Discover the history, the architecture and charm of some places most locals don’t even know exist. The evolution of Bucharest is one of the best instances of the ambiguous relationship existing between the Romanian lands and the Ottoman Empire. Although it was not an Ottoman town, it shared many aspects with towns in the Ottoman area of influence.

One of these shared aspects was the division by Mahallas. Mahallas were small quarters of the town which arose around a religious building and which were often inhabited by a homogeneous community of people belonging to the same ethnic, social or religious groups. As the town grew, mahallas fused with each other giving birth to wider neighborhoods that suffered through waves of modernization, earthquakes, wars and Ceausescu's demolition projects. This was the fate of neighborhoods like the Armenian Quarter, Mantuleasa, the Old Jewish Quarter & Batistei. Discover and learn about all the mixtures of architecture, cultures and cuisines.