Did you know that
In Constanta Tabacarie park, only a few hundred meters from the Parc Hotel in Mamaia resort, there is a "Japanese stone torch" given by the local Yokohama city administration in Japan following its twinning with Constanta in October 1982. At the base of the monument he wrote: "From the chairman of the Friendship Committee Yokohama - Constanta, M. Ariyama on the occasion of the 5 anniversary of signing the twinning document of the two cities".
In the book "133 of Years of Romania-Japan Relations", Ion Scumpieru, the former Counselor Minister at the Embassy of Romania in Tokyo, describes extensively the events of close connection between Romania and "Sunrise Country".
"The twinning proclamation was signed on October 12, 1977 by the two mayors, Gheorghe Trandafir (mayor of Constanta) and I. Asukata (mayor of Iokohama). The Romanian ambassador to Tokyo was also present at the ceremony. The document states: "The twinning between the two cities contributes not only to strengthening friendships and collaboration between Romania and Japan but also to consolidating world peace… The two municipalities will exchange in the fields of culture, education and economy… The parties express the conviction that through this twinning the knowledge between the two cities and their citizens will be promoted ”. Constanta was the first city in Eastern Europe and the eighth city in the world with which Yokohama was twinned.
… In Constanta, he had a meeting with the mayor Gheorghe Trandafir and other representatives of the municipal mayor's office, after which the guests visited the port, the shipyard, as well as the seaside resorts. The delegation was also invited to pay a visit to the Murfatlar Wine Resort. From the notes published later in the Kanagawa Shimbun newspaper by some members of the delegation, it appears that the Japanese were impressed by the warm welcome made by the hosts, who were glad that they were able to make a first impression of Romania as a communist country. ; to know the economic and tourist possibilities of Constanta.
… Yokohama is located in the Gulf of Tokyo, not far from the capital of Japan. It has an area of 437,38 square kilometers and a population of 3,7 million inhabitants, which places it in second place after Tokyo. With a history of about 150 years, Yokohama has become one of the main sea and commercial gates of the country.
… Due to the good relations between the two cities, the Constanta Municipal Council gave the name Yokohama to a street in its own city.