Email I just received - wanted to share the news

Your Romanian colleagues at large corp enterprise have the pleasure of announcing that on this January 1st, 17 years after the fall of communism, Romania and Bulgaria have joined the European Union.

Romanians celebrated the most historic event for their country since they overthrew communism in 1989, marking their entry into the European Union with celebrations that coincided with the ringing in of the New Year.

In Bucharest, Romania���s capital, in the square where emboldened people shouted down Nicolae Ceausescu, the communist dictator, just before his overthrow in December 1989, thousands counted down the seconds to midnight. Fireworks lit the night sky and the EU's anthem Beethoven���s Ode to Joy from the Ninth Symphony played while groups danced the Hora, a traditional Romanian folk dance.

Romania is the 7th largest EU member with a population of 22 millions and an area of 92,043 sq mi. Bucharest, with a population of 2 million, is the largest city and also the country's capital.2

Road to EU Integration

Romania has made considerable progress over the past years in achieving this goal. EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said in Bucharest that the two entrants "deserve congratulations for impressive reforms in strengthening democracy, modernising their countries, making their justice systems more efficient and independent".3
Romania threw off communism in 1989, applied for EU membership in 1995 and began accession talks in 2000. Negotiations ended two years ago, and the European Commission declared in September that the country could join. In 2004, Romania also joined NATO.

Economy

Romania has enjoyed seven-years of continuous economic growth and seven-years of continuous disinflation. GDP is up by 8.3% compared to the same period in 2005, exceeding expectations, and economic growth during the first nine months of the year rose to 7.8%. According to the Financial Times, Romania is undergoing the fastest economic development in Europe, surpassing Greece (3.2 %), Turkey (5.2 %) and Bulgaria (5.7 %). Romania's leu surpassed all European currencies and became the world's best performer this year, according to Bloomberg market analysts.5 Play Romania, Bucharest - Simply Surprising movie.

Tourism and Culture

Romania has majestic castles, medieval towns, great hiking and wildlife, and cheap skiing of much of the 'undiscovered' former Eastern Bloc. The Palace of Parliament is the world's second largest building after the US Pentagon. Built in 1984, the building's 12 storeys and 3100 rooms covers 330,000 sq metres - an estimated three billion Euro project. The medieval Saxon city of Sibiu in Transylvania was designed to be the European Capital of Culture in 2007.

The Romanian Black Sea coast stretches out for 245 km (153 miles). The southern 72 km (45 miles) area of the Romanian Black Sea coast has been developed into a string of beach resorts forming the Romanian Black Sea Riviera.7 Play Romania's Black Sea - Simply Surprising movie.

Natural Reservations

Danube Delta is the largest and best preserved of Europe's deltas and it's on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites (1991) and Biosphere reserves. Around 2,733 km�� of it are strictly protected areas and it hosts over 1,200 varieties of plants, 300 species of birds as well as 45 freshwater fish species in its numerous lakes and marshes.8 Play Romania's Danube Delta - Simply Surprising movie.


Romania - Simply Surprising campaign Play movie