7 Amazing Facts about The Palace of The Parliament in Bucharest

Also known as the “People’s House”, it was Nicolae Ceausescu’s attempt to redesign Bucharest by constructing a series of impressive buildings meant to prove to the world how wealthy and powerful was the Socialist Republic of Romania.  The constructions began in 1983 when Romania was under the communist reign and by the time of the Romanian Revolution in 1989 the building wasn’t yet finished. Today, the building has only 400 chambers and 2 large halls that can be used, out of its total of $1,100 rooms. After the Revolution, no one had the desire to complete this gigantic building. In fact, many Romanians demanded the destruction of the building which was seen as a symbol of Ceausescu’s megalomania and of the extravagant lives lead by the former communist elites.

Image by Simon Laird via Flickr
Without a doubt, the Palace of the Parliament is one of the most controversial administrative buildings in the world. Maybe Ceausescu didn’t succeed in his initial goal of redesigning the face of Bucharest, but by building it he made sure that his work will never be forgotten. Here are just a few interesting facts about the Palace of the Parliament.

Image by Richard Mortel via Flickr

The Palace of the Parliament is visible from the Moon

Yes, that’s right. The Great Wall of China and the Pentagon aren’t the only constructions in the world made by man that can be seen from the Moon. The Palace of the Parliament is also one of these unique and impressive constructions.

It is bigger than Cheops’ Pyramid

Cheops’ Pyramid from Egypt has a 2.550.000 m³ capacity which is pretty huge for a building, but, believe it or not, the Romanian Palace of the Parliament is bigger with 2%.