Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
which has miraculously survived a thousand
years of barbarian and other invasions in the
Dark Ages.
(Ministry of Tourism, undated c, p. 3)
There are also prominent references to
settlements around the country that played an
important role within the Roman Empire (such
as the spa resort of B
d
ile Herculane and the
coastal city/resort of Constan
1
a) (Fig. 20.1).
At first sight this emphasis on Roman and
Latin origins may not seem unexpected since
most countries in some way present their
national history within their tourist promotion.
However, the emphasis on Roman/Latin origins
represents a significant departure from the way
in which Ceau
s
escu sought to define Romanian
national identity. In accordance with the import-
ance attached to native and indigenous - rather
than European - values, Ceau
s
escu sought to
downplay (or even deny) the Roman origins of
the Romanians. Instead, greater priority was
attached to the Dacian ancestry of the
Romanians (the Dacians were the pre-Roman
inhabitants of what is now Romania) (Verdery,
1991; Boia, 2001). The renewed emphasis on
Roman origins after 1989 parallels Romania's
efforts to present itself once again as a
European country by asserting a common
inheritance with much of the rest of Europe.
Similarly, by highlighting their Latin origins and
temperament, the Romanians themselves are
presented as sharing characteristics with their
Latin 'cousins' of Western Europe (the French,
Italians, Portuguese and Spanish, all of whom
are members of the EU).
Another way in which Romania has
asserted its long-standing links with Western
and Central Europe is through stressing con-
tinuity with European architectural styles. For
example, one brochure states:
Saxon architecture in Transylvania. This theme
is developed most fully in the presentation of
Bucharest, where the congruence with French
architectural styles is repeatedly stressed. For
example:
the city developed into an acknowledged
European centre of culture and good
living. . .French architects, who had contributed
so much to its [Bucharest's] style, its tree-lined
boulevards and elegant fin de siecle architec-
ture in the 19th century, again added grace to
its buildings. An Arc de Triomphe was erected
in 1935 . . . Boulevard cafes proliferated . . .
Bucharest remains a Garden City, leafy and
pleasant, architecturally eclectic with pavement
cafes open in the warm summer, and boating
on the lakes.
(Ministry of Tourism, undated d, p. 2)
There are also repeated efforts to draw
parallels between Bucharest and Paris. These
take the inter-war period as their inspiration
when the French influence in Bucharest was
such that the city was known by some in
the West as the 'Paris of the East' or the 'Little
Paris'. Although, the 'Little Paris' may have
been more myth than reality (Boia, 2001) it is a
myth that is frequently evoked by Romania's
tourist promotional materials. For example:
the city developed into an acknowledged
European centre of culture and good living,
earning it the nickname the 'Little Paris'.
(Ministry of Tourism, undated d, p. 2)
Bucharest used to be called the 'Little Paris',
and with good reason.
(Ministry of Tourism, undated a, p. 3)
Bucharest was acquiring the Belle Epoque
architecture and intellectual vibrancy that made
it the 'Little Paris'.
(Ministry of Tourism, undated c, p. 2)
Although there is little in Bucharest today
that recalls Paris, the 'Little Paris' epithet is ideal
material to enable Romania to present itself as
sharing a common heritage with Western
Europe. As Morgan and Pritchard (1998) argue,
this is a strategy that attempts to mediate and
legitimize the unfamiliar by positioning it along-
side the familiar: the presentation of Haapsalu
in Estonia as the 'Venice of the Baltics' has a
similar intent.
The stress on historical ties with Western
Europe (particularly France) is also apparent in
A kaleidoscope of architectural styles -
Baroque, Renaissance, Neoclassical,
Romanesque, Art Nouveau, Rococo . . . You
would be forgiven for believing we are
describing the attractions of a tour of Europe,
but we are referring to the great cultural wealth
encapsulated in just one country - Romania.
(National Tourism Authority,
undated a, p. 20)
The shared inheritance with European
architecture is also apparent with references to
