The new frontiers of freedom from the Alps to the ÆgeanPowell, E. Alexander (Edward Alexander)
History
The new frontiers of freedom from the Alps to the Ægean
Powell, E. Alexander (Edward Alexander)
Balkan Peninsula -- Description and travel; World War, 1914-1918 -- Territorial questions
Constantza, the chief port of Rumania, is superbly situated on a
headland overlooking the Black Sea. It has an excellent harbor, bordered
on one side by a number of large grain elevators and on the other by a
row of enormous petroleum tanks--the latter the property of an American
corporation; a mile or so of asphalted streets, several surprisingly
fine public buildings, and, on the beautifully terraced and landscaped
waterfront, an imposing but rather ornate casino and many luxurious
summer villas, most of which were badly damaged when the city was
bombarded by the Bulgars. Constantza is a favorite seaside resort for
Bucharest society and during the season its _plage_ is thronged with
summer visitors dressed in the height of the Paris fashion. From atop
his marble pedestal in the city's principal square a statue of the Roman
poet Ovid, who lived here in exile for many years, looks quizzically
down upon the light-hearted throng.
It is in the neighborhood of 150 miles by railway from Constantza to
Bucharest and before the war the Orient Express used to make the journey
in less than four hours. Now it takes between twenty and thirty. We made
a record trip, for our train left Constantza at four o'clock in the
morning and pulled into Bucharest shortly before midnight. It is only
fair to explain, however, that the length of time consumed in the
journey was due to the fact that the bridge across the Danube near
Tchernavoda, which was blown up by the Bulgars, had not been repaired,
thus necessitating the transfer of the passengers and their luggage
across the river on flat-boats, a proceeding which required several
hours and was marked by the wildest confusion. So few trains are
running in the Balkans that there are never enough, or nearly enough,
seats to accommodate all the passengers, so that fully as many ride on
the roofs of the coaches as inside. This has the advantage, in the eyes
of the passengers, of making it impracticable for the conductor to
collect the fares, but it also has certain disadvantages. During our
trip from Constantza to Bucharest three roof passengers rolled off and
were killed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account