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. They used some buildings as an orphanage, others as a school for the deaf, and still others as a reform school for delinquent girls.

• Distance from Chisinau: 60 km
• Visiting hours: Monday – Sunday, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Type: Monastery for nuns

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 hers, according to the legend. The area around the monastery contains the Church of the Annuciation, which was carved into a rocky hillside. The annunciation was the Angel Gabriel’s disclosure to Mary that Jesus had returned from the dead. Also near the Saharna Monastery are 30 cascading streams and waterfalls, an Iron Age archaeological site and a Geto-Dacian fortress. The Geto-Dacians were an Eastern European tribe who fought Greek and Roman encroachment.

• Distance from Chisinau: 110 km
• Visiting hours: Monday – Sunday, 6 a.m. – 10 p.m.
• Type: Monastery for monks

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 poet Orpheus spent the last days of his life. Visitors can also explore hundreds of other caves around the monastery.

• Distance from Chisinau: 100 km
• Visiting hours: Monday – Sunday, 8 a.m. – 8 p.m.
• Type: Monastery for monks

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 in a small cluster of old houses and gardens. The Raciula is one of four Moldovan monasteries built in the shape of a cross. The others are Frumoasa, Hirbovets and Hirjeuca.

• Distance from Chisinau: 45 km
• Visiting hours: Monday – Sunday, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Type: Monastery for nuns

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
• Visiting hours: Monday – Sunday, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Type: Monastery for monks

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 German soldiers lost in World War II. After the war, in 1945, Red Army soldiers arrived to close the monastery. The chief monk, Ioachim Burlea, was so hospitable, and the monks’ piety so touching, that the soldiers left without closing it. In 1960, Soviet authorities finally forced its closure, burning its books and relics except for a painting of Patelimon, a miraculous healer whom the Romans killed for being Christian. The same year, the Soviets converted the monastery into a psychiatric hospital.

• Distance from Chisinau: 30 km
• Visiting hours: Monday – Sunday, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Type: Monastery for monks

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 Monastery, the quarters of a solitary monk known as Pintilie that were carved out of limestone. Near the Cosauti Monastery is the Soroca Fortress, one of Moldova’s best-preserved medieval stone fortifications.

• Distance from Chisinau: 170 km
• Visiting hours: Monday – Sunday, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Type: Monastery for monks

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 other Christians at 8 a.m. Byzantine music accompanies the services. The Zabriceni Monastery is so proud of its organic vegetables and fruit that it obtained a European Union Certificate for Organic Agriculture. It sells these products in its BioCamara store.

• Distance from Chisinau: 220km
• Visiting hours: Monday – Sunday, 8 a.m. – 8 p.m.
• Type: Monastery for monks

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 boasts four churches, an impressive library and a museum. It also has workshops for creating sculpture and icons – paintings of Jesus and the saints. And it has a carpentry workshop. All are open to guests.

• Disanta de la Chisinau: 77 km
• Visiting hours: Monday – Sunday, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• Type: Monastery for monks