It was on that fateful Tuesday that I first traveled outside of Chisinau. Dr. Kulev introduced me to a friend of his who happens to be a surgeon by day and a pharmaceutical representative by... well, other days. A special note to readers: I would like you to think "potential conflict of interest." But, as a second thought, why would a surgeon need a "second" job? (By the way, the pharmaceutical gig pays more than operating on people in Moldova... think "even bigger conflict of interest.") But I digress.
So, there I was... presented with an opportunity to travel with a surgeon-drug-rep through the countryside of Moldova as he called on his physician colleague-clients. And do you think that yours truly was up for such an adventure? Right on.
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7:15 am, bright eyed and bushy tailed... Ready to ride shotgun in a Skoda!
On the way out of town we filled up with gas...
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...by which I mean: we pulled in and he filled up the tank. Wow, it's not that long ago that we had full-service in America. But long enough that I thought you might like a picture to remember it by.
And... now for your first view of the Moldovan countryside:
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Moldova has a lot of hills and farms. Here you see a bit of morning haze... I will try to capture the full beauty in photos from later adventures. For now, just take my word for it being very beautiful
So... after stopping at a few small clinics in villages that straddled the main road, Jon (pronounced "e-yon" with a long "e" blended with the "y" followed by a long "o") pulled the Skoda onto a dirt road to lead us into a more secluded village. It is hard to read, but this is the only village that I have a name for: Todirești.
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Each village we visited had one of these crosses at its entrance. I have forgotten what they are called... if any of you know, please let me know and I will add it to the post.
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Above: A home in the village. You can see that it is harvest season.
Below: The clinic.
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Above: The clinic's water well.
Below: A view out the physician's office window. I do not know to whom the turkies and geese belong, but that is definitely the clinic's property.
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On the way out of the village we came across...
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...hitch hikers! Apparently this is a very normal occurrence in Moldova. We gave these two ladies a ride in to Ungheni (they waited patiently in the car while we stopped at two more clinics on the way...) and then they chipped in a few lei for gas. Trust is still abundant in Moldova.
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Also on the way out of town (and with two patiently waiting hitch-hikers,) Jon decided to show me how to operate a water well. This one, as it turns out had dried-up in the last couple of years.
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At this point I must apologize, I did not take enough photos of the adventures in Ungheni (which I sadly realized in looking back through the pictures.) So, I will narrate for a bit...
Jon and I first stopped at the main polyclinic. Polyclinics are giant out-patient centers. This particular polyclinic was 6 stories tall. On the way in, Jon stopped to chat with the front-office staff. After trading some good natured jabs, he left the ladies with "what, this man comes all the way from America, and you don't offer him tea?!" After visiting a few floors-worth of physicians we were headed out the door... and the girls offered me tea... and chocolate, and wafers. So we set up shop, right there in the front office and enjoyed some tea.
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Next on the agenda was lunch. We walked over to the town center and found a nice little cafe. But first things first. "Do you have a water closet?" ... "Oh, yes," replies the waitress "right outside around the corner is a public restroom."
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A hole in the ground? No... Public? Very much so. I carry a pocket-pack of kleenex with me when I should be carrying clorox, a mop and rubber gloves... my camera's flash really brightened up the place though... no real way to capture the true filth and grime.
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After lunch we headed to the town's hospital, where a young physician named Elena had just received the good news that she had obtained her Canadian visa! Such news is cause for celebration; and celebrate we did. We sat down for more tea, chocolate, wafers (I think Moldovans may be within an arm's reach of tea, chocolate and wafers at all times) and... Moldovan brandy. By the way, Elena was not on duty or call... but Jon was, so I was left with Elena talking about Canada and drinking brandy by the tea-cup full while Jon finished his sales rounds. After finishing one bottle and starting the next, Jon returned.
The three of us decided to tour the town, and stop for a beer or two to celebrate Elena's good news.
A few highlights from the tour of Ungheni:
Basilica
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Train
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Graffiti: "Slip Knot" (an American heavy-metal band)
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More graffiti...
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Mihai Eminescu, a fantastic poet! (And then I read what they wrote about him... punks.)
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Some local kids, hanging out on the train after school. "Say hello to America!"
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And that does it for my pictures... none of Elena... none of the three of us sharing stories and beer at the outdoor cafe... and only one from Jon's parents' house! Jon's parents' house you ask? Well during the course of our stay at the cafe, Jon's dad called and said that the new wine was ready... that, and Jon's mom was preparing a rabbit with wine, served in white sauce, which would blow away my previous "Iepure cu Vin in Sos Alb" experience. Not one to argue, I accepted an invitation to dinner... and off we go!
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Jon's mom, stepping back into the entryway.
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After driving over some very-much-country roads we arrive at Jon's childhood home. I was much too excited (and buzzed) to notice that I was not taking pictures. In fact, before going outside to see the farm animals I set my camera down... I know this because I remember seeing the ten tiny pink piglets and saying to Jon "don't let me forget to come back out and take pictures of the piglets after dinner." I was also supposed to milk the cow, but somewhere in there we started drinking wine, eating amazing iepure cu vin in sos alb (let me repeat: AMAZING) and of course, shooting țuica. It took three shots of țuica before I waved off another; which Jon's dad was happy to delay... until he offered me the fourth shot (again) five minutes later. Well, if I am anything, I am polite. So I politely obliged him another shot of țuica, and the rest is history!
Lesson #3 from Brian's Guide to Living in Moldova: do not drink țuica in multiples immediately prior to riding on Moldovan country roads... Although another piece of advice would be to consider brandy, beer, wine and țuica as being good for four days of fun instead of one. :^)
