Bucharest

Bucharest, is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at 44°25′57″N 26°06′14″ECoordinates: 44°25′57″N 26°06′14″E, and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River.
Bucharest was first mentioned in documents as early as 1459. Since then it has gone through a variety of changes, becoming the state capital of Romania in 1862 and steadily consolidating its position as the centre of the Romanian mass media, culture and arts. Its eclectic architecture is a mix of historical (neo-classical), interbellum (Bauhaus and Art Deco), Communist-era and modern. In the period between the two World Wars, the city's elegant architecture and the sophistication of its elite earned Bucharest the nickname of "Little Paris" (Micul Paris). Although many buildings and districts in the historic centre were damaged or destroyed by war, earthquakes, and Nicolae Ceaușescu's program of systematization, many survived. In recent years, the city has been experiencing an economic and cultural boom.
According to provisional data from 2011 census, 1,677,985 inhabitants live within the city limits, a decrease from the figure recorded at the 2002 census. The urban area extends beyond the limits of Bucharest proper and has a population of 1.93 million people. Adding the satellite towns around the urban area, the proposed metropolitan area of Bucharest would have a population of 2.2 million people. According to Eurostat, Bucharest has a Larger Urban Zone of 2,151,880 residents. According to unofficial data, the population is more than 3 million. Bucharest is the 10th largest city in the European Union by population within city limits.
Economically, Bucharest is the most prosperous city in Romania and is one of the main industrial centres and transportation hubs of Eastern Europe. The city has a broad range of convention facilities, educational facilities, cultural venues, shopping arcades, and recreational areas.
The city proper is administratively known as the Municipality of Bucharest (Municipiul București), and has the same administrative level as a county, being further subdivided into six sectors.


Crime in Bucharest


Bucharest's crime rate is rather low in comparison to other European capital cities, with the number of total offenses declining by 51% between 2000 and 2004.[24] The violent crime rate in Bucharest remains very low, with 11 murders and 983 other violent offenses taking place in 2007.[25] Although in the 2000s (decade), there have been a number of police crackdowns on organized crime gangs, such as the Cămătaru clan, organized crime generally has little impact on public life. Petty crime, however, is more common, particularly in the form of pickpocketing, which occurs mainly on the city's public transport network. Confidence tricks were common in the 1990s, especially in regards to tourists, but the frequency of these incidents has since declined. Levels of crime are higher in the southern districts of the city, particularly in Ferentari, a socially-disadvantaged area.
Although the presence of street children was a problem in Bucharest in the 1990s, their numbers have declined significantly in recent years, currently lying at or below the average of major European capital cities.[26] A documentary called Children Underground depicted the life of Romanian street kids in 2001. There are still an estimated 1,000 street children in the city,[26] some of whom engage in petty crime and begging.


Economy of Bucharest


Bucharest is the centre of the Romanian economy and industry, accounting for around 22.7% (2010) of the country's GDP and about one-quarter of its industrial production, while being inhabited by only 9% of the country's population. Almost one third of national taxes are paid by Bucharest's citizens and companies. In 2007, at purchasing power parity, Bucharest had a per-capita GDP of €20,057, or 92.2% that of the European Union average and more than twice the Romanian average. After relative stagnation in the 1990s, the city's strong economic growth has revitalized infrastructure and led to the development of many shopping malls, residential estates and high-rise office buildings. In September 2005, Bucharest had an unemployment rate of 2.6%, significantly lower than the national unemployment rate of 5.7%.


Culture of Romania


Bucharest has a diverse and growing cultural scene, with cultural life exhibited in a number of various fields, including the visual arts, performing arts and nightlife. Unlike other parts of Romania, such as the Black Sea coast or Transylvania, Bucharest's cultural scene is much more eclectic, without a defined style, and instead incorporates various elements of Romanian and international culture. Bucharest has an eclectic mixture of elements from traditionally Romanian buildings to buildings that are influenced by French architects. It is because of this French influence that Bucharest was once called "the Paris of the East" or "Little Paris."


Landmarks


The Triumphal Arch is the site of the annual National Day military parade
Bucharest has a large number of landmark buildings and monuments. Perhaps the most prominent of these is the Palace of the Parliament, built in the 1980s during the reign of Communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu. Currently the largest building in Europe and the second-largest in the world, the Palace houses the Romanian Parliament (the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate), as well as the National Museum of Contemporary Art. The building also boasts one of the largest convention centres in the world.
Another well-known landmark in Bucharest is Arcul de Triumf (The Triumphal Arch), built in its current form in 1935 and modeled after the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. A newer landmark of the city is the Memorial of Rebirth, a stylized marble pillar unveiled in 2005 to commemorate the victims of the Romanian Revolution of 1989, which overthrew Communism. The abstract monument sparked a great deal of controversy when it was unveiled, being dubbed with names such as "the olive in the toothpick", ("măslina-n scobitoare"), as many argued that it does not fit in its surroundings and believed that its choice was based on political reasons.
The Romanian Athenaeum building is considered to be a symbol of Romanian culture and since 2007 is on the list of the Label of European Heritage sights.
Other cultural venues include the National Museum of Art of Romania, Museum of Natural History "Grigore Antipa", Museum of the Romanian Peasant (Muzeul Ţăranului Român), National History Museum, and the Military Museum.