The only tourist in Moldova

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/moldova-europe-least-visited-country/

by dotcoma • 2 years ago

151 360 2 years ago

telegraph.co.uk

dotcoma• 2 years ago

https://archive.is/kQ4lp

vzaliva2• 2 years ago

The full article reads as a someting a copywriter would write for tourist company blog.

atlasunshrugged7• 2 years ago

This is a very nice take on the country. I visited a few years ago (took an overnight train from Romania which was a blast, albeit not the most restful experience) and I would just say that there isn't all that much to see or things going on. Not to say it isn't a nice enough place, it's just not one I'd ever recommend as a tourist destination for people. If you want more Eastern Europe vibes I think Romania is just fine for that with much more going on -- if you're more adventurous Lviv and Kyiv are fantastic (I was just there in April, still gorgeous cities with great restaurants, bars, and art). And if you want old Europe with a post-Soviet flavor, nothing beats Estonia and the well preserved old town in the capital

WXLCKNO• 2 years ago

more adventurous Kyiv

Understatement of the year

atlasunshrugged7• 2 years ago

The funny thing is, coming from Washington DC, I felt about or more safe in Ukraine as I do here day to day. I wasn't worried about being carjacked, I wasn't worried about someone with mental health or drug problems robbing me, and I wasn't worried about being shot (as I write this it feels hyperbolic to say but I live about 10 mins walking from the capitol and in the two years I've been here there have been multiple carjackings and shootings in my neighborhood -- even a Congressman was held up at gunpoint next door to me). The idea that missiles could come raining down was scary, but there are shelters everywhere and it felt like the likelihood of getting hit was pretty low being in random bars/restaurants and not any government/military/infrastructure facility. Maybe I was calculating the odds all wrong in my head, but I didn't feel particularly unsafe while I was there (that said, wouldn't go further east or to Odessa right now).

Culonavirus• 2 years ago

Do you even Prague, bro...

atlasunshrugged7• 2 years ago

Fair, Prague is amazing!

2o3jr2o34j• 2 years ago

Prague is central Europe

utensil4778• 2 years ago

Prague is fantastic if you can avoid the tourist crowds.

I lived there briefly with a Czech roommate who took me on tours through the "real" city. Also had a British friend there and we went through the usual tourist destinations now and then. The astronomical clock was neat, but the castle was so much more interesting and far less crowded than the old town.

Incidentally, I didn't drink before said roommate introduced me to Czech beer. What I wouldn't give for a nice frosty Kozel here in the states...

darknavi• 2 years ago

Budapest is also a great eastern Euro vibe. Especially the old, Soviet-looking street cars and busses!

Eavolution• 2 years ago

I was on that sleeper a week ago, most soviet thing ever! How long did it take for your conductor to take his top off?

jmspring• 2 years ago

Estonia’s old city is a treat to explore. Last time I was there was several years back during the winter and it was -30c or so out. Didn’t stop some drunk Brits from having a good time.

euroderf3• 2 years ago

It was a top destination for Brit bachelor parties some years ago but that trade seems to have dried up of late. Good riddance.

_zoltan_2• 2 years ago

I had reindeer soup in the old city. It was awesome! Can recommend.

natmaka• 2 years ago

"bald and bankrupt" take on this (2019) was enlightening: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnDxHTaeNX0

datameta13• 2 years ago

Obligatory PSA that he is allegedly* a sex tourist with highly dubious practices off-camera.

Edit: Context provided by senorrib below - https://www.reddit.com/r/BaldAndBaldrDossier/

* Make your own conclusions

suslik• 2 years ago

Is he?

r0ks0n• 2 years ago

what service does this announcement do to the public exactly

tagyro• 2 years ago

I've been to Moldova a couple of times and after watching the video I'd like to offer my take on it.

Some parts are really on-point - especially the wall of thieves - and I understand it's hard to present an objective perspective of the country after one visit and without having a more thorough deep-dive into its past 30 years (and don't get me wrong, I don't expect tourists to do that for their travel destinations) - but take the video with a (big) grain of salt.

While I understand it's not the most "visit-able" country in the world, the people I've met have been nothing but wonderful and I've developed a deep respect for them, especially in light of all the challenges they've faced.

My 2 cents: If you don't feel confident enough to visit Moldova yet, maybe try their wines, they're not too shabby (this is not an alcohol commercial, please drink responsibly).

tmilard• 2 years ago

Yes, I have been there in march. I loved it. I think Moldova is changing. For the good.

nibab2• 2 years ago

This video is a fake representation of Chisinau. The author deliberately chose the one derelict area (despite being on a central street, it’s the equivalent of being in the Harlem but yet still on Madison ave) that’s been a point of contention between the local authorities and central government for 20+ years. The hotel is being deliberately left unattended by local authorities as a fuck you to the parliament. Nothing more than a bargaining chip.

madaxe_again2• 2 years ago

People go to Chisinău, and that’s kinda it, and it’s really not representative of Moldova as a whole.

You cross the border from Romania, and you’re immediately struck by the road turning to cobbles, and the modern street lamps turning into gas lamps. Ox carts bearing peasants in home-sewn clothes trundle by under their burden of hay. A rusted old lada serves as a roadside goose coop. Wattle and daub houses stoop by the dusty road, old men in flat caps sat on a bench by the roses climbing the crumbling wall. It’s like the most remote and rural corners of Transylvania, and then some - it’s still 1924 out there.

The cities - unremarkable, Soviet slop with the usual fistful of monuments and bits of history - but the countryside is the most authentic time warp I have experienced in Europe, and I have been to most of Europe.

atlasunshrugged7• 2 years ago

Have you been outside the capital in Albania? I visited Tirana and was quite surprised (pleasantly) but didn't have time to adventure further

petertodd2• 2 years ago

The Albanian Alps are beautiful, and rapidly developing with brand new roads and other infrastructure.

paavohtl• 2 years ago

I visited Tirana and Durrës about 5 years ago. Durrës was a pretty great place to visit with its long beach, views of the Adriatic, decent restaurants, roman & other ruins and a nice archeological museum. Certainly more touristy than Tirana, but at least back then it was mostly locals.

petertodd2• 2 years ago

and the modern street lamps turning into gas lamps.

Really? Gas lamps are usually the luxurious option, only maintained at great expense out of nostalgia; Moldova has almost no domestic gas production.

madaxe_again2• 2 years ago

Oh, I didn’t say they work - but yeah, they had a good bit of money a century ago and invested in modern infrastructure - and not a jot since in an awful lot of the regions.

NicuCalcea• 2 years ago

Gas lamps? Ox carts (did you mean donkey or horse)? Home-sewn clothes?

I'm not sure what year you visited, but none of these are common. At least that's my experience of living there for 25 years and having been in most parts of Moldova.

rubymamis• 2 years ago

Staying in Moldova for 2 weeks proved to me that even the most boring of places can be amazing with the right people.

xenospn3• 2 years ago

No place is boring if you’re naturally inquisitive. How can a place you’ve never been to be boring?

ocdtrekkie• 2 years ago

I love the subtle differences of lifestyle, signage, building fixtures, etc. in foreign places, it's always interesting to see problems solved in completely different ways.

petre5• 2 years ago

Sure. Try Podgorica.

https://travellingtom.com/blog/podgorica-europe-most-boring-...

throwaway3306a• 2 years ago

Visit Transnistria for another level of amazement if you're in the area. The last Soviet republic.

eesmith• 2 years ago

And both mentioned and visited in the linked-to article. With pictures.

euroderf3• 2 years ago

There's a BBC short series from some years ago where our intrepid correspondent visits twilight zones. The episode on Transdnestr is really a trip. He even manages to visit an arms factory masquerading as making consumer stuff. The episode is worth looking up.

lmm• 2 years ago

You haven't really given us enough information to find it - have you got a name or star or anything?

dublinben• 2 years ago

If it was "Places That Don't Exist" with Simon Reeve, it's available here on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0I404gXbNg

trte9343r4• 2 years ago

This would fit maybe in 2019, but Moldova now has many foreigners. Hotel prices went up considerably!

For "Europe's least visited country" try Belorus, Ukraine, Russia, Ossetia or Armenia.

Traveling to Mariupol as a tourist is the real deal in 2024

atlasunshrugged7• 2 years ago

Every time I've been to Armenia there are many people visiting, although I think probably 80%+ are diaspora or descendants of diaspora folks

edit to add -- not sure Ossetia is technically a country... the Georgians might quibble with you on that one

nasdaq-txn• 2 years ago

The Georgians and the other 187 UN member states that don't recognize either South Ossetia or Abkhazia.

Aspos• 2 years ago

Went to a hotel lobby bar once and asked guys sitting to the left and to the right of me where are they from. Turns out both were Scots. Asked them what do they think about Scottish independence. One thing led to another and soon enough they started fist-fighting each other. Armenian cognac is great.

geoka92• 2 years ago

Traveling to Mariupol as a tourist is the real deal in 2024

Don't. It's impossible to do from the Ukrainian side and illegal from Russia.

riehwvfbk2• 2 years ago

Illegal? Why?

viraptor4• 2 years ago

Also, from the practical side you don't want to accidentally find the leftover mines.

swozey5• 2 years ago

I have a Russian friend who is adamant that I would really enjoy and have a great time in Russia. IIRC he tells me to go to St Pete more than Moscow.

But I cannot imagine doing that as an American. It kind of makes me wonder if he's messing with me but he hates Russia and Putin and I don't know why he would. I feel like I would be so unsafe. I'm a very "American" looking person and I only know a handful of Russian words. Well, I guess I look more German, blonde/blue eyed.

Maybe just very different apprehensions when it comes to travel. He seems to be willing to go to literally anywhere.

Ironically I always expect an American to start shit with him when I'm out drinking with him so I sometimes deviate conversations away from him having to talk about being Russian at every bar we're at. He's only been in America a few years so as soon as he speaks the entire bar knows he's Russian.

vzaliva2• 2 years ago

If you go to russia there is a chance of you being arrested on made-up charge just to be used as exchange fund for russian spies or arm dealers arrested in the west. Look up Paul Whelan, Brittney Griner, Michael Calvey, Trevor Reed, and most recently Travis Leake.

cafard• 2 years ago

He's only been in America a few years so as soon as he speaks the entire bar knows he's Russian.

Because Americans are so good at distinguishing Slavic languages by ear in a noisy room?

I live near a Russian Orthodox church. People complain about the congregants, but mostly about their parking. A house opposite the church as a Ukrainian flag prominently hung; on the other hand one of the congregants has a sticker of the Ukrainian flag with the don't-tread-on-me rattlesnake. I don't think most Americans care enough to be rude to Russians.

We visited St. Petersburg some years ago, probably 2012. I very much enjoyed the visit. Everyone seemed to be much too preoccupied to give a damn where we came from. The cases of Griner, Gershkovich, and the NCO in Vladivostok do make one wonder about the prospects of American tourists.

ludwigschubert• 2 years ago

I imagine your friend is genuine. During undergrad/before 2014 I attended a summer school (https://www.jass.school) in St. Peterburg. I found the city to be welcoming, almost European in ambiance, with friendly university students. It never felt too foreign or unsafe. In my experience, St. Peterburg is as distinct from how I imagine Moscow as San Francisco is from Dallas, Texas.

(edit: I have no idea how it’d feel nowadays, and won’t visit Russia atm either.)

kleton• 2 years ago

They won't know you're American until you open your mouth. There is such a wide variety of phenotypes in SPB that people will just assume you are a Russian. Russians these days mostly have friendly excited reactions to foreigners speaking English in public.

_zoltan_2• 2 years ago

St Petersburg is beautiful and quite lovely. Or well, I don't know now, but it was before the war.

To be honest I've watched a ton of Russian YouTube content and on these videos the Russian cities doesn't seem affected. Just forget your visa/mastercard

trustno22• 2 years ago

Russia is a lot like west if you stick to the big cities. Sometimes it's "more western than the west", some people just eat in fast-food chains. Well, at least when I was there before the war.

pjc50• 2 years ago

It's a shame. I'd love to visit St. Petersburg, but the window of history where I could do that in relative ease and safety is closed.

Many years ago a friend went to Syria in its brief window of peace, and visited some of the incredibly well preserved Roman sites. I hope they're still OK.

keybored• 2 years ago

But I cannot imagine doing that as an American. It kind of makes me wonder if he's messing with me but he hates Russia and Putin and I don't know why he would. I feel like I would be so unsafe. I'm a very "American" looking person and I only know a handful of Russian words. Well, I guess I look more German, blonde/blue eyed.

Now I’m imagining a flat with some Russian friends where they take turns throwing darts at pictures of Biden. Or Obama.

I don’t know why you think that Russians or whatever else would make an American unsafe. I mean what would they even care/have against you.

Ironically I always expect an American to start shit with him when I'm out drinking with him so I sometimes deviate conversations away from him having to talk about being Russian at every bar we're at. He's only been in America a few years so as soon as he speaks the entire bar knows he's Russian.

Well talking about your country of origin is the most natural thing to do in those contexts.

ossobuco8• 2 years ago

It's funny but personally I'd feel less safe traveling to the USA. The chance of finding myself in the midst of a mass shooting terrifies me. Also being robbed, being involved in a road rage accident. If I was black I'd add to that the possibility of being subjected to police abuse. Without considering the chance I'm for some reason snatched and imprisoned in Guantanamo for the rest of my life without any legal process.

starik36• 2 years ago

There are tons of foreigners in Armenia from all over. Including a metric ton of Russians who don't want to be drafted.

type06• 2 years ago

Traveling to Mariupol as a tourist is the real deal in 2024

except you'll be on occupied territory and will be breaking Ukrainian law, you might get a prison sentence if you ever go to Ukraine again

krick3• 2 years ago

How would they ever know if you won't outright tell them yourself (like being a famous person an posting your itinerary on the instagram)? They'll see you've been to Russia, if you use the same passport for both visas, which may be frowned upon right now, but not illegal. But which Russian cities you've been to (and de-facto Mariupol is just that right now) — who the hell knows?

poizan42• 2 years ago

Is there really any chance they are going to hand out prison sentences to foreigners who have visited as a tourist?

But legallity, politics and bad taste aside, it just seems a dangerous place to visit. It wasn't long ago that an Ukrainian missile was shot down over Crimea which ended falling down on a beach in Sevastopol and killing 4 people.

trustno22• 2 years ago

Mariupol is now de-facto Russian territory (it is administered/occupied by Russians) and you would need to either go from Russian side or cross the frontline.

(Please correct me if I'm wrong.)

pound• 2 years ago

BelArus

teractiveodular4• 2 years ago

It's Белоруссия (Byelorussia) in Russian, although Belarusians are not terribly fond of the name.

qingcharles5• 2 years ago

Traveling to Mariupol as a tourist is the real deal in 2024

And order a Chicken Kiev when you arrive!

ogurechny3• 2 years ago

On the contrary, if you pretend to be an idiot, and ask some Russian government-affiliated NGO “helping Donbass” if you can have a look yourself to be “free from Western propaganda”, I am sure they can pretend to get some positive publicity that way, and add you to this or that group of journalists and government officials who are shown Potemkin reconstruction (on a guided tour in presence of totally not plainclothes agents).

But I don't see any point in doing that. If you follow the timeless advice of Egor Letov, and read some North Korean or Soviet books, you would know everything that is going to be said. Why waste time watching someone perform the stupid play?

generic920347• 2 years ago

I wonder what will happen to them if Ukraine loses to Russia. I have heard Moldova already has issues with Russian separatists.

EDIT: Changed an offensive use of a definitive article. ;)

datameta13• 2 years ago

Fyi: Including "the" changes the meaning - it alludes to imperial language aking to calling the nation The Periphery.

generic920347• 2 years ago

I am not sure what you are talking about. Could you please elaborate?

EDIT: Found https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine#Etymology_and_orthogra... now. Thanks for the correction!

NooneAtAll32• 2 years ago

...wtf is "imperial language"?

brabel5• 2 years ago

You're thinking of Transnistria: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transnistria

The history of that area is complex. Moldova itself was part of the Ottoman Empire, then it was ceded to the Russian Empire, united with Romania, then the whole are became part of the USSR... and after the dissolution of the USSR, Transnistria became an unregognized, but de facto autonomous "country". Moldovians see the area as still part of Moldova (with some still considering the whole country as part of Romania!). The EU sees it as a Russian-occupied area since Russia supports the local government, and without Russian support the Moldavian Government would've probably taken over the area already (it's a frozen conflict area... Eastern Ukraine is headed for the same destiny, it seems).

generic920347• 2 years ago

Ah, thanks for helping my memory!

However, it remains to be seen if the war in Ukraine can be frozen. If a certain large supporter of Ukraine stops the support, Ukrainians might simply lose it all. But will Russia stop there?

type06• 2 years ago

Eastern Ukraine is headed for the same destiny, it seems

it doesn't, Russia hasn't officially annexed Transnistria as it did with occupied Ukrainian territories

ricardobayes• 2 years ago

Can't help but think at 2850 pounds (3650 USD) for 7 nights of course they are going to be friendly.

albroland4• 2 years ago

Yeah, it's quite an exorbitant price for the trip described. It said flights included which I have to hope is the majority of it.

ClearAndPresent• 2 years ago

Considering you can fly from London to Chișinău for around £36 at present ($45) on a low cost EU airline, then it probably isn't. The Telegraph is a right leaning newspaper for a wealthy readership, so their travel articles offer luxury. (The details of the holiday provider mention 4 star hotels.)

Plenty of indie travellers potter around in Eastern Europe via flight hops or train, and could spend a similar amount for a whole summer's travel.

ogurechny3• 2 years ago

There's quite a big difference between a tourist visiting a provincial home with a personal assistant, and a tourist visiting a provincial home who is greeted with “Here, axe, chop wood, we cook dinner”.

brabel5• 2 years ago

I was in Belarus recently and it did feel like I was the only non-Slavic person, and tourist, on the bus there (yes, bus, because no European country except for Turkey is flying to Belarus). Everyone else seemed like locals going back home for a visit (including my wife!).

But once you get to Minsk, it's actually pretty modern and nice, extremely clean... and clearly a vibrating city with lots of things to do, buy and see... there's quite a few non-westernerns there (Indians, Chinese and other Asians, Africans), seems like mostly students. I was told they have programs to have exchange students which was already going on since Soviet times, and Belarus has some pretty good universtities apparently.

We also had very international food! I noticed there's Domino's Pizzas everywhere. One of the best restaurants we visited was a big Chinese one in the most popular area of the city. Also tried the local Belarussian cuisine, of course, a large Georgian restaurant (both were delicious and really good prices), some Italian food etc.

We visited lots of museums and art galleries, and they have excellent ones! In most of them we were very nearly the only visitors, despite being in the middle of summer. The attendants were really happy to receive us, and we had basically private tours of everything, they gave us much more attention than I've ever got anywhere else. Forget queues to get in or crowds around the main attractions!! My wife had to translate every word, but they still made sure to answer every question and point out every detail to us, slowly so that my wife could translate everything.

Even though our world is messed up and Belarus right now is seen as an "enemy country", I hope people can understand that they're a beautiful, honest people just trying to live life, like all of us. I think if more people visited, perhaps we would be better able to understand each other and keep a closer connection that could've avoided the mess we're in. I know the EU was trying to get closer to Belarus and vice-versa before "you know what" (I saw some restored buildings in a country town that were paid for by the EU!).... that totally stopped now, unfortunately. Hope countries like Belarus and Moldova continue their modernisation and getting closer to the rest of Europe without changing their own cultures too much, they have a rich and proud history and culture that should be maintained, we shouldn't make the mistake of expecting them to become just like us... they don't even want that, they just want to be as prosperous, which is a very different thing.

Freak_NL• 2 years ago

Well yeah, Belarus is essentially off-limits to a large part of the world due to Russia's war with Ukraine.

Belarus does seem like a wonderful country at its core, but after the election fraud all progress just froze and the country is (once again) seen as Russia's de-facto vassal state. This sucks for the people of Belarus who got caught up in this, but for the average tourist going there is not something to consider.

The travel advice for Dutch tourists, for example, is literally don't; this country is not safe for holidays. And that's ignoring the additional warnings for LGTB+ folk.

brabel5• 2 years ago

I had to laugh at "this country is not safe" :D my country also advised that, but I've been there many times. It's about the safest country in Europe IMHO.

euroderf3• 2 years ago

Belarus shot down that hot air balloon some years ago, based on some lame excuse. Pretty sh#tty.

surfingdino2• 2 years ago

It's yet another Soviet country on the Great European Plains. Lots of forests, bliny, potatoes, and vodka. A thin coat of "western culture" (pizza and burger places, coke, etc.) over a poor state governed in a way that's been out of fashion in that part of Europe since 1989, now also a vassal state of Russia. People are "nice", but when you talk to them you realise the want western levels of prosperity (as seen in the movies) with the way of living that fits the mentality of Homo Sovieticus. It's not a pleasant mix.

type06• 2 years ago

I know the EU was trying to get closer to Belarus and vice-versa before "you know what"

"you know what" after 2020-2021 protests and continuing systematic torture of political prisoners are the big reasons not to go there

bobthepanda3• 2 years ago

There was also the whole “using fighter jets to force a Ryanair plane with a dissident to land in Belarus”

AlbertCory3• 2 years ago

Another place I'd like to go is Kyrgyzstan. And Turkmenistan.

Why? Because no one goes there. What other reason do you need?

pydry2• 2 years ago

Kyrgyzstan is a good place to take in a game of kok buru, which I found endlessly entertaining - much more fun than football.

AlbertCory3• 2 years ago

Six hours later, the minibus rolled into Barskoon

shut up and take my money

albroland4• 2 years ago

It's also the most scenic 'stan imo, by a wide margin. Was definitely my favorite of them all and is the only one I'd actually recommend people visit.

geoka92• 2 years ago

And Turkmenistan.

Almost impossible to get a visa; probably easier to get a tour in North Korea.

xenospn3• 2 years ago

I’ve been to both and the Turkmenistan visa took me a week. North Korea required 2.5 years.

pram• 2 years ago

I’ve been to Bishkek, it’s a really interesting place. At the time everything was still straight out of the Soviet Union (maybe still is) and the people were all friendly. The mountains are immense and beautiful.

The tourist experience wasn’t sugarcoated at all though. It’s a genuine poor country with not a whole lot happening. Id say go for it, it’s a place that I find myself thinking of often.

AlbertCory3• 2 years ago

I'd thought of going to Greenland when I was in Iceland, but finally the 3-hour flights and lack of much tourist infrastructure finally dissuaded me.

At least in Bishkek you can go to other places, like Samarkand (only a 12-hour drive /s )

paganel2• 2 years ago

Kind of crass for The Telegraph to write this when there are Ukrainian men getting shot by Ukrainian border guards for daring to cross into Republic of Moldova, but that's on brand for this media entity. From here [1]:

A body with a gunshot wound was found near the border of Moldova with UkraineCivilians & politicians
Last weekend, while harvesting wheat near the Klokushna-Sokiryany checkpoint, local residents discovered the body of a man with gunshot wounds. The body was found 250 meters from the border. As it turned out later, the murdered man was a 32-year-old Ukrainian. Presumably, he was able to cross the border into Moldova, but he was noticed by Ukrainian border guards. They probably opened fire on him. The bullets hit him in the head and back.

[1] https://old.reddit.com/r/UkraineRussiaReport/comments/1e6e0y...

DiggyJohnson2• 2 years ago

How is that most than slightly relevant?

racional6• 2 years ago

The Telegraph article predates the shooting incident at the border by 14 days.

You are referencing "men" getting shot when the incident involves 1 person getting shot, and this is the only such incident that has been reported 2+ years into the full-scale invasion.

paganel2• 2 years ago

That "shooting incident" has not been an isolated case, not by a long shot.

You are referencing "men" getting shot when the incident involves 1 person getting shot (...) and this is the only such incident that has been reported 2+ years into the full-scale invasion.

So the barbed wire put along-side the Tisza river on the Ukrainian side is to keep the geese in, not for making Ukraine an open-air prison for its military-aged men. And when it comes to Moldova vs. Ukraine and Ukrainian men dying close to the border you're also of course very wrong, here's another such "incident" [1] from just a few days prior

[1] https://old.reddit.com/r/UkraineRussiaReport/comments/1e3old...

sva_• 2 years ago

Somewhat surprisingly (to me at least), they produce some pretty good red wine (i.e. Purcari). Recently found it while checking out an eastern European grocery store.

colkassad• 2 years ago

I've always understood Moldovan wine to be quite respected. I love the wine from that general region...my favorite is Crimean wine, the semi-sweet variety.

kjellsbells• 2 years ago

Central Asia still remains largely untouristed. I loved this article from the New York Times concerning a boy who taught himself Russian and then went to Kazakhstan with his father to immerse himself.

The Foreign Language That Changed My Teenage Son’s Life https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/17/magazine/russian-language...

untech• 2 years ago

This was an incredible article. Thanks for sharing!

a2tech• 2 years ago

We had a Turkmen exchange student a few years ago and her family has asked to Turkmenistan several times but we haven't taken them up on the offer. It does seem like an extremely unique place.

culebron21• 2 years ago

Wonderful read, thanks for posting!

SomeoneFromCA9• 2 years ago

Central Asia (where I actually live) does not have much to see, esp. Kazakhstan. The main tourist destinations are historical monuments in Uzbekistan which has huge tourist influx lately (every time I am in Uzbekistan I see a good deal of tourists around hotels). Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have beautiful mountains, nature. Kazakhstan is bit dull post-Soviet place, Almaty resembles more some city in Eastern Europe than Asia.

fer• 2 years ago

Central Asia (where I actually live) does not have much to see, esp. Kazakhstan

I think this is the "I live here" bias. I've hit most stans, each is unique and worth a visit in their own ways, but I give you that a random snapshot from Almaty could have been taken anywhere in the USSR.

lossolo• 2 years ago

Beautiful story, thanks for the link.

sandworm1012• 2 years ago

Moldova is sandwiched between NATO (Romania) the active war in Ukraine. Please avoid, and if you cannot then please prepare to take care of yourself should things heat up. Every time a conflict starts there are tourists demanding their home countries send helicopters to rescue them. At least remember to register your exact location and details with your embassy. And have a car. Be ready to drive yourself should the trains/power be cut. If you are adverse to driving, keep enough food/water/shoes on hand for a multi-day walk should that be necessary.

victorbjorklund• 2 years ago

Russia hasnt taken a single large city since the start of the war. They are struggling to even keep the front intact (which is why Putin now begs for peace). They wont suddenly blast through all of Ukraine and invade a new country just over a night. But sure never hurts to be prepared.

sandworm1012• 2 years ago

And if it is NATO blasting through Moldova into Ukraine?

NooneAtAll32• 2 years ago

does keeping front intact mean retreating or advancing?

leapingdog• 2 years ago

I have never been but comedian Tony Hawks' 2001 book "Playing the Moldovans at Tennis" was my introduction to Moldova.

"All I knew about Moldova were the eleven names of men printed on the inside back page of my news paper. None of them sounded to me like they were any good at tennis."

userulluipeste• 2 years ago

"Sergiu exuberantly offers up shot glasses of mulberry vodka, pine-needle vodka, strawberry vodka, “medicine” vodka, “78 per cent proof” vodka"

Although Moldova has vodka-drinking Slavs in it, the beverages described are not vodkas. Vodka is made of cereals or potatoes, whereas these are nicer-flavored, fruit-based distilled beverages that locals call "rakiu", in English it would be schnapps: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schnapps

g1sm• 2 years ago

I’m guessing it’s actually răchie from pine cones, not needles. Either way, now I’m curious to try it.

asutekku• 2 years ago

Drinks made out of pine needles are pretty common. They have a very distinct nice taste.

ciceryadam• 2 years ago

also try https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borovi%C4%8Dka

The difference between gin and borovicka is that gin is usually a neutral tasting alcohol that gets the juniper berries macerated in them, but borovicka is vapor infused during the distilling process.

One of my favourites is https://www.zufanek.cz/en/product/borovicka-juniper-spirit/

thriftwy6• 2 years ago

They will also not be considered vodka in Russia, rather 'nastoika'.

golergka• 2 years ago

Not exactly. Nastoikas are vodkas and other similar strong spirits infused with different aromas after distillation. You could buy a vodka bottle from the store and make a nastika at home from it.

Rakia is a strong spirit which is distilled from a different base than vodka. Whereas vodka is distilled from grains, rakia is distilled from fruit. You could also do a nastoika from rakia, I suppose.

viraptor4• 2 years ago

These are often described as vodkas in practice, even if they technically aren't. Applies to other eastern Europe products too. For example https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W%C3%B3dka_%C5%BBo%C5%82%C4%85... is fruit/herb based, but is commonly known as vodka and even was labelled as such.

YVoyiatzis• 2 years ago

Rakı is deceptively strong, especially the Cretan version, from which I am proud to have recovered.

apavlinovic• 2 years ago

I am a Croat and no, we dont describe them as Vodka, nor are we aware that people call them Vodka.

The beverage you linked is not rakija, and it’s not even similar.

Rakija is made from grapes, Vodka from potatoes. We don’t have enough potatoes to throw away

alxlaz6• 2 years ago

This is only true in those parts of Eastern Europe were "vodka" retained its (old) colloquial use from Polish. So... Poland and maybe some parts of Ukraine, Slovakia etc.. If there are parts of Moldova where these drinks would be called "vodka", I haven't been to them yet :-).

The local generic term for an alcoholic drink is different, but "vodka" is specifically used only for things that say "vodka" on the label pretty much everywhere between the Tatra Mountains and the Mediterranean.

walterlw4• 2 years ago

In most of Ukraine that would be called "samohon", which can be translated as "self-brewed" and is an umbrella term for a bunch of liquors similar to those described in the article. Vodka (or "horilka" how it's known in Ukrainian) is a specific drink that's mostly ethanol and does not include any supplements.

9front• 2 years ago

"rachiu" in Romanian/Moldovan is brandy in English.

shiroiushi• 2 years ago

From the Wikipedia page for "schnapps": "Schnapps or schnaps is a type of alcoholic beverage that may take several forms, including distilled fruit brandies, ..."

larodi2• 2 years ago

Those drinking ракия know that it’s not a brandy, although it can be made to resemble brandy or even in the image of some whiskeys but is essentially made from completely different produce, and usually also process.

kwhitefoot• 2 years ago

78% or 78 degrees proof? They are different measures in different places.

Slivovitz, for instance, is typically 70% alcohol. Proof spirit (100 proof) in the UK is 57.06% alcohol by volume, in the US and Australia it is 50%, in France Gay-Lussac defined proof degree and percent alcohol by volume to be the same.

See https://www.britannica.com/story/why-is-alcohol-measured-by-...

kvgr2• 2 years ago

Slivovitza and other fruit spirits go from 50 to 60 % usually. Depending how much you dilute it. Pure is higher, but it not nice to drink.

xdennis• 2 years ago

78% or 78 degrees proof?

It's always percent ABV (alcohol by volume). As you can see in this table, typical values for rakia (rachiu in Romanian) are 40–86% ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_by_volume ).

Degrees proof is a term originating in English tax law where the drink catching fire was deemed 100 proof. But it's only used in the US now.

biztos3• 2 years ago

Yikes, where do they drink 70% Slivovitz?

A fairly strong one is 42%, same with most other alcohols, even grappa. I’ve had 60% and it was distinctly unpleasant, felt like something you’d drink on a dare instead of for pleasure.

bgnn• 2 years ago

Rakiya is closer, no? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rakia

kvgr2• 2 years ago

In russia everything is vodka. Sometimes this overflow to english. In europe it is kore distinguished.

SomeoneFromCA9• 2 years ago

Since what Moldova is Russia? Am I on reddit or 4chan?

tazjin• 2 years ago

These are most definitely not vodka in Russia.

danielodievich• 2 years ago

Travelling to any ex-USSR countries on the periphery from the "western" world is taking a nice fun gamble.

The bigger places in Kazakhstan are probably okay, and yeah, you likely would have fun in Tbilisi or Yerevan, but the chance of you having a very bad time in Bishkek or (heavens forbid) the Dushanbe is just too high.

It could be a lot of fun, it would be fairly cheap by western standards, it will certainly be unforgettable, but it can go sideways in so many ways. Not maybe as sideways as Kabul but getting there.

The right time to visit for fun exotic fun times was late 80ies (and I was lucky to have been in those places with my parents then). These days I'd highly recommend against it.

reducesuffering• 2 years ago

What kinds of things would go wrong? Robbery? What kind of chances are you thinking? 5%? 20%?

A commonly posted traveler, Matt Lakeman, just visited Dushanbe and didn't get that vibe.

https://mattlakeman.org/2024/06/20/notes-on-tajikistan/

viraptor4• 2 years ago

but the chance of you having a very bad time in Bishkek

Could you tell us more? Is the issue just that outsider's problems will be ignored so you have a higher chance of getting stuck, mugged, etc.? Or some other more specific issues?

albroland4• 2 years ago

I was in Bishkek last year and I don't see the risk; what concerns would you have aside from food poisoning?

Dushanbe I agree with you, but simply because I found Tajikistan rather boring and desolate but in an unimpressive way.

poincaredisk• 2 years ago

As someone living "on the edge" (in one of the post-soviet countries which are now belonging to the "western world") I... don't understand your sentiment. I live in the EU, frequently travel to the western Europe and across the ocean for work meetings and conferences, and I worked for two years in France, so I'm pretty familiar with the west. On the other hand, for recreation I often travel south (think balcans) and east (excluding two obvious unfriendly countries). And these countries, their norms, laws, everyday problems, are basically the same as in the western Europe. I don't mean in abstract "we are all people", I mean really the post-USSR counties are very similar, just slightly poorer, less mature (getting used to democracy is not easy and not everyone succeeds immediately), and with the post-soviet "oriental" vibe that western people like to exaggregate.

In short, I think this is a simplistic point of view, and one that is unfair to the people living in the countries you deem dangerous to "western" people.

imp0cat5• 2 years ago

I don't think the Balkans are comparable.

Sure, they were a war zone recently, too, but the EU integration there is much faster, probably because tourism is a major source of income for them. Just look at Croatia - they even have Euro as their currency now!

reisse• 2 years ago

This kinda looks like baseless fearmongering for me.

In Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan you'll be pretty much safe everywhere throughout the country. In Kyrgyzstan, I'd avoid rural non-tourist areas, but to Bishkek and tourist destinations I'd go without second thoughts. Tajikistan is questionable, but not Dushanbe.

deepspace• 2 years ago

The table on that page (countries with the most and least tourists per capita) is a prime example of how NOT to present data. There are so many better ways of visualizing tourism than lazily dumping a spreadsheet with one significant figure after the decimal on a page.

ChrisMarshallNY• 2 years ago

These guys visited Moldova: https://youtu.be/AhuHPhey7D4?si=5ova8E8UkEm2SBhe&t=42

danayfm3• 2 years ago

I was in Moldova back in 2013 for a university org summer course and for me it somehow felt like being in Cuba. There weren't many tourists but everyone was very welcoming. You could see even between students the difference in pro-russians and pro-europeans. Weird thing is cut the hot water during the summer. Best wine I've ever had and it was home made from my friend's parent's cellar. Loved the time there.

seanmcdirmid3• 2 years ago

Old Soviet style communities get hot water from central plants, mainly used for heating but also for showers, so when winter is over, they shutdown the heating plants for the season and no hot water at all. Some places in Northern China hook into muni hot water for showers in the winter but use solar hot water in the summer, when hot showers can be a bit less satisfying (in my experience anyways).

cyberax• 2 years ago

Old Soviet style communities get hot water from central plants, mainly used for heating but also for showers, so when winter is over, they shutdown the heating plants for the season and no hot water at all.

That's not quite correct. Thermal power plants supply heat, but local water heating stations can typically work autonomously.

Hot water is typically turned off to allow for maintenance and tests. Hot water pipes corrode about 10-20 _times_ faster than cold water pipes.

monero-xmr2• 2 years ago

Lebanon has a non-functional government where all publicly-owned everything basically doesn't work. Beirut is essentially a libertarian enclave now, where everyone with means has their own solar panels and gas generators, self-produces all power, and the economy runs on paper US dollars and cryptocurrencies. It's amazing what people can do when their governments are non-existent.

TomK32• 2 years ago

District heating is common in many northern European cities, even Italy (e.g 55% of households in Turino). The USA has 2500 (as of 2013) such heating and cooling networks https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/District_heating district cooling https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/District_cooling

SomeoneFromCA9• 2 years ago

It is so incorrect, it is boderline idiotic urban legend. post-Soviet cities have hot water year around; same heating plants used for winter heating, are used for hot water in summer time, albeit at lower power. Also waste heat from power plants used for the same purpose.

danayfm3• 2 years ago

Makes sense, but when I asked most people answered that it was to save natural gas.

petre5• 2 years ago

They have good wines, as they can only compete through quality on the European market. Although before Russia set tariffs on Moldovan products they were only exporting awful sweet wines which they sold on the Russian market. I'm glad those days are over.

sam_lowry_8• 2 years ago

Purcari and Gitana are two staple names in the EU market.

I bought them for 10+ years from a friendly reseller. IMO they are still the best value proposition.

dosinga• 2 years ago

Had the reverse. Went there late October and it was unseasonably cold. Soviet style hotels only switch on the heating novemeber 1st though

protomolecule• 2 years ago

"Weird thing is cut the hot water during the summer."

That's probably for the pipe maintenance. Even now in Russia the hot water gets cut off for a couple of weeks.

nibab2• 2 years ago

This is a terrible misrepresentation of Moldova and the progress it has undergone in the past 20 years. Please look at Moldova’s GDP growth since 2000 compared to the rest of Europe and some BRICS countries https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/national-gdp-constant-usd...

It is as close as you can get to India/Chinas growth without leaving Europe. Chisinau is bustling with activity and full of foreigners chasing entrepreneurial opportunities. The leading Eastern European private equity funds are making hundreds of millions of investments in the country and there appears to be a gold rush in all service oriented areas: IT Consulting, Banking, BPO outsourcing etc.

It is lazy, easy and dishonest to draw a portrait of a derelict country. Diving into the essence of what is actually happening behind the scenes takes a lot more effort. The description of a horse carriage in the center of the capital city is outright false. Chisinau is on par with Kiev, Warsaw, Bucharest, Sofia etc, but bustling with opportunity at every corner.

Like many post Soviet countries, Moldova is incredibly corrupt. Fortunately, it now has a former US federal prosecutor leading anti-corruption efforts. The current president and more than half of the current prime ministers cabinet is made up of Ivy League educated technocrats under 40 yrs of age. It is a very exciting place.

jdboyd• 2 years ago

https://archive.is/kQ4lp

stychos9• 2 years ago

I am living in Transnistria. Nice place btw.

qingcharles5• 2 years ago

Are you a native or did you move there? How's Igor? Still fishing?

stychos9• 2 years ago

I don't know what that piece of old crap is doing now.

yakshaving_jgt• 2 years ago

So you're an occupier?

aa_is_op3• 2 years ago

a "liberator" according to him

pretty sure that's the current propaganda line

qingcharles5• 2 years ago

If you like unusual places for vacations, this was a fun show:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Places_That_Don%27t_Exist

(and he went to Transnistria)

dansky• 2 years ago

The last time I visited Moldova was in February 2020. Recorded some walks there: [1][2].

I also went several times since 2010. There were good connections towards Odessa which I loved during summer and Chisinau had OK flight connections.

Transnistria was more interesting back in 2018 when it was like being transported into a 1980's Russian province city. It was super cheap there actually.

[1] https://youtu.be/CISUVZ8siGA

[2] https://youtu.be/nH_oHUIOe6E

precommunicator3• 2 years ago

I've been to Moldova this year during my 15-countries 2-week solo road trip. To be honest it was hard to find interesting (for me) places to visit there. I found Old Orhei, which they try to make a big tourist attraction, to be kinda boring, same for Stephen the Great Central Park, but really liked brutal building of Chișinău State Circus and Romanița Collective Housing. I've skipped Mileștii Mici Winery, as it didn't work with my timing, kinda regret it. And yeah, that's all, in the entire country, I haven't found anything else interesting. So no surprise tourist don't come.

et-al2• 2 years ago

my 15-countries 2-week solo road trip

That's barely a day in each country. Why the speedrun?

seattle_spring• 2 years ago

If you want a bit of a lark, spend some time checking out /r/roadtrip. Seems like at least a few times a week someone will show a map of their planned route: 8,000 miles across 10 states, 7 national parks, and 14 cities. "Hey guys! I'll be driving this route during a long weekend. Any other places I should stop??"

precommunicator3• 2 years ago

For me that was a pretty normal trip, 10th one (2nd one in this year) planned like this.

About 6 hours a day of driving, total visited about 45 out of 52 planned points. For example I don't understand people who go to a beach and spend half a day there, I go, swim for 30 minutes, and I'm out. Same for any other attraction. How long should I spend on a beautiful viewpoint in Greek mountains? For me it's a stop, take photo, admire for 3 minutes, and be on my way. I avoid museums, except transport/communication/computer museums, as they are pretty boring.

I will do exceptions for stuff like Louvre, but sometimes I will just say no to even biggest attractions, like I did earlier this year looking at Stonehenge, +30 minutes of walking and I think +1 hour of driving from my route just to see bunch of rocks - yeah, not for me.

I will go back though, if I found the country particularly nice/pleasing, like I've been to Sweden/Norway/Finland on 2-week road trips two times in summer and two times in winter, and planning another winter one - there is just something about sleeping in car in -15°C (5F) that's just amazing.

jhbadger• 2 years ago

What about Romania, which is basically the same country (and was before the Soviet Union decided to mess things up)?

ziotom78• 2 years ago

My wife is Romanian, and we visit the country once every year. There are plentiful of things to visit in Romania; the most beautiful cities are Sibiu, Sighișoara, Brașov, Timișoara… We have still to visit the famous painted monasteries in Bucovina, which seem to be amazing.

precommunicator3• 2 years ago

I visited/found kinda interesting about 3 points in Romania, have about 15 more wanted as "want to go"

biscuit1v9• 2 years ago

That is right, there aren't many places to visit for tourists, but there are other things that Moldova is doing different and probably better than other countries: the food and the wine.

Since Moldova is in balkans, the food is something unique: there is "zeama", there is "soleanca" and the list can continue. These are foods that you don't find anywhere so quickly.

Also: Moldova has one of the biggest wine cellars from Europe(Milestii Mici). And also: the wine is something you MUST try.

amunozo• 2 years ago

The first comparison by country do not make any sense. There are parts of Spain that have never seen a tourist, let alone foreign. Also China has an enormous amount of national tourism. People should stop thinking countrywise and start thinking more localwise for certain measures.

dimovich• 2 years ago

Moldova is like the Shire. Green hills, good wine, nice people. Not much to see but there's something peaceful about it. Happy to call it home.

Beijinger• 2 years ago

Is Moldova so special? I was there some years ago, including Transnistria https://expatcircle.com/cms/emigration-today-transnistria/

Just came back from Ukraine, was really fun. But I must say, the Ukrainians don't know how to party. In such a situation, you must party like there is no tomorrow, but they don't. They have a curfew after 11. And speak low places are hard to find.

If you like to travel off the beaten track, check out the travel agency of some of my buddies: https://www.youngpioneertours.com/

rurban• 2 years ago

Friend of mine had the very same experience lately, when he traveled Moldova. He was in a group, and every other of the group was from some kind of "foreign diplomatic service" :)

The only tourist in Moldova

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