The "Spring" neighbourhood, just east of Herăstrău Park, was designed in the 1950s as the residential quarter of the Communist leadership and remains the most expensive postcode in the city. Ceaușescu's own house — now the Primaverii Palace museum, kitsch peacock bathroom and all — is here, alongside the homes of the Politburo elite.
The grid of quiet, tree-lined streets is good for walking, and the cafés on Strada Mendeleev and Strada Paris are excellent. The area shades into Dorobanți on its southern side and into Floreasca to the east. Combine a visit to the Ceaușescu Mansion with a wander through the back streets to see how the Communist top brass actually lived.