One of my favorite cities in the country

in #hive-163772last year

Autumn which looks like a summer and an unplanned trip to my childhood places gave me the pleasure of spending a few hours in one of my favorite cities in Romania.

Although I have lived in this country (where I was born) for almost 70 years I have to admit that I have not traveled very much and to very many places. I have, however, seen most of the major cities and I have a few favorites that are, at the same time, tourist places that are preferred by visitors. I can mention a few, in the hope that someone is looking for a place to visit in Romania and happens to find this blog and has the curiosity to read it, so...

Oradea, Timisoara, Cluj, Sibiu, Brasov, Iasi, Constanta, and Bucharest, which, even if not the most beautiful, is still the capital and where I live.

This time I made a short getaway to Iasi. Former capital of the historical region of Moldova and even of the Kingdom of Romania, this city is marked by history.

The pleasure of seeing the city again on a mild autumn day that looks more like summer at the end of the week. Fairs, exhibitions, and streets full of people attracted by the holiday atmosphere.

It was a good opportunity for me to take a lot of photos from which I will choose a few to replace the more difficult words. As they say that a photo is worth a thousand words I think these will best and truly show the atmosphere, places, and people I met...


Palace of Culture

The central area of the city is dominated by this building, a symbol of Iasi, which is the Palace of Culture. This building which was built to be the Palace of Justice at the beginning of the last century is now a huge museum housing important collections of Romanian and universal history and art.

IMG_4837.jpg

This imposing building and its surrounding gardens are an important tourist attraction and look exactly like places in Central and Western Europe. In fact, the Palace of Culture in Iasi is at the top of the ranking of palaces of this kind in Europe.

IMG_5190.jpg

The short time I had and the 400 km I had to travel that day to Bucharest prevented me from visiting the palace. Something else, easier to do, attracted me here.

IMG_5194.jpg


Autumn Fair

A fair of wines and traditional folk products was set right on the plateau at the entrance to the palace.

IMG_5246.jpg

Even though I now have to refrain from drinking alcohol I couldn't help but look at the wine bottles and the sometimes ingenious way they were displayed.

IMG_5274.jpg

BeFunky-collage (1).jpg

BeFunky-collage (2).jpg

For me, the most interesting exhibits are... people. I like most when I can photograph people in such places or on the street. I think people can be a good indication of the quality of a place. That is if you can read body language, as it says...

IMG_5215.jpg

IMG_5229.jpg

IMG_5258.jpg


Any fair of this kind is varied in its offerings, i.e. they strive to have something for everyone. Such as honey products, which are also popular with children.

IMG_5382.jpg


Clay pots

Making clay pots is an ancient craft everywhere in the world, it is the same in Romania.

IMG_5389.jpg

IMG_5390.jpg

IMG_5391.jpg


Fabrics

Fabrics and other handmade things, both for clothing and decorative. All are made in the traditional way, with traditional materials and tools.

IMG_5395.jpg

IMG_5397.jpg

IMG_5398.jpg


Alexandru Lapusneanu Street

The central part of the city is largely pedestrianized. It is very well laid out and offers plenty of possibilities to have fun, shop, and relax. We left the place in front of the Palace of Culture and after a short walk of about 15 minutes we arrived on Alexandru Lapusneanu Street, an important street and for this reason it was named after a ruler of Moldavia who moved the capital of the province from Suceava to... Iasi thus boosting the rapid development of this city.

IMG_5468.jpg

The street is full of antique shops, bookshops, exhibitions, terraces, and cafés. This is also where antique dealers come on weekends to get more eyes on their offer.

IMG_5421.jpg

IMG_5423.jpg

IMG_5442.jpg

IMG_5449.jpg

Children have their share of activities and have the opportunity to show off their drawing and painting skills.

IMG_5399.jpg

IMG_5462.jpg

Places where those interested are invited to exercise and sport. More by eye because the street is quite narrow and crowded...

IMG_5404.jpg

IMG_5405.jpg

This dance, movement, and fitness is appreciated by young people but the highlight of such weekend days in town are always the traditional folk customs and dances. The vast majority of city dwellers come from the countryside and they cannot forget these traditions. The folk costumes are really special...

IMG_5407.jpg

IMG_5478.jpg

IMG_5483.jpg

Everybody has fun but some have work to do. Like this young singer who crosses Europe on his bike. He sings in the street and collects money for food and other small necessities. I've seen many young people doing this! I wouldn't have the courage... but I'm thinking with the brain of a 70-year-old man, an age when caution outweighs the desire for adventure.

IMG_5471.jpg

But I've been working too. I took a lot of photos, an activity that even got me a... fan!
The gentleman in the photo below asked me to take a photo of him, impressed by my camera (which is not a great camera but which this man thought was professional).
I took his photo but without finding a way to send it to him. This one stayed with me as a reminder of this event, this walk, this short escapade in Iasi.

IMG_5485.jpg


Alexandru Lapusneanu Street spills into one of the most important squares in the city.

IMG_5500.jpg

IMG_5504.jpg


Union Square

Next is Unirii Square(Union Square)! The most important square in the city and I can say in the whole country. That's because here was the first union of two of the three Romanian provinces: Moldova, Tara Romaneasca, and Transylvania.

The first union was made with Moldova and Romanian Country in 1859 when the United Principalities were born. The union was done in a unique way because there were elections for rulers in the two provinces and in both was elected the same ruler, Colonel Alexandru Ioan Cuza, whose statue is in the middle of the square.

IMG_5526.jpg

The Colonel is long dead, only Romania and his bronze statue remain. Instead, the city's residents and tourists happily occupy this square. Children, their parents, pigeons...

IMG_5510.jpg

IMG_5517.jpg

Here a very nice young lady from Ireland sang for us. She's also on a trip around Europe. Living on music!

BeFunky-collage (3).jpg

IMG_5523.jpg


Green grass

After so many people, streets, and buildings I felt the need for some quiet, some green... grass! Grass that has already received the warning of autumn that is beginning to take hold of nature.

IMG_5534.jpg

Iasi is a very green city with famous parks and gardens. Copou Park and the Botanical Garden are well known! Unfortunately, I didn't have the time to get to those places so I chose to see again the garden around the Palace of Culture.


Palace of Culture

IMG_20190921_102454.jpg

IMG_20190921_102346.jpg

IMG_20190921_102256.jpg

IMG_20190921_102153.jpg


It was a pleasant few hours spent in Iasi, on a beautiful autumn day. I reluctantly had to tear myself away from the idyllic setting and prepare to leave. I still had to drive over 400 km to Bucharest, and back home.

I started this story with the image of the Palace of Culture and I would be tempted to end it here, also with the image of the Palace of Culture... but I can't leave without a coffee. It's going to be a long and tiring drive.

I can't help remembering my café in Iasi, the place where I learned, in my old age, how to appreciate a real coffee!


Coffee Story

My favorite cafe in this city and not only... I lived in Iasi for a year and spent my mornings here for coffee. I always come back to this place with the same pleasure when I happen to pass through Iasi.

IMG_20190922_092357_1.jpg

IMG_20190922_092050.jpg

IMG_20190921_100231.jpg


This is how I spent a few hours in Iasi, one of the most important cities in Romania, a city increasingly sought after by tourists. I used many of the photos I took then. I found these photos much more necessary than other information and descriptions. I used 49 photos but I like round numbers and now I'm putting one more to make it 50!

IMG_20190921_102252.jpg

If we agree with that saying that a photo is worth a thousand words, if we turned all the photos into words and added them to those already written it would result in a blog of over 50,000 words!!! A lot... or maybe a picture is less than a thousand words?


every_picture.jpg

Orange Gray Artistic Torn Overlay Musician Facebook Page Covers (10).jpg

Sort:  

I loved reading your blog post about your trip to Iasi! It sounded like a wonderful experience. I'm glad you got to see the Palace of Culture, the Autumn Fair, and Alexandru Lapusneanu Street. It sounds like you had a chance to experience the best of Iasi's culture and history.

I'm also glad you got to see the young Irish lady singing in Union Square. It's always nice to see people from different cultures coming together to share their talents.

Thank you, I'm glad you read so carefully and got to see some of the touristy side of this city in my photos. I lived in Iasi a few years ago, I lived there almost a year and I know all the places well.

You have a Trianon Cinema. Here we have a theater with that name, and one of the most outstanding companies in the country performs there. Their plays are very striking and intelligent. I have to bring this story to Hive. 🤓
Of course portraying people is the most interesting thing. I agree. I see that many young people in Europe live like that, nomads, they travel around the cities either working as musicians or in these volunteer places. It must be a great experience to be able to do this, to live like this, on a daily basis.
Romania is beautiful. I came to know it here in Hive. And I thank you. I will follow your posts.
You should make yourself a card with an e-mail at least, photographer. 😅

Greetings!

It was once Trianon, now only the name remains. Most of the classic movie theaters I grew up in have closed. Only the ones in the malls are left. I was a "practicing" cinephile in my youth. I also liked Cuban cinema, I don't know the films and directors now, I forgot, but if I did a search I would probably remember. Cuba is beautiful and exotic, so I know from movies, books, and music.
I also know that we were "brothers" in communism and that we are still "brothers" because we are Latinos...

I'm not a photographer and I don't know if I would have liked to be. If I have something that is good in photography, then it is something instinctive or acquired, as a collateral good, from watching hundreds and hundreds of films.
Thanks for your interest in Romania, @nanixxx, and I wish you a pleasant weekend!

I hope your weekend was pleasant and that you were able to rest. Keep in touch.

;)

Thank you! I'm at the age where I try to make every day a pleasant day, every little thing a great joy. Sometimes I succeed, when there are no outside disturbances I can't control.

Keep in touch

I like that, thank you!

📸
!PIZZA

Thank you!

hermoso

Thanks!

I had the pleasure to be invited to this beautiful place and it was fantastic.
Romania is nothing like we imagine.

Glad you accepted the invitation, thank you!
I try through my posts to make my country known, I am aware that it is very little known in the world.

Yes and probably a good thing !

Congratulations, your post has been added to Pinmapple! 🎉🥳🍍

Did you know you have your own profile map?
And every post has their own map too!

Want to have your post on the map too?

  • Go to Pinmapple
  • Click the get code button
  • Click on the map where your post should be (zoom in if needed)
  • Copy and paste the generated code in your post (Hive only)
  • Congrats, your post is now on the map!

Thank you!

PIZZA!

$PIZZA slices delivered:
@nanixxx(3/5) tipped @bluemoon

Thank you1!

Wonderfully depicted! I'm going through travel posts of Europe as I want to learn as much as I can (and possibly visit) while I'm here. Safe to say your post reached the right audience?

I want to agree with you and say that YES, people are a good indication. I had no knowledge of this place before but I get the feeling that it is very relaxed, laid back, and free. I'm certainly adding it to my "places to visit" if I ever make my way to Romania.

I see a clear distinction in decision making based on age. I would 100% be more ready to perform songs and travel on a bike than ask a stranger with a camera to take a picture of me (and pose so confidently)

Thank you for drafting such a beautiful blog!

With pleasure! I'm glad you liked it and that it was useful to get your opinion about a place unknown to you. I choose this style when writing about different places I visit. A style not appreciated by those who write and read about travel and places but I don't want to focus on information and pictures of the most known sights that appear in all travel guides anyway. I like to show the people, what they do, what they like in the city that I visit. I try to talk and show less what I do there... I don't know if I succeed but that's what I want.

I hope that the quiet and the time of more travels will come and maybe you will end up in some place you read about in the Hive blogs.

Thanks so much for your appreciation!

Manually curated by ackhoo from the @qurator Team. Keep up the good work!

Thank you!

Indeed, it has been like summer since the weekend in Istanbul. I get sweaty after evening :) This is the climate change.

What about there?

The same. We still have summer days.

Going to the place where the whole childhood is spent, if a person sits for hours, then all the memories are refreshed and a person does not want to leave from there, this place is very beautiful. The way we see it is that people have worked hard to make things and now they are selling them in the market.