The last Sunday architectural history and photography excursion took place in the Foisorul de Foc (Fire Watchtower) area of east-central Bucharest. Although there was a dense and cold rain that morning, it proved no obstacle at all for the enthusiastic and committed participants! I have thus been very impressed by their commitment and desire to find out about the architectural heritage of this more “off the beaten track” part of the Romanian metropolis, being more than pleased to share my knowledge with them. In the Foisorul de Foc area one can still find authentic echoes from the atmosphere of inter-war Bucharest, with well preserved Art Deco and Neo-Romanian style dwellings, as the photomontage and slide show presented here I hope testify. There is also a fair number of scattered around picturesque old Little Paris style houses from the La Belle Époque, a period when the expanse was on the edges of the city and had a semi-rural character. We also noticed two main particularities in the local architecture: the existence of a number of crudely built tenements, in the Art Deco and Neo-Romanian style, during the economic booms of the early 1920s (the “roaring ’20s”) and the late 1930s, as speculative investment by the developers of those times, and a higher than usual density of what I call inter-war Venetian style houses, a somehow more frivolous architecture, which indicates the good times that followed the 1930s Great Depression. In all, the tour has been a success and proved that the weather is not a deterrent for those interested in the architectural history and identity of Bucharest! I thus look confidently forward for tours during the depths of winter :), watch this space!
The next Sunday (10 July ’11, 9am-12.00) architectural history and photography tour will take place in Kiseleff historic quarter, north-west-central Bucharest (see a map at this link); meeting point: Piata Victoriei tube station (in front of the exit on Boulevard Aviatorilor, the one from where you can see the Air Forces monument). I look forward to seeing you there!
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I endeavour through this series of periodic articles to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural history and heritage.
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If you plan acquiring or selling a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in sourcing and transacting the property, specialist research, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contactpage of this weblog.
Valentin Mandache, architectural historian 
………it is a beautiful tower – we lived near there when we lived in Bucharest. At night, when it is lit, it is quite nice.
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