Scaffolding overload
Trip Start
Apr 08, 2007
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103
144
Trip End
Oct 01, 2007
Iasi,
Romania
Monday, August 6, 2007
That is, if you can get past the ham-fisted, oppressive civic infrastructure dating from the Communist era. Iasi was once like a "Little Vienna" in Romania, but the 1950s through the 80s saw an enormous amount of its heritage bulldozed in the name of progress. Some of the most beautiful ecclesiastical buildings in the country are dotted throughout the center, along with what is, in my opinion, probably Romania's most magnificent public building - the vast, neo-Gothic Palace of Culture. In between them all though are some of the nastiest eyesores and most tasteless apartment blocks ever to scar a town center. As a result, it is easy to find examples of incredible beauty within Iasi, but at the same time it's difficult to truly call the city "beautiful."
The setting is one of Romania's nicest though. Yet another city built upon seven hills (insert another nod to Rome), it's a green and rolling place, with long boulevards leading past fine parks and monasteries set on slopes in the outskirts. And for those willing to overlook all the concrete, it's a fabulous place to explore. There are still quite a few streets that escaped the excrescences of the previous 60 years, and they're a delight to stroll. Most of the buildings could use more than a lick of paint, of course, and others still are really hurting for some serious restoration. But the many busts of famous Romanians that once called the place home, the bustle of the large, leafy university district, and the artists peddling their work outside the National Theater show that Iasi remains in many ways the cultural capital of Romania.
In fact, there is restoration work going on though. Too much, actually. Literally almost every single church of significance is covered either partially or wholly in scaffolding. This has been a source of frustration during my visit (that, and the lack of cheap accommodation - another thing the city's famous for). The biggest offender - and thus the greatest disappointment - is the glorious Biserica Trei Ierarhii (the Church of Three Hierarchs). Originally built in the 17th century by Vasile Lupu, it's arguably Romania's most distinctive church building, its exterior a fascinating mixture of Armenian, Arabic, Western and Balkan influences. The uniqueness of it now is almost totally lost on visiting tourists though, as restoration workers have completely encased the church in scaffolding, with only small, lower sections of the facade visible through the supports. Even more aggravating is the fact that they aren't even working on it at the moment, as they've apparently run out of money!
This seems to be the case in most other restoration projects. The Armenian Church has been completely stripped of its outer facade, but the work site is now still and silent. Golia Monastery - better than the Three Hierarchs', at least - is still flanked by massive supports and long stretches of scaffolding. The enormous and majestic Metropolitan Cathedral has thankfully avoided being covered up across the front or rear facades, but the sides are completely obscured behind flapping sheeting. St. Sava's is so tightly wrapped up that you can't even get on the grounds to view it (I wasn't even able to get a picture of it). Even Iasi's public buildings haven't escaped unscathed - the main train station, National Theater and former main post office are all in various states of repair work.
So while I've had pretty nice weather and enjoyed taking in the city's fascinating historical vestiges, I can't say I chose the best time to visit. The one great pleasure I did have though was walking out to the three monasteries on the southwestern edge of town. While I visited two of these - Galata and Frumoasa monasteries - last time I was here in 2001, the largest and most distant monastery, Cetatuia, ended up getting skipped. This time I made it a point to hit it no matter what, and I managed to cram it in as my last activity in town today. I'm glad that I did too, because not only is it the most historically significant of the three, it's also easily the most stunning and tranquil in both its architecture and setting. That, and it's all original - a rare thing in a region long torn by war, fire and the general decay of time.
Iasi, despite all the damage it suffered under Communism, is definitely among my favorite cities in Romania. It's easily one of the country's most underrated destination, as few people seem to get out here apart from on a brief stop-off en route to Moldova. It's perhaps taken longer for it to get back on its feet since 1989 compared to other major cities in the country, but it's looking better and better these days. Once the city gets enough money up to finish the many restoration projects, it's going to be really outstanding. Hopefully one day they'll eventually start tearing down some of the ugly concrete buildings too. The old city will probably never return, but at least they can get rid of the biggest offenders that tarnish what's otherwise a lovely place.
From here it's farewell to Romania. This afternoon I'm taking a maxitaxi to Chisinau, where I'll be spending the next few days. Since it lies smack in the middle of Moldova and the accommodation I've arranged is pretty cheap, I'm going to use it as a base to visit other spots in the country. After that, I'll move on to Ukraine. I'm looking forward to seeing how different Moldova is from Romania, considering that they're basically of the same heritage.
