The following are strictly personal views/observations and in no way reflect the views of the Peace Corp nor the federal government of the United States.
When I arrived in Moldova, I was concerned that the summer temperatures here would be lacking the intensity to which I am accustomed. Since, the first two weeks of my stint in Moldova consisted of plentiful, monsoon like, torrenenchial rain and cool temperatures (never over 60F). However, the past week has put my apprehensions, about a cool summer, to rest because now it is hot and extremely humid. I would equate the current weather to the past summer in Asheville; which, was one of the hottest Asheville summers I have ever experienced. What made last summer bearable was climate control. Here climate control is an advertised luxury, restaurants post signs in the windows stating the perk of air conditioning. Im okay living without air conditioning but a fan would be really nice. However, fans are also an unknown commodity here.
I did learn something from the frequent onslaughts of rain, storm drains are such an incredible invention. Here there are no storm drains nor any system for removing/dispersing rain water thus when it rains the streets literally turn to small rivers. With rain, it is impossible to move about town because the water becomes calf deep within 10 minutes. So, kudos to the inventor of the storm drain!
One of the best things about living in Moldova is the produce. I never knew fruits and vegetables could be so fresh and so tasty. Right now, the most plentiful products are raspberries, strawberries, cherries, tomatoes, and a variety of plums that are the size of cherries. The raspberries are my personal favorite. In comparison with American raspberries: these are sweeter, much larger (about twice the size), they come in two colors (red and yellow) and they are cheaper here. In the piata a kilogram of raspberries cost 10 lei -translation- in the local market two pounds of raspberries cost 80 cents. The tiny plums are quite unique as well, they are the size of a cherry but they still taste exactly like a plum. Its crazy! The tomatoes available here also are better than the average tomatoes available in American grocery stores. The tomatoes are similarly sized however they are more ripe, fresh, juicy and sweet. One word: INCREDIBLE!
When I arrived in Moldova, I was concerned that the summer temperatures here would be lacking the intensity to which I am accustomed. Since, the first two weeks of my stint in Moldova consisted of plentiful, monsoon like, torrenenchial rain and cool temperatures (never over 60F). However, the past week has put my apprehensions, about a cool summer, to rest because now it is hot and extremely humid. I would equate the current weather to the past summer in Asheville; which, was one of the hottest Asheville summers I have ever experienced. What made last summer bearable was climate control. Here climate control is an advertised luxury, restaurants post signs in the windows stating the perk of air conditioning. Im okay living without air conditioning but a fan would be really nice. However, fans are also an unknown commodity here.
I did learn something from the frequent onslaughts of rain, storm drains are such an incredible invention. Here there are no storm drains nor any system for removing/dispersing rain water thus when it rains the streets literally turn to small rivers. With rain, it is impossible to move about town because the water becomes calf deep within 10 minutes. So, kudos to the inventor of the storm drain!
One of the best things about living in Moldova is the produce. I never knew fruits and vegetables could be so fresh and so tasty. Right now, the most plentiful products are raspberries, strawberries, cherries, tomatoes, and a variety of plums that are the size of cherries. The raspberries are my personal favorite. In comparison with American raspberries: these are sweeter, much larger (about twice the size), they come in two colors (red and yellow) and they are cheaper here. In the piata a kilogram of raspberries cost 10 lei -translation- in the local market two pounds of raspberries cost 80 cents. The tiny plums are quite unique as well, they are the size of a cherry but they still taste exactly like a plum. Its crazy! The tomatoes available here also are better than the average tomatoes available in American grocery stores. The tomatoes are similarly sized however they are more ripe, fresh, juicy and sweet. One word: INCREDIBLE!
posted by Klharmon | 5:22 AM
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