Moldova - anyone been?
Discussion
I went once to watch football (!)
3 of us (Scotland fans in kilts) got lifted by 3 cops in a Police Lada (3 of them squeezed in the front, one with an AK) edit: for not having our passports on us "big problem!"
they took us up a dark street and gave us each a fine of about 10 quid, then drove us back to the main street with a cheery goodbye, then called the next group of Scots over for the same routine
almost everyone we spoke to had the same thing
day after the game was independence day (coming up soon I think) it was fantastic, loads of Borat-style gypsy dancing in the streets, we were still in the kilts, we must have been stopped and asked for pictures several hundred times, little kids asking us to sign something in their schoolbooks, all sorts, it was a great laugh, proper old-school Eastern Europe
didn't really do any touristy stuff
drink was incredibly cheap, local 'champagne' for pennies
stayed in the 'Jolly Alon' in a 5 star suite! mafia bouncers, bar with the hookers waiting outside, classy!
Tirasopol, Transdnistr is the place to go though, I reckon, a proper Wild West place - an unrecognised state created when the Russian Army got left behind at the fall of the Soviet Union
3 of us (Scotland fans in kilts) got lifted by 3 cops in a Police Lada (3 of them squeezed in the front, one with an AK) edit: for not having our passports on us "big problem!"
they took us up a dark street and gave us each a fine of about 10 quid, then drove us back to the main street with a cheery goodbye, then called the next group of Scots over for the same routine
almost everyone we spoke to had the same thing
day after the game was independence day (coming up soon I think) it was fantastic, loads of Borat-style gypsy dancing in the streets, we were still in the kilts, we must have been stopped and asked for pictures several hundred times, little kids asking us to sign something in their schoolbooks, all sorts, it was a great laugh, proper old-school Eastern Europe
didn't really do any touristy stuff
drink was incredibly cheap, local 'champagne' for pennies
stayed in the 'Jolly Alon' in a 5 star suite! mafia bouncers, bar with the hookers waiting outside, classy!
Tirasopol, Transdnistr is the place to go though, I reckon, a proper Wild West place - an unrecognised state created when the Russian Army got left behind at the fall of the Soviet Union
Edited by Hugo a Gogo on Wednesday 26th September 22:38
a young girl asked us if she could be out translator for the day, she wanted to practice english
took us around the whole day, we took her to a restaurant at the end of the day
little tray of butter in the middle of the table, she tried to eat a big lump off her knife, I don't think she'd ever seen a lump of butter
took us around the whole day, we took her to a restaurant at the end of the day
little tray of butter in the middle of the table, she tried to eat a big lump off her knife, I don't think she'd ever seen a lump of butter
Yep - been a few times, mainly in Chisinau but also to a few other places. It's a nice enough place but very poor compared to other former Soviet neighbours like Romania and Bulgaria (and they're not exactly Monaco!).
Chisinau is quite a cool city, plenty of trendy bars and cafes and not a big place at all. It also smells wonderful. I'm told that there's a huge sweet factory nearby but whatever it is, it's nicest smelling city I think I've ever visited.
English is not widely spoken. Romanian is the first language, followed by Russian. It's only place I've been where even the hotel reception staff didn't speak English but you'll probably find some of the larger ones to be fine.
The people will be curious as to why you are there. They tend to stare, not out of rudeness but it's not the sort of place that attracts overseas visitors so those that do go are rare.
Overall, it's strange little country. They seem quite content with what little they have, they have no European ambitions and appear perfectly content keeping themselves to themselves. They do have a good sense of humour compared to many similar countries. The main shopping mall as you go into the city is called Mall Dova - which curiously only works in English.
Women are just beautiful. Properly gorgeous. Don't be surprised if the younger ones come and chat to you and don't misread it if they do. They are just nice, keen to know why you are in their country and to practice their English.
Air Moldova is a revelation - one of the best little airlines I've ever used.
Dirt cheap.
ATMs are a bit on the rare side - not hugely - so take $ or € and change when there. Outside of the main towns and cities, everything is cash.
Take it for nothing more than what it is, a poor, underdeveloped country, and you'll enjoy it.
Chisinau is quite a cool city, plenty of trendy bars and cafes and not a big place at all. It also smells wonderful. I'm told that there's a huge sweet factory nearby but whatever it is, it's nicest smelling city I think I've ever visited.
English is not widely spoken. Romanian is the first language, followed by Russian. It's only place I've been where even the hotel reception staff didn't speak English but you'll probably find some of the larger ones to be fine.
The people will be curious as to why you are there. They tend to stare, not out of rudeness but it's not the sort of place that attracts overseas visitors so those that do go are rare.
Overall, it's strange little country. They seem quite content with what little they have, they have no European ambitions and appear perfectly content keeping themselves to themselves. They do have a good sense of humour compared to many similar countries. The main shopping mall as you go into the city is called Mall Dova - which curiously only works in English.
Women are just beautiful. Properly gorgeous. Don't be surprised if the younger ones come and chat to you and don't misread it if they do. They are just nice, keen to know why you are in their country and to practice their English.
Air Moldova is a revelation - one of the best little airlines I've ever used.
Dirt cheap.
ATMs are a bit on the rare side - not hugely - so take $ or € and change when there. Outside of the main towns and cities, everything is cash.
Take it for nothing more than what it is, a poor, underdeveloped country, and you'll enjoy it.
StevieBee said:
Women are just beautiful. Properly gorgeous. Don't be surprised if the younger ones come and chat to you and don't misread it if they do. They are just nice, keen to know why you are in their country and to practice their English.
Air Moldova is a revelation - one of the best little airlines I've ever used.
Dirt cheap.
ATMs are a bit on the rare side - not hugely - so take $ or € and change when there. Outside of the main towns and cities, everything is cash.
Take it for nothing more than what it is, a poor, underdeveloped country, and you'll enjoy it.
This /\ Air Moldova is a revelation - one of the best little airlines I've ever used.
Dirt cheap.
ATMs are a bit on the rare side - not hugely - so take $ or € and change when there. Outside of the main towns and cities, everything is cash.
Take it for nothing more than what it is, a poor, underdeveloped country, and you'll enjoy it.
I have some experience (I am married to a Moldovan)!
No visa required for a UK citizen.
One note of caution – advise your bank you are going there and intend to draw money from an ATM. Standard practice is to block any card used in a Moldovan ATM as card fraud is so rife.
Chisinau (formerly Kishniev) is a great city very reminiscent of Paris on the main thoroughfare due to the tree lined avenues and stone buildings, but it is poverty stricken. Plenty of restaurants and clubs – cheap as chips and beautiful women everywhere. Tram system is brilliant 1 leu/lay ( 5p ) to go anywhere in the city. The Moldovan population is one of the highest educated in the FSU and many speak fluent English and like to practice on a native speaker. Having said that don’t expect to be understood anywhere you go and outside the city it’s Russian or Romanian. Corruption is rife but avoid Transnistria if you don’t want to be totally ripped off. It’s a breakaway State inside Moldova. You will get fined and the local authorities who will claim you have entered illegally. Avoid. If you do go to Tiraspol post a note on this forum on your return it will make interesting reading probably for all the wrong reasons.
I recommend the clubs Déjà vu and the ‘Military’ Bar for fun (Military has a full sized APC on the ground floor) .
There is no HSE in Moldova so some of the entertainment is to be seen to be believed. I particularly enjoyed a flame eater performing a the end of one night (around 5am) and someone decided to release the balloons and ticker tape from the ceiling nets – result was a fire officers nightmare as the tape caught fire and the balloons exploded!
Another memorable night was watching the barman in Déjà Vu pouring Absenthe from the bottle to girls dancing on the bar – there is a special raised platform and handrail for this method of drink delivery. The girls are basically paralytic by the end of a couple of songs and come down in various states of undress.
Edited by Mykap on Thursday 27th September 06:22
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