FEPA News

FEPA NEWS 45 17 Exhibition News After a smooth and relaxing flight from Athens, the plane landed at the Henri Coand ă airport in Bucharest. Before I realised it I found myself comfortably sitting in a bus heading to Pia ț a Unirii (Union Square), one of the largest squares of the Romanian capital. Although it was almost midday, the traffic to the city centre was unexpectedly dense, and the ride lasted nearly an hour. I couldn’t complain, as I had enjoyed a long city tour for just 3 lei or 0.60 euros. Bucharest is perhaps the most beautiful city in Southeast Europe. Long boulevards, spacious pavements, bicycle routes, tall trees, and greenery are all-in-one. Impressive buildings of the late 1800s and early 1900s, of the earlier period of monarchy, are mixed with later, Soviet-type, huge constructions that remind visitors of an era the Romanians prefer to forget. After a few minutes’ walk from Pia ț a Unirii, I arrived at the National Library, the venue of EFIRO 2024, a modern, big ten-story construction with a style of its own. The exhibition was spread over two levels, the ground floor and the mezzanine, interconnected with several staircases and escalators. More than 2,600 frames were employed, most of which have been manufactured recently in Romania, property of Ion Chirescu, President of the Romanian Federation, Chairman of the Organising Committee, and owner of the Museum of Romanian Records. Having realised the opportunity of the huge space available in the National Library, the Organisers sought to bring in additional frames from neighbouring countries, and they did: 600 frames from Bulgaria. Following a quick stroll around the frames to find out what was where, I figured out that, because of the bulky columns that supported the tall building, the frames were developed in many small-sized islets, each comprising a handful of exhibits. However, architect Chirescu designed these islets to contain either 5- or 8-frame exhibits exclusively. The result was that all exhibits started and finished at the two ends of a single row of frames. My first impression of EFIRO 2024 was its opening ceremony. The stage was set as simple as it could be, with three speakers that did not waste anybody’s time. Ion Chirescu welcomed the visitors, Prakob Chirakiti RDP, FIP President, came next, and FlorinValentin Stefan, a Posta Romana representative, followed. All three addressed the audience in less than ten minutes combined! EFIRO 2024 World Exhibition 16-19 April 2024 Costas Chazapis writes: