Facts about Romania

Romania is one of the European countries with the highest gold reserves per inhabitant, above countries like Poland, Bulgaria and Slovakia. Besides this, Romania has around 700 tons of gold as exploitable resources mostly in Northeastern country.

Not less than eight historic monuments or natural reserves from Romania are part of UNESCO World Heritage. The list includes: Churches of Moldavia, Dacian Fortresses of the Orastie Mountains, Historic Centre of Sighisoara, Monastery of Horezu and Danube Delta.

From medical to engineering, Romanians made an important contribution through their inventions. For example, Nicolae Constantin Paulescu discover the insulin, Petrache Poenaru is the inventor of fountain pen and Emil Racovita is recognized as being the founder of a new science – biospeleology (study of organisms living in caves).

Death and joy are not two separate things for a small village in Maramures (Romania). Here, unique in the world, the wooden crosses are painted in vivid colors, showing scenes from the life of the defunct. More than that, on almost every tombstone you will find a witty poem.

Also, important to mention in our page „Facts about Romania” is Palace of the Parliament, also known as People’s House, who was built by the former Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, and is currently the largest administrative building in the world, with more than 1.100 rooms (400 used only). Also, this is the heaviest building in the world. Annually, heating and electricity costs exceed $6 million.

More than half of the total population of European bears is found in Romania. According to official statistics, about 9,000 bears live in Romania. The authorities even try to send some of the bears to foreign reservations. In 2012, it was estimated that 2,000 of them had to be killed because they did not have enough food.

The Danube Delta is a perfect spectacle of nature in Romania with more than 360 species of birds and 45 species of freshwater fish. Also, important to mention is that The Danube Delta is the second largest and best-preserved of the European deltas. The Danube Delta entered UNESCO World Heritage in 1991.

Also, in Romania you will find the largest rock sculpture in Europe: Decebalus, which represents the last king of Dacia. This is the highest stone carving in Europe, 42.9 m in height and 31.6 m in width. The man who had the idea of making this sculpture was the historian Iosif Constantin Dragan.

In 1884, more than 730 electric lamps were lit for the first time in Timisoara city, a premiere in Europe. This moment turned the city of Bega into the first electric lighting city in Europe. At that time, the incandescent lamps had the filament made from coal.

In Bucharest you will never miss Paris. The capital of Romania has its own Arc de Triomphe, built in 1921, celebrating Romania’s victory in World War I. Also, The Arc de Triomphe houses a small museum, which can be visited only on special occasions.