Anniversary of a Revolution
Before the 1989 Revolution - Republica Socialista Romania
It is 12 years since the Revolution
which saw the overthrow of
Nicolae Ceausescu,
the end of his so-called
"Golden Epoch",
the fall of Communism
and the birth of a free Romania.
For those with an interest
in modern history
look no further than Romania
for an insight
into what was one of the most
repressive regimes
of the twentieth century
- a communist dynasty!
Timisoara - birthplace of the Revolution
(stay in Ceausescu's villa!)
Palace of Parliament - Bucharest
Piata Revolutiei square -Bucharest
Former Central Committee Building
National Library, Bucharest
Peles Castle
Danube-Black Sea Canal "Death Canal"
Vladimiresti Monastery
"Prison of the Ministers" Museum,
(Memorial Sighet) - Sighetu Marmatiei
Buses, trucks and even taxis with methane gas tanks were a common sight.
Availability of hot water in apartment blocks and hotels was limited to a strict programme!
of crumbling heavy industry,
for example, the notorious Carbon Black plant
at Copsa Mica, closed in 1993,
or the derelict oil refineries at Ploiesti,
even the familar suburbs of
concrete apartment blocks which ring large cities or blight smaller towns in regions once pinpointed for systematisation and, of course,
the monoliths of Communist central planning
such as the stalinist Free Press Building,
formerly the "Scinteia" building, and
Ceausescu's infamous
"Palace of Parliament" in Bucharest,
the construction of which saw the
bulldozing of a quarter of historic Bucharest
