Friday Oct 23 Belgrade to Bucharest

 Itinerary

Mon Oct 12 -13 Toronto - Paris - Vienna

Oct 13 - Vienna

Oct 14 - Vienna

Oct 15 - Vienna

Oct 16 - Vienna to Budapest by train

Oct 17 - Budapest

Oct 18 - Budapest to Zagreb Croatia

Oct 19 - Zagreb

Oct 20 - Zagreb - Belgrade Serbia

Oct 21 - Belgrade

Oct 22 - Belgrade

Oct 23 - Belgrade - Bucharest Romania

Friday, October 23 Belgrade to Bucharest

We chose to breakfast at the hotel since we had the hotel book a car for 10 AM to Nikola Tesla Airport (BEG). 

John is the coffee getter in the mornings as he laments servers walking around with a pot of coffee, instead of these silly coffee machines that are never hot and always slow.

Cheese pie.

Yes!

Last look at the square from our room.

.

I had paid extra fees for priority baggage, check in, fast track and boarding. So much for that...

After getting through check-in and security, fast track was a breeze but then there were no lines anywhere so we had some time to unwind so we wasted used a lounge pass to Premium. What an awful lounge, located in the basement, packed and noisy.

At 1:10 PM, we boarded Air Serbia flight JU 102. The short, 1-hour and 10-minute eastbound hop flew by. And so much for priority boarding... The gate attendant (he) boarded the back passengers first and then just everyone...

We also lost an hour due to a time difference.

By 3:20 PM, we touched down smoothly at Bucharest Henri Coandă Airport (OTP). 

After a quick clearing of customs, we grabbed our bags. There was a bottleneck getting to the rideshare, the escalator wasn't working so people were gathered trying to get on the elevator. Lucky for me, John grabbed our bags and we walked down the stairs. Everybody shoves here.

We hopped into a taxi (who took cards) for a 35-minute drive straight into the heart of the city center. By 5:15 PM, we were officially checked into the Hilton Garden Inn Bucharest Old Town, nestled perfectly right in the lively Lipscani district. 

Housed in a beautifully restored 1886 historic monument, the hotel perfectly blended grand old-world architecture with modern comforts, proving to be the ideal base right in the center of the action.

Across from our hotel. Bucharest Chamber of Commerce Palace (also known as the Stock Exchange Palace or Palatul Bursei), now houses a restaurant Le Dome on main floor.

The Bucharest Chamber of Commerce Palace (Palatul Bursei) has lived through a dramatic timeline of nationalization, repurposing, and commercial restoration:

• 1911–1949 (The Golden Era): It served its original purpose as the thriving financial heart of interwar Romania, functioning as both the Chamber of Commerce and the official Stock Exchange (Bursa de Valori).

• 1949–1955 (Communist Nationalization): Following the rise of the communist regime, the building was nationalized. The stock exchange was shut down as free-market capitalism was dissolved.

• 1955–2012 (The National Library): The palace was repurposed to house the Central State Library, which later became the National Library of Romania. Generations of students and researchers used its grand, marble-floored halls as reading spaces until the library relocated to a massive new facility on Unirii Boulevard in 2012.

• 2008–Present (Restoration & Commercial Reuse): Ownership of the building was legally returned (retrocedată) to the Bucharest Chamber of Commerce and Industry in 2008.

Stepping into the Old Town of Bucharest, also known as Centrul Vechi, felt like taking a vibrant journey straight into the past.

We stopped for a beer at Old Habits, decorated with teddy bears.

Bucar, local draft.

We settled on Dracula's Bites for dinner.

We decided this was our worst meal to date, on this trip. I had chosen for us without thinking. Luckily, we were sharing. Supposedly pork knuckle, polenta, of all things, we both hate it! And a cabbage salad.