{"id":2677,"date":"2020-04-20T19:12:52","date_gmt":"2020-04-20T17:12:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/?p=2677"},"modified":"2025-08-14T19:36:23","modified_gmt":"2025-08-14T17:36:23","slug":"scotocind-prin-antichitati","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/2020\/04\/scotocind-prin-antichitati\/","title":{"rendered":"Going through the antiquities…"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

One day, purely by chance, two of my passions combined: the old one, to send\/get\/buy postcards and a somewhat new one \u2013 strolling through antiquities fairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"..\/restante\/20191117_145919.jpg\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In Covent Garden London<\/strong>,\nthere is such a fair every Monday. I have discovered it a bit late, on one of\nthe trips when my coming back home was not on a Monday, as usual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am not a specialist in old things, but I have grown fond\nof them, a sign that I am becoming rather old J.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I start visiting the fair up and down, touching old objects,\nlooking at silver stuff, I wander at the big prices and, in the end, I stop at\nsomeone’s stand where there are lots of postcards. Thousands! Original.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

OLD POSTCARDS<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"..\/restante\/20190408_145135.jpg\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

They are each covered in plastic, sorted by continents,\nregions and countries. Most of them are from Great Britain, but I see the box\nwith “Eastern Europe”. Let’s see what we have here\u2026 And I start\nexamining all the postcards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Romania!!! Yes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I find two, just two postcards from Romania, one unwritten,\nwith some people dressed in traditional costumes and one with Bucharest. I like\nthe latter, because it is written!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"editate\/vedere%20fatza.jpg\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It is a postcard from 1909!!! From 111 years ago, man! It is in very good state, it has a folded corner and an idea of a stamp on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"editate\/vedere%20verso.jpg\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I buy it. 3.75 pounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And once I get home, I start examining it\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was sent on May 20, 1909, to Stan Johns, in Surrey,\nEngland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From what I managed to read, the sender says as follows:\n“20 mai 1909. Best love from Pater. Many happy returns on the 28 June”.\nMaybe someone better at deciphering the writing could confirm if I understood\nit correctly J.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, this postcard arouse my interest, so I made a plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

THE FIRST STEP<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

“Bucharest, Calea Victoriei towards Hotel de France\u201d,\nthis is written on the postcard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"editate\/cec%20hotel%20si%20victoria%20a.jpg\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I leave home, I take the bus and go there! On Calea\nVictoriei. I want to find the place, to see where exactly this place is and\nwhat’s with the hotel I have never heard about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am in front of the beautiful CEC building, I see the\nZlatari Church and the building behind and I try to catch a moment when the\nboulevard is empty, to take a picture from the postcard angle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n