3125, 3126 MOLDOVA - The First Moldova-Romania Postcrossing Meetup, Chişinău, 29 July 2017

3125

Right in the day in which Moldova celebrated the Constitution Day (adopted on 29 July 1994), a group of enthusiastic postcrossers from Moldova and Romania met for the first time in the flesh (online they have known each other for long time and have swaped, of course, many postcards). The meetup was held in Central Post Office of Moldova in Chişinău, where was also organized a collaborative exhibition of postcards from around the world.

3126

"Being from neighbouring countries with many traditions and a language in common (not to mention a hobby!), it just made sense for them to cross the border and meet… and also to try to make Postcrossing more popular in Moldova", somebody wrote on Postcrossing Blog. On this occasion was edited four special postcards.

2843 MOLDOVA (Chişinău) - Wine Festival in Chişinău

In the entire Moldavia, from the Carpathians to the Dniester, and from Ceremuş to the Black Sea, the growing of vines is a very old tradition, its viticulture dating back more than 6,000 years. In Middle Ages, it has grown significantly, becoming an important occupation for moldavians, and this was preserved until today. In 2009, Republic of Moldova (which is only a part of historic Moldavia) was the 22nd largest wine producing country in the world. Therefore, a wine festival to celebrate the winemaking traditions is even an obligation.

0727 MOLDOVA - Young women in traditional clothes (National Folk Dance Company "Joc")

As I wrote in more detail here, Moldavia (Moldova) is a historical region and a former principality, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester (Nistru) river. The western part of Moldavia is now part of Romania (47.5%) and the eastern part belongs to the Republic of Moldova (30.5%), while the northern and south-eastern parts are territories of Ukraine (22%). Majority of the population consists of Romanians, who speak a subdialect of the Romanian language. As a result, the Moldavian folk costume is generally the same all over historical Moldavia, and has, of course, many similarities with the one of the Romanians from the other historical regions. The main elements of the traditional costume for women in Moldavia are the shirt or chemise (cămaşă or ie), the straight apron (catrinţă), the wrap round skirt (fotă), and the veil (maramă).