Constanta to Bucharest

We spent the morning retracing our route along the Danube - Black Sea Canal by bus and then turning North. Most of the land was flat Agricultural plains growing wheat, corn, and sun flowers.

Romanian countryside

Christian told us about how his in-laws worked in a ball bearing plant, but after they retired, they restored their parent’s home and maintained the vineyard in the area outside of Bucharest. They grew five types of Romanian grapes that survived the disease that devastated most European grapes in the 19^th century.

Romania, like so many other communist countries, confiscated farms and property, and brought people to the cities to industrialize the country, providing 700 Sq ft apartments which were heated by a centralized steam plant outside the city. After the revolution in 1989, these apartments were owned by their occupants. Some of the people added extra insulation, bought heater units, and added air conditioning.

Bucharest has 2.1 million of Romania’s 19 million people. The city has 3 million vehicles making it the most congested traffic in Europe. Romania joined NATO in 2004, and the EU in 2007.

Hearing about the Romanian Revolution

We stopped at Revolution Square to listen to Egmund, who as a 15-year-old participated in the protests here on December 21^st, 1989. Why? His grandfather had spent three years working on the canal. Under communism, there was lack of fuel and electricity, little ability to travel, no free speech, and it was illegal for more than five people to gather. Nicolae Ceaușescu made a mistake by encouraging folks to gather on this square to protest hooligans, but the crowd of 100,000 turned it into a protest against him. Troops and tanks killed 1200 here and 4000 were wounded. Ceaușescu escaped via helicopter from the roof but was captured and held for trial 3 ½ hours later. By December 23^rd the army switched sides. Ceaușescu had a 70-minute trial and on December 25^th and was executed. This was the Romanian Revolution.

Egmund with the flag he carried that day