Chisinau (Moldova): Dinner on the High Street

The High Street in the Moldovan capital, Chisinau, was bristling and frenetic, but we managed to get a nice meal at what seemed to be a Russian cafe (the women serving there were Russian speakers and very friendly):

The meal was washed down with a Moldovan beer named after the capital city:

Whilst not being the best beer I've ever had, it also wasn't the worst, thus, it was much appreciated on a hot summer's day.

But there was a little bit of a surprise when I visited the toilet:

Being British, I'm not really used to the 'hole in the ground' kind of toilet.

Varna (Bulgaria): Sampling the Atmosphere

Just a few pictures to sample the atmosphere of Varna here, starting with the Cathedral of the Assumption above.

And the rose petal drink which was genuinely refreshing in temperatures of 35-40 celsius:

And walking down to the beach, we ran into these wonderful Classical musicians:

At the beach itself, people were just relaxing having the occasional drink:

And with the expanse of the Black Sea in the background, a group of men were keeping cool by playing water-polo:

But perhaps the expanse of the Black Sea was the most impressive feature of all:

Constanta (Romania): 4th Century Christian Funeral Monument

One of the highlights of my visit to Constanta was coming across the 4th century Christian funeral monument (above) on a street near the Main Square (not in a museum).

The notice below explains that the monument was dedicated to a 4th century Syrian woman called Paula:

While the picture below shows more clearly how this wonderful monument is just positioned on the street rather than in a museum:

Entering Constanta (Romania)

Just capturing the atmosphere of entering Constanta here:

As Constanta is a massive Black Sea port, it was no surprise to see a group of (female) naval cadets:

And then wow!  The Main Square:

With the incredible Carol Mosque building at the other end:

And, of course, the central building isn't bad:

Near which there are ancient Roman ruins just casually lying about:

Some well worth closer inspection:

Varna (Bulgaria): Peruvian Musicians on the Streets

Just back from a frenetic, week-long trip to Varna (Bulgaria); Rumania; and Moldova.  Was waiting for the coach to Varna Airport to take me back to Warsaw, when I heard these Peruvian musicians playing on the streets of Varna:

Warsaw: Swiętokrzyska Metro Station Advertisements

Was underground at the Swiętokrzyska metro station crossroads in Warsaw city centre the other day, and enjoyed looking at these electronic advertisements for the theatre and opera in Warsaw.

Really glad that the picture below captured the changeover between two different advertisements:

Calexico Concert Poster in Warsaw

One of the best bands I've ever seen live (at Manchester Academy 2 in the early 2000s).