I head through the arrival hall of Henry Coanda Airport and see a wave of Romanians waiting for friends and relatives. I was to meet my driver by the information booth of the arrival hall. "I hope he is still here" I think to myself. As I walk towards the exit I look at all the people holding up pieces of paper with names on it. I see my name and head towards the guy holding it. I shake hands with the guy and apologise for the delay. He just grunts and I realise he does not speak English. We make our way out through the car park and out to the car. There is snow everywhere and I can really start to feel the cold biting me. We arrive at the car and I put my backpack in the car and then move to the left side of the car to enter. I open the door to get in and I see a steering wheel. I pause for a moment in confusion. They drive on the left side of the car in Romania. I laugh and my driver gets in as I head to the right side of the car and get in the passengers seat. We head out of the car park and onto the highway.
Despite the fact that I am on the wrong side of the car, everything is covered in snow and the person driving the car doesn't understand anything I say, I don't really feel uncomfortable or out of place. There are industrial buildings either side of the road. Some have familiar signs of companies we have in Australia. An interesting one I saw was 'Banca Transylvania'. I chuckled as I thought that must be a blood bank. I find small things amusing sometimes. The street signs for the most part are similar to ours however the words are obviously in Romanian. alongside the main road were beautiful parks. They were covered in snow and the trees just looked like blackened stumps but they were still beautiful. We turn left onto a stretch of road. It has an unusual layout. There are 4 lanes heading one way then a median strip then a wide lane suitable for 2 cars going in the same direction. Next to this, only separated by a single unbroken white line is another wide lane going the opposite direction, then a median strip and 4 lanes heading in the same direction. The cars are no different to what you would find in Australia, but the traffic is much more chaotic. I start to think of something I read that said Romanians are bad drivers and I can see some evidence of this.
After heading down this road we come to a big stone arch in the middle of the highway with roads branching off in all directions. The structure is called 'Arch De Triumf' and it is similar to the one in Paris. Matybe this is why Bucharest is referred to as 'Little Paris'. After this we turn onto a road which enters into the main city. Along the side of the road are apartment buildings. They are nicely designed, however the look very dilapidated and old. Bits of stone missing from the walls, cracks, rust on balconies, etc. On the right there is a huge building it looks like it was an apartment block, however now it is just a hollow shell. I find it intriguing that this still stands here amidst the other apartment buildings. I look down some cross streets and all i can see for miles is buildings. It is now I realise how big this city is.
Romania's population is roughly the same size as Australia's but from what I understand is the population is more concentrated around the city regions. It is minus 3 degrees celcius but there are still people everywhere walking the streets. I find the vastness of the old buildings intriguing and cannot wait to see some more of this city.The other thing I noticed is how beautiful all the women here are. I had heard this before, but i thought it was an exaggeration until I saw it with my own eyes.
My hotel, The Europa Royale, is in Old Town, a district in Bucharest where most of the restaurants, shops, pubs and clubs can be found. My driver pulls up and stops on the side of the road we get out and he opens the back of the hatchback and helps me pull my backpack from the car. "We are here?" I ask. He says "Yes" I look around and cannot see where it is. He points down a cobblestone alley way in front of me and I start to walk down looking at the signs ahead. It is bitterly cold. Hmmmm... this isn't good, I am already lost in Bucharest. About halfway down the alleyway I see a door which leads into what looks like a reception area. I decide to go in and ask the guy at the counter if he can help me. I hand him the hotel voucher and ask if I am in the right place. He looks at the voucher and as if he was confused for a moment answers.. "Ah yes, this is the hotel". I breathe a sigh of relief. A woman comes to the counter to check me in and asks for my passport. I give it to her and she explains a little about where the hotel is located, shows me some sights on a map. She asks me If I came all the way from Australia and when i respond with yes, smiles and says "Nice. I hope you brought some warmer clothes". At this point I was just wearing jeans with a T Shirt and fleecy long sleeve shirt over the top. I tell her that i have some warmer clothes in my bag I just couldn't be bothered to get them out. All the hotel staff spoke English very well. I get the room key, the WiFi password and the porter assists with my bag.
The porter leads me through, as is becoming a common theme, an unusual layout for the hotel. We step out of the lift on Level 3 and to the right their is room 301 he leads me through a door into stair well and then through another door on the opposite side. Then we head down the hall way to room 305. Once inside the room, he shows me everything explains how the air conditioner works and tells me if I need anything, cigarettes, WOMEN, he will arrange it. I say, thanks but I think I will manage on my own, tip him and close the door behind him.
First thing i do is plug in my phone, turn on the laptop and smoke a cigarette. I log onto yahoo and my friend, (for now she will remain known as Miss C), has left me a message for when I arrive. I text her to let her know I am here and respond to some other messages on my phone and Facebook. Then I had a shower grabbed an Ursus (Romanian beer) from the mini bar and begin to update my blog. I needed cigarettes so I go down and ask reception where the nearest store is. They tell me is just around the corner. I venture around the corner and down the street maybe 100 metres is a little convenience store. The woman working there is middle aged but seems to understand what I want when I ask for Lucky Strike Blue. The cigarettes are 13 lei (about $3 - $4 AUD). On my way back I light a cigarette and decide to walk just down past the hotel to where there is an old chapel and a sign. I am reading the sign when all of a sudden, a beggar approaches me. "Do you have a cigarette for me?" he asks. I think why not... and I say "It's your lucky day I have an Australian cigarette you can have". I give him one of the Winfield Blues I had and he makes some chit chat about where I am from. He speaks good English. I suppose you have to when you make a living begging off tourists. He walks away and as I turn to leave,he returns and asks me for money. I tell him I don't have much and walk back towards the hotel. The lesson I learned is don't give the beggars here anything or they will hassle you for more. Well, my first beggar encounter within 30 minutes. All I need to do is get pick pocketed and run into a pack of stray dogs and the trifecta will be completed.
After writing the story about the flight from Sydney, I order some chicken schnitzel from room service, drink another beer this time a Tuborg. The Mini bar is cheap here compared to Australia so I don't care about the costs. I get 4 Romanian lei for every Euro so it's good value.
I turn on the TV. Romanian TV is crazy... I don't understand anything they;re saying but i laugh at some woman with oversized tits bouncing up and down. Miss C would later tell me that there are only whores and assholes on Romanian TV, I just find it amusing. It is now about 8:00 PM and I am tired. Miss C tells me that she will contact me tomorrow to arrange our first meeting and I decide to go to sleep.
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