No one can accuse Chisinau of being overburdened with tourist sites. Unfortunately, little remains of its historic heart due to heavy bombing during World War II. There are still some great museums and parks, however, and it is fun to see how communist iconography merges with symbols of Moldovan nationalism. While staying in Chisinau, this is the view that would greet me every morning from my hotel room located in the building pictured above … The first night in Chisinau, my Italian and I arrived quite late and so it was not until the next morning when I opened the curtains that I got my first proper look at the city.
They say that first impressions count for a lot and this was not a good one:. My daily morning walk around the neighborhood did not do much to lift the impression of gray, Soviet-style architecture in various levels of decay…. Despite Moldova being officially the poorest country in Europe, it was apparent that some people had money as evidenced by the condos under construction and the Mercedes in this photograph:.
The above photographs may not inspire many of you to rush to book a ticket to Chisinau. And, as I alluded to above, Chisinau does become nicer once one starts walking toward the center…. For me, that walk would start with this pedestrian tunnel which crossed under the busy street passing through the square in front of our hotel… I took this picture near the exit and so it is hard to tell, but much of that tunnel was pitch black which made for an interesting walk:.
And it should not shock you to discover that there is, in fact, a cathedral in Cathedral Park. In front of the Orthodox Cathedral is a walkway leading up to the Holy Gates constructed in Government House is where the cabinet of Moldova meets:. The park entrance is guarded by a statue of Stefan himself. George Friedman delves into that more in the analysis I have attached to the end of the post. In relatively stark contrast to the scenes presented above is the central market in Chisinau which spreads out across a huge area along Str Mitropolit Varlaam.
The constant activity of the crowds and tradespeople is reminiscent of Istanbul or Shillong. Porters scurry around with trolleys to carry goods away, cars honk like crazy as they madly try to squeeze through the crowds, old women spit out sunflower seeds and men huddle in groups haggling for the best bargain. North of the central market is a maze of run-down, dusty streets… Many of these formed the Chisinau Jewish ghetto and today there can be found a memorial to the victims of the Chisinau ghetto.
