Europe 2019 - Day 40 (Part 2)

15 June 2019, Saturday

Then we wanted to go to the Mihai Voda church, but we mistakenly went to a smaller church known as the Dormition of the Holy Mother of God, built in 1710 as a Kretulescu family Chapel. Just beside it was the Mihai Voda Church Ensemble, a former monastic complex built by Michael the Brave (the de facto ruler of a unified Romania in 1600). The inside of the Church was filled with 16th century Wallachian religious art. Besides the Church, it comprised of a series of cells and princely houses surrounded by a precinct wall, with access through a bell tower. A military hospital, a surgery school and the State Archives functioned here in the 19th and 20th century. In 1984-1988 the ensemble was gradually demolished and the church and the bell tower were relocated to the east, clearing the area for the new Civic Centre. 

Then we passed by a statue of Queen Marie of Romania built in 1924-1927 in honour of the beloved Queen who was the wife of King Ferdinand I (a German prince). She herself was born into the British Royal family as Princess Marie of Edinburgh. Next, to the Romanian Athenaeum, a French eclectic style edifice built as a palace of sciences and art at the initiative of one Constantin Esarcu through public subscription. Nearby we saw another statue, this one of Mihail Eminescu - a famous Romanian romantic poet. The statue was made in the 1930s by the sculptor Oscar Han. We also passed the Romania National Museum of Art, and yet another statue, this one of King Carol I (the monarch of Romania from 1866 to 1914) on a horse in front of Bucharest’s Central University Library. 

Next, to Kretulescu Church or the Assumption of the Virgin Mary Church, founded by Chancellor Kretulescu and his wife Safta, daughter of the ruling prince Constantin Brâncoveanu in 1722. Unfortunately the original internal fresco paintings made by an anonymous painter and said to represent typical Byzantine art of the Brâncoveanu period (whatever that means) were completely destroyed by 2 renovations made to the Church in 1815 and 1859, and is now covered with oil paintings by Georghe Tatarescu. The oil paintings were beautiful though, still colourful after all these years. 

We were looking for food when we stumbled upon an eatery which used to be the house of Cesianu-Boerescu (whoever that is) built in eclectic style at the end of the 19th century. Since 1922 it became a Chinese restaurant renowned in the inter-war period for its French cuisine. Seriously. A Chinese restaurant with French dishes. That is just all kinds of wrong. 

Then we stopped for lunch - I had bacon wrapped chicken with slaw and mashed potatoes (yum!) and local draft beer called Ciuc lager. Here my friend dropped yet another bombshell - she lost her handphone. I thought she was joking at first. I helped her look through her belongings, and it’s true. Her handphone was missing. Whether she was pickpocketed or whether she dropped it somewhere, no one knows. So she borrowed my phone to contact her brother to cancel the line and some other Apps on the phone. She uses her phone for pretty much everything, including this e-Wallet nonsense so it was really a problem.

After lunch we walked to the nearest police station as my friend wanted to make a police report just in case she needed it for an insurance claim. I asked her if she would rather go back to the hostel but she said she was ok to continue so the Google Maps nonsense fell on my shoulders. I hate it. You keep looking at the phone and not at your surroundings which may have interesting things to see. 

But anyway. We went to the National Theatre with the TNB Park in front of it, the park had interesting sculptures in the garden. Then to the Coltea church. Replacing an older church (1641-1642), it was built in 1695-1698 and consecrated on 18 October 1702. Its decorative style combines local tradition with oriental (I was unable to see any), Baroque and late Renaissance influences. The interior oil paintings were done by the ubiquitous Georghe Tatarescu. Beside it was the Coltea Building or Spitalul Coltea, a French-Academic style edifice on the site where Bucharest’s first hospital institution was founded in 1704 (having only 24 beds) and later rebuilt in 1836-1842 and 1849.