Our Travel Blog: Constanța

July 28, 2015

Another REALLY hot day! Every day has been about 35C.

Today we had the option of exploring Bucharest on our own, or taking an optional excursion to the city of Constanța on the Romanian coast. Everyone in our group signed up except for two who can't walk well. We were supposed to meet at 8 am, and we waited until 8:15 and one pair didn't show up, so the bus left without them.

Image credit http://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/europe/romania/map_of_romania.jpg

It was a 3 hour bus ride to Constanța, which is a resort town on the Black Sea. It is the largest port on the Black Sea. Constanța is the oldest populated city in Romania. It was founded by the Greeks around 600 BC and was called Tomis. Legend has it that Jason landed here with the Argonauts after finding the Golden Fleece. Constanța was captured by the Romans in 29 BC and there are many Roman ruins to be seen. Constanța is named after Emporer Constantine (or his sister, we're not quite sure).

Constanța has a very famous casino (Cazinoul). It was completed between the two World Wars in art nouveau style. We had no idea what that meant, so we researched “art nouveau”: It was basically an art form that was most popular during 1890–1910 and was inspired by natural forms and structures. Architects tried to harmonize with the natural environment. It is a beautiful building on a cliff directly on the Black Sea, with a beautiful view over the harbor of Constanța.

The Saint Peter Saint Paul Church:

The Great Mahmudiye Mosque was built in 1910 by King Carol I. The muezzin (the person in charge of prayers) climbs the 140 steps to the top of the minaret to call the faithful to prayer. He does this five times a day.

Ovid's Square was named after the famous Roman poet, Ovid (Publius Ovidius Naso). The Roman Emperor Augustus exiled Ovid to Tomis in 8 AD. Ovidiu's Statue was built in 1888 to commemorate Ovid, by a sculptor named Ferrari, no less.

We toured through the archeological museum which had lots of Greek and Roman stuff. Our guide says that the reason the heads of the Roman emporers have no noses is because the new emporer would cut it off to make the old emporer non-important.

We walked around the Roman Ediface. The Roman Edifice was a vast, three level complex which once linked the upper town to the harbor. There were rooms, terraces, and halls, and more than 9000 sq ft of colourful mosaics. The third level is now underwater.

We spent 45 minutes at Mamaia Beach (Plaja Mamaia), which is 8 km long. We got to dip our toes into a brand new body of water for us: the Black Sea.

We have exactly 20 RON left after lunch, and that was going to be Kalin's tip, except we stopped at a gas station on the way back to Bucharest and bought water and chips for our supper. Rationalization: Frankie told him on the first day about her perfume allergy, and he has not helped at all with seating on the bus NOR has he told the bus driver to stop piping in scented products through the bus vents. Ugh.

The most common car in Romania is the Dacha. It is owned by Renault. The car is completely produced in Romania, and is very inexpensive. There was a campaign to promote the car in other parts of Europe, which made the Romanians complain because the Germans could buy it for 5000 euros but the Romanians had to pay 6000 euros.

We got back to Bucharest at 7 pm. It was alot busier because the other 164 ship passengers have arrived. We went for one more walk through the Old City and finally found the Old Princely Court, a place that Vlad Tepes used to live when he made Bucharest the capital of Romania.