12 Things I Bet You Didn’t Know About Romania Although still regarded by many as an off the beaten path destination, Romania is a country full of surprises, folklore and exciting places that leave long lasting impressions in visitors’ minds. Check out these interesting wacky facts about my beloved country: 1. Romania has one of the happiest cemeteries on Earth Merry Cemetery Romania Photo by Remus Pereni Tucked away in a tiny village of Maramures county, near the Ukrainian border, the Merry Cemetery (Cimitirul Vesel) is not only a very unique burial site, but also an open-air museum and a tourist attraction in its own right. Designed in 1940 by the local woodcarver Stan Ion Patras, Sapanta’s cheerful cemetery stands out for its colorful high wooden crosses carved in oak and painted with scenes of the deceased’s life. Moreover, each tombstone features a witty poem depicting the person’s life and the way he/she died. To give you an idea, here is a funny epitaph translated by Wikipedia: Under this heavy cross Lies my poor mother in-law Three more days she would have lived I would die, and she would read (this cross). You, who here are passing by Not to wake her up please try Cause’ if she comes back home She’ll criticize me more. But I’ll behave so well That she’ll not return from hell. Stay here, my dear mother in-law! 2. Romanian inventors have changed the world Traian Vuia Airplane Photo by Wikipedia Romania gave birth to some extraordinary scientists and engineers, most of whom have actually changed the world. Some of these include: Nicolae Constantin Paulescu – discoverer of insulin; Eugen Pavel – inventor of Hyper CD-ROM; Aurel Persu – the first engineer and car designer to build a car with the wheels inside its aerodynamic line; Petrache Poenaru – inventor of fountain pen; Emil Racovita – founder of biospeleology (the study of organisms living in caves); Anastase Dragomir – inventor of parachuted chair, an early version of today’s ejection seat. Furthermore, Romanian engineers have successfully contributed to the history of flight. Henri Coanda, Traian Vuia and Aurel Vlaicu – they all played an important role as pioneers in aerodynamics and aviation. 3. Romanian is the only Romance language in Eastern Europe Most people believe that Romanian language is very similar with those spoken in Russia or other Slavic countries, but in reality, Romanian is a Romance language closely related to Italian, French, Spanish, Catalan and Portuguese. 4. Romania has 7 UNESCO World Heritage Sites Sighisoara Medieval Citadel Sighisoara, Romania These include: the Churches of Moldavia; the Dacian Fortress of the Orastie Mountains; the Historic Centre of Sighisoara; the Monastery of Horezu; the Villages with Fortified Churches in Transylvania; the Wooden Churches of Maramures; the Danube Delta. 5. Romania is Europe’s richest country in gold resources 6. Romania boasts the world’s largest administrative building People Palace Romania Photo by Dennis Jarvis Built by former Romanian dictator – Nicolae Ceausescu, Bucharest’s Palace of the Parliament – also known as People’s House – is the largest, heaviest and most expensive civil administration building on the planet. 7. Romania’s national currency is Leu, which means lion (English) 8. Romania has the best-preserved Delta in Europe Danube Delta Romania Photo by Anca Pandrea Although the second largest river delta in Europe after the Caspian Depression’s Volga Delta (Russia/Kazakhstan), the Danube Delta in Romania is the best preserved on the continent. It features not less than 23 natural ecosystems, boasting an amazing variety of unique flora and fauna. 9. The largest population of brown bears in Europe lives in Romania Romanian brown bear Brown Bear 10. The Statue of Decebalus, Europe’s largest rock sculpture Decebalus statue Romania Decebalus Statue, Orsova Somewhere along the Danube, near the small city of Orsova, in southwestern Romania, lies a 55-m high rock sculpture depicting Decebalus, the last king of Dacia. The monument can only be reached by boat. 11. The only Gold Museum in Europe Romania Gold Museum Photo courtesy Gold Museum’s Facebook Also known as the Mineralogical Collection of Brad, The Gold Museum in the small Romanian city of Brad is the only one of its kind in Europe. Founded 100 years ago, the gallery contains a mind-blowing collection of over 2000 pieces of gold gathered here from across the world. Highlight of the museum, however, is the native gold which is displayed exactly as found in the mines of the Romanian mountains. The pieces are so unique and spectacular that their value does not depend on grammage anymore. For instance, a lizard shaped item of only seven tenths of a gram of gold has been evaluated at EUR 3 million. 12. The first city lit by electric street lamps in continental Europe Timisoara Romania Photo by Panoramas Timisoara, one of the most beautiful and vibrant Romanian metropolises, was the first mainland European city to be lit by electric street lamps, back in 1884.
Posted on: Thu, 14 Nov 2013 20:06:34 +0000