The Bell Tower at the Chisinau Cathedral 8 March 2006. 
Mmmm...Bors with black bread and
boiled buckwheat with chicken and eggplant.
As mentioned, Moldova is a wine
producing nation--Fern & Geoff Greenwell are enjoying a final glass
before leaving Basarabia Restaurant. Ziama, a typical Moldovan
soup--chicken, noodles, and parsley with placintas in the background
(and wine, of course)
Yum, yum...pizza with mayonnaise (no corn, sadly).
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11 March...Two Months, but who is counting?
I arrived in Chisinau two months ago today and I am amazed at how
Chisinau seems more and more like home to me. I have my routines
my stores, my restaurants, and my new friends. Of course, as the
old song goes "make new friends but keep the old, one is silver and the
other gold." I do miss everyone at home (well, most everyone) but
I guess I am finding that Chisinau feels more normal to me now.
Today also marks two months and four days since I left Atlanta and now,
officially, the longest I have ever been out of the U.S. One, last
item for the records, in the last two months, I have not been more than
seven miles from my apartment in Chisinau--my only trip out of the city
limits was to the airport.
One of the things that is different for me here is that I do not
drive--at all. I could drive, my license is valid, but the roads
are not very good out of Chisinau and I can get everywhere that I need
to go in the city by bus, taxi, or "Marshooka." The embassy is
arranging some speaking events in Tiraspol (Transnestria--a country that
officially does not exist) and in Baltsi, the second largest city in
Moldova (if you exclude the towns in Transnestria--which does not
officially exist--so I am not sure if you should exclude it or not--more
on that subject to come). I am looking forward to seeing more of
the country.
I did have a little excitement shortly after I took the picture of
the bell tower in the top picture as I was stopped by the police and
asked for my identification. We had been briefed by the embassy
after arriving that this is common in Moldova and that one should always
carry a copy of their passport and identity card (which state that we
are sponsored by the U.S. Embassy in Chisinau and recognized by the
foreign ministry of Moldova). The police have a reputation for
corruption here and occasionally have been known to try to extort money
from foreigners claiming that their visas are not valid. The
embassy told us to call them if we were harassed (note to the would-be
trouble makers of the world: THE U.S. EMBASSY CANNOT GET YOU OUT OF JAIL
IF YOU BREAK THE LAW IN A FOREIGN COUNTRY--a little PSA for my pals in
the Foreign Service). I had my fingers on my cell phone should
need be--the policeman very carefully examined my card--and I was on the
ready for some excitement but, alas, he politely handed me back my ID
card and said "poftim" (which means "here you are"). I said "Multsumesc"--meaning
"thank you" and this was the end of my exciting international incident
<grin>.
One of the more difficult cultural adjustments in a foreign land is
food. I find Moldovan food to be good--maybe too good! I
have developed a healthy appetite for lots of tasty items. One of
my favorites is bors (borscht in Russian) a sour soup with meat,
cabbage, potatoes, and beets that give it a red color. It is
usually served with a dollop of sour cream on top and when it is
stirred, it turns bright pink--almost like Pepto-Bismol! I really
enjoy it quite a bit (and it is good for you). Moldovan meals
usually start with a soup and then move to a main course. Beef,
pork, and chicken are all common here and side dishes tend to be
starchy--potatoes, rice, buckwheat, or mamaligia (mamaligia is Romanian
for grits--thicker and yellow--but grits nonetheless). My
fellow Fulbrighters, Fern Greenwell and Dan Fellner and I go to dinner
on Saturday nights to try different restaurants in Chisinau--some very
good, some not so good (we did the Mexican place and it was good--soon,
we will try Chinese).
Placintas (roughly translated as "pies" in English) are Moldovan fast
food. Usually they are rolled up with cheese, cabbage, or potatoes
inside--but some are sweet with cherries or pumpkin inside. I like
placintas quite a lot! Wine is very good and cheap here and there
are several wineries in area around Chisinau--hopefully I will get to
visit when the weather is better.
Pizza places abound in Chisinau. The crust tends to be more
like bread than in the States and you have to watch out reading the menu
to make sure that the restaurant is using "sos de roshii"--tomato sauce
and not ketchup! The toppings can also be unusual--such as corn,
tuna, eggplant, and sometimes MAYONNAISE!!! I have discovered that
I quite like corn on pizza but not mayonnaise...call me simple minded
and lacking in sophistication but in my mind mayonnaise should never be
put on top of a pizza! |
