For centuries, Bucharest has been at the crossroad between the Christian kingdoms to the west, the Tsars of the east and the Ottoman Empire to the south.
It was in this melting pot of influences, that Bucharest experienced its prime back in the second half of the 1800s, when the country prospered under king Carol I. Beautiful boulevards were laid in French style, luxurious palaces were constructed, and the face of the city was defined by the architecture of the Belle Epoque style.