Soundtrack: Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me
Monday, 16 September 2019
Woke up after 2 and couldn’t sleep thereafter. I guess I was afraid if I would oversleep and miss the alarm. I finally got up at 03:30 and got ready. I left the flat at 04:25 and walked to the office to return the keys. That stretch of Leningrad Street where the office was at was dark but I had read that the crime in Belarus is very low. I then made my way to the Central Bus Station, taking the underpass.
I reached the bus station at 04:41. The bus left on time at 04:50 and I performed prayers on board. We reached the airport at 05:40 and I waited for the check-in counter for my flight to open at 06:00. While waiting, I went to the exchange office and sold off my last Ruble note.
After dropping off my bag, I went through security check and then passport control. I walked around the duty-free before settling down at my gate.
We had to board a bus to the plane. The plane took off on time. Even though it was a morning flight, no breakfast was served; instead Belavia served water and tea/coffee (no juice or soft drinks) and a cream-filled wafer. That was their idea of breakfast, I suppose.
We landed at Chişinău Airport at 09:20. We disembarked and walked to passport control. I was told to step aside and wait for five minutes before the officer resumed processing my passport and again, my poor passport was subject to the same intense scrutiny and again, the officer alternately looked at my passport photo and me. She also rifled through my passport and seemed to scrutinise each and every page. Really, was that necessary? While I had expected some delay in processing my passport, I do wish I wasn’t subjected to it. When my passport was finally stamped and I walked out, my bag was the only one left on the stationary carousel. Ironically, Moldova’s tourism slogan is ‘Be Our Guest’. Why treat me with suspicion then?! Shame.
John, husband to my MBA mate, Angela, was already waiting outside. I’m not sure he remembered me but as I was the last to emerge, looked foreign and had my scarf on, it wasn’t hard to guess.
The ride to the city took 35 minutes and we hit a traffic jam at Strada Pushkin. John had to make a circle around the block as the road was one way. We then walked up to Hostel City Centre on the fourth floor (third floor to us). The hostel is part of the Sun City shopping complex and to access it, you need to walk through the door next to Bristol Hotel. There was a lift, Alhamdulillah. I couldn’t check in yet so I left my suitcase behind. John had to return home to attend to their elder son who was not well so after thanking him, I went to explore the city. There were many beautiful buildings in the city but some were sadly neglected and abandoned. I even went up to to Water Tower before going down the steps to Valea Morilor Lake. It was a hot hot day today despite signs that autumn had arrived.
I then returned back and walked to City Hall. The Tourist Information Centre was there so I dropped by to get a map and ask for some information. I was waling back to my hostel and wandering around trying to find a place that served food that I could eat when I heard someone calling out my name. It was Angela! She was returning from a lunchtime physiotherapy session. Her schedule was jam packed today but she still wanted to meet. I asked how she spotted me and she said she saw an Asian girl in a scarf looking like a tourist and decided it must be me. She later told me she was on the phone with John then wondering what I was doing when she spotted me.
I returned to the hostel at 14:30 and had to wait 15 minutes before the reception girl came and showed me to a four-bedded female dorm. I was given the upper bunk. After prayers, I went out to ask if I could switch to the lower bunk (the person hadn’t checked in yet) and was reassigned another dorm two doors away. Well, as long as I got a lower bunk. Two women came in with the receptionist and after a while, I determined them to be a mother-daughter pair and when I asked, I determined them to be from Russia.
I was resting and charging my devices when Angela messaged that she was at the hostel so I went to meet her. After changing €40 at an exchange office in Sun City, I then followed her back to the office at Sky Tower and chatted with her. I was a bit shocked to see No Pistol allowed signs at her office.
We left at 18:00 and walked around. Angela showed me to a restaurant and a supermarket selling fine food before she left. She was walking home today.
I went to another supermarket and bought some mushrooms and bread. I then returned to the hostel and had ramen for dinner. The hostel looked like it was running full occupancy today and I had to wait some time before a shower room was free. My one complaint about the hostel is that only two shower rooms seemed to be working (one was locked throughout my stay) and both clogged which made for uncomfortable showers, never mind that I normally shower very quickly.
I stayed in for the rest of the evening and went to bed at 23:00. I walked 16.5 km today.
Tuesday, 17 September 2019
I woke up at 03:55 but went back to bed. My Russian mother-daughter dorm mates were snoring away all night but Alhamdulillah I still managed to fall asleep again every time their snores woke me up. It must be exhaustion from not managing to sleep the evening before and the long day yesterday. I got up at 06:10 to perform prayers then checked my emails and caught up with my timeline.
I had breakfast at 08:30 and ventured out at 10:00. Well, I must say I was glad I arrived the day before and had explored the city centre because it was raining when I went out! I walked around but returned back to the hostel before noon. The Chişinău city tour was done for me. I bought some chocolate dessert and a kg of grapes to bring over to Angela’s - I’d be having dinner at her place tonight.
I decided to have lunch at the Cats Cafe which is connected to the hostel and can also be accessed from Sun City. There were about a dozen plump felines in there with fur as smooth as silk, some dozing away, some playing and some walking around. They must be accustomed to strangers for they were calm and didn’t run away. Some were bold enough to sit with customers! We were not supposed to feed them and I explained this to them. What? Of course I talk to cats!
After lunch, I reluctantly bade farewell to the kitties and returned to my room. I packed then read a bit before hitting the shower and getting ready. I left at 18:25 and walked up Strada Alexander Pushkin to her house at Strada Universității. Wow, her house was big alright. I was supposed to stay with them but they have a bulldog (which they kept in a cage when I came over). I met up Leo and George, Angela’s sons, and went on a short tour of the house. I even met their housekeeper whom they brought over from Yerevan.
We had dinner prepared by John which was some fish dish and some potatoes and salad. The boys didn’t join us for dinner and Angela said they don’t force the boys to have dinner if the boys don’t want to. After dinner, Angela and I caught up and we even talked about our respective late mums and scoliosis (I found out Angela has it too) but unfortunately I had to leave around 22:00 as I had an early start the following morning. Angela called a cab for me and I reached the hostel five minutes later (the driver did drive like a maniac). I quietly went into my dorm, performed prayers and went to bed.
To be continued
Monday, 16 September 2019
Woke up after 2 and couldn’t sleep thereafter. I guess I was afraid if I would oversleep and miss the alarm. I finally got up at 03:30 and got ready. I left the flat at 04:25 and walked to the office to return the keys. That stretch of Leningrad Street where the office was at was dark but I had read that the crime in Belarus is very low. I then made my way to the Central Bus Station, taking the underpass.
I reached the bus station at 04:41. The bus left on time at 04:50 and I performed prayers on board. We reached the airport at 05:40 and I waited for the check-in counter for my flight to open at 06:00. While waiting, I went to the exchange office and sold off my last Ruble note.
After dropping off my bag, I went through security check and then passport control. I walked around the duty-free before settling down at my gate.
We had to board a bus to the plane. The plane took off on time. Even though it was a morning flight, no breakfast was served; instead Belavia served water and tea/coffee (no juice or soft drinks) and a cream-filled wafer. That was their idea of breakfast, I suppose.
We landed at Chişinău Airport at 09:20. We disembarked and walked to passport control. I was told to step aside and wait for five minutes before the officer resumed processing my passport and again, my poor passport was subject to the same intense scrutiny and again, the officer alternately looked at my passport photo and me. She also rifled through my passport and seemed to scrutinise each and every page. Really, was that necessary? While I had expected some delay in processing my passport, I do wish I wasn’t subjected to it. When my passport was finally stamped and I walked out, my bag was the only one left on the stationary carousel. Ironically, Moldova’s tourism slogan is ‘Be Our Guest’. Why treat me with suspicion then?! Shame.
John, husband to my MBA mate, Angela, was already waiting outside. I’m not sure he remembered me but as I was the last to emerge, looked foreign and had my scarf on, it wasn’t hard to guess.
The ride to the city took 35 minutes and we hit a traffic jam at Strada Pushkin. John had to make a circle around the block as the road was one way. We then walked up to Hostel City Centre on the fourth floor (third floor to us). The hostel is part of the Sun City shopping complex and to access it, you need to walk through the door next to Bristol Hotel. There was a lift, Alhamdulillah. I couldn’t check in yet so I left my suitcase behind. John had to return home to attend to their elder son who was not well so after thanking him, I went to explore the city. There were many beautiful buildings in the city but some were sadly neglected and abandoned. I even went up to to Water Tower before going down the steps to Valea Morilor Lake. It was a hot hot day today despite signs that autumn had arrived.
I then returned back and walked to City Hall. The Tourist Information Centre was there so I dropped by to get a map and ask for some information. I was waling back to my hostel and wandering around trying to find a place that served food that I could eat when I heard someone calling out my name. It was Angela! She was returning from a lunchtime physiotherapy session. Her schedule was jam packed today but she still wanted to meet. I asked how she spotted me and she said she saw an Asian girl in a scarf looking like a tourist and decided it must be me. She later told me she was on the phone with John then wondering what I was doing when she spotted me.
I returned to the hostel at 14:30 and had to wait 15 minutes before the reception girl came and showed me to a four-bedded female dorm. I was given the upper bunk. After prayers, I went out to ask if I could switch to the lower bunk (the person hadn’t checked in yet) and was reassigned another dorm two doors away. Well, as long as I got a lower bunk. Two women came in with the receptionist and after a while, I determined them to be a mother-daughter pair and when I asked, I determined them to be from Russia.
I was resting and charging my devices when Angela messaged that she was at the hostel so I went to meet her. After changing €40 at an exchange office in Sun City, I then followed her back to the office at Sky Tower and chatted with her. I was a bit shocked to see No Pistol allowed signs at her office.
We left at 18:00 and walked around. Angela showed me to a restaurant and a supermarket selling fine food before she left. She was walking home today.
I went to another supermarket and bought some mushrooms and bread. I then returned to the hostel and had ramen for dinner. The hostel looked like it was running full occupancy today and I had to wait some time before a shower room was free. My one complaint about the hostel is that only two shower rooms seemed to be working (one was locked throughout my stay) and both clogged which made for uncomfortable showers, never mind that I normally shower very quickly.
I stayed in for the rest of the evening and went to bed at 23:00. I walked 16.5 km today.
Tuesday, 17 September 2019
I woke up at 03:55 but went back to bed. My Russian mother-daughter dorm mates were snoring away all night but Alhamdulillah I still managed to fall asleep again every time their snores woke me up. It must be exhaustion from not managing to sleep the evening before and the long day yesterday. I got up at 06:10 to perform prayers then checked my emails and caught up with my timeline.
I had breakfast at 08:30 and ventured out at 10:00. Well, I must say I was glad I arrived the day before and had explored the city centre because it was raining when I went out! I walked around but returned back to the hostel before noon. The Chişinău city tour was done for me. I bought some chocolate dessert and a kg of grapes to bring over to Angela’s - I’d be having dinner at her place tonight.
I decided to have lunch at the Cats Cafe which is connected to the hostel and can also be accessed from Sun City. There were about a dozen plump felines in there with fur as smooth as silk, some dozing away, some playing and some walking around. They must be accustomed to strangers for they were calm and didn’t run away. Some were bold enough to sit with customers! We were not supposed to feed them and I explained this to them. What? Of course I talk to cats!
After lunch, I reluctantly bade farewell to the kitties and returned to my room. I packed then read a bit before hitting the shower and getting ready. I left at 18:25 and walked up Strada Alexander Pushkin to her house at Strada Universității. Wow, her house was big alright. I was supposed to stay with them but they have a bulldog (which they kept in a cage when I came over). I met up Leo and George, Angela’s sons, and went on a short tour of the house. I even met their housekeeper whom they brought over from Yerevan.
We had dinner prepared by John which was some fish dish and some potatoes and salad. The boys didn’t join us for dinner and Angela said they don’t force the boys to have dinner if the boys don’t want to. After dinner, Angela and I caught up and we even talked about our respective late mums and scoliosis (I found out Angela has it too) but unfortunately I had to leave around 22:00 as I had an early start the following morning. Angela called a cab for me and I reached the hostel five minutes later (the driver did drive like a maniac). I quietly went into my dorm, performed prayers and went to bed.
To be continued
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