Jewish Community in Moldova

The breakup of the Soviet Union brought a rebirth of Jewish public life, but also revived an antisemitism that originated in the interwar period, rooted in nationalism. Moldovan Jews found themselves caught in the middle of the struggle between Russian and Moldovan ethnic groups. Because many of Moldova’s Jews did not speak Romanian (Moldova’s national language), but only Russian, they had to confront a pro-Romanian nationalist part of the population.

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Fasten Seat Bălţi

„Precious oldtimer cars, colourful traditional costumes, a massive parade of thousands of people, party on the streets, concerts on the big and small stages throughout the whole day and night. This is not the carneval in Rio, this is the Balti day”, was the announcement for the live transmission of Publik TV for the city holiday in Bălţi. Moldovarious.com could not resist and with our camera onboard we drove up the (in)famous betonka to Balti to see how the locals celebrate Hramul Sf. Nicolae, their most important day in the year. Continue reading “Fasten Seat Bălţi”

Austro-Moldovan Music Fusion

Once the Moldovan band Zdob si Zdub played at the Eurovision-Song-Contest. They delighted their audience with an unmistakable mix of Moldovan folk music, Balkan-Vibes and elements of rock music. Zdob si Zdub landed a summer hit record together with Austrian’s Hubert von Goisern in their country in 2009. Moldovarious.com wanted to know how the Moldovan version of “Koa Hiatamadl” sounds like. Continue reading “Austro-Moldovan Music Fusion”

In the Footsteps of a Legend…

The main street in Moldova’s capital Chisinau is called Bulevardul Ştefan cel Mare şi Sfînt. All central attractions like the opera, theatres, pubs and shops are situated on it and at the very end you can find the monument of Ştefan cel Mare, one of many in Moldova. Furthermore you can find his portrait on the Moldovan leu banknote and there are a lot of of High-Schools and Colleges called after him. A good reason to take a closer look on this romantic character who became a national hero…

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Taste Across the Frontiers – Festive Courses

Every national tradition provides for special dishes made on holidays only. In Moldova, there are specialties made on special occasions. For Christmas, the food is mainly made of pork. In rustic households the swine, fattened-up during summer and fall, is usually slaughtered three days before the Christmas Eve, and there is even a saying referring to this tradition: “You cannot fatten the swine on Christmas Eve”!

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Taste Across the Frontiers – Soups

Cuisine is an important element of the national identity, just like music, folklore, national costumes, traditions… When we travel to a foreign country, it is not just about sight-seeing and museums – we tend to try as many local foods as we can. I wouldn’t say it is the best way to get to know the people, but after all, the main dietarian principle states that we are what we eat. To put it differently, what we eat is what we are. Continue reading “Taste Across the Frontiers – Soups”