On The Last

I am on the last corner of cross stitch.  After this it's beading and backstitch.  That means this is soooo close to being done I have to take it with me to Krakow so I can.

Lunch At Grill House

 The consular section went out to lunch at the beginning of August.  It was a business lunch at Grill House, a nice restaurant in Chisinau.  For 120 lei each (less than $10), we had business lunches.  They were three course meals with glasses of wine.  I had zeama, a very good sour chicken noodle soup.  I also had stewed beef and vegetables in this adorable claypot.  It was very lightly seasoned with thyme and more heavily with lovage.  My dessert was a sour cream based pudding that was pretty bland.  Overall, it was an enjoyable and tasty time.

Hippolit House

 I feel really weird writing this post because it's photos from last year's visit to Krakow.  I am leaving for Krakow again this afternoon and we will take more photos ....

Anyway, this is Hippolit House.  It's maintained by the local historical society and is formerly a rich merchant's house directly on the square.  The house is set up like it was in that time (with more stuff).  The stairs are steep and cats roam to trip unwary feet.  

Throughout the house there are many lovely textiles and the wallpaper and wall painting are beautiful, too.

Cute Little Monastery

I know I showed a few photos of this monastery from my camera, but here are some from Andreas'.  It's Sinaia Monastery next to Peles castle.  Evidently the monastery was there first and the local town takes its name from the monastery, which took its name from Sinai.

The place is beautiful, compact, and peaceful.  It's built with a couple of open courtyards and is comparatively small, especially in relation to the ones here.

Spotty

I have gotten more of the border done, but I feel like a tooth is aching with the hole in the city name.  It takes a long time to get mail here.

Last Random Shots

 These are the last few photos of the interior of St. Mary's Basilica.  They give a pretty good idea of the space of the place.

Wine Day Purchases

 Moldova's great.  What other country has a National Wine Day?  We went downtown and tasted a lot of wine and brought a bit home.  On top of wine we also brought home some brandy and a surprisingly good young calvados made locally.  Happy day full wine rack!