The Civic Centre was meant to be a fully functional area where the “working people” would find everything they needed and where the Socialist victory was at its best; in fact, this area was meant for the important official figures; we are talking about an area of the city located between Alba Iulia Square and the Palace of the Parliament. The avenue in the center of this stretch, Unirii Avenue (originally called “The Socialism Victory”) was intended as the main axis for former President Ceaușescu’s utopian dreams; this avenue was built to exceed the length of the Champs Elysees by 6 meters.

The main piece of the area is the Palace of the Parliament, the second biggest building in the world. It was built in shape of a pyramid, it has 12 floors above the ground (84 m. tall) and a total surface of 330,000 sq. m. The grand staircases, huge doorways and the huge number of rooms, many of which are still unused make it for this crazy “Achievement of the Socialist Era”. The widest hall, the Unification Hall (2,200 sq. m. wide and 16 m. tall), has a sliding ceiling large enough for a helicopter to land and a 14 tons carpet woven on premises. The heaviest chandelier in the building (the one in the small Parliament Hall) weights 3 tons and has 7,000 bulbs. The whole building is not yet fully accomplished. On the site where it exists today, there used to be a hill: Spirii Hill, hosting “Curtea Nouă” fortress. In order to have the Palace built, the Court, as well as the whole old neighborhood around it, were razed off, while the hill actually perished, with the diggings meant to create the huge hall for the underground levels of the future Palace.

Note: If you want to visit the palace, prepare yourself for a thorough security checking, similar to the one at the airport. Also, do not expect formalities to be fast or staff to be polite, for they are generally not, rather being perfect clerks of Kadare's pyramid they work in. Bookings are recommended, for, if there are groups coming, you will have to wait for a long time (only guided tours are allowed). Personal advice (after leading groups and independent visitors there for a few years): do not have a tight schedule that day; whether you have a booking or not, you are very likely to have to wait and get staff’s rudeness. And do not get angry, crap is never worth that. Tourists’ entrance lies at GPS - N44 25.718 E26 05.252 (2-4 Izvor Str.). Visitors must have an ID with them (passport or an E.U. country ID); it will remain at reception for the duration of your visit.

The Free Press House (Casa Presei Libere). Not of the same era, but of the same approach (in the “look at me, I am big, isn’t it?” style), and also because it does not deserve a special post, I shall mention here the Free Press House (yes, some name). Located in the Northern part of the city, it was built in 1956 and it is the typical sample of Stalinist architecture, resembling the Palace of Culture in Warsaw, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or the Hotel Ukraina in Moscow. Formerly known as Casa Scânteii (House of the Spark), this building was set at the Northern entrance in the city and played host for all newspapers and other printed media of the communist times. On the marble pedestal in front of it there used to be the statue of Lenin, but it was taken down in 1990 and replaced a couple of years ago with the Romanian and European Union flags, while the statue was dropped near Mogoșoaia Palace nowadays. However the old Communist logo (the scythe and hammer) remains: look for it on the sides, right under the antenna pole at the top of the building. They have removed only the one in front, for the democracy show.

Planning on visiting the place? If you enter one of the sides and put on that ‘I’m here on business’ look, you might get in and wander at will. Otherwise put on a shirt, get an empty laptop bag along, your best shoes and that serious, goddamn concerned look, print a mambo jambo ID and head straight for the main entrance. If they ask anything, answer in Finnish. Or whatever looks like Finnish to you. Crap deserves ignorance or, at worst, crap treatment. GPS - N44 28.735 E26 04.336 (1 Presei Libere Sq.)