Alex Robertson Textor

Minibus to Moldova

In May 2010 I wrote a little piece for National Geographic Traveler's Intelligent Travel blog on a minibus journey from Suceava, Romania to Chisinau, Moldova. I never linked to it from this blog, which in retrospect is odd because it was one of my favorite blog posts ever. It looks like it's no longer live on the Intelligent Travel blog, either, but I did find a text-only version on National Geographic Traveler's Facebook page.

Anyone coming across this take the minibus recently? I wonder if there are any additional bus services running now.

Springtime in Chisinau

While I'm tapping away on some articles, here are some images of Chisinau. The Moldovan capital was in beautiful early spring bloom earlier this week. The parks were packed with young people and families—some taking advantage of free wireless Internet access in parks—and vendors at the markets were hawking enormous supplies of fresh herbs and vegetables. Central Chisinau's streets are well-shaded and wide and the city is strikingly pleasant to wander.

Bus shelter.

Arca de Triumf.

Stefan cel Mare Park.

Red tulips—omnipresent this week—in front of St. Teodora de la Sihla Church.