Mircea Cartarescu is one of the best known contemporary Romanian authors. He is a poet, novelist and essayst, member of the Romanian Writers’ Union and of the European Cultural Parliament. His works have been translated into more than 14 languages, bringing him international fame.

Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc has changed his mind about using a police escort after initially announcing he had given up on a police traffic escort after some members of the Romanian Police had rallied in Bucharest last week. "It was a way to show my disapproval of those who breached the law and express my standpoint concerning those who were supposed to defend the law but violated it," said the prime minister.

The new Bucharest Obor Market will be opened at the beginning of October, when the two-floorey building which was developed on the site will be finalized. The project, a partnership between the Bucharest Sector 2 city hall and a group of local developers, will feature traditional grocery sales areas, hosting some of the individuals producers which used to sell fruits and vegetables in the old Obor Market.

Two Romanians and a British have embarked on a five-day memorial walk from Bucharest to Brasov, hoping to raise funds and increase awareness for injured Romanian rugby players. Istvan Balint, the general manager of the Gyopar Club Hotel in Hungary, Alexandru Benga, a former martial arts practitioner and Martin Dixon, the editor of The Expat Life magazine started the 170-kilometers walk this morning and expect to arrive in Brasov on Saturday. Other walkers are expected to join on the last section of the track, between Sacele and Brasov, on Saturday.

Around 40 percent of private companies in Romania estimate an average 6.8 percent raise in salaries in 2011, compared with an average 4.3 percent salary raise in 2010, according to a PayWell Romania survey on salary and benefits, conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

Local firm Shopping Center Holding, which has taken over the formerly known Tiago Mall Oradea in a deal estimated at EUR 30.5 million, will build the 30,000 sqm Oradea Shopping City on the premises, the firm has announced.

The move towards sustainability and green systems in buildings has become more obvious in the recent period in Romania, since energy efficient, green projects help owners cut a great chunk of the running costs. This has been among the major reasons for tight-budget developers and building owners to search for green solutions. Hotel owners, investment funds, office developers and even high-end residential owners have started to invest in turning their buildings greener.

More than 100 local communities from Romania have applied for the competition organized by Ovidiu Rom and the Education Ministry this summer and 14 of them have won USD 150,000 in financing to help them get every poor child in pre-school. The financing came from The Alex Fund, a New York based NGO, which includes actor Ethan Hawke as a member of the board.

Romania and the Netherlands could continue to collaborate on environmental issues, such as water management. The Romanian Environment and Forestry Minister Laszlo Borbely has recently met a Dutch delegation headed by Deputy Minister of Foreign Economic Affairs Roderick van Schreven and discussed potential projects.

The biggest cryogeny center in the European Union, worth over EUR 11 million, will be built in Ramnicu Valcea, northwest of Bucharest, according to Ion Stefanescu, the director of the National Institute of Research and Development for Cryogenic and Isotopic Technologies (ICSI), quoted by Agerpres. The project will take two years to be completed.

Mircea Cartarescu is one of the best known contemporary Romanian authors. He is a poet, novelist and essayst, member of the Romanian Writers’ Union and of the European Cultural Parliament. His works have been translated into more than 14 languages, bringing him international fame.

Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc has changed his mind about using a police escort after initially announcing he had given up on a police traffic escort after some members of the Romanian Police had rallied in Bucharest last week. "It was a way to show my disapproval of those who breached the law and express my standpoint concerning those who were supposed to defend the law but violated it," said the prime minister.

The new Bucharest Obor Market will be opened at the beginning of October, when the two-floorey building which was developed on the site will be finalized. The project, a partnership between the Bucharest Sector 2 city hall and a group of local developers, will feature traditional grocery sales areas, hosting some of the individuals producers which used to sell fruits and vegetables in the old Obor Market.

Two Romanians and a British have embarked on a five-day memorial walk from Bucharest to Brasov, hoping to raise funds and increase awareness for injured Romanian rugby players. Istvan Balint, the general manager of the Gyopar Club Hotel in Hungary, Alexandru Benga, a former martial arts practitioner and Martin Dixon, the editor of The Expat Life magazine started the 170-kilometers walk this morning and expect to arrive in Brasov on Saturday. Other walkers are expected to join on the last section of the track, between Sacele and Brasov, on Saturday.

Around 40 percent of private companies in Romania estimate an average 6.8 percent raise in salaries in 2011, compared with an average 4.3 percent salary raise in 2010, according to a PayWell Romania survey on salary and benefits, conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

Local firm Shopping Center Holding, which has taken over the formerly known Tiago Mall Oradea in a deal estimated at EUR 30.5 million, will build the 30,000 sqm Oradea Shopping City on the premises, the firm has announced.

The move towards sustainability and green systems in buildings has become more obvious in the recent period in Romania, since energy efficient, green projects help owners cut a great chunk of the running costs. This has been among the major reasons for tight-budget developers and building owners to search for green solutions. Hotel owners, investment funds, office developers and even high-end residential owners have started to invest in turning their buildings greener.

More than 100 local communities from Romania have applied for the competition organized by Ovidiu Rom and the Education Ministry this summer and 14 of them have won USD 150,000 in financing to help them get every poor child in pre-school. The financing came from The Alex Fund, a New York based NGO, which includes actor Ethan Hawke as a member of the board.

Romania and the Netherlands could continue to collaborate on environmental issues, such as water management. The Romanian Environment and Forestry Minister Laszlo Borbely has recently met a Dutch delegation headed by Deputy Minister of Foreign Economic Affairs Roderick van Schreven and discussed potential projects.

The biggest cryogeny center in the European Union, worth over EUR 11 million, will be built in Ramnicu Valcea, northwest of Bucharest, according to Ion Stefanescu, the director of the National Institute of Research and Development for Cryogenic and Isotopic Technologies (ICSI), quoted by Agerpres. The project will take two years to be completed.