Giurgiu (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈd͡ʒjurd͡ʒju]) is the capital city of Giurgiu County, Romania, in Muntenia. It is situated amid mud-flats and marshes on the left bank of the Danube facing the Bulgarian city of Ruse on the opposite bank. Three small islands face the city, and a larger one shelters its port, Smarda. The rich grain-growing land to the north is traversed by a railway to Bucharest, the first line opened in Romania, which was built in 1869 and afterwards extended to Smarda.