Palace of Parliament
(Palatul Parlamentului)
Boulevard Unirii (Union Boulevard), which runs eastward from the fountain at Piaţa Unirii (Union Square), is a wide boulevard intended to replicate the Champs d'Elysees in France. Exactly 3.2 km (about 2 miles) in length, and flanked by towering concrete buildings and apartments, the "Boulevard of the Victory of Socialism," as it was originally named, leads to a large square (piata or piaţa, pronounced like piazza) at its western end, large enough to hold 300,000 people.
To the west of the square, and towering over it, is Nicolae Ceauşescu's (Ceausescu's) infamous Casă Poporului (Casa Poporului or House of the People), the second largest building in the world after the U.S. Pentagon. Commissioned by Romania's final Communist dictator, Nicolae Ceauşescu, construction of the gigantic Stalinist-style structure began in 1984. It was to act as the centerpiece of "Ceauşima," that is, Ceauşescu's Civic Center.
To make way for his Civic Center, Ceauşescu demolished many of the existing, often historic, buildings along Union Blvd and in their place constructed massive buildings that were more pleasing to his eye. Twelve churches, three monasteries, two synagogues, and 7,000 homes were bulldozed to accomodate Ceauşescu's dream. The monstrous Casă Poporului is 84 meters tall (about 276 feet) and has a surface area of 265,000 square meters (some 2.85 million square feet).
Various government ministries and the Romanian Intelligence Service (the successor of the fascist Securitate) occupy some of the buildings along Union Blvd. Other buildings were designed to be apartment buildings, intended to house privileged and influential bureaucrats. They are today some of the most expensive apartments in all of Romania.
This magnificent, yet controversial, 12-story building of 3,000 rooms was built to house the Communist party's Central Committee, the president's office, and all the state ministries. Beneath the building is a vast nuclear bunker.
It reflects the skill of some of Romania's best architects and craftsmen. During construction, Ceauşescu personally oversaw the work of more than 400 architects and over 200,000 workers, 20,000 of whom were on the site at any one time. The builders used exclusively Romanian-made materials and decorations — including marble, cherry, and walnut paneling; crystal chandeliers, which together weigh a total of some 3,500 tons; and hand-woven carpets, tapestries, and draperies.
Two of its 60-plus galleries are 150 m long and 18 m wide (about 500 x 60 ft). The largest of its 64 reception halls, the "Unification Hall," has a ceiling that slides open and which is large enough to land a helicopter in. The carpets coating the floor of the Unification Hall weigh 14 tons and had to be woven on the premises using specially designed machines. The Alexandru Ioan Cuza Hall is 2000 square meters (about 21,500 sq ft) and is topped by an 18 meter (about 60 ft) high gold-gilded ceiling.
In the 1980s, when the building was lit, it consumed the equivalent of an entire day's electricity usage for the whole of Bucharest in a mere four hours. The largest chandelier in the building weighs approximately 3 tons and uses 7,000 bulbs.
The building was almost completed in 1989, when Ceauşescu and his dictatorship were overthrown. He had not yet decided on the final roof design. Estimated building costs (difficult to determine with the way Communist projects were handled) range from US$ 760 million to US$ 3.3 billion.
Since 1989 intense debate has surrounded the House of the People. Locals have a love-hate relationship with the building. Some wanted the government to dynamite the building, but the amount of explosives needed was too costly. Many locals in Bucharest would like to see it torn down because it's an eyesore and represents an affront to them. While they stood in long lines just to buy the basic necessities of life, and were forced to "tighten their belts" under Ceauşescu's austerity programs, here was this "palace" where Ceauşescu surrounded himself with lavish luxuries. Opponents to demolishing it point out that its interior also represents a showpiece of Romanian craftsmanship.
Instead of tearing it down, the government ordered a reluctant parliament to move in. The building was subsequently renamed the Palace of the Parliament (Palatul Parlamentului), an official title that has not yet caught on with the locals. To them, it is still known as the House of the People, the "thing," or simply "it."
By the way, you don't get to tour the entire building ... that would take too long ... just some of the selected rooms. But what you do see is way beyond outstanding!
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