Bucharest’s
nightclubs vary between hip-hop haunts spinning
the latest sounds and flashy discos where Romania’s
well-off go to let off steam. There are no licencing hours
in Romania, nor is there a legal drinking age. However,
one must be over 18 years of age to purchase alcohol,
which costs between US$0.50-3, depending on the type of establishment.
Entrance fees are inexpensive compared to those in the West, ranging
from nothing to US$1.50. Numerous nightclubs are concentrated
in or around the historic centre, making club-hopping an option.
Clubbers going further a field can grab one of the taxis that linger
outside most clubs. Many nightclubs close in June for the summer
and reopen in early October.
Jazz is popular in
Romania and Bucharest has high-quality jazz clubs.
Latino music is also hip and salsa-dancing
couples invade the dance floors of certain clubs. Casinos flourish
in the newfound capitalist climate and many of Bucharest’s
wealthy flock to those along Calea Victoriei.
For up-to-date information on nightlife, get the latest English-language
issue of Bucharest In Your Pocket (US$2.50).
Bars
Young people get together in bars to drink cocktails, cappuccinos
and foreign beers. Wine is only available by the bottle and is excellent
value for money. Some of the finest bars are at the National Theatre,
Bulevardul Balcescu 2. Il Caffé, left of
the theatre, serves alcohol and tall-glassed cappuccinos in a lively,
comfortable environment with a nautical theme. Laptaria
Lui Enache, entered through an unmarked door on the theatre’s
left side, then by lift to the fourth floor, has an impressive new
outdoor roof terrace, with film screenings and live bands on weekends.
Additional trendy spots include Opium Studio,
Strada Horei 5, with surrealist décor and retro music, and
The Corner, a new bar located at Piata Alba Lulia
6, which also offers state-of-the-art computers and Internet connection.
Another Bucharest trend is Belgian beer halls,
such as La Belle Époque, Strada Aviator
Radu Beller 6. Ex-pats tend to favour the Irish pubs,
such as Dubliner, Bulevardul Titilescu 18, or British-run
The Green Man, Strada Putul lui Zamfir, where you
can even indulge in a game of darts.
Casinos
Visitors to casinos should
dress elegantly and bring
a passport – the minimum gaming age
is 18 years. US Dollars or Lei can be used as currency
for chips. The lavish 24-hour Monte Carlo-style Palace Casino,
Calea Victoriei 133-135, has an outstanding restaurant. Stylish
Victoria Casino, Calea Victoriei 174, has a good cabaret
show (open 1800-0700 Wednesday-Sunday).
Clubs
For hip rave and house sounds, try Space, Strada
Academiei 33-37, the Web Club, Bulevardul Mihalache
12, or the new Colours Club, Calea Victoriei 48-50,
and enormous Tunnel Club, Strada Academiei 19-21,
with faded church paintings and a gothic atmosphere. For upmarket
discos, the chic Club Sugar, Strada Batistei
11, has the strictest dress code in town and is frequented by Bucharest’s
young and wealthy. DJs spin Latino sounds at Club
Flamingo, Strada Zalomit 6, where Art Deco balconies, colourful
kitsch sofas and a marble dance floor add to the ambience. Club
A, Strada Blanari 14, plays a different type of music every
night of the week. At the student end of the scale, Spell
House, Strada Gabroveni 20, has black lights and deliberately
grim décor but good house music and friendly staff.
Dance
Ballet
can be seen at the Opera Romana, Bulevardul MI
Kogalniceanu 70-72 (tel: (01) 314 6980), which has its own ballet
company. Ballet, as well as modern dance,
is also performed at the ‘Ion Dacian’ Operetta
Theatre, Bulevardul Nicolae Balcescu 2 (tel: (01) 613 6348),
and by the Orion Ballet Company at the Tinerimea
Romana cultural centre, Strada Gutenberg 19 (tel: (01)
615 4702). (For traditional Romanian dance, see Nightlife.)
Film
Foreign films are usually shown in the original language with Romanian
subtitles. Current film listings are available
online (website: http://cinema.ines.ro)
or in Sapte Seri magazine, free in Bucharest bars.
Tickets range from US$0.40 in older cinemas to US$2 in deluxe ones.
Older cinemas line Bulevardul
Regina Elisabeta and Bulevardul General Magheru,
while state-of-the-art ones include Lira
De Luxe Cinema Centre, Calea 13 Septembrie 196 (tel: (01)
410 2171), and Hollywood Multiplex (tel: (01) 327
7020) in Bucharesti Mall, Calea Vitan 55-59, with ten screens. Parliament
Palace, Bulevardul Natiunili Unite, also houses a good
cinema (tel: (01) 315 7372). Cinemas showing old movie classics
are called cinematecas, such as the Cinemateca Romana,
Strada Eforie 2 (tel: (01) 313 0483), above Café Indigo.
Bucharest’s stunning variety of architecture has made it popular
with international film-makers, including French director Constantin
Costa-Gavras, whose recently released and controversial Amen (2002),
probing the role of the church in the Holocaust, used the Parliament
Palace as a setting for the Vatican.
Live
Music
Intimate jazz and blues is played at the 24-hour Café
Indigo, Strada Eforie 2, which serves cool cocktails, and
Ciuc, a scrumptious, dark Romanian beer. Green
Hours 22, Calea Victoriei 120, with an open courtyard in
summer, and Art Jazz Club, Bulevardul N Balcescu
23A, both feature top jazz names (live performances start around
2100). Folk music and dancing is performed in restaurants serving
traditional Romanian cuisine, including Burebista Vanatores,
Strada Batistei 14, and La Mardare, Calea Grivitei
32.
Music
One of the most outstanding places to hear classical music
performed is at the Ateneul Roman, Strada
Franklin 1 (tel: (01) 315 6875). This fabulous 19th-century building
– looking like Bucharest’s answer to London’s
St Paul’s Cathedral – presents a fairytale backdrop,
splendid acoustics and plays host to the George Enescu Philharmonic
Orchestra and other top performances. The lobby has a beautifully
painted ceiling adorned in gold leaf and curved balconies cascading
in ringlets of spiral staircase. A ring of pink marble columns is
connected by flowing arches, where elaborate brass lanterns hang
like gems from a necklace. Inside the concert hall, voluptuous frescoes
swathe the ceiling and walls. This extraordinary décor
usually can only be viewed by concert-goers.
Classical chamber music concerts also take place at the National
Radio Studio, Strada General Berthelot 60-64 (tel: (01)
314 6800), and Parliament
Palace, Bulevardul Natiunili Unite (tel: (01) 311 3611). Outdoor
summer concerts are held in Cismigiu and
Tineretului parks. Lavish opera productions
take place at the Opera Romana, Bulevardul MI Kogalniceanu
70-72 (tel: (01) 314 6980), where tickets are of incredible value,
from US$0.60 to US$2, and the Theatrul Operata
(tel: (01) 313 6348), next to the National Theatre, Bulevardul Balcescu
2.
Theatre
The huge Theatrul
National (National Theatre), Bulevardul Balcescu 2 (tel: (01)
314 7171), is Bucharest’s theatrical heart. Classic and contemporary
plays are performed in three auditoria – sometimes in English.
Tickets are costs from US$0.70 to US$2. Another
theatre that bridges the language barrier is the excellent Tandarica
Puppet Theatre, Strada Eremia Grigorescu 24 (tel: (01)
211 3288). With shows for both children and adults, the action is
easily followed without understanding Romanian (tickets are US$0.45
for adults and US$0.25 for children). |
