I heart Chisinau sign with the Presidential Palace in background
In 2022, when the world was taking baby steps returning to travel after the Covid Pandemic, I was ready to go and Moldova had been on my itinerary. Then in February, Russia declared war on The Ukraine and travellers down south abandoned any thought of traveling to Europe. If you look on the map, you can see Moldova nestled between The Ukraine in the east and Romania in the west and if that’s not a deterrent enough, there’s Transnistria, a breakaway region and disputed territory of Moldova which borders The Ukraine. With only two months to finalise my plans, I decided that 2022 might not be the best year to visit Moldova (and its neighbour, Romania). It seemed that most Australians avoided Europe in 2022, mainly because of the fear of catching covid overseas; adding a war, which the media were suggesting could turn into a world war, dumped travel into the ‘too hard’ basket for most.
Sadly, 2023 has not brought an end to the war, but for most of Europe, the citizens are trying to get on with life with many neighbouring countries supporting the Ukraine as much as possible. At the time of writing, the war seems to be centralised in areas of The Ukraine and neighbouring countries have lost income from tourism. This was already apparent in 2022. For example, when traveling through Cyprus I asked a waitress in Kakopetria if the town was usually this quiet. She mentioned that most of the tourists were usually from Russia or the Ukraine, so Cyprus has lost a significant amount of tourism. I hadn’t even considered that Cyprus would be a hot-spot for these countries, but everyone likes to holiday so why not?
Finally, in 2023, and after having already visited six other countries in the one trip (not to mention a Pacific sojourn in January), I arrive at Chisinau, the capital of Moldova. Getting there was pretty easy if you are coming from Yerevan, Armenia, as I was. In fact, I was surprised, when researching direct flights, that many to Romania fly via Chisinau, despite it being smaller than Romania’s major cities. My apartment host Vlad had offered to collect me from the airport for around 10 euros which, although more expensive than public transport, seemed convenient. He also helped me get a sim and top it up which is always a relief. The upstairs apartment, like so many I have seen in former soviet countries was fairly plain on the outside but modernised on the inside, but each external door had a different design, maybe to make it easier to recognise your own apartment in the absence of numbers. I found this out when I returned to the apartment after visiting the supermarket around the corner. I used the code to enter the main door, then ascended the stairs to Room 15. I recognised the distinctive door design, turned the key, walked in. The apartment was different! There were people inside watching TV! I closed the door in horror and messaged my host. Fortunately, Vlad was able to return to assist me and point out that I had in fact entered the wrong building! I can only think that both the main door and the door of the family who I nearly visited had not been locked properly at the time and I wondered if I was the only one who had ever entered the wrong building before.
Chisinau is often touted as:
· The most boring European capital
· The worst European capital
· The least visited European capital
Writers and bloggers are quite comfortable talking in depreciating terms when describing Chisinau and Moldova:
‘Home to some 700,000 inhabitants, Moldova’s capital, Chisinau, may not be the most aesthetically pleasing of European capitals, but its unique mix of brutalist architecture, modern high-rises and plenty of green space give it a charm of its own.’[1]
Before my arrival in Chisinau, I had conjured images in my mind of a third world town with primitive means of transport, old rusty trams rattling by, low infrastructure, and grey soulless architecture (even though I like grey Brutalist architecture). Instead, I was presented with museums, lush green parks, live music, mosaics, architectural diversity including some late 20th century Modernist and Brutalist gems alongside ornate Orthodox churches, national pride, dancing, and wine, wine, wine.
In 2021, Moldova featured in the top 10 countries in the world for export of wine. This fun infographic (apologies, non Facebookers) shows how wine exports have changed since the 1960s. Yes, Australians, we’re up there. Moldova’s exports have dropped somewhat in the past two years but it’s still high around 21st in the world. And wine is very important to the economy: ‘The Republic of Moldova boasts a very dynamic wine industry, broadening still further the gap between perception and reality. Whereas in many countries, wine flirts or even overtly indulges in luxury, here most of the population makes a living out of it.’[2]
in my four days in Chisinau I did not visit the famous Cricova underground cellar but I was fortunate that my time coincided with a wine festival. For around $20AUD, I received a detachable card enabling me 10 wine tastings. Fortunately this was able to be spread over the two days of the festival, otherwise I would have been (even more) tipsy. Although Moldova is more renowned for its white wine, the light reds were what impressed me. After one tasting, I enquired as to how much a bottle would cost and the seller rolled his eyes and dryly answered ‘Around 5 euros’ as if to say ‘more than you can afford, lady’. At around $8AUD this would have been quite the bargain for this Aussie. Perhaps Australia should start importing from Moldova. I did find it hard to break into conversations at the festival until a man came rushing up to me and garbled something I couldn’t understand. I did the usual, informing me that I could only speak English. ‘Phot me’ he urged, pointing to his phone. I immediately understood the request and ‘photted’ him with the festival background. Then I gestured that he could return the favour and do the same for me. I now have a ‘phot’ of myself enjoying the festival. I’m not sure if it was part of culture or if I just struck a particularly festive weekend, but I experienced outdoors music everywhere, from traditional songs in the park to which people either waltzed or did some sort of Zorba the Greek dance, through to various styles of contemporary music at the wine festival.
Yours truly participating in the cultural pride of the country: wine
One may think that not having the best spatial awareness is a disadvantage for a solo traveller, but I find that it always takes me to interesting places I would not have thought of otherwise. This occurred one day, when despite my best planning, I caught the bus on the wrong side of the road. As I (acting casual as I got off at the next stop), looked up, I saw a fabulous mix of architectural styles, monuments and buildings. The Cosmos Hotel is a late 20th century hotel building with a distinctive façade that includes wave like balconies. It is situated at a major intersection with includes a public square dominated by equestrian statue with the figure Grigory Ivanovich Kotovski (1881-1925), a polarising Communist/ Boshevik hero. The statue has been somewhat romanticised given that the armies at the time did not use horses!
The Cosmos Hotel, built 1983
The hotel was built between 1974 to 1983 and was funded by the Labor Unions of the Republic of Moldova. It was well occupied during Summer vacations as travel was often limited to regions within the soviet borders. After the dissolving of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, hotel bookings deteriorated so parts of the building were leased as offices. Like so many Communist buildings in the former USSR, the Cosmos Building is a unique aesthetic but in order to function, the interior will need refurbishment. With various associations and archives dedicated to the preservation of such buildings, I hope that tourism can focus on these buildings and not only pre 1950s ‘traditional’ styles of architecture.
The Cosmos Hotel with figure of Grigory Ivanovich Kotovski and a memorial stone
The Cosmos Hotel with figure of Grigory Ivanovich Kotovski
Similar in geometric aesthetics was the Logos Publishing House building which seemed to have tiny balconies most of which, today, contained air conditioners. The diagonal placement of the balconies created a dynamic aesthetic and I discovered I wasn’t the only one to enjoy it when I did some research later.
Logos Publishing House built in 1980
Just around the corner from the apartment I resided in was the Monument to the Heroes: Komosol, another soviet legacy monument, built in 1959, which provides a central focal point along the boulevard that runs between the streets. The Komosol were an All-Union Leninist Young Communist League, a political youth organization in the Soviet Union established in 1918. A bronze female sculpture holds a torch in her hand symbolising victory. In the lower part of this composition is a group of five sculptures, which symbolises the commitment and courage of the Soviet youth. While membership was nominally voluntary, those who failed to join had no access to officially sponsored holidays and found it very difficult (if not impossible) to pursue higher education.The Komosol did provide an avenue for women to escape the confines of domesticity because if they joined, it gave them access to education.
Monument to the Heroes: Komosol, built in 1959
One advantage of Moldova’s relatively small size as a capital is that most of the sites are walking distance, especially from my relatively centrally located apartment. Past the Komosol monument, architecture enthusiasts are spoilt for choice and with each building telling a story of the history usually of the past 100 years or pre- and post-soviet era. One building that stood out to me because of its height and unique design is the Presidential Place. It joined many other government and buildings and theatres along the main boulevard.
The Presidential Palace building
The Presidential Palace was built between 1984 and 1987 on the site of a German Lutheran Church dating back to the 1830s. It was made to be the new building of the Supreme Soviet of the Moldavian SSR. After Moldova gained its independence, the building became the residence of the president of Moldova starting in 2001 with President Vladimir Voronin. The building was badly damaged during protests on April 7, 2009 against President Voronin. As a result of the protest, the palace was closed off. With financial assistance from Turkey, the palace was renovated and re-opened in 2018. After the renovations, President Dodon joked: "There was nothing here when we arrived, but you know, I’m a man who treasures his household, so we brought a few things". [3]Under his term, he kept created wine basement, an artificial lake, and a chicken farm. His presidency also included the introduction of a Ziua Ușilor Deschise (Open Doors Day) at the palace for Moldovan youth. [4]
Parliament of the Republic of Moldova
Across the road from the Presidential Palace is the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova. Built between 1976 and 1979, the building, has an interesting shape of an open book, perhaps ironic considering it was the Communist era. The architects Alexandru Cerdanțev and Grigore Bosenco designed it as an administrative building to house the Central Committee of the Communist Party of what was then the Moldavian soviet socialist republic or MSSR. It is an integral construction, poured in reinforced concrete, with a granite slab façade. Above the central entrance is the text with the name of the institution: ‘Parliament of the Republic of Moldova’, with letters cast in metal. Inside, the offices are distributed only on the side of the building and the Parliament meeting room is located in the opposite direction. The building is considered to be a monument of national importance. It was rebuilt after the protests of April 7, 2009. Currently, the Parliament is an ensemble of buildings, with a total area of about 10 thousand square meters.
Government Garage with some Brutalist artistic license!
Not on the boulevard but just around the corner, I discovered another great piece of Brutalist architecture in the Government Garage. Despite the plethora of images online for this building, a testiment to its popularity amongst us Brutalism fans, the only information I was only able to glean that it was designed in 1978 by architect A. Dubrovsky.
Government Garage showing the fabulous geometric detailing
Government Garage
It seems that the government buildings were clustered on one side and the arts buildings on the opposite side (with exception to the theatres which were everywhere). Actually getting to enter the museums seemed a challenge. Unlike in Australia, entrances were often somewhat ambiguous and often signage was nowhere near the actual entrance. Once actually finding the entrances I was surprised at finding both the main museum and art gallery closed on a Friday. It was only after some internet searching that I discovered that this particular Friday was a public holiday! The attendants didn’t tell me that; just told me it was closed, but I couldn’t really blame them for their lack of English or assuming that I knew. Saturday brought more luck and I was finally able to visit both museums. The National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History was wildly different in architecture to post soviet buildings, not surprising, given that it was built in 1905. Its history begins in 1889, when the Zemstva of Bessarabia organized the first Agricultural and Industrial Exhibition, which was also the basis for the foundation of the museum institution. Being the oldest museum in the Republic of Moldova, its name has often been changed over the years. Today it holds an enormous heritage of about 135 thousand exhibits.
The unique facade of The National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History
The permanent exhibition operates under the title “Nature. Human. Culture” with an area of over 2000 m2. The museum also has a Temporary Exhibition Hall, in which numerous seminars, master classes and exhibitions take place, both from its own heritage and from the heritage of other local museums and from abroad. The exhibitions of handicrafts have become traditional and are organized every year.
Interior of The National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History
Interior of The National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History showing a grand spiral staircase leading to the basement.
Leadlight window of The National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History
Folklore events, national and international competitions and festivals are regularly held in the museum, showcasing folk creations from all over the country. Outside the museum there is also a Botanical Garden with a Vivarium, which gathers the most widespread species of plants, trees and shrubs from the Republic of Moldova, as well as exotic birds, reptiles and fish. The Museum building was designed by architect V.N. Tiganco.
Ever get the feeling you're being watched? Wax figures wearing traditional costumes in the The National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History
Cutaway section of a chicken showing its skeleton at The National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History
One of the wild boars that I was often warned about on hikes in The National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History
Peppering the spaces between all the buildings are numerous parks. I ventured further from the city by bus to the Valea Morilor Park, a beautiful and hugely popular lake and forest. The lake was previously known as Komsomolist Lake when it was created in 1952 and is an artificial lake, (see my comments on the Komsomolist monument) but it is now Valea Morilor (it is the Valley of Mills from Moldovan/Romanian). It is famous for the Cascade Stairs which has more steps than the renowned Potemkin Stairs in Odessa. During the soviet times this was a popular place for sport events. When I visited I followed my ears to the music I was hearing, thinking that there may be a festival happening. Instead, I noticed a talent quest with very young children singing and dancing to pop songs and couldn’t help thinking of the film Little Miss Sunshine. Around the lake further I was thrilled to find a forest and was able to enjoy a burst of shady trees, always welcome after time in the city. A little further I stepped through the bushes and through an open fence on the way to an interesting monument. Not maintained, probably because of it being a remnant of the Communist era, a monument of Lenin and Karl Marx is behind a much fancier building, the Madison Park banquet hall.
Originally, the statue was built in 1949 and was situated outside the Government House, but in 1991, it was dismantled and moved. It is unclear why this location was chosen.
Cascade fountain at Valea Morilor Park
Cascade fountain at Valea Morilor Park
Bathers at the 'beach' at Valea Morilor Park
Forest hiking trail at Valea Morilor Park
Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin and Georgi Dimitrov (cropped out) monument
Chisinau is fortunate to be able to still boast a good range of rare and (in my opinion) beautiful mosaics from the soviet era. At first glance, the message of The City is Flourishing and Being Built at the Chisinau bus station is unambiguous. Designed by Mikhail Burya and Vladislav Obukh and completed in 1974, the spectacularly detailed mural shows figurative subject matter engaged in family activities music and curiously, a female figure appears to stand on a balcony, in Shakespeare’s Juliet style (just my interpretation!) against a background of high rises.
The City is Flourishing and Being Built mosaic, 1974
The City is Flourishing and Being Built mosaic, 1974
Mosaic upstairs at the Chisinau bus station
More general in subject matter is the Stone Flower Mosaic fountain in a park, designed by Alexander Kuzmin. The water might not flow any more and a short person such as myself needs to get onto tippy toes to peer inside it but it stands out as a typical example of 1980s mosaic fountains. Graffiti artists seem to see any concrete surface as a blank canvas for their art, not appreciating the fountain's value as a cultural icon!
Stone Flower Mosaic
Stone Flower Mosaic interior
Hotel Turist Mosaic
Winds-Waves, House of Writers Mosaic, 1974, designed by Aurel David
I caught a bus to the Eternity Memorial Complex which is dedicated to soviet soldiers who died in the battles against the German-Romanian troops of the Second World War. I had to pass through a cemetery to get there and was warned away from stepping off the path by three savage dogs. I wondered if they were guarding a particular area; there was no way I was getting any closer to some of those tombstones!
Tombstones near Eternity Memorial Complex Monument
Eternity Memorial Complex Monument
The monument was made in the honour of the Soviet soldiers who died in the Great Patriotic War. The monument was restored on August 24, 2006, marking the 62nd anniversary of the Liberation of Moldova. The central part of the memorial is a pyramid of five 25-meter tall stone rifles arranged in the shape of a pyramid. A 5-pointed star with an eternal flame in the centre of the monument. The monument is guarded by an honour guard from the Moldovan Army that changes guard hourly. Wreath-laying ceremonies are regularly held at the centre of the memorial on national holidays.
One of the many friezes that lead up to the Eternity Memorial Complex monument
Church of Saint Pantaleon front view
Church of Saint Pantaleon
Tile detail balconies in residential housing
I only spent four days in Chisinau before taking a bus to Bucharest. I missed out on seeing a few icons of Brutalist architecture such as the State Circus building and the Romanita Housing Building and I did not participate in the Cricova Underground cellar tour. Even missing out on these 'must-see' places, I felt immersed in much of what Moldova has to offer, spent very little, always felt safe and inspired to return to explore more. I encourage anyone planning to visit Europe to consider a visit to Moldova.
Resources:
https://jes.utm.md/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2021/04/JES-1-2021_91-99.pdf (about government buildings)