0:00:03 > 0:00:07'I'm embarking on a new railway adventure
0:00:07 > 0:00:11'that will take me across the heart of Europe.'
0:00:11 > 0:00:15I'll be using this, my Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide,
0:00:15 > 0:00:20dated 1913, which opened up an exotic world of foreign travel
0:00:20 > 0:00:22for the British tourist.
0:00:22 > 0:00:24'It told travellers where to go,
0:00:24 > 0:00:26'what to see and how to navigate
0:00:26 > 0:00:30'the thousands of miles of tracks to cross the Continent.
0:00:32 > 0:00:35'Now, a century later, I'm using my copy
0:00:35 > 0:00:38'to reveal an era of great optimism and energy,
0:00:38 > 0:00:40'but also of high tension.'
0:00:43 > 0:00:46I want to rediscover that lost Europe that in 1913
0:00:46 > 0:00:51couldn't know that its way of life would shortly be swept aside
0:00:51 > 0:00:53by the advent of war.
0:01:10 > 0:01:12'I'm continuing a journey through Romania.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17'I began amidst the unspoilt beauty of Transylvania,
0:01:17 > 0:01:20'and have travelled south as far as Ploiesti.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23'Now I'm bound for Bucharest, the capital,
0:01:23 > 0:01:26'before continuing to the port of Constanta, on the Black Sea coast.
0:01:27 > 0:01:32'Along the way, a Romanian hero is brought to life by a maestro.'
0:01:32 > 0:01:36George Enescu, a Stradivarius - it's overwhelming.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39'I meet a defender of the nation's heritage...'
0:01:39 > 0:01:43You are the man who saved this church and so many other buildings.
0:01:43 > 0:01:45'..before testing my head for heights.'
0:01:45 > 0:01:46Whoa! This is scary.
0:01:47 > 0:01:48I've got the shakes.
0:01:59 > 0:02:00My next stop will be Bucharest.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03Bradshaw's tells me that it's "The capital of Romania,
0:02:03 > 0:02:08"often swept by strong winds, a very unsettled climate.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11"The trade of the city continually increases.
0:02:11 > 0:02:15"Improvements have swept away most of the old, squalid, Oriental
0:02:15 > 0:02:18"districts, and occasionally the city
0:02:18 > 0:02:20"is mentioned as a smaller Paris."
0:02:20 > 0:02:24I shall be very interested to see it because during the communist period,
0:02:24 > 0:02:29President Ceaucescu also did a lot of sweeping away.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50For early 20th-century tourists, alighting in the capital of
0:02:50 > 0:02:52this new kingdom would have been exciting,
0:02:52 > 0:02:54even daunting,
0:02:54 > 0:02:58although the seasoned European traveller might be reassured
0:02:58 > 0:02:59by some familiar touches.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04The very first reminder of Paris is the name of this station,
0:03:04 > 0:03:09Gara de Nord, and it's not just the name - it was built in 1872 at
0:03:09 > 0:03:13a time when French cultural and architectural influences
0:03:13 > 0:03:15were very strong.
0:03:15 > 0:03:19And then, just imagine all the French people who were arriving
0:03:19 > 0:03:23by train at the station, bringing with them all their influences.
0:03:37 > 0:03:41'The city of Bucharest flourished during the reign of
0:03:41 > 0:03:46'King Carol I, between 1866 and 1914.'
0:03:46 > 0:03:50New boulevards were created in the style of Haussmann's Paris.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53Most of its major buildings were designed by French or
0:03:53 > 0:03:55French-trained architects.
0:03:55 > 0:03:58The city has its own Arc de Triomphe.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12At the time of my guide book, King Carol's Romania was gaining
0:04:12 > 0:04:15in confidence and seeking greater influence.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19Two Balkan wars gave Romania bargaining power.
0:04:24 > 0:04:29In 1912, a group of Balkan countries took advantage of Turkey's
0:04:29 > 0:04:35weakness to seize most of its remaining territory in Europe.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38But Bulgaria's jealous neighbours thought that it had gained
0:04:38 > 0:04:44too much and a second Balkan War broke out in 1913.
0:04:44 > 0:04:47Romania contrived to host the peace conference,
0:04:47 > 0:04:50here in Bucharest later that year,
0:04:50 > 0:04:55and gained a city on the Black Sea and another on the Danube and
0:04:55 > 0:04:59an increase in population of a quarter of a million.
0:04:59 > 0:05:03But if any of the delegates came to this late-19th century
0:05:03 > 0:05:06Gothic-themed restaurant to celebrate,
0:05:06 > 0:05:10their rejoicing would have been very short-lived because events in
0:05:10 > 0:05:14the Balkans precipitated World War I.
0:05:14 > 0:05:17And that brought untold suffering to all of Europe.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25Romania had become a significant player in the region.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30Her allegiance would be eagerly courted by both sides during
0:05:30 > 0:05:33the conflict to come.
0:05:33 > 0:05:38Early 20th-century Bucharest was a cosmopolitan city, where art,
0:05:38 > 0:05:40architecture and music flourished.
0:05:43 > 0:05:47George Enescu, Romania's greatest musician and composer,
0:05:47 > 0:05:50was hugely popular in his home country and across Europe.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55The Cantacuzino Palace holds a museum dedicated to him.
0:05:56 > 0:06:00And I feel privileged to be shown around by Romania's most
0:06:00 > 0:06:03celebrated violinist, Alexandru Tomescu.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12Maestro, here is George Enescu.
0:06:12 > 0:06:15What kind of an inspiration has he been to you?
0:06:15 > 0:06:18George Enescu is a complete artist for me.
0:06:18 > 0:06:23He was not just a great composer, a great violinist,
0:06:23 > 0:06:25maybe one of the greatest of the century,
0:06:25 > 0:06:27not just a great teacher,
0:06:27 > 0:06:30who could memorise a piece just sight-reading it for the
0:06:30 > 0:06:34first time and then he would put it beside him and then would be
0:06:34 > 0:06:36able to reproduce every single note.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39But besides all of these artistical qualities, he was very
0:06:39 > 0:06:43intensely preoccupied with the fate of the young composers of Romania.
0:06:43 > 0:06:47He established an award for the young composers.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50He did so much for this country.
0:06:50 > 0:06:54Born in 1881, George Enescu was a prodigy,
0:06:54 > 0:06:57admitted to the Vienna Conservatory at the tender age of seven.
0:06:59 > 0:07:03In later life, he gained international acclaim for his
0:07:03 > 0:07:06orchestral compositions, including his Romanian Rhapsodies.
0:07:11 > 0:07:14Well, Alexandru, what violin have you brought today?
0:07:14 > 0:07:18The very best violin, from Romania.
0:07:18 > 0:07:22It's a Stradivarius, built in 1702, during his golden age.
0:07:22 > 0:07:26It was purchased by Romanian state back in 1955 and may be the
0:07:26 > 0:07:30best ever investment that the Romanian state made.
0:07:30 > 0:07:32It's a true beauty.
0:07:32 > 0:07:36It is priceless. It is one of the few remaining ones.
0:07:36 > 0:07:41No amount of money, regardless how big, can replace it.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45Would it be possible to hear something by Enescu on
0:07:45 > 0:07:50- a Stradivarius?- Not only possible, it will be a great joy for me.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53HE PLAYS
0:08:38 > 0:08:44Alexandru Tomescu, George Enescu, a Stradivarius - it's overwhelming.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47- Thank you so much.- A great pleasure.
0:08:54 > 0:08:59And a further privilege - that's not all I'll hear of his music.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01The Enescu Philharmonic is rehearsing for
0:09:01 > 0:09:04a performance in the Athenaeum,
0:09:04 > 0:09:07offering me an insight into their work.
0:09:07 > 0:09:11ORCHESTRA PLAYS
0:09:57 > 0:09:59The visitor to Bucharest a century ago
0:09:59 > 0:10:01could have come to the Athenaeum and seen
0:10:01 > 0:10:05Romanian history represented in the round.
0:10:05 > 0:10:09And perhaps through Enescu's second Romanian Rhapsody,
0:10:09 > 0:10:11I've glimpsed the Romanian soul as well.
0:10:13 > 0:10:16MUSIC CONTINUES
0:11:17 > 0:11:20I'm staying in the elegant Continental Hotel,
0:11:20 > 0:11:23mentioned in my Bradshaw's Guide.
0:11:23 > 0:11:25And, overall, I've been surprised how many
0:11:25 > 0:11:28old buildings have survived in Bucharest.
0:11:28 > 0:11:32I like to think of these historic structures all across Europe
0:11:32 > 0:11:35as being like silent, outraged spectators
0:11:35 > 0:11:38to the events of the 20th century.
0:11:38 > 0:11:43Two world wars and the depravities of Nazism and fascism and communism,
0:11:43 > 0:11:47waiting patiently for sanity to be restored.
0:11:56 > 0:12:01If you choose your route carefully, Bradshaw's 1913 Bucharest
0:12:01 > 0:12:02is much in evidence.
0:12:04 > 0:12:08But take a turn off that route and the brutalist tower blocks
0:12:08 > 0:12:11tell the story of Bucharest and Romania
0:12:11 > 0:12:14in the latter half of the 20th century.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25Bradshaw's had prepared me for
0:12:25 > 0:12:28the cupula-shaped church towers of Bucharest.
0:12:28 > 0:12:31But this is the architecture of tyranny,
0:12:31 > 0:12:36the sort that flattens everything that gets in its way.
0:12:36 > 0:12:41It was built in the 1980s on the orders of a megalomaniac -
0:12:41 > 0:12:42President Ceausescu.
0:12:42 > 0:12:47It was intended to be a monument that would last 500 years.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50But he was shot before the decade had ended.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55Backed by the Soviet Union, the communists had
0:12:55 > 0:12:58seized power shortly after the Second World War.
0:12:58 > 0:13:05Between 1965 and 1989, Romania endured the despotic regime of
0:13:05 > 0:13:08Nicolae Ceausescu, which scarred the nation.
0:13:11 > 0:13:15Despite economic mismanagement resulting in widespread poverty,
0:13:15 > 0:13:19Ceausescu and his wife, Elena, pursued grandiose projects,
0:13:19 > 0:13:23such as the building of the Palace Of The Parliament in Bucharest.
0:13:25 > 0:13:30At 365,000 square metres, it is the second largest
0:13:30 > 0:13:34administrative building in the world after the Pentagon.
0:13:36 > 0:13:40I'm meeting Adrian Iordachescu, whose father emerged a hero
0:13:40 > 0:13:43as a result of this extravagant project.
0:13:43 > 0:13:45- Hello, Adrian.- Glad to meet you.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48Very good to see you. Well, here we are,
0:13:48 > 0:13:51virtually in the shadow of the Palace Of The Parliament.
0:13:51 > 0:13:53What was in this area before?
0:13:53 > 0:13:59A pretty nice quarter, with old houses.
0:13:59 > 0:14:04Very quiet. There were a lot of churches, small streets.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08What happened to those houses and those churches in this quarter?
0:14:08 > 0:14:10Totally demolished.
0:14:10 > 0:14:16The property was not, uh, the major concern of the regime.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21More than 40,000 residents were given
0:14:21 > 0:14:24just days to vacate their homes.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28And one fifth of Bucharest was flattened to make way
0:14:28 > 0:14:30for Ceausescu's vanity project.
0:14:35 > 0:14:38Did anything survive?
0:14:38 > 0:14:44Yes, a couple of churches were saved by my father.
0:14:44 > 0:14:49My father is a civil engineer, and he had that great idea
0:14:49 > 0:14:53to relocate buildings.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56What do you think is the most important thing that was saved?
0:14:56 > 0:14:58Probably Mihai Voda church -
0:14:58 > 0:15:03it's one of the most important buildings, which was relocated.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11To save the 16th-century Mihai Voda church from demolition,
0:15:11 > 0:15:17Adrian's father, Eugen, came up with an ingenious method of moving it.
0:15:19 > 0:15:23The building was cut from its foundation at ground level,
0:15:23 > 0:15:26raised, supported by hydraulic jacks,
0:15:26 > 0:15:31before being transported on railway bogeys along train tracks.
0:15:35 > 0:15:37To the amazement of crowds,
0:15:37 > 0:15:40the church was moved in one piece,
0:15:40 > 0:15:45289 metres away from Ceausescu's bulldozers.
0:15:54 > 0:15:58It took two weeks for the church to reach its new location.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09So, Adrian, it is a beautiful church,
0:16:09 > 0:16:13and this is where it ended up after its 289-metre journey.
0:16:13 > 0:16:16But now it's hemmed in by blocks of flats.
0:16:16 > 0:16:21A couple of years ago, the chief architect and the mayor
0:16:21 > 0:16:23asked my father to think of a solution
0:16:23 > 0:16:28to relocate the building on the initial site.
0:16:28 > 0:16:30- Can we go inside?- Sure.
0:16:37 > 0:16:42When I see the church, I'm struck by its simple beauty.
0:16:44 > 0:16:48And now I fully appreciate the audacity of the operation.
0:16:55 > 0:17:00And to my delight, Eugen Iordachescu is here to meet me.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07My father. That's the man I told you about.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10What a great honour to meet you, sir. This is fantastic.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13- Thank you very much.- You are the man who saved this church,
0:17:13 > 0:17:14and so many other buildings.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE
0:17:34 > 0:17:37Are you a religious man? Was that an important part of your motivation?
0:17:57 > 0:18:02Congratulations. What you've done here is really almost incredible.
0:18:15 > 0:18:19I'm leaving the capital, to continue my journey eastwards.
0:18:40 > 0:18:43I'll soon be arriving in Constanta which, the guidebook tells me,
0:18:43 > 0:18:47"..is on a steep tongue of land running into the Black Sea.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50"It's acquired importance as the sea harbour of Romania,
0:18:50 > 0:18:54"with the outer works of the harbour completed in 1903."
0:18:54 > 0:18:58I imagine there's been a lot of development still,
0:18:58 > 0:19:01because Constanta remains, for Romanian products,
0:19:01 > 0:19:03the gateway to the world.
0:19:06 > 0:19:09I'm excited to glimpse the mighty Danube,
0:19:09 > 0:19:14which, like me, is wending its way towards the Black Sea.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18I shall explore Constanta tomorrow.
0:19:38 > 0:19:43The city of Constanta stands on the western coast of the Black Sea,
0:19:43 > 0:19:48in the Dobruja region, whose control returned to Romania in 1878,
0:19:48 > 0:19:50after war between Russia and Turkey.
0:19:50 > 0:19:53The country thus regained a sea port,
0:19:53 > 0:19:55and access to international trade routes.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00Looking around, I see faded grandeur.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03Especially evident at Constanta Casino,
0:20:03 > 0:20:06where I'm meeting historian Cosbin Yoniza.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12- Hello, Cosbin.- Hi, Michael. Very nice to meet you.
0:20:12 > 0:20:16This is obviously a splendid building. A casino.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18When was it built and why was it built?
0:20:18 > 0:20:22It was built just before the First World War, in 1909-1910.
0:20:22 > 0:20:28And it was a building meant to bring the elite of the city together.
0:20:28 > 0:20:32Constanta used to be a city of fishermen,
0:20:32 > 0:20:36but then, after this region became part of the kingdom of Romania,
0:20:36 > 0:20:39you have a great splendour in the city.
0:20:39 > 0:20:42I'm very interested in the origins of the First World War.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45Does Constanta play any part in the political developments?
0:20:45 > 0:20:48Constanta has a very important role in the build-up
0:20:48 > 0:20:49to the First World War.
0:20:49 > 0:20:54It's actually the place where the visit of Tsar Nicholas II,
0:20:54 > 0:21:00with his imperial family, happened on 14th June, 1914,
0:21:00 > 0:21:03when he visited the royal family of Romania.
0:21:03 > 0:21:05- Are we able to go inside?- Sure.
0:21:10 > 0:21:14In 1914, Europe sensed that war was brewing.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17Tensions were high between opposing alliances.
0:21:19 > 0:21:23The Russian imperial visit, which drew huge crowds,
0:21:23 > 0:21:26and concluded with a gala in this casino,
0:21:26 > 0:21:29was more than a courtesy call by a neighbouring monarch.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37Cosbin, it was clearly once an extremely grand building,
0:21:37 > 0:21:40and I dare say a suitable place to receive the Tsar of Russia.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43What was the political purpose of the visit?
0:21:43 > 0:21:47It was very important because in Europe at that moment,
0:21:47 > 0:21:49you have two main alliances.
0:21:49 > 0:21:51You have Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy on one side,
0:21:51 > 0:21:55and then on the other side you have France, Russia and Great Britain.
0:21:55 > 0:21:57Romania was part of the first bloc,
0:21:57 > 0:22:01together with Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy.
0:22:01 > 0:22:05And the others were trying to pull Romania out of this alliance
0:22:05 > 0:22:07and to bring it to their side.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09More things happened apart from the imperial visit.
0:22:09 > 0:22:13You have also the foreign minister of Russia visiting Romania,
0:22:13 > 0:22:16and this has a very important political message.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19He was here in Constanta as well during the visit, but he stayed more in Bucharest
0:22:19 > 0:22:23and they were able to talk further on, on the political, er...
0:22:25 > 0:22:27..ideas connecting the two countries.
0:22:30 > 0:22:33With the ostentatious welcome for the Russian Tsar,
0:22:33 > 0:22:38Romania was claiming her place at the top diplomatic table,
0:22:38 > 0:22:41and was being courted because of her strategic location.
0:22:42 > 0:22:47'In 1916, Romania eventually entered the First World War,
0:22:47 > 0:22:52'on the side of France, Britain and Russia.'
0:23:01 > 0:23:05To the south of the Casino lies the port of Constanta
0:23:05 > 0:23:09which, during the 1860s, was open to international trade
0:23:09 > 0:23:12with a railway built by a British company.
0:23:12 > 0:23:16King Carol further modernised and improved the port
0:23:16 > 0:23:18to accommodate large cargo ships.
0:23:19 > 0:23:24Bradshaw's remarks that grain is Romania's chief export.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26I want to find out whether that's still the case,
0:23:26 > 0:23:30from Antonio Stoye, who works for a freight company here.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36Antonio, I'm very struck by these very beautiful buildings.
0:23:36 > 0:23:38When were they put up?
0:23:38 > 0:23:41So they were built more than 100 years ago.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45They started in 1904 with the first silo,
0:23:45 > 0:23:50then the second one followed in 1911 and the third one in 1914.
0:23:50 > 0:23:52All together, they are 100,000 tonnes capacity.
0:23:52 > 0:23:56This is all about grain. Where was it going from and to?
0:23:56 > 0:23:58Mainly from inland Romania,
0:23:58 > 0:24:00the cargo was going further on the Black Sea.
0:24:00 > 0:24:06In Turkey, North Africa and, today, it's going also to Far East.
0:24:13 > 0:24:18The port of Constanta has undergone further expansion recently.
0:24:18 > 0:24:22Handling nearly 20 million tonnes of cereal a year,
0:24:22 > 0:24:26it's emerging as Europe's biggest grain transport hub,
0:24:26 > 0:24:29and is on course to become the largest grain terminal
0:24:29 > 0:24:31in the Black Sea region.
0:24:34 > 0:24:37Enormous floating cranes transfer cargo
0:24:37 > 0:24:41from river barges to seagoing ships.
0:24:52 > 0:24:58The crane is controlled from a small operator cabin 100ft up.
0:25:04 > 0:25:08WHISPERING: Don't look down, don't look down.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17Ah.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20Made it to the top, and what a view.
0:25:23 > 0:25:24The control centre.
0:25:24 > 0:25:27Yes, here we are, on top of the world.
0:25:27 > 0:25:31I'm looking down into the grain storage area of the ship.
0:25:31 > 0:25:34It is, er, it is a vast cavity, isn't it?
0:25:34 > 0:25:36Yeah, indeed.
0:25:36 > 0:25:38Wow.
0:25:38 > 0:25:43Now the, er, the fairground ride really does begin.
0:25:43 > 0:25:47Ah, the whole crane is spinning around, wow.
0:25:47 > 0:25:49This is... Whoa! This is scary.
0:25:49 > 0:25:53This is moving in every conceivable direction.
0:25:53 > 0:25:57I'm glad he wasn't driving it when we came up the ladder.
0:25:57 > 0:25:58I've got the shakes.
0:25:59 > 0:26:01If you look down, you will see that
0:26:01 > 0:26:05- now he is grabbing from the barge.- Oh, yeah.
0:26:08 > 0:26:15Much more shaking as we grab. The wires come up, the grab is rising...
0:26:15 > 0:26:17We're swinging round towards the ship.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23Ahhh... We're now over the ship.
0:26:23 > 0:26:27This vessel could hold up to 86,000 tonnes of grain,
0:26:27 > 0:26:29and is bound for Belgium.
0:26:29 > 0:26:32That's your first 26 tonnes, operated in Constanta.
0:26:32 > 0:26:34Ah.
0:26:38 > 0:26:39Oh-ho-ho!
0:26:42 > 0:26:45If I was terrified before, I think this takes the biscuit.
0:26:45 > 0:26:49I'm peering through an open space here, down to the enormous grab,
0:26:49 > 0:26:53which must be 70 or 80ft beneath me.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56When I think of the responsibility of these operators,
0:26:56 > 0:26:58I mean, it's really terrifying!
0:27:01 > 0:27:05This thriving venture in Constanta
0:27:05 > 0:27:08signals Romania's ambitions for the future.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14100 years ago, the railway traveller in Romania
0:27:14 > 0:27:17would have noticed its poverty,
0:27:17 > 0:27:22but I've been taken aback to discover that it was a major oil producer,
0:27:22 > 0:27:26whose king had a castle full of the latest electrical gadgets.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28Similarly today, I am surprised that in
0:27:28 > 0:27:32one of Europe's least developed economies,
0:27:32 > 0:27:36there's an enormous and growing port here at Constanta.
0:27:36 > 0:27:40Transylvania was joined to Romania only after the First World War,
0:27:40 > 0:27:43and so it's still a youngish country
0:27:43 > 0:27:46that had a very unlucky 20th century.
0:27:46 > 0:27:50Romania has now driven a stake into its communist past,
0:27:50 > 0:27:55and I hope that this friendly nation will seize the new opportunities.
0:27:57 > 0:27:58'Next time...
0:27:58 > 0:28:00LOUD BANG
0:28:00 > 0:28:03'..I enter a war zone with the Red Cross...'
0:28:03 > 0:28:04Hurry, go!
0:28:04 > 0:28:06A most extraordinary turn of events!
0:28:06 > 0:28:09'..put my faith in St Bernard...'
0:28:09 > 0:28:11Michael Portillo's the name.
0:28:11 > 0:28:14Last seen somewhere in the Alps.
0:28:14 > 0:28:18'..and salute the bravery of a Swiss pioneering pilot.'
0:28:18 > 0:28:20Only when you go up in a small plane like this
0:28:20 > 0:28:23do you realise what a formidable
0:28:23 > 0:28:26obstacle the Alps would have been
0:28:26 > 0:28:28a century ago.