...in two hours!
Looking forward to it! Rumors of changing laws, bribes, prisons, tanks, et al make our group really excited ( amd a little bit nervous) about this unique place: a republic that nobody recognizes and that is the inheritor of the Soviet Union.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Seen and heard around Chisinau
It is time to reevaluate a little bit the Moldovan capital. I managed to see much more after these last days. New general impressions: very green, leafy, some interesting communist architecture, but otherwise a very unspectacular city, with either communist neighborhoods, often crumbling, or old one-storey houses with no decorations or other interesting features. Garbage everywhere, often in a very dry, dusty place, different from the more "humid" garbage that appears everywhere in chaotic Bucharest. Comparisons with Bucharest are not very accurate: Bucharest is chaotic, loud, full of architectural contrasts, dogs, all the types of people, old and new, new constructions everywhere, brand new metro and buses, extremely crowded, traffic jams at every hour, always in redefinition, contemptful and balkanic, French-inspired and communist at the same time. Its people rather arrogant and proud, playful, sophisticated or extremely ignorant. Chisinau is green, empty, with grand avenues with no cars, some lost dogs, oriental markets, poverty an luxury, dry grass, architecturally dull and inspiring, monotonous but peaceful, abounding in nightlife and flashy youth.
At a museum, one nicely dressed old lady captured the attention of Marianna, a wonderful girl from Greece, intellectually curious and extremely funny, one of my favorite people in this group. She wanted to take pictures of the lady and thanked her in Russian and this is how we started speaking. Carlos from Spain approcahed as well and I started translating from Romanian. She was 76, but looked like 56... She retired from being a teacher and started working in several museums. At one point, she asked me if I speak Russian and I said that I am from Romania and I didn't study it. She leaned towards me and whispered "I have to know it. It's the enemy's tongue ( "limba dusmanului") ... She added that she was born in 1931 and remembers it all...
This left me speachless. Marianna thanked her again, said Spasiva, and I told her to say also Multumesc. Then I explained it to her...
DEZV: Dacia Romana- Tropaeum Traiani
....
Returning from the beer hunt, Marianna started taking pictures of a party near the lake. People were dancing in the hora. I asked M if she wants to go dance and we did. Soon, a man came with home-mae wine and all of our group joined the hora, were served with wine and food. It was a woman, Ana's birthday, and she was delighted to have all these foreigners around. She said " Wow! Tonight we're going to appear on Discovery channel!"
One man , probably her husband, said to us " We have nothing to lose, we are just gaining friends!". He waked where we were from. When i mentioned Poland, he said " Bravo! Bravo to them , bravo to Romania for making it to Europe! Here, we are just lagging behind". His daughter (?) added " For us, it's Transnistria that is holding us back ! Those Russians!!!"
....
The situation here is very complex. You cannot say anything about Moldovans, about their relationship to the past, to their neighbours, about the Russian- Romanian conflict. There are so many layers...
To be continued:
Sosirea lui Radu
Meeting the Chisinau elites
At a museum, one nicely dressed old lady captured the attention of Marianna, a wonderful girl from Greece, intellectually curious and extremely funny, one of my favorite people in this group. She wanted to take pictures of the lady and thanked her in Russian and this is how we started speaking. Carlos from Spain approcahed as well and I started translating from Romanian. She was 76, but looked like 56... She retired from being a teacher and started working in several museums. At one point, she asked me if I speak Russian and I said that I am from Romania and I didn't study it. She leaned towards me and whispered "I have to know it. It's the enemy's tongue ( "limba dusmanului") ... She added that she was born in 1931 and remembers it all...
This left me speachless. Marianna thanked her again, said Spasiva, and I told her to say also Multumesc. Then I explained it to her...
DEZV: Dacia Romana- Tropaeum Traiani
....
Returning from the beer hunt, Marianna started taking pictures of a party near the lake. People were dancing in the hora. I asked M if she wants to go dance and we did. Soon, a man came with home-mae wine and all of our group joined the hora, were served with wine and food. It was a woman, Ana's birthday, and she was delighted to have all these foreigners around. She said " Wow! Tonight we're going to appear on Discovery channel!"
One man , probably her husband, said to us " We have nothing to lose, we are just gaining friends!". He waked where we were from. When i mentioned Poland, he said " Bravo! Bravo to them , bravo to Romania for making it to Europe! Here, we are just lagging behind". His daughter (?) added " For us, it's Transnistria that is holding us back ! Those Russians!!!"
....
The situation here is very complex. You cannot say anything about Moldovans, about their relationship to the past, to their neighbours, about the Russian- Romanian conflict. There are so many layers...
To be continued:
Sosirea lui Radu
Meeting the Chisinau elites
Friday, July 27, 2007
History of Moldova
Today was the turn of a very insipid lecture on the Moldovan economy and an infuriating lesson of Moldovan history. I almost lost my temper seeing how the person brought to present Moldova's history mixed its medieval rulers with Wallachia's ( the famous Moldovan ruler Mircea cel Batran who actually ruled Wallachia...), gave confusing geographical indications, talked about Moldova's incorporation in the "Romanian Empire". He doesn't speak Romanian, but only Russian, being probably a first generation -born Moldovan...
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Identity....
Today, our multinational group took part in a tour of Chisinau made by the organizers. Time to take funny photos ( as in the flamboyant declamative "Republica Moldova e patria mea" sign, adorned with smiling suns and defiant tricolour flags), look at ( a lot of) socialist-realist architecture in the city center, deconstruct discourses, and see Spanish guys flirting en gros with Polish dziewczyny...
The story is simple: Chisinau was created in 1436. The venerable age ( forgetting probably that at that age Frankfurt or even Kronstadt-Brasov were rather old settlements) appears systematically at every entrance to the city, put in bold letters and colorful symbols. At one point, I asked myself if this was not in fact the postal code of the city or simply the new, second half of the name "Chisinau-1436", like " 2 Mai" or "Talmaciu 2" in Romania. But no, it the year when the little village on the swampy Bac river was first mentions. The way Zoia talked about Chisinau was if this was the eternal capital of Moldova, leaving aside the fact that C. was just a small insignifiant market town until the Russians came in 1812 and made it the provincial capital. No mentions of the real capitals, Suceava or Iasi, now Romanian cities.
Then, the "Moldovan poets alley", where "Romanian-Moldovan" poets' statues were displayed, dominated by Eminescu. No mentions of the fact that almost all these guys never actually set foot on the territory of the present Republic, but lived in Romania.
The story may go on. The city is full of national symbols that are actually borrowed once from Romanian history. Zoia talked about Stefan cel Mare as the greatest king (?) of Moldova , who made Moldova independent from the Turks ( false: Moldova was never under the Turks until Stefan). She mentioned how Stefan built a church after every victory :" this is how we have so many churches". Whatever... The churches Stefan built are to be found in the Romanian province of Moldavia. Most churches from the Republic are built in the Ukrainian style and date to less than 200 years.
Zoia just presented the history of Moldova the way it is protrayed in official discourse. It is probably the way she has been taught. She is a very nice, smart girl, whose parents came to Moldova from Russia in the 1960s, but she is thinking of getting her master's in Romania. The identity game of who is Moldovan gets more and more fascinating.
The story is simple: Chisinau was created in 1436. The venerable age ( forgetting probably that at that age Frankfurt or even Kronstadt-Brasov were rather old settlements) appears systematically at every entrance to the city, put in bold letters and colorful symbols. At one point, I asked myself if this was not in fact the postal code of the city or simply the new, second half of the name "Chisinau-1436", like " 2 Mai" or "Talmaciu 2" in Romania. But no, it the year when the little village on the swampy Bac river was first mentions. The way Zoia talked about Chisinau was if this was the eternal capital of Moldova, leaving aside the fact that C. was just a small insignifiant market town until the Russians came in 1812 and made it the provincial capital. No mentions of the real capitals, Suceava or Iasi, now Romanian cities.
Then, the "Moldovan poets alley", where "Romanian-Moldovan" poets' statues were displayed, dominated by Eminescu. No mentions of the fact that almost all these guys never actually set foot on the territory of the present Republic, but lived in Romania.
The story may go on. The city is full of national symbols that are actually borrowed once from Romanian history. Zoia talked about Stefan cel Mare as the greatest king (?) of Moldova , who made Moldova independent from the Turks ( false: Moldova was never under the Turks until Stefan). She mentioned how Stefan built a church after every victory :" this is how we have so many churches". Whatever... The churches Stefan built are to be found in the Romanian province of Moldavia. Most churches from the Republic are built in the Ukrainian style and date to less than 200 years.
Zoia just presented the history of Moldova the way it is protrayed in official discourse. It is probably the way she has been taught. She is a very nice, smart girl, whose parents came to Moldova from Russia in the 1960s, but she is thinking of getting her master's in Romania. The identity game of who is Moldovan gets more and more fascinating.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
De pe la televizor...
Păi normal că m-am uitat şi eu la televiozr, să văd cum se prezintă situaţia...
- Primarul Chisinaului e nemultumit ca lumea nu vorbeste limba de stat. Reportaj intreg cu cat de prost scriu angajatii primariei. Ciudat ca se intampla asta- abia daca auid o vorba-doua romaneasca in orasul asta unde toti vorbesc rusa. Cine l-a votat oare pe primarul asta?
- la radiourile de limba moldoveneasca, numai melodii din Romania suspecte . Cum ar fi oda mandriei nationale a Voltajului sau ceva akcente mai vechi. Sa nu mai zic de manele. Câh...
- Angela Similea pe Radio Moldova. Asta intr-un autobuz din anii 1950. M-am simtit ca in Quantum Leap...
- muzica ruseasca e la radio chiar suna bine. Pare ca rusii au o industrie muzicala paralela cu cea americana si nici nu se prea difuzeaza melodii in engleza.
- Mika cu Relax. Yeah.
- Pro TV Chisinau e tot ProTv. Prima stire de importanta nationala la jurnalul de seara este ca s-a inecat un tip in lacul X de langa Chisinau.
- in Chisinau, din cele 20 de posturi de la TV Zarea, majoritatea sunt in rusa difuzand sitcomuri si telenovele rusesti. Mai e TV Moldova cu stiri cenzurate si o lectura lamentabila a filmelor pe stil "nu dublam, nu subtitram, ci lecturam fara vlaga si interes". ProTV cu ale sale protvisme. Apoi e Romania 1, care nu stiu cum e relevant pentru cetatenii din Republica.
- Primarul Chisinaului e nemultumit ca lumea nu vorbeste limba de stat. Reportaj intreg cu cat de prost scriu angajatii primariei. Ciudat ca se intampla asta- abia daca auid o vorba-doua romaneasca in orasul asta unde toti vorbesc rusa. Cine l-a votat oare pe primarul asta?
- la radiourile de limba moldoveneasca, numai melodii din Romania suspecte . Cum ar fi oda mandriei nationale a Voltajului sau ceva akcente mai vechi. Sa nu mai zic de manele. Câh...
- Angela Similea pe Radio Moldova. Asta intr-un autobuz din anii 1950. M-am simtit ca in Quantum Leap...
- muzica ruseasca e la radio chiar suna bine. Pare ca rusii au o industrie muzicala paralela cu cea americana si nici nu se prea difuzeaza melodii in engleza.
- Mika cu Relax. Yeah.
- Pro TV Chisinau e tot ProTv. Prima stire de importanta nationala la jurnalul de seara este ca s-a inecat un tip in lacul X de langa Chisinau.
- in Chisinau, din cele 20 de posturi de la TV Zarea, majoritatea sunt in rusa difuzand sitcomuri si telenovele rusesti. Mai e TV Moldova cu stiri cenzurate si o lectura lamentabila a filmelor pe stil "nu dublam, nu subtitram, ci lecturam fara vlaga si interes". ProTV cu ale sale protvisme. Apoi e Romania 1, care nu stiu cum e relevant pentru cetatenii din Republica.
The great day of Moldovan adventures
I didn't catch the cleaning lady stealing peanuts from my bag like my Swedish travelmates did, but I have to confess I didn't trust the hotel staff too much when I left my big luggage in the morning. The creepy surroundings of the Pushkin house seemed more palatable on the morning light. I met my Swedes at their hotel, splendid showpiece of socialism-realism and we left for Autogara Nord. Walking. Not a good idea. The amount of pollution we inhaled, garbage we saw, and desolate urban-industrial-wasteland landscape on the way made it a rather disagreeable walk, save for the pets in cages in the animal market. Of course, an angry lady at the autogara told me that buses for Orhei leave from the Central Autogara. Thanks Lonely Planet.
In a minivan full with 30 people, we left for the Central Autogara, hectic as always. The lady at the info desk sent us to yet another autogara, autogara suburbana. Luckily, it was very close. we found a bus straight to the monastery, but the driver was sleeping in his seat and seemed reluctant to communicate when he was leaving. We found out it was late anyway and took a minivan to Orhei. What a drive! Formula One, on probably Moldova's #1 highway, very wide, and well kept, passing by huge villages, seemingly rich.
Orhei itself didn't bring too much oomf. But the bus ride from there to Orheiul Vechi will be unfrogettable. The granddaddy of all buses, seemingly from the 1950s, was full with picturesque characters, some looking at us with distrust and disdain. It looked like one of those buses used in movies that describe travels and adventures of Americans in Third World Countries. The chicken and goats were missing though.
We were dropped at the foothills of the monastery. Wow. This was Jordan. N
Next:
-Orheiul Vechi with Sylvia and Lisa
- Gagauzia with Cenghis
In a minivan full with 30 people, we left for the Central Autogara, hectic as always. The lady at the info desk sent us to yet another autogara, autogara suburbana. Luckily, it was very close. we found a bus straight to the monastery, but the driver was sleeping in his seat and seemed reluctant to communicate when he was leaving. We found out it was late anyway and took a minivan to Orhei. What a drive! Formula One, on probably Moldova's #1 highway, very wide, and well kept, passing by huge villages, seemingly rich.
Orhei itself didn't bring too much oomf. But the bus ride from there to Orheiul Vechi will be unfrogettable. The granddaddy of all buses, seemingly from the 1950s, was full with picturesque characters, some looking at us with distrust and disdain. It looked like one of those buses used in movies that describe travels and adventures of Americans in Third World Countries. The chicken and goats were missing though.
We were dropped at the foothills of the monastery. Wow. This was Jordan. N
Next:
-Orheiul Vechi with Sylvia and Lisa
- Gagauzia with Cenghis
First Thoughts on Chisinau
Chisinau brought me very mixed feelings. It's at the same time dusty and very leafy, all the streets lined wity generous canopy. Its communist heritage seems mixed as well: crumbling blocks with stupidly closed balconies and some of the greatest and most monumental blocks of flats I've seen in the ex-communist world. Its neighborhoods, particualy the one perched above some very green hills, seemingly a separate city, seem even majestic from a distnace if this term can be employed for communist architecture. Dirty,very dirty, mountains of garbage, people throwing everything everywhere. The Piata Centrala, a total nightmare, where thousands of rather poorly dressed people, scheming taxi drivers, old and horrible buses and minivans going apparently to every village of this Republic, a lot of pollution, weird merchandise, dust, scary looking dogs, invading manele coming from the West. Romania apparently exports oil, mineral water ( the ubiquitous Dorna) and bad music. The northern strip parallel to the river ( ahem, a swampy mess) has innumerable kilometers of talciocs, selling everything from extremely cute, if tremendosly bored, kittens to rubber for cars, Chinese shoes and phosphate fertilizers.
Then, there's the feeling this could be Omsk or Tomsk or Khabarovsk rather than the capital of a country with a 68% ethnic majority of a non-Slavic people. I hear, with very few exceptions, only Russian on the streets, signs show a prevalence for Russian. And above all, the dominating mullets. Mullets everywhere, the kingdom of mullets, typically Russian, Eurovision Dima-like. How my Swedish travelmates put it, some girls also look more Moscow than EU, with that specific skirt style that makes a Russian girl a Russian girls.
Where is my Moldova then? Well, not in Chisinau. I don't know how I'm going to look at this place after two weeks. Now it seems rather grim and ugly, urbanistically boring, but nightlifewise rather dynamic.
Then, there's the feeling this could be Omsk or Tomsk or Khabarovsk rather than the capital of a country with a 68% ethnic majority of a non-Slavic people. I hear, with very few exceptions, only Russian on the streets, signs show a prevalence for Russian. And above all, the dominating mullets. Mullets everywhere, the kingdom of mullets, typically Russian, Eurovision Dima-like. How my Swedish travelmates put it, some girls also look more Moscow than EU, with that specific skirt style that makes a Russian girl a Russian girls.
Where is my Moldova then? Well, not in Chisinau. I don't know how I'm going to look at this place after two weeks. Now it seems rather grim and ugly, urbanistically boring, but nightlifewise rather dynamic.
Moldova vs. Moldova
My train compartment seemed to be a display of the latest fashion trends. Three guys, I-pod-listening, funky book- reading, passionate cell-phone conversations to the beloved ones in Vaslui . And a suspicious Transylvanian accent lost in the Rapid to Iasi, the capital of looked-down Moldova. Wait! Not the Republic of Moldova, but the Romanian province of Moldova, known for its present day poverty, its disproportionate share in providing Romania's national poets and novelists- arguably the contemplative nature of the Moldovans would make them perfect candidates for lyrism- , the funny accent, amazing monasteries, large families, great cuisine, and the prettiest girls in the country. That for a list of stereotypes.
Whatever. The point was that my initial thoughts of spending the night in the county capital of Vaslui were soon replaced by the wish to endulge in the nighlife of a university city and a vibrant cultural center that is Iasi. The fashion trends of my co-travellers made that an imperative. How does Iasi live to its reputation?
Well, Vaslui got only two hours of my time. I was , however, pleasantly surprised. Of course, a communist center classical for Moldovan cities, the most affected in the country by Ceausescu's urban renewal program. But surprisingly elegant architecure, smart urban planning, nice piazzas, variation in styles, creation of quality public space. Perched on a hill, Vaslui offers surprising views of the surrounding valleys. Pedestrian areas lead to the nice Copou park and there was an air of Sunday afternoon, with old couples, young parents and their kids, all in the streets enjoying the peace of the weekend.
NEXT: Why I love Iasi...
Whatever. The point was that my initial thoughts of spending the night in the county capital of Vaslui were soon replaced by the wish to endulge in the nighlife of a university city and a vibrant cultural center that is Iasi. The fashion trends of my co-travellers made that an imperative. How does Iasi live to its reputation?
Well, Vaslui got only two hours of my time. I was , however, pleasantly surprised. Of course, a communist center classical for Moldovan cities, the most affected in the country by Ceausescu's urban renewal program. But surprisingly elegant architecure, smart urban planning, nice piazzas, variation in styles, creation of quality public space. Perched on a hill, Vaslui offers surprising views of the surrounding valleys. Pedestrian areas lead to the nice Copou park and there was an air of Sunday afternoon, with old couples, young parents and their kids, all in the streets enjoying the peace of the weekend.
NEXT: Why I love Iasi...
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)