Bucharest, the capital of the country, with a population of more than 2,3 million, is by far the largest, most cosmopolitan city in Romania. This is the centre of all economic, social and cultural activities of the country. The architecture of the city is an interesting mixture of cultures and historical periods, combining the old aristocratic and royal buildings with the communist standardised constructions. Some of the most visited city attractions are: The National Art Museum, The Palace of Parliament, The Romanian Athenaeum, The Village Museum, Herastrau Park, The Botanical Garden, The Arch of Triumph etc.

Bucharest has a rich cultural life; there are theatres, opera, symphony orchestras, festivals of all types and art galleries available. The clubs, cafes and bars are extremely modern and varied. Each district in Bucharest has access to at least one super or hypermarket. The good transport system (trams and buses, subway) connects all the areas in Bucharest and functions from 5 a.m. until around midnight every day of the week. Taxies are rather cheep and available at every street corner. Henri Coanda International Airport, situated a few kilometers far from Bucharest, in the north of the city, and the North Railway Station (Gara de Nord, in Romanian), which is quite close to the city centre, will help you reach Bucharest from any corner of the world.

Over the last decades, Bucharest has become the most international and multicultural city in Romania. You can buy Arabian food, listen to South-American music, or learn one of the major European languages in your spare time.

Romanian is the official language. You will notice very quickly that younger Romanians find it easy to communicate in English, while older generations have a good command of French or German.

The national Romanian currency is called leu (plural lei). It is indicated to exchange money only in banks or exchange offices. Other useful web pages:

www.ratb.ro (public transportation - trams and buses)
www.metrorex.ro (public transportation - subway)
www.cfr.ro (public transportation - trains)
www.otp-airport.ro ( Henri Coanda International Airport)
www.ziare.ro (Romanian newspapers)
www.posta-romana.ro (National Postal Service)
www.bnro.ro (Romanian National Bank)
www.bcr.ro (Romanian Comercial Bank)
www.bancatiriac.ro ( Ion Tiriac Bank)
www.raiffeisen.ro (Raiffeisen Bank)
www.bancpost.ro (BancPost Bank)
www.hvb.ro (HVB Bank)