Last Flights Of Friday

 These were Friday's last flights.  As you can see, the weather never cleared and it started to rain.  Time to start the trek back to the metro and to the hotel.

New Round Robin Start

Pastel pink is about as far away from my comfort zone as you can get, yet it was the color of the first block I've been working on with the country garden round robin.  She asked that it be tone on tone, too, with green only for leaves and such.  This is what I've come up with so far.

Cafe D'Or's Ambiance

 These photos, taken in July, show the restaurant's enormous terraces down to the river and its frontage.  Doesn't look like much from the front, but wow, the inside is summer gorgeous.

Two Blooms

There are now two blooms on the stem.  It's getting to be more real looking and closer to done.

And Now The Insertion

 Here's dropping off the special forces and picking them back up.  I sure wouldn't want to do that!  

Just Palmy

Working on a fourth and fifth leaf now as the center of the piece starts taking shape.

Cafe D'Or: Lousy Service, Good Food

Cafe D'Or opened this summer in the lee of the hill of Orhei Vechi.  This means it's in a very small village several miles from the nearest large city.  It's also trying to be a modern, hip restaurant.  Evidently the owner has a similar restaurant in Moscow.  Anyway, the venue is lovely and it's great to see a place like this in rural Moldova.  The downside?  We spent nearly two hours waiting for our meal - on an afternoon when the restaurant wasn't full and there was a full wait staff.  It was disappointing.

We did get our drinks in a somewhat timely manner, and the various teas, lemonades, and mojito were great.  Unfortunately, getting refills was a bit of a problem.

As you can see, the food, when it arrived, was very well presented and tasted wonderful.  It's mainly standard Moldovan fare served in a way that makes it look fresh and new.  There was a murata (pickle) plate, a Greek salad, and a pumpkin placinte for starters.  Then some of us had tocana and mamaligia.  I had mici, ground beef and pork sticks, and Andreas had sausages.

 While we were waiting for food, my boss facebooked us and told us to try the chocolate martini.  I was very doubtful; cold chocolate drinks aren't my thing usually.  It came, it was ice cold, and it was wonderful.  Surprisingly chocolatey flavor and smooth mouth feel.

 Oh, yes.  My zeama came after my regular meal.  We also tried their cherry ravioli, which tasted great.  If this place can work out its waitstaff problems, it's got a great future ahead.  If it doesn't, it's going to be a very expensive flop.  I hope for the former, myself.  Will possibly go back some time in spring to find out.