Chisinau, Moldova

I slept in until it was almost noon, got out of bed, showered, dressed, and then walked outside the hostel. I walked to Stefan cel Mare Boulevard and then followed it south until I tuned right on Tighina Street and walked to the National Military Museum. I entered inside the building and toured the different exhibits the museum had on military weapons from ancient times until today – much of the museum’s artifacts came from the twentieth-century AD (i.e. from World War I, World War II, the Soviet War in Afghanistan, Moldova’s fight for independence, and Moldova’s participation during “Operation Iraqi Freedom”). After touring the inside of the museum, I walked outside and looked at the armored vehicles, anti-aircraft weapons, artillery, and fighter jet on display. Once done, I walked south to the Liberation Monument. Next, I walked over to the statue of Grigory Ivanovich Kotovsky. Kotovsky is a man who went from being a gangster and bank robber to a Red Army general and member of the Central Executive Committee of the Soviet Union (criminal turned even bigger criminal); he also took an active part in the foundation of the Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. Then, I walked to the monument dedicated to the victims of Stalinist deportations. After having now seen the best monuments Chisinau has to offer, I walked to Valea Trandafirilor Park and walked around the woods and its three ponds. Finally, I walked north, back to the center of town and looked for a place to eat dinner. I walked to one café listed on my map, but it appears to have closed down and is now being converted in to a pizzeria (like Chisinau needs another one of those). I then decided to eat at an Andy’s Pizza (I think I’ve seen eight of them now and I haven’t walked THAT much while in Chisinau) and I had beer, nachos, and a pizza with peppers, olives, and sausages. After dinner, I walked back to the hostel and got to work typing out journal entries. Later on, I talked with two American Peace Corps volunteers (an older man and an older woman); the man then left and I talked with the woman until she went to sleep after 23:00. Next, I had some more of the Moldovan wine that the importer from China gave for guests at the hostel to drink – I had a few glasses of the semisweet Merlot that tasted of strawberries, black cherries, raspberries, and green peppers. Finally, after drinking a good amount of wine, eating pistachios, and getting up to date on current events thanks to the internet, I went to sleep after 01:30.