Soccer & Wine

This weekend was pretty eventful. Melissa came to Chisinau on Friday and we got tickets for the big Moldova-Netherlands qualifier match. It ended up being a really good game. Moldova lost 1-0 but they played very well, especially considering the Netherlands is one of the top teams in the league. The stadium was packed and there was a good energy in the crowd. At one point in the game a spectator somehow got out onto the field and kicked a ball into the Dutch team's goal. My friend had sent me a video of that happening at a game in Moscow too, it was pretty funny. Anyway here's a picture of the stadium:


The other two Fulbright girls came to Chisinau on Saturday for the Wine Festival. We had been looking forward to it for a long time but unfortunately the weather was really terrible and everything was outside. It was rainy and cold all day Saturday and Sunday. We did stay for a couple hours though. There were folk dance/music performances all afternoon and a bunch of booths set up for different wine producers. You could sample the wine for free and buy all different kinds either in big plastic bottles or normal ones. Someone told us that the best wine to get at the fest is the stuff that comes right from the barrel.


We walked around for a while then took shelter inside this place that said 1842 or something out front and was set up like a mini feast inside with a guy dressed as the Greek god of wine and some warrior guys with spears and golden abs. We met a couple of Italian guys in there and hung out with them for the rest of the time so that was fun. Here's a picture from inside the place:


It was a fun weekend overall despite the rain. Tonight is my last night in this apartment so I'm packing up now and will move tomorrow night after work.