Cighiri is traditional dish from Moldova, made from different innards (e.g. liver, lungs, hearts) usually from beef or pork. Innards are boiled, minced and formed in meatball shape, covered in "prapur" (an abdominal membrane).
Moldovan Leu (MDL) is the official currency and the bill of 1 was iconic for a long time, especially in the early 2000s since the public transport cost 1 MDL then went to 2 MDL ( went to 6 MDL in 2022) and due to the fact that it was highly used up until 2021 when coins were introduced to replace it.
Crab Sticks (supposedly made from crab meat) are strongly linked to New Year's Eve (strange, I know). The strange association is made because of a iconic crab salad usually made during this period. This persisted since the Soviet era and even today you can see families preparing this dish.
ZIL-130, another relic of the Soviet past, every ex-Soviet state citizen should recognize this vehicle, maybe not in this particular colour but that was the case here, these trucks ran on liquid gas and were largely used even after the collapse transporting workers, bread, virtually anything. I still remember the iconic sound its engine makes, since I lived my first 7 years of my life near an uphill highway.
Cușma is a traditional woolen hat, worn in Moldova and in Romania. Usually it was made from lamb wool, nowadays it is worn on special occasions, especially during winter holidays.
Șioric (Pork Rinds) is a traditional dish if it categorizes as such, maybe more of a snack. It is very popular in Slavic countries, you can buy it at farmer's markets and even at butcher shops since it has some sort of a renaissance in the last years. My dad and sister really enjoy it, especially with salt.
Babă Negră is a traditional dessert, from the north of Moldova to be more precise, it is considered the "queen" of the traditional Moldovan dishes. It is made from eggs, milk, kefir (fermented milk), sugar, oil, flour and backing powder, recipes my differ from household to household. To be fair I have seen this dessert only in the countryside for most of my life but for the last 5 years it has popped up in Confectionary shops.
Sarmale is another traditional dish, what is special about it is the fact that it has been brought here from the time the Ottoman empire had influence over the region, and there is no feast without it. It is mainly rice with meat some veggies like onion and carrots all rolled in either cabbage leaves or the more traditional variant and my personal favorite, grape leaves. It is told (I often heard that in my father's home village) that men would only need a pot full of sarmale and a bucket of wine to have a good time.
Pârjoale or in Russian "Котлета" (kotleta) are basically pork ground meatballs, fried on pan can be fully made of meat or mixed with mashed potatoes, onions nd other veggies.
Căinari is small town, known for its water spring which gave birth to a local bottled water brand called "Gura Căinarului". What makes this thing more iconic is the fact that this is the bottle of choice, so to say, for bottling home made wine. You can see that in farmer's markets where people would say home made wine in these repurposed bottles.
Now, what in the world would link mandarins and Moldova, honestly - not much but it still happened somehow. Going back to the Soviet era, these citrus fruits are linked with winter holidays, since that was the period when they were sold at an affordable price and children would delighted to get these. The tradition still holds to this day, around December, people just buy lots of mandarins. It is quite adorable.
Albișoara is a street in Chișinău, the capital of Republic of Moldova. This street is notorious for being flooded whenever there are intense rains, due to the poor drainage system.
The trolley picture was taken by me in one of the few old trolley buses from the Soviet era. You can easily hear the engine, the gear shifts and when the vehicle changes electrical lanes from the inside.
Ștefan the Great was a Voivode of Moldova between 1457 and 1503, an iconic and beloved personality, known to withstand the Ottoman expansion. It is said that he built churches and monasteries for ever victory in battle, even though proved not to be true it is known that he built 24 churches and monasteries during his 47 years rule.
"Kuliok" is another word for bag, but it is synonymous with this certain type of plastic bag which has the calendar printed on it. This bag came into light again when a certain politician allegedly took a bribe in it.
Thank You!
