THE DISPUTED SERIES, DAY 8
MOLDOVA
My flight from Yerevan to Moldova naturally took me via Moscow where it was close to -10, a warm winter in their eyes. But it was in the airport I witnessed one of the most unusual and frankly bizarre things.
I’VE VISITED MOLDOVA A FEW YEARS BACK AND DIDN’T RATE IT BUT THIS EXPERIENCE WAS GOING TO BE DIFFERENT
I was just finishing using one of the urinals (sorry for the detail) and turn back to head towards an opening and to the sinks. At the same time a middle aged Asian gentleman walks out of his toilet cubicle and has a somewhat look of confusion on his face. I knew straight away there was a problem.
WHERE IS MOLDOVA?
WASH
He looked up and down the row of urinals as if he had lost something. Which turned out to be right as he was looking for something he couldn’t find.
To my absolute disbelief He pulled up his sleeves and slowly walked towards the urinals, stretched out his arms and began to wash them from the water which just happened to be flowing at the time. I had to walk away but could imagine his face when he walked past the sinks to leave.
Fair credit to him though, I (and my friend Errol) see too many people who do not wash their hands!
CHISINAU
It’s common knowledge Eastern Europe is cheap, you get a lot more for your money than most other parts of the world. The airport bus to the city centre, a 25minute journey was 2lei, that’s 10p!! Asia is the place with the reputation for being cheap but it’s not how it used to be. If you want somewhere very affordable then look no further than Eastern Europe or Eurasia.
ACCOMMODATION
I checked into Capsule hotel just 5 minutes walk from the bus station and was met with the charm of one of the worst receptionists I’ve ever come across. She spend most of her time huffing and puffing, as if everything was an effort! The owner however was very nice and ended up sorting everything out.
The hostel has just been bought over and refurbed. It was opened around 2 months ago so you could see it was in seriously good condition, I couldn’t fault it for that. I’m a fan of the capsule idea but it’s a bit more unsocial than I wanted so opted for a normal bunks that was until I met my roommate the following night. Not bad for £8 with towels and breakfast included.
CHRISTMAS MARKET
I headed out for a quick walk around the city to see what I could find. The Christmas markets on mainland Europe are a completely different experience than those at home. In a city the size of Chisinau (it’s small), there were 3 Christmas markets on the one street, 2 music stages, countless hot food and drink stalls and plenty of activities and rides for children.
Beside that there isn’t an awful lot to do so its not wonder people flock to it but the atmosphere was brilliant.
EAT
The hostel had recommended La Picante, a traditional restaurant serving Moldovan and Eastern European food. The food here is cheap but of great quality!
NEXT UP
Tomorrow I’m getting the bus to Transnistria, the so called country that doesn’t exist. Link! Click to read.
SAFE TRAVELS, DS x
139/229
This post is part of The Disputed Series, click to explore or for episode 1 click here.
To watch the video of my trip, head to my highlights on my Instagram.
