Articles (645)

Where the name of the Balta Albă neighborhood comes from. Caragea’s plague decimated 19th-century Bucharest

Bucharest is a city of contrasts, where modernity and history meet at every step. Each neighborhood preserves traces of the past, even when they are not visible at first glance. Streets, squares, and districts are not just geographical spaces, but places that have gathered stories, memories, and legends. Among these places is the Balta Albă neighbo...

The story of Willy Pragher, the greatest photographer of interwar Bucharest

Few visual artists managed to capture the essence of a foreign land as faithfully as Willy Pragher did. Born in Berlin on May 4, 1908, under the name Wilhelm Alexander Prager, he became known to the world as Willy Pragher. Although German by birth, much of his childhood and cultural formation took place in Bucharest, in the home of his grandfather,...

Who was Ion Marin Sadoveanu, the writer seduced and abandoned by one of the greatest actresses of interwar Bucharest

Less than fifteen years after the birth of the celebrated Mihail Sadoveanu, Romanian literature received another name destined to endure in history. In a family with Bucharest roots, on June 15, 1893, Iancu Leonte Marinescu was born, the one who would become known under the pen name Ion Marin Sadoveanu. This choice was not accidental: the young wri...

How much apartments and houses sold for in Bucharest in August 2025. Transaction prices per square meter

Statistics confirm that the Bucharest real estate market remained active in August 2025, with prices reflecting both the growing demand for small and medium-sized homes and the steady interest in premium properties. The differences between segments show that every category of buyers maintains its preferences, from studios considered affordable inve...

The hidden costs of healthcare in Bucharest: when you end up paying out of pocket in public hospitals

Romania’s public healthcare system is funded mainly by the state and the National Health Insurance House (CNAS). In theory, if you are insured, most hospital services should be free or heavily subsidized. In practice, however, many patients in Bucharest (and across the country) face unexpected additional expenses — medications, materials, certain p...

Sephardim, the vanished community of Bucharest. Who they are and how many still live today

The Sephardic Jewish community of Bucharest has a history spanning several centuries, but today their numbers are extremely small. Descendants of those expelled from Spain and Portugal at the end of the 15th century, the Sephardim found refuge in southern Romania and later contributed to the economic, social, and cultural life of the capital. Once...

Why Bucharest Has a Square Named Charles de Gaulle and the History Behind It

Charles de Gaulle Square, one of the busiest and most well-known intersections in northern Bucharest, has a unique history, marked by successive name changes dictated by the political context of each era. The place that today connects the Primăverii neighborhood, Aviatorilor Boulevard, and Herăstrău Park was, at the beginning of the 19th century, k...

History with a taste of the past. “Caragiale’s Gambrinus Brewery, the fiercest rival of the famous Caru’ cu Bere

Few stories in Bucharest’s history combine flavors, culture, and literary memories as well as that of the Gambrinus Brewery. A celebrated haunt of the city’s bohemian circles, the legendary establishment was more than just a tavern: it became a symbol of the capital, a meeting point for writers, journalists, artists, and politicians. Its associatio...

Chiajna Monastery, between myth and reality. The cemetery, the shadows, and the curse of the bell

On the outskirts of Bucharest, where urban blends with rural and past intertwines with present, rise the imposing ruins of Chiajna Monastery. A place steeped in mystery and stories that defy logic, this unfinished sanctuary has become, for the people of Bucharest, a space of legends: where shadows come to life, bells still ring beyond time, and a c...

Hotel Cișmigiu, haunted by immortal legends. The story of Neli Bejan, the student from Bessarabia who died in the elevator shaft

In the center of Bucharest, on Regina Elisabeta Boulevard, just a few steps from Cișmigiu Garden, stands an imposing building with a history of more than a century: Hotel Cișmigiu. Inaugurated during the interwar period, it went through eras of glory, decline, and rebirth, becoming an urban and cultural landmark. Yet beyond its elegant architecture...