Looking out from my balcony, I was fascinated to watch the works that were going on below to lay new pipes – only to have them find Roman ruins!

~ Bella

I met up with my friend Joana for dinner at the Naive Restaurant.  The view was lovely, and the food was sooooooo good!, and of course, the company was fabulous!

~ Bella

…and I happened to come across my favourite little patisserie in the whole world – Paul.

“PAUL started in 1889 as a French family bakery. Today it is still a family company, but their legendary goodies are famous all over the world. What PAUL stands for is basically traditional recipes passed down for five generations and only the very best ingredients. You can feel that there are high quality standards met here and for sure, a pinch of love in every bite you take.”  InterestingTimes.ro

~ Bella

After visiting the Stavropoleos Monastery, and wandering past the beautiful and also historic Negresco (built 1883)…

…I continued wandering around the Old Town and meandered past the beautiful Palace of the Deposits and Consignments.

It is the headquarters of the CEC Bank that began construction in 1897 and was completed in 1900 by King Carol I and Queen Elizabeth. The Palace is said to be one of the strongest buildings in Bucharest as in the 1977 earthquake, only the glass dome was damaged, while other buildings around it collapsed.

…then continuing past some other interesting places…

~ Bella

Stavropoleos Monastery, also known as Stavropoleos Church during the last century when the monastery was dissolved, is an Eastern Orthodox monastery for nuns in central Bucharest, Romania. Its church is built in Brâncovenesc style. The patrons of the church are St. Archangels Michael and Gabriel. [Wikipedia]

It is only a tiny church, but simply stunning.

I met these two lovely ladies while at the Stavropoleos Monastery.  They knew each other as children – now one lives in Canada and the other elsewhere in Europe – but they recently ran into each other again.  Synchronicity ~ Serendipity!  I love it.

~ Bella

My night out with the girls started with me being early, so I decided to enjoy a bowl of soup and read my book…

…only to then be told that they were sorry, but although we had reservations, the restaurant and bar were now closed for a party (complete with taking down the chandelier, so not sure what sort of party…

So, I met up with the girls at the beautiful Grand Hotel…

…and discovered a new favourite cognac!  Previously, I have been a Courvoisier XO girl, but this local Romanian cognac, Brancoveanu, has just surpassed it and is now my new favourite!

~ Bella

Join me as I wander around the block and explore the beautiful University Square in Old Town Bucharest, Romania.

~Bella

Heading out from home base, and wandering past such beautiful history…

This monastery is a destination to explore on another day…

The story of Caru’ cu bere

“Caru’ cu bere is definitely a symbol of Bucharest, the capital city of Romania, but the people who started this story came from beyond the Carpathian mountains, from Transylvania. In the year of 1879, on Calea Victoriei (The road of Victory) Street, there was a brewery name La Carul cu Bere (At the beer wagon), run by Ion Cabasanu. The origin of the brewery’s name is easy to guess, as the beer was brought to brewery by horse-drawn wagons.

In this brewery, Ion and Gheorghe Mircea, the nephews of the owner, were practicing the art of beer craftmanship. They also came to Bucharest from Transylvania, and later were joined by their younger brother, Nicolae Mircea. For several years, the three Mircea brothers ran several beer houses in the area of the Villacros Passage. Being more daring as his older brothers, Nicolae Mircea manages to see his dream come true in 1899  (with help from a bank credit): he starts the construction of the Caru’ cu bere building, the famous Bucharest restaurant as we know it today.” [source: Caru’ cu bere website]

…and through these magical revolving doors, and into…

…my world!  Back in time…

…with new Friend, Linda…

…and home sweet home…

Bliss…

~ Bella