'Bucharest' - tagged features

During the communist regime in Romania very few people could afford a car. In post-communist Romania, salaries didn't stretch to this type of "luxury" transportation. And now -- just when more and more Romanians can afford their own wheels - can you really tell them to slam the car door shut and get on their bikes? Well, as Radio Romania International's Iulian Muresan points out that you can tell them, but in this case reality just ain’t that easy. 

Remember that? The images themselves weren’t as graphic as it sounds. The whole thing was supposed to help promote European films. Sex sells. Well, Romania is seeing tangible results—An open-air theatre screening European movies is turning around a Bucharest neighbourhood. Radio Romania International's Iulian Muresan has more. 

Between the two world wars, Bucharest was dubbed little Paris, with its French inspired architecture. But during the communist era entire neighborhoods of the Romanian capital were demolished to make room for blocks of flats. The communists are now gone but it seems that what's left of Bucharest's architectural legacy is now threatened by runaway capitalism. Radio Romania's Iulian Muresan lives in a city that's changing fast. 

Now speaking of the indirect effects of the EU On the streets of new member - Romania's capital Bucharest intergenerational couples are increasingly frequent - and visible.   But apparently as Radio Romania International's Iulian Muresan reports it's apparently not because Romanians have successfully bridged the generation gap.   Quite on the contrary... It's all about money. 

In less than one month Bucharest will be the easternmost capital of the European Union. In the 17 years since the fall of communism the city has gotten a facelift, but the traces of the past are still visible everywhere. Iulian Muresan from Radio Romania International caught up with a team of Romanian and British architects, sociologists and artists and reports on their efforts to give Bucharest a new identity. 

Romania's capital Bucharest is home to a small but vibrant underground music scene. Many of the musicians involved in the alternative scene grew up in the suburbs and their lyrics tend to reflect their experiences of social inequality. The bands might not be commercially successful, but their existence is a sign of the vibrancy of Romanian music. 

Berlin's famous "Love Parade" has moved to Bucharest. The capital city recently played host to Gay Fest 2006. The event included concerts, film screenings and parties. The parade took a rather unexpected turn, when a few hundred Christians came to disrupt the event. Radio Romania International reports.