Roumanian Journey

''At the first mention of going to Roumania, a great many people, as I did myself, would take down their atlas and open the map. For Roumania, there can be no question, is among the lesser known lands of Europe.''

So begins Sir Sacheverell Sitwell''s account of his Roumanian journey, made in the 1930s, when Bucharest was still eight days overland from London.

His four-week trip brings him into conta...