Archives January 2015

Thomas Anders’ Bucharest concert was cancelled. What to do if you bought a ticket

Due to contractual issues, the Thomas Anders show in Bucharest was cancelled. The former Modern Talking member, known by many of his fans as The Gentleman of Music, was scheduled to perform on January 24 in Bucharest’s Sala Palatului.

Those who have already purchased tickets for the concert in Bucharest have two options: the first option would be to get back the money on tickets and the second – to exchange them with other concert tickets currently on sale on www.biletoo.ro.

Those who choose to get their money back should contact the site or go to the point of sale where they purchased the ticket. The value of purchased tickets can be refunded by March 5. Only the value of the ticket price will be refunded (no other fees or services) and the purchaser must present the ticket as intact and valid.

Those who choose to change the Thomas Anders concert ticket with another must go to the Biletoo.ro sale point in Unirea Shopping Center (ground floor, entrance next to McDonald’s) and present their intact and valid ticket in order to receive another ticket to an event they choose, at a similar ticket category.

Days left for Bucharest enthusiasts to have their say

Only a few days left for Bucharest enthusiasts to submit their ideas to the Create Your Bucharest competition, organized by MAK: Austrian Museum of Applied Arts/ Contemporary Art. January 15 is the last day when the competition is open for submissions.

What potentials for development lie within Bucharest, the capital of Romania and one of the largest cities in the European Union? Create Your Bucharest seeks to attract social and cultural visions from artists, designers and architects for the multifaceted city of Bucharest, which has been shaped by a varied past, and its widespread cultural community. The competition is open to visual arts, design and architecture projects.

The projects awarded in the competition will be presented at the MAK Mapping Bucharest: Art, Memory and Revolution 1916 – 2016 exhibition, one of the main projects at the 2015 Vienna Biennale: Ideas for Change (June 12 – October 4, 2015), initiated by Christoph Thun-Hohenstein, MAK Director. The winner of the first place will be announced in March 2015 and will receive a EUR 10.000 prize. The competition will also grant nine other special prizes worth EUR 3.000 each.

Ideas can be submitted by filling out the online form on the official website. Candidates can submit innovating concepts and works for one of south-eastern Europe’s most dynamic urban centers.

Branding Bucharest for foreign tourists

Bucharest will have a tourism brand in the near future and will be promoted abroad with the nightlife in the Old Town, the city’s green area, the Parliament House and the museums, said Calin Ile, vice-president of the Association for the promotion and development of tourism in Bucharest, quoted by Mediafax. The association was established in July last year.

“We can promote the cultural life, the Enescu Festival, the architecture and history of the city or Bucharest’s surroundings,” said Ile.

He added: “We need to change certain stereotypes the foreigners still have about Bucharest, that it’s an unsafe city, with stray dogs, with nothing to do around or where you will get robbed everywhere. Our role will be extremely important, to show that we are a city like others in Europe, where bad and good things happen, but where is worth coming, because it’s pleasant.”

Read the entire article on Romania-Insider.com.

David Guetta and Avicii headlined at summer festival in Cluj

World famous DJs David Guetta and Avicii will be among the headliners at the Untold Festival in Romania’s city of Cluj this summer. The two DJs will be accompanied by 150 other artists who will take part in the festival. They will be on stage between July 30 and August 2. The location is yet to be announced, but the shows will most likely be held on the Cluj stadium.

The event is in its pre-registration stage, with the first 1,000 tickets already pre-sold in a flash sale for RON 100 per ticket, and over 1,500 people registered, according to Diana Apan, spokesperson for the SHARE Federation, quoted by Mediafax. The Federation organizes events for the city of Cluj within the European Youth Capital project which happens this year. The project will include some 1,500 events, such as concerts, workshops, sports galas, and gaming competitions – including Dreamhack, which has been organized yearly in Bucharest for the last four years.

David Guetta has performed in Romania twice before, so the show in Cluj will be his third appearance in the country. His two previous gigs took place in a Bucharest club, and at the Romexpo exhibition space in the Romanian capital. Guetta, 47, is a French DJ and producer of electro music, who started out as a DJ in nightclubs during the 1980s and 1990s. His mainstream success came in 2009. He sold over 6 million albums and 15 million singles worldwide.

Read the entire article on Romania-Insider.com.

Discover Romania: why priests bless waters on Epiphany day

Christians in Romania celebrate the Epiphany Day (Boboteaza in Romanian) today, January 6, one of the most important religious holidays for the Orthodox Church. This holiday marks the day when Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist.

On this day, priests across all Orthodox churches in Romania bless the waters. Numerous people attend the mass today and fill their bottles or other recipients with holly water (Aghiasma in Romanian), which is believed to have miraculous powers and protect them. They use this water to bless their homes, their goods and their animals.

In Bucharest, the Patriarchy prepared some 276,000 liters of holly water, placed in 23 large recipients. Holly water can be used to bless objects and people, but also to drink – the blessed water keeps its drinkable water properties for very long periods of time. Priests recommend believers to drink the aghiasma every morning before eating, between January 6 and 14, and for the rest of the year, to drink it only when their priest recommend it.

Some of the religious ceremonies take places outdoors, near a large body of water, such as a river or the sea. On this day, priests bless the rivers and the sea as well. In cities located near a river or the sea, it is customary for the priest to throw a wooden cross into the cold water and for young men to go to search for the cross. The one who finds the cross and brings it back is said to get purified of all sins.

Read the entire article on Romania-Insider.com.

Which are the 2014 top movies in Romania?

Romanians bought about 10.5 million movie tickets in 2014, an increase of over 10% compared to 2013. Total box-office revenues went over EUR 40 million, for the first time, Romania-Insider.com has calculated based on box-office information published by local movie site cinemagia.ro.

The top ten movies of this year got 2.4 million viewers and over EUR 10.5 million in revenues, which is more than a quarter of the total box-office revenues.

And first place goes to… The Hobbit. For the third year in a row. The third movie of The Hobbit trilogy (The Battle of the Five Armies) managed to get 337,000 viewers in just two weeks after the premiere and revenues of close to EUR 1.6 million. The first two movies of the trilogy also topped the Romanian box-office in 2012 and 2013.

See below the full top 10 movies in Romania by box-office revenues (in 2014):

Read the entire article on Romania-Insider.com.

Heavy snow keeps ski enthusiasts happy in mountain resorts

The bad weather and thick layer of snow are not all bad news for Romania – the ski season is in full swing and many Romanians enjoy snow – filled holidays in the mountains.

In Poiana Brasov resort near the Central Romanian town of Brasov, the snow layer measures half a meter already, and ski enthusiast are having a blast on Postavaru mountain. The low temperatures allowed the use of snow canons, which will lead to opening more ski slopes in the coming days, both for experienced skiers, and for beginners.

Cable transport is being fully used in Poiana Brasov, according to Mediafax, with over 24,000 people reported to have passed the pay gates on Sunday, December 28, which was also the busiest day of the season in the resort.

Read the entire article on Romania-Insider.com.