Berlin to Odessa Day 17: Iasi
It was a great, albeit hot day of cycling. But reports that it is cold back in Berlin make us happy to have actually cycled enough to have changed climates (in our favor). There were a fair amount of hills on the road but Romanians were quite vocal in shouting encouragement from the roadside as we huffed and puffed up some of the steeper climbs. The reward was that we were treated with some great views of the expansive landscape, and in one case, a nice refill of our water bottles with cool refreshing mountain water.
Romanian landscape at sunset
We were welcomed after riding 160 km (100 miles) with a large table full of eggplant purée, a cornmeal/polenta style mush called māmāligā, and a tomato and pepper salad. And finished it off with plum-filled fry bread. Bed came soon after.
Today Andrei, our host, showed us around Iasi. He was an architecture major and has a deep knowledge of not only the buildings in and around Iasi, but also their history, and the history of the people who occupied them. I must admit I was (and probably still am) a bit ignorant about Romanian history.
We went to one of the Universities in the center of town.
Inside, it's more like an art gallery than a university with large, painted murals adorning the hallway. We didn't see any classrooms but the entrance seemed to scream "paint" and not "study." Although there was a "become a chemistry major" bulletin board.
The paintings mostly depicted a mix of Greek and Roman myths.
A little ways down the street from the University, Andrei pointed out an overhang coming off of a dilapidated looking building and said that there is a superstition surrounding this corridor and that if you walk under it, you will fail your exams. Sure enough, as we watched, a couple girls made a fine detour around to avoid failing their academic year before It had even started.
The hotel in the center square was designed by Gustav Eiffel - the same one from the Eiffel tower, but it's not called the Eiffel hotel.
We also saw a couple of communist cinemas, built during the Russian occupation. They look like large buildings that could house a multiplex, but they generally only have one screen.
We visited some parks, squares, and memorials as well as historical sights. We went to an old, traditional style home that used to belong to an ex-priest who was kicked out of the church for shooting a crow. The house featured a back porch, apparently a place where he would sit and watch girls walk past - according to the woman giving the tour of the house. It was peering into the life of an 18th century peeping Tom, although he did surround himself with literary greats such as Immanescue.
Aside from this cultural richness, we did have a nice stop off to enjoy the local beer, Ciuc. Then we visited the central castle, which is now situated across from a giant shopping mall - a stark juxtaposition from the castle's romantic 19th century look to a practically all-glass commercial center.
We came home to yet another fantastic dinner of māmāligā and stuffed peppers.
Tomorrow we will head to Chisinau, Moldova which, according to our CS host, was part of Romania until quite recently. In fact, our host and his family refer to themselves as Moldovan. The only difference apparently is the number of transplanted Russians in the country to develop a Communist identity.
Romanian landscape at sunset
We were welcomed after riding 160 km (100 miles) with a large table full of eggplant purée, a cornmeal/polenta style mush called māmāligā, and a tomato and pepper salad. And finished it off with plum-filled fry bread. Bed came soon after.
Today Andrei, our host, showed us around Iasi. He was an architecture major and has a deep knowledge of not only the buildings in and around Iasi, but also their history, and the history of the people who occupied them. I must admit I was (and probably still am) a bit ignorant about Romanian history.
We went to one of the Universities in the center of town.
Inside, it's more like an art gallery than a university with large, painted murals adorning the hallway. We didn't see any classrooms but the entrance seemed to scream "paint" and not "study." Although there was a "become a chemistry major" bulletin board.
The paintings mostly depicted a mix of Greek and Roman myths.
A little ways down the street from the University, Andrei pointed out an overhang coming off of a dilapidated looking building and said that there is a superstition surrounding this corridor and that if you walk under it, you will fail your exams. Sure enough, as we watched, a couple girls made a fine detour around to avoid failing their academic year before It had even started.
The hotel in the center square was designed by Gustav Eiffel - the same one from the Eiffel tower, but it's not called the Eiffel hotel.
We also saw a couple of communist cinemas, built during the Russian occupation. They look like large buildings that could house a multiplex, but they generally only have one screen.
We visited some parks, squares, and memorials as well as historical sights. We went to an old, traditional style home that used to belong to an ex-priest who was kicked out of the church for shooting a crow. The house featured a back porch, apparently a place where he would sit and watch girls walk past - according to the woman giving the tour of the house. It was peering into the life of an 18th century peeping Tom, although he did surround himself with literary greats such as Immanescue.
Aside from this cultural richness, we did have a nice stop off to enjoy the local beer, Ciuc. Then we visited the central castle, which is now situated across from a giant shopping mall - a stark juxtaposition from the castle's romantic 19th century look to a practically all-glass commercial center.
We came home to yet another fantastic dinner of māmāligā and stuffed peppers.
Tomorrow we will head to Chisinau, Moldova which, according to our CS host, was part of Romania until quite recently. In fact, our host and his family refer to themselves as Moldovan. The only difference apparently is the number of transplanted Russians in the country to develop a Communist identity.
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