Nocturnal end-of-year tour in Lipscani, 30 Dec. 11

Dear Readers,

As the year is drawing to a close, I would like to invite you to a nocturnal architectural end-of-year tour in the area of Lipscani in Bucharest, the historic urban core of Romania’s capital and also its oldest market, open to all of you who would like to accompany me, the author of the Historic Houses of Romania blog, for two hours, between 18.00h – 20.00h, on Friday 30 December ’11!

Bucharest, which is now the sixth largest city of the European Union, has its urban beginnings in the area of Lipscani, located now in the very centre of the large metropolis that it has became over more than five centuries of documented existence. Here in the Middle Ages traders from the Byzantium and later the Ottoman Empire changed goods with those who came from Central and Western Europe. In fact the name Lipscani is a Romanian appellative for the inhabitants of  the German town of Leipzig, whose traders were prominent on the Bucharest market in those early times. The architecture of the quarter is one of the most picturesque and exquisite in the entire city and has undergone a thorough restoration and renovation in the last couple of years, which is still ongoing, when many cafés, pubs and restaurants opened in large numbers to welcome visitors. The earliest examples of Little Paris style buildings are present in Lipscani, as well as some well restored edifices from the Ottoman times, such as Manuc’s Inn, the last great caravanserai of Ottoman dominated Europe.  Lipscani also contains imposing Art Deco, Neo-Romanian, Neoclassical and Beaux Arts style buildings. The area is brimful with history, architectural details and character, waiting for you to be discovered! 🙂

The meeting point is on the entrance staircase of the National Bank of Romania building on Lipscani Street, see the map bellow, at 17.45h – 18.00h, after which we will proceed for two hours to discover and admire, in the special atmosphere of the evening hours at the end of the year, what constitutes the historic and architectural essence of Bucharest. The streets of Lipscani are some of the best illuminated in Bucharest, therefore we will not have any problem in visualising its architecture at that particular time. The tour will end, for those who wish, at a Lipscani café or pub, where we can continue to exchange views and ideas over a coffee or beer.

I look forward to seeing you there!

Valentin Mandache, expert in Romania’s historic houses (tel: 0040 (0)728323272)