did stand in line to try the market’s famous skinless sausages, mici. Here is a nice write-up about the place.

I think it may be one of those cases where expectations rise in direct proportion to the time spent in line. Still, they were good, and anyone reading this will probably go stand in the same line regardless.

We took the tram back and visited a few synagogues in the Jewish quarter, including the Choral Temple. They were closed, but the architecture is beautiful. The Choral Temple, built in 1867, is the largest synagogue in Bucharest. Its design was inspired by the Great Synagogue of Vienna and reflects the strong Jewish community that once lived in the city. Before World War II, Bucharest had one of the largest Jewish populations in Eastern Europe. Much of that community disappeared during the Holocaust and later emigration, but several historic synagogues still remain.

In the evening, we went to the famous newer Bucharest attraction, the Therme București hot baths. 

There are geothermal springs about 11 miles outside the city, and the complex is heavily advertised, so we decided to try it. It is a large, complex facility with multiple pools, saunas, LED lighting, tropical plants, and lots of relaxation areas. Very polished, very modern. And also very commercialized. Everything is for sale, even water, and there are no water fountains.

On a Monday night, it was packed with young locals clearly using the place as a social scene. Let’s just say you could feel the energy. 

I remembered the joke Elena made at the beginning of the tour when she asked what city we were in. Apparently, people confusing Bucharest with Budapest and showing up in the wrong city are not so rare.

Well, Bucharest seems prepared now. Hot baths? They have them.

We went around sampling the various pools and saunas. Still most partial to Dima’s, though :).

But good for Bucharest. It is a great modern attraction, and in 2024, Therme reportedly made about €48 million in revenue, up 21% from the previous year. It seems to be growing fast.

Afterward, we came back to town and wrapped up the evening at another Elena recommendation, Restaurant Hanu’ lui Manuc. A gorgeous historic restaurant from the early 1800s with a big courtyard. 

We ordered papanasi, a traditional Romanian dessert of deep-fried sweet cheese doughnuts, basically ponchiki, covered in sour cream and sour cherry preserves.

Very, very good. 

We ordered them twice.

And that was Day 13 on the road.