Monasteries
Frumoasa Monastery
The gleaming white and dark blues of the Frumoasa Monastery’s exterior remind some visitors of churches in Greece. The name Frumoasa comes from a spectacular meadow in the middle of the oak forest where the monastery is located. “Frumusica,” the word from which “Frumoasa” is derived, means beautiful. The Soviets converted the monastery from a religious sanctuary to a multi-use social-services complex….
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Saharna Monastery
The Saharna Monastery, which sits in a steep, wooded valley, is a magnet for religious pilgrims because of a legend about the Mother Mary. The story goes that centuries ago a monk saw a shining figure of Mary on the top of a cliff overlooking the monastery. When he reached the lookout point, she was gone, but he found a footprint of…
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Tipova Monastery
Tipova is Eastern Europe’s largest cave monastery and Moldova’s oldest religious sanctuary. Monks began carving it out of limestone before the medieval state of Moldova was formed. Located at a dizzying height, the complex has been transformed into an open-air museum of amazing beauty. Legend says this is where King Stefan cel Mare met his wife Maria Voichita and where the Greek…
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Raciula Monastery
The Raciula Monastery, an hour from Chisinau, offers visitors an experience that few Moldovan religious enclaves do – a chance to live like a nun for a few days. So if you are looking for inner peace in a simple setting, consider staying in the soothing atmosphere of Raciula for awhile. The monastery’s massive gates are always open. The 70 nuns live…
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Veverita Monastery
The Veverita Monastery, built in the early 1900s, offers an interesting juxtaposition of architectural styles. The buildings on its left wing are Gothic and on its right wing Russian. The monks’ quarters are one of the largest you’ll see at a Moldovan monastery, and its church one the most stunning of any of the country’s religious sanctuaries. Distance from Chisinau: 70 km…
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Tiganesti Monastery
The Tiganesti Monastery near Chisinau was built in 1725 by a member of the Moldovan aristocracy, Lupu Dencu, and freed serfs. Tatars and other invaders destroyed it many times over the centuries, but it has risen from the ashes in every instance. A stark reminder of the battles waged on the monastery’s grounds are the graves of hundreds of Romanian, Russian and…
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Cosauti Monastery
The first Cosauti Monastery met an untimely end: An earthquake-triggered landslide wiped it out nearly two centuries ago, in the early 1800s. The Moldovan Orthodox Church reopened it in 1994, after the break-up of the Soviet Union. Although the landslide destroyed the monastery’s church, a small chapel with a lovely dome survived. Hidden in the forest surrounding the monastery is the Chalk…
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Zabriceni Monastery
The Zabriceni Monastery in northern Moldova is one of the few religious sanctuaries where visitors can hear Byzantine church music. It also has a modern side – a store where guests can buy organic food. The sanctuary was modeled after the Mount Athos monastery in Greece, which means that its Greek-rooted music fits. Prayers for monks begin at 4 a.m. and for…
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Noul Neamt Monastery
One of the joys of touring the Noul Neamt Monastery is that the monks love sharing their centuries-old crafts-making skills with visitors. The complex is an offshoot of the Neamt Monastery in Romania, so its spiritual traditions are a mixture of Romanian and Slavic. The Noul Neamt includes an array of features that make it more intriguing than most Moldovan monasteries. It…
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