Park'n'Shop

We caught the underground again today, this time south of the city to Vacaresti Nature Park, which is a wetlands surrounding Lake Văcărești.

The area was part of a large swampy area on the outskirts of Bucharest that was drained by the Communist Party and apartment blocks built at one end. President Ceaușescu wanted to build a reservoir which was supposed to be filled from Mihăilești Lake, 22 kilometres away, and a concrete dam was built to surround Lake Văcărești.

The plans were abandoned when communism fell in 1989 and the area was neglected. Due to the area being unused for such long time, plant-life and wildlife flourished and the biodiversity is now considered to be comparable to that of a small river delta. There are now a number of bird hides and walking trails in the park.

After lunch at a nearby cafe we caught the underground back to the north of the city, stopping at the shopping mall for some supplies and afternoon tea, before walking back to Marina's.Read more