Roiling Rife Romania

Romania is in political crises. The President and the Prime Minister are at loggerheads, the foreign minister has resigned, and the parliament is jockeying to define a new future. (I had some great meetings at the highest levels in a politically rife environment…check out the pictures and captions for more details.)

Meanwhile, the economy is going gangbusters and growing at 7.7% rate this year according to The Economist Magazine. This is following almost 9% growth last year, so we're talking sustained and robust growth.

There are some very wealthy people in Romania, enjoying new money as they discover and capitalize on the market economy that is required to be an EU member. These newly rich wear their wealth like a hand-made suit...cut to impress.

Have you ever watched Alias? You know, the show where Sidney Bristow is a secret agent and saves the world and the US using her cunning and sultry good looks. There is always a scene that seems almost unbelievable with her in an outlandish bar in some former eastern block country. I figured it Hollywood run amuck for our entertainment.

Well, it is no longer unbelievable as I was there and the club is Bamboo. I fully expected Sidney to walk by at any moment. The place was approximately two football fields in size on the bottom floor, so she very easily could have been there and I missed her.

We showed up at 11pm and they weren't open yet. We had to wait till 11:30 and felt like dorks being the first ones in.

Once in we quickly discovered that every table on the bottom floor was reserved. The tables on the top floor started at €300 ($401), so I’m scared to guess what those downstairs cost. Every table included a sofa, two bottles of Chivas and six pack of Red Bull standard.  Anyway, we sat at the bar for free.

Bamboo was completely packed by 12:30 and the whole place pulsated with house music that shook every bone and joint and touched every nerve. The light show, smoke, drinks, and dancers stimulated the other senses. We left around 5am and were some of the first to go…the place was nutz, but a very real expression of freedom...and capitalism.

We also saw Lamborghinis, Mercedes SLR McLarens, Mercedes Maibachs, and various other uber-sports cars in Bucharest. They were everywhere.

At the other end of the spectrum those who haven't adjusted reminisce for days gone by, or I should say “bye”. Our cab driver lamented that he didn’t have the health or dental coverage that he once enjoyed when they were a communist state. We also saw 10-year old children out after midnight begging for money.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Bucharest is a city of extremes…good and bad. It was the most American country we visited.