A brief moment in Bucharest

This 🪴 Evergreen post was crafted on May 13, 2020 here at meander.co.nz ( & last updated August 21st, 2021)

The longer I had travelled, the more my desire for planning new destinations had fallen by the wayside. Not due to laziness, rather because at this time in my journey I’d come to deeply enjoy the last-minuteness of it all. A last minute trip to Bulgaria evolved into an even more last minute weekend in Bucharest, the capital city of Romania.

After a short shuttlebus ride exchanging stories with fellow foreign travellers of misunderstanding Bulgarian culture came to an end, we pulled into the heart of the city.

Bucharest is becoming a popular hub for remote workers; boasting some of the fastest internet speeds in the world, a host of gorgeous architecture, fascinating history and excellent cafe culture. This trip was the perfect excuse to get some work done and see the sights.

I hopped out of the van a little underwhelmed at the typical rural landscapes en route, said my goodbyes, and made my way off in an arbitrary direction. It didn’t matter which way I went as I had nowhere I needed to be. The bus from Ruse was easy, frequent and cheap; my severe lack of either language didn’t seem to hinder the process either.

A holiday arrival into Bucharest

It was Easter Sunday when I arrived. The shops sat closed and the streets empty. The sun was shining though and the few people about seemed to have a pretty good grasp of English. I spied things that normally send me running for cover: H&M, McDonalds, Starbucks. Instead I took a breath of relief from the familiarity of it all. A month in Bulgaria had taken its toll.

Bulgarian Leva weren’t going to get me far here, so I stopped in at the nearest bankomart. Right, how many Leu would I like, it asked nonchalantly. Good question, I wonder what a lei is worth? I stopped to ponder. I got out a hundred and stuffed them into my wallet.  Would my wad of cash would pay for a weeks worth of hotels or a single coca cola?.

I took a leisurely jaunt down a wide tree-lined boulevard with patches of vivid purple irises where families basked in the shaded grassy knolls, and in the distance a giant fountain marked the entrance to Palatul Parlamentului, the second largest building in the world after the Pentagon. So impressively large, In fact, it can be spotted from space.
With all the cafes shut for the day,  I resigned myself to the steps outside of a store with free WIFI and browsed my phone for somewhere to sleep.

I made my way toward a cheap, nearby hostel, taking me past the river and some impressive historical buildings. The old city of Bucharest was marked by charming cobblestones and a narrowing of the walkways. A lone violinist belted out Vivaldi under the facade of a grand historical building.

Bucharest, AKA The ‘Other’ Paris

Known as the ‘little Paris’ of Eastern Europe, it doesn’t stretch the imagination too far to see why. It even has its own ‘Arcul de Triumf’. The old city is the pulsing heart with its uncovered ruins, cobbled walkways and stretches of restaurants that come alive in the night. Although not quite the same experience as Paris, it is a bucket load cheaper and affords many of the similar charms.

Other than that first day of glorious sun shine, the rest of my short visit in Bucharest rained. This was fine by me as I had a ton of work to get through. It was a great opportunity to explore Bucharest’s thriving digital nomad scene.

Working remotely from Bucharest

I spent a day working from Puravida hub; a co-working space, co-living space (in cahoots with the glorious Little Bucharest old town hostel next door) and tea house.  Beautifully decorated  with old speakers, retro posters and provence-esque tins of fragrant fresh lavender. I indulged in high-speed wifi to the ambient sounds of french jazz and looked out over the old city streets. Gazing down to the rounded copper roofs I spied the yellow umbrella of a lady walking in the rain. For a moment, this could easily be Paris.

Inspired by Romanian scenery

I only had four days to spend in Romania, but in my time there I learned of many other natural wonders in the country – spectacular mountains, picturesque villages, impressive castles (including Dracula’s castle!) and beautiful coastlines. Perhaps someday I will return to see what the rest of this unassumingly gorgeous, and often misunderstood, country has to offer. (Check out The Culture Trip’s ‘The 12 Most Beautiful Spots in Romania for some more inspiration!)