ACROSS THE DIMBOVITZA RIVER TO THE JUSTICE PALACE, BUCUREŞTI
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It was seven hundred years ago, as the legend records, that Bucur, a pious shepherd, stood on the banks of the Dimbovitza River and started, with a humble and fervent heart, to build a wooden church. A church of Bucur still stands on a hill of the city but around it has sprung up Bucureşti, known for the last five centuries as "the wonderful city." Another tradition has it that the name of the city was derived from the Rumanian word for pleasure, "the city of enjoyment."

Bucureşti in the past has overcome the most serious reverses such as fire, famine, earthquakes and invasion. Today it is not only the capital of Rumania but the embodiment of the spirit of the Rumanian people. It is an interesting city, built on both sides of the Dimbovitza. The river is spanned by about a dozen bridges, substantially built of iron or, like the one before us, of stone. Tree-shaded promenades border each side of the river and along the banks of the river arc to be found the open-air bookstores and the carpet and shawl bazaars that add so much to the picturesqueness of the streets. The building at the left is the Palace of Justice. As the capital of Rumania, Bucureşti is the seat of the courts, the meeting place of parliament and the winter residence of the royal family. The various government buildings are all magnificent, stately structures and, together with the many huge public gardens filled with exotic flowers, give to Bucureşti a picturesque appearance. Rumanians call it the "Paris of the East."

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Courtesy of Brandt Rowles