We've been back a while and I have to post on the last 2 days in Moldova. The usual delays prolonged this... unpacking, washing and putting away clothes, stocking fridge and emptying out things you forgot to pitch before you left if it hasn't already walked itself to the trash can, adjusting to jet lag, work consuming what feels like all your free time after getting used to EVERY moment being free time, etc. And the most fun was documenting and submitting everything for the travel insurance claim to hopefully get back some of the massive additional expenditures for the JFK 2018 debacle.
Travel Tip #3 - buy the travel insurance! Save EVERY receipt! And sit down for the bittersweet ending to your trip with a ginormous glass of wine while you submit the insurance claim. Maybe you'll "accidentally" add a couple extras zeros and use that to pay for your next trip.
So the plan was to arrive in Moldova late Sunday night, visit host family #2 in village for lunch on Monday, go out to dinner with host family #1 in the capital Monday night, take a 4-hour bus trip to Iasi, Romania on Tuesday for an overnight stay, return Wednesday, world's largest wine cellar on Thursday, and fly out Friday.
Exactly who made that itinerary? Oh yea, me. Things always look better on paper... 6 months removed from reality.
Dinner out Monday night to meet host family #1 was a bit of a walk away, criss-crossing down several side streets. Jamie told them we'd meet at 7pm, but never received confirmation. The streets were dark and desolate, which seemed strange in a capital. No cars, no pedestrians, little light. It felt like the wee hours of the morning in a small town, but that was normal Jamie said. Not much night life or general wandering after dark. The restaurant was some nondescript building on a corner lot with high fencing all around. Walking past the gated entrance was an open courtyard. You could imagine dining on a nice summer evening, but not tonight in the frigid air. We walked up an open staircase to a door opening into a second floor lobby. It felt like a ghost town. Not a soul to be seen anywhere. Where they even open? Jamie opened one of a few doors on the right and found someone who verified they were in fact open. But no host family. We decided to stay and order.
The interior was an eclectic array of furnishings and decor. The seating was around the perimeter with plush, pale pink upholstered booths. There was no seating in the center. The table tops were covered in cloth, and there were pictures on the wall of jazz musicians. Jamie said the place was considered pretty upscale and hosted many banquets and events.
Ornate bathroom tiled floor at restaurant:
After getting to Chisinau late Sunday night, traveling to Jamie's village in bitter cold on Monday on the "Jesus Take the Wheel" bus (see January 16 post and picture), walking to dinner in bitter cold Monday night, it sounded like a pretty good idea to forgo the Iasi (pronounced Yash), Romania side trip, and settle down in the airbnb apartment to Chisinau home until Friday.
Travel Tip #4 - be open to adjustments
So... we are now WIDE open for two extra days... in the least visited capital in all the European Union. Whoo-hoo!! Oh... in the middle of winter. Now there is a travel challenge for the best of them. By this time I'm up for a slower pace. But of course the first big snowfall of winter hits on Tuesday. And on Thursday a storm warning went out for all Peace Corp volunteers to avoid all unnecessary travel.
Dilemma.... Thursday is the scheduled wine tour day with a hired driver. But I get ahead of myself.
After committing to staying in Chisinau we decide to visit a museum nearby that Jamie had not visited and wanted to check out because it has a section on those sent to the Gulag. Some as recent as the 1980s! I know that may seem long ago to some, but really it's not.
View outside airbnb apartment balcony Tuesday morning:
Breakfast of yummy granola bought at Chisinau version of Wegmans grocery store. Much smaller than Wegmans but a plethora of upscale items targeted to the oligarchs. Took quite a while to figure out which container was milk as Jamie never learned Romanian or Russian words for dairy or meat items so he was no help whatsoever. I think he actually kind of enjoyed watching the struggle thinking "serves you right for using milk". They didn't have decaf coffee so the coffee-type drink is some decaffeinated product made from something but I forgot what. Kind of tasteless, but for me coffee is really just the vehicle for cream and sugar in the morning.
While walking to the museum there was a group of older Moldovans (they tend to get a bit rotund as they age) bundled from head to toe in winter wear with their eyeballs peeking out, and they were pruning small branches off of demure trees in the park. It was like some little pruning club. I thought, dang these people don't stop for anything due to the weather. I so wanted to stop and take a picture, but Tony and Jamie were making tracks to the museum and my camera was buried in my purse.
Travel Tip #5 - Stop and take the picture.
Take WAY more pictures than you think you should. BE the tacky tourist! Nobody knows you and you paid good money to be where you are for one small blip of your life and there are too many places in this world to visit so you probably will never come this way again.
Nativity Cathedral on other side of Cathedral Park across from apartment on walk to museum:
Triumphal Arch between Cathedral and Government House building:
Notice the police officer by the road. Being the tourist mecca that Chisinau is (not), I kind of stood out like a... well, like an American in Moldova, pointing and shooting my camera in every direction. I quickly took this picture seriously thinking this guy could rush up and demand I hand my camera over. What could I do if he did? I would at the very least ask to keep the memory card! lol! Click and scurry became my method in Chisinau. Partly to keep up with Jamie, and not get scolded and/or hit by a car while crossing the streets.
Soviet-style Government House building (read: drab, boorish, uninspired architecture):
Stephen the Great Monument:
Side road leading to museum:
We get to the National Museum of History of Moldova and Jamie pays the entrance fee. Nobody speaks English. It's either Romanian or Russian, so we are totally dependent upon Jamie. Complete roll reversal here. He chastises us for not crossing the roads fast enough! Hey kid, it wasn't so long ago I wiped your backside.
As he's paying the entrance fee he turns to ask if we want to take pictures. Uh, what kind of a question is that? Sensing why this is being asked, I ask if there's an extra charge for that and sure enough there is. So the tightwad in me says heck no! (Tightwad Rule #7 momentarily overruled Travel Tip #5)
The museum is big. And empty. Not of things, of people. Remember the bit about the least visited capital in all the EU. And it being winter. And there seems to be a system that must be followed of which rooms to visit and in which order. Each room has an attendant and if you start to venture to the "wrong" room, don't you worry your pretty little head because you will most assuredly be redirected. Say a little prayer for your freedoms.
We start in the "Red Room" and after moseying around the room I come to the realization that I DO want to take pictures. So now I have to approach the only one of us who speaks Romanian to ask the lady if I can renege on the whole picture taking decision. Of course I get the "I cannot believe you are going to make me do this and I should just say no for payback of all those years you told me about consequences of decisions" look. I beg. I plead. Thankfully he is merciful enough to go back downstairs to the ticket counter for me. I scurry behind him like a subservient geisha, he speaks to the lady, laughs politely (read: I'm going to kill you mom), and gives me the ticket allowing me to take photos. Out of the side of my mouth I quietly ask what she said, and he says she told him, "I told you." Harrumph. But now I can take pictures! Did I mention the cost of taking photos was about 15 leu which is, eh-hem, about 90 cents. I know! It's a sickness. But that tightwaddery helped afford this trip thank-you-very-much.
The museum had a plethora of items ranging from ancient artifacts, paintings, photographs, military memorabilia, furnishings, a special Red Cross exhibit, a clock exhibit, etc. I took many pictures of these, but I had such fun noticing and taking pictures of observations and oddities I find both charming and amusing and so telling of cultural differences. Seeing the world from a different perspective helps you step outside yourself and view your own perspective from a different angle. Maybe you like some stuff just the way it is, or maybe some things could change or don't seem so important any longer. And this museum had plenty to push the anal retentive Type A personality in me to the edge and challenge those standards. lol!
The Red Room:
Completely enclosed glass case with "rock #1" moved far over to the left of #1 sticker. Like, how does that happen? Was there an earthquake? Did someone borrow the rock and put it back there? Was that intentional? How??? So many questions!
Sculpture of Neanderthal Man:
Clay artifact found throughout Moldova:
See the burlap piece to the right? There's something that is supposed to be adhered to it that fell off and is now squarely face down, and the glass barrier mocks every anal retentive cell that so desperately wants to put it back!
Model displaying period clothing. Love the shin guards! They're kind of like bronze boots. Throw a scarf around the neck and we are totally ready for a night on the town.
This may be too small to see, but there is item number 1, item number 3, item number 4, and item number 5. Where exactly did 2 go?
The sign indicates the pottery pieces as Fireplace tiles, First-class ceramics, and Ordinary ceramics. Awww... poor "ordinary" ceramics.
And here are the first-class vs. ordinary ceramics. There should be a curtain dividing them like on the plane. Baw-ha-ha!
On to the Bronze Room (Bessarabia in the 19th century):
Thought the portrait was interesting with 3-D cloth draped on lower half:
Right when I took this the room attendant said something to me, at least I think it was to me, that sounded kind of important except that I don't speak Romanian or Russian so if it was something I needed to know or was doing wrong, lo siento, no entiendo! So I quickly scurried away....
So the funny thing is, during the entire trip, when someone spoke to me in a foreign language, my brain said, "Okay, this is NOT English" and I would answer in Spanish. Because in my head the default foreign language is Spanish. Many, many times "si" came out of my mouth. And every time I did it I did a major mental head smack.... idiot!
Miscellaneous pictures and photos:
The Blue Room:
Some clocks from "the Clock Over Time" exhibit:
"Weapons and Military Equipment" exhibit:
International Red Cross exhibit:
Photo of the 5 founders of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
The Red Cross room had these empty display cases pushed up to the wall where some of the best pictures were displayed so you couldn't see them well. Just out of curiosity, do you not have a storage room?
Diorama of the Iasi-Chisinau Operation:
a life-size display took 8 years to make and has authentic objects in the foreground
One part of the museum in the basement held gold treasures and was stunning. It was a small with warm, dark colors and lights shining directly on the gold jewels and pieces setting them aglow. There was beautiful classical music in the background. This was truly the treasure of the whole museum. Unfortunately the attendant would not permit photographs. All bags and personal belongings had to be locked away before entering.
After the museum we went to have lunch at Jamie's favorite hole-in-the-wall to get kebab, which is a wrapped type hand held meal. I don't want to say sandwich because that connotes visions of peanut-butter-and-jelly. When I heard kebab I thought shish-kebab, but no stick was involved. Maybe shish means stick? It was delicious nonetheless. Those are the best places, the favorite haunts of the locals.
That evening we had dinner at a restaurant I'm not sure why we picked because it seemed to be quite a carnivorous establishment. Maybe the beer was good? The menu had some interesting choices. Yum-yum!
This is an actual menu item. Meant to be appetizing?
The next day we decided to meandered through the outdoor marketplace, take in the local scene, and get some Moldova souvenirs.
A little shop selling religious artifacts:
Everyone wore hats. And many women had hats with ginormous pom-poms. They were really cute and I wanted one! But them Jamie told me all the teeny-boppers wear the big pom-pom hats so I opted for the more practical, no frills non-pom-pom version. I didn't need to add 3 more inches to my height anyhow.
I picked it up from a street vendor and promptly plopped it on my head, satisfied with my Moldovan hat that I am now one with the Moldovans. However, the lady raised her eyebrows at me. Around the rim there was a bow with metal tassels and a metal button. Apparently I did not position those correctly. Who knew! The tassels go in the back, and the button by default on the side. She managed to wordlessly communicate the errors of my ways, and set me off thankfully with all the hat bling positioned appropriately. This hat wearing business is serious in Moldova.
On the way back to the apartment before dinner we walk down a pedestrian street and stop at an upscale coffee shop. Honestly, it was one of the nicest coffee shops I've seen. And they had this amazing beet coffee! Leave it to the Russians to infuse beets into coffee. It helps to like beets.
On our way traveling down the main drag on the bus I noticed a Georgian restaurant. We decided to try that Wednesday night. Not sure what Georgian food is, I figured how bad could it be. I pretty much like anything besides organ meat. And raisins. And Swedish Fish. But other than that, I'm good.
We make our way back to the restaurant which is tucked in a courtyard off the main street, softly lit with white lights twisted around trees and poles. We walk into the restaurant and there are only two other ladies sitting at a table eating. How do these places stay open? It appeared modern and upscale, and the waitress greeted us with menus displaying wonderful pictures. That's always helpful when you don't know the language. Especially after Jamie spoke with her to find out she didn't speak Romanian, only Russian. Or so she said. Jamie recognized something on the menu that others in Peace Corp like to order, some chicken dish, and next to it was an absolutely delicious looking picture. Sign me up! He ordered that for me and pointed to the picture. She said no, the picture was another dish listed about 5 pages over, and she pointed that out on the other page. Well, the picture looked amazing, so I went with that.
The meal comes out and looks just as phenomenal as the picture, although the portion was a bit small (says the Big Gulp American) and there was no starch side (e.g. rice, bread, etc.). I dig into a nice chunk of the chicken, which was surrounded by a deep, rich, savory sauce, put it into my mouth, and have this faint flashback. To the Thanksgiving dinners of my youth. When the homemade stuffing had a distinct flavor of...... CHICKEN LIVER! I just ordered an entire dish of chicken liver. Ugh!
Travel Tip #6 - Stick with what is recommended and don't trust the pictures
We finished up and were ready to leave. Which doesn't take long when you don't like the main ingredient of the main dish and there are no "fillers" offered. Except no waitress is to be found. The two ladies left, but it was only for a smoke break, and returned to continue their meal. There were still no others in the place. So... where did she go? We waited. And waited. And waited. She finally shows, we pay the bill, and call it a night.
While waiting for the vanishing waitress, a TV mounted on the wall played a loop of Georgian people and the countryside. They looked very.... rugid. Then it occurred to me, of course they eat organ meat. The same way every other culture did that survived for centuries on the land and surroundings and used every square inch of every resource available. I'm only two generations removed from that. Apparently it takes two generations to turn the nose up to organ meat. And three to become a vegan.
We are now back on track from ditching the Romanian excursion, and Thursday is the planned wine tour at Milestii Mici - the world's largest wine cellar!
We have the driver hired and Jamie is especially looking forward to this since he missed his first opportunity to go last year and instead enjoyed a different "first" experience of food poisoning. Nothing was stopping him this time! Not even the emergency notification to all Peace Corps members to stay put on Thursday because a snow storm was to hit Wednesday night and continue into Thursday. Inadequate snow removal equipment cannot plow the roadways quickly enough and already treacherous roads become more impassable.
We wake Thursday morning, look outside the balcony window onto the roadways, and it's not pretty.
There are cars driving and people walking on the sidewalks. The problem with the sidewalks is that nobody shovels them, and people eventually beat down a path that becomes a hard encrusted path of ice. We won't need to use those much to get to the winery and the driving is the greater issue.
I ask myself, you're only here once, what are the odds that you will die in a car crash? Really. What are they? Less than 50% I figure. It would be terrible to miss the winery that we were so looking forward to and we already ordered a tasting. Worth the risk! If the driver is willing to go, let's do it. I figure the driver, like a pilot on a plane, probably wants to live too (that's my rationale to get through flying). Actually, I met an international pilot recently and asked if it gave him pause considering all the lives on board when he flies, and he said, no, he only thinks about himself. Took me aback but then realized what do I care? As long as his goal is to live.
The driver makes it, and off we go! The strangest thing I noticed when driving in cars in Moldova is that the drivers turn on juuuuust enough heat to defrost the windshield and that's it. You stay cold enough to keep hats, gloves and scarves on and still shiver. Like, it doesn't cost more to turn the fan on higher, does it? But now I remember they truly believe any movement of air causes sickness. I mean any. So maybe the fan blowing any more than needed to defrost the window is a health hazard. I kid you not, I bet that's it.
The roadways have several inches of snow and it's coming down pretty hard. I keep wiping off my window in the back seat to look out because breathing fogs it up with, you know, no heat. The driver is a champ and gets us through. He was a very good driver, and later find out he drives professionally for some government agency and took the day off to drive us. That's kind of the way they work over there. It's nothing to just take a day off whenever for whatever. So he did. Worked in our favor!
The winery is over 100 miles of roadways underground. The tour includes a tour guide that hops in your car at the entrance. Our guide hops in the back seat next to me, so I am now sandwiched in the middle between her and Tony. In a tiny Mitsubishi. She rattles off the script in English and quite honestly, I don't recall much as I was taking pictures. I do recall there were over 2 million bottles of wine, over 2000 stainless steel wine barrels, and over 1000 oak wine barrels. And the barrels were huge!
Man made waterfall within the tunnels:
We got out of the car and were able to meander around an area with bottles stored endlessly. This is where she spoke quite a bit, but I was busy clicking away.
Secret room where best wine was hidden during Soviet prohibition while cheaper bottles were destroyed. The prohibition, known as the "dry law" was ordered by Gorbachev during 1985-1987.
Tony peeking into secret room:
Private stashes:
Next we went to wine tasting where we pre-ordered online before coming. We got 3 different types of wine with cured meat and placinta platters.
Sliding stone door on way into tasting room:
Half oak barrel revolving door:
Sign-in registry:
Tony and Jamie enjoying wine and platters:
Live entertainment included:
They played some Elvis for the Americans. lol! Because of snow storm we were the only ones there. It was like our own private tour. And the funny thing is, we were given the bum's rush by the tour guide. What the heck else do you have to do?! There is NOBODY here!
We made our way back to Chisinau city center and hit a local coffee shop. Since there is a college in the area, there are some hip places tucked away and this one definitely was that. I think this is the coolest coffee shop I have ever been in. Okay, so I only drink decaf and only frequented chain stores, but still, this place was the bomb!
And the following morning our trip concludes as we head to Chisinau airport by cab, the long and scenic route thank you Mr. Cab Driver (nice to know there are "opportunists" in every corner of the globe), and drop Jamie off at the bus station so he can head back to his village deep in the countryside.
Chisinau airport waiting to leave:
FYI... you can bring more than a couple bottles of wine back to the states and only pay extra if custom cares, which they didn't. I would have brought more had I known that!
Two more countries off the bucket list. One I never had a desire to see but was a good meeting point for all, then I found out why all who have gone to Greece say it is one of their favorite places to visit. It was amazing! And we didn't even go in the summer. The other I had never heard of less than two years prior.
The world is such an interesting place.
Next on the list... GERMANY! Going to visit hometown of all 4 grandparents.
Share this blog with many people, then maybe there will be so much traffic some advertisers will pay me enough to me to Germany! Stranger things have happened....
