The first comparison by country do not make any sense. There are parts of Spain that have never seen a tourist, let alone foreign. Also China has an enormous amount of national tourism. People should stop thinking countrywise and start thinking more localwise for certain measures.
The only tourist in Moldova
261–270 of 427 posts
Re: The only tourist in Moldova
#262Earlier quoted context omitted.
How is police / crime doing?
Terrible, as is inflation, as is almost everything else, and in the south of the country you got hezbollah bombing things. I'm not Lebanese so just know what I know from close friends, but the comment read very strange to me. Life is very difficult there, none of the Lebanese I know want to move back. I'm not sure why OP painted it as an anarchist utopia, that's definitely not what I hear.
You also get Israel bombing the south of the country and a Syrian border run by drug cartels.
Agree with the sentiment on OP. These libertarian views are so often held by comfortable Americans who've never seen what an absence of government looks like.
Re: The only tourist in Moldova
#263Re: The only tourist in Moldova
#264Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah, it's quite an exorbitant price for the trip described. It said flights included which I have to hope is the majority of it.
Considering you can fly from London to Chișinău for around £36 at present ($45) on a low cost EU airline, then it probably isn't. The Telegraph is a right leaning newspaper for a wealthy readership, so their travel articles offer luxury. (The details of the holiday provider mention 4 star hotels.) Plenty of indie travellers potter around in Eastern Europe via flight hops or train, and could spend a similar amount for…
It's the Torygraph. Only really read by people rich enough to blow that sort of money on a trip to [checks notes] Moldova.
Re: The only tourist in Moldova
#265Earlier quoted context omitted.
I doubt most of Ukrainians knows Ukrainian language.
Not a Ukrainian but I know a good few. The language is taught at schools so you if you’re not educated in the Soviet Union you will know it. Whether you choose to use it is a different matter. And data would suggest that the usage is on the rise.
I've been in Ukraine last year and one thing I noticed that while people speak in Russian or in a dialect in private, they instantly switch to Ukrainian in public, like when ordering an ice cream from the street stall. They then switch back among them. It's fascinating how things changed in a few years.
Re: The only tourist in Moldova
#266Earlier quoted context omitted.
These are often described as vodkas in practice, even if they technically aren't. Applies to other eastern Europe products too. For example https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W%C3%B3dka_%C5%BBo%C5%82%C4%85... is fruit/herb based, but is commonly known as vodka and even was labelled as such.
Rakı is deceptively strong, especially the Cretan version, from which I am proud to have recovered.
Croatian (Balkan) Rakija is more like Greek Tsipouro. It is very easy to mistake though, since the names are so similar. Plenty of bulgarian tourists have been disappointed to get a totally different tasting alchohol from what they were expecting.
Re: The only tourist in Moldova
#267Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have a Russian friend who is adamant that I would really enjoy and have a great time in Russia. IIRC he tells me to go to St Pete more than Moscow. But I cannot imagine doing that as an American. It kind of makes me wonder if he's messing with me but he hates Russia and Putin and I don't know why he would. I feel like I would be so unsafe. I'm a very "American" looking person and I only know a handful of Russian wo…
St Petersburg is beautiful and quite lovely. Or well, I don't know now, but it was before the war. To be honest I've watched a ton of Russian YouTube content and on these videos the Russian cities doesn't seem affected. Just forget your visa/mastercard
> St Petersburg is beautiful and quite lovely.
You've been to the city center. The outskirts are dull even by Russian standards. Because of the soil there, they tend to build high-rise residential buildings spaced by 500m to 1km. Streets run in-between, there are occasional malls and that's it.
Re: The only tourist in Moldova
#268Earlier quoted context omitted.
They have good wines, as they can only compete through quality on the European market. Although before Russia set tariffs on Moldovan products they were only exporting awful sweet wines which they sold on the Russian market. I'm glad those days are over.
Purcari and Gitana are two staple names in the EU market. I bought them for 10+ years from a friendly reseller. IMO they are still the best value proposition.
You should try Vinia Traian[1] then, It's very close to the Gagauzia autonomous region, located in the Valul lui Traian PGI[2]. Also anything from Slobozia Mare: Domeniile Davidescu, Vinaria din Vale. They also have Saperavi, a Gerogian grape variety. A popular Moldovan variety is Rara Neagra but you should be careful not to consume it alone without meat or cheese because it's an older variety, it's more acidic and might cause stomach burns if you drink anything in excess of several glasses. In Romania it's called Babeasca Nagra and in Ukraine it's known as Sereksiya. Purcari has a wine called Freedom Blend consisting of Saperavi, Rara Neagra and Bastrado, an Ukrainian variety. The name is obviously a pun.
1. https://www.viniatraian.md/
2. https://wineofmoldova.com/en/valul-lui-traian-pgi-region/Re: The only tourist in Moldova
#269This would fit maybe in 2019, but Moldova now has many foreigners. Hotel prices went up considerably! For "Europe's least visited country" try Belorus, Ukraine, Russia, Ossetia or Armenia. Traveling to Mariupol as a tourist is the real deal in 2024
I have a Russian friend who is adamant that I would really enjoy and have a great time in Russia. IIRC he tells me to go to St Pete more than Moscow. But I cannot imagine doing that as an American. It kind of makes me wonder if he's messing with me but he hates Russia and Putin and I don't know why he would. I feel like I would be so unsafe. I'm a very "American" looking person and I only know a handful of Russian wo…
It's a shame. I'd love to visit St. Petersburg, but the window of history where I could do that in relative ease and safety is closed.
Many years ago a friend went to Syria in its brief window of peace, and visited some of the incredibly well preserved Roman sites. I hope they're still OK.
Re: The only tourist in Moldova
#270Central Asia still remains largely untouristed. I loved this article from the New York Times concerning a boy who taught himself Russian and then went to Kazakhstan with his father to immerse himself. The Foreign Language That Changed My Teenage Son’s Life https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/17/magazine/russian-language...
Wonderful read, thanks for posting!