Back in Moldova!

Although technically, we never left. The country of Transistria doesn't really exist, and is still "officially" part of Moldova. But, when you have to go through border checkpoints, getting inspected, and showing your passport, and getting permission to enter...it sure feels like we were in a different country.

So yesterday morning we had to get out of Transnistria. I had read reports where exiting Transnistira can be more difficult that entering!

But, we made sure we had all of our ducks in a row. We had the proper paperwork, the proper authorizations, the proper vehicle documents, and we had followed all the rules. It seems to me that the people who have had problems hadn't done enough research.

Just in case, I had written out the telephone number and the email address of the Transistria border corruption report line. For future travelers there, the number is 373 533 94578 and they have an English speaking officer to field complaints. The email address is [email protected]. I'm not sure of the accuracy of this...it's just info I came across on the internet.

I figured if I got hit up for money, I would simply show them that I had this info handy and they might back down.

But fortunately I didn't have to do that. We had no problems at all. We handed the paperwork over with our passports, the guy typed some stuff into the computer, and he waved us on. Simple, and it took about two minutes. Then, crossed through no man's land with a Russian military guy who also waved us through without stopping us. Then, upon entering Moldova there is no border inspection because, well, you never really left Moldova, did you? There was a police check though where we were stopped and asked to open the trunk for a 2 second glace, then we were waved on again.

And so we were back in Moldova!

Rolling fertile farmland.

Every village has a public well.

Nice highway most of the way. And hardly any traffic.

Roadside rest area.

Scenery along the way.

As we entered the area near our destination at the city of Soroca (pop 38,000), Ruth spotted a tower in the distance. This was actually on her list of things to see in the area, and we were driving right by it so we stopped at the parking area. 

Then, we had to climb 662 steps leading up to the base of the tower. We were due for some exercise after the long drive.

Almost at the top!

The tower was built in 2004 as a symbol to the people who help preserve the Moldovan culture.

Ruth, enjoying the view.

The Dniester River, with Moldova on the right, and Ukraine on the left.

Looking the opposite way. The city of Soroca, Moldova on the left, and Ukraine on the right.

We had booked a hotel here in Soroca for two nights. There are only three or four choices here, and we picked the top rated one at 600 lei ($42 CAD, $32 USD) per night. It's the Hotel Central, and we're glad we made the choice that we did. We could have saved about $8 a night by going with something cheaper, but we think the extra was worth it.

Our room

The room is basic, but nice and comfy. But the people here are great. We had bought a bottle of wine, and we asked Marcel the guy at reception if he had a corkscrew. He headed to the basement where the restaurant is, and came back with a tray with two wine glasses and a corkscrew to take up to our room. Nice. He told us that the restaurant would be open for dinner later.

Later that evening, we went down to the restaurant and the lights were all off. No problem, he said to go ahead down. He came down after and turned the lights on, put the TV on, and asked us what we wanted to drink. Turns out that Marcel is a man of many talents. He was our waiter for the evening too!

Ruth ordered the steak, and I had a pork roll stuffed with mushrooms. And a plate of mamaliga and cream and cheese, and we each had a plate of roasted veggies. And I had a half liter of beer. The total bill including tip was 250 lei ($17 CAD, $13 USD). They had opened the restaurant just for us. Not sure how they keep a cook employed, but perhaps they are busier on Friday and Saturday nights.

We just came back from breakfast and it was the same...we were the only ones there.

Today, we're off to see the sights of Soroca...first impressions are that we like this city!

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