Solo Cycle Touring in Moldova in Winter | Chișinău and Transnistria: a Country that Doesn’t Exist

Winter in Moldova dragged on, but the snow retreated into the North, and I cycled through a muddy Moldovan countryside.

Cycle Touring Northern Norway to Azerbaijan – Arctic to Asia Day 187-196:

After a few cold and harrowing days (In the space of less than 24 hours, 3 guy attempted to rob me at the roadside, and I saw a dog get hit by a car) I cycled into Chișinău, Moldova’s capital, where I was hosted by two locals, Alex and Marina, who picked my spirits back up. They let me stay in their spare flat for almost a week, and showed me around the city during my stay. They even drove me to Mileștii Mici, a winery with the largest underground wine cellar in the world.

I’ll admit that February probably wasn’t the best time to be visiting Moldova by bike. But as one of the world’s least visited countries, it’s novelty, and the friendly reception I had from locals, took my mind off the cold. I spent almost a month in Moldova, and got to know a country being pulled in a tonne of different directions. Divides exist between those that speak Russian, Romanian, and Ukrainian, between those that support Russia and those that are more pro-Europe, and between the Gagauz autonomy and the rest of the country.

60km from Moldova’s capital city lies a bastion of Soviet architecture and influence that has clung on while the world around it changed. Transnistria (aka the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, aka “The Country that Doesn’t Exist) declared independence from the rest of the country in 1990, sparking the Transnistria War that went on for two years. The border is now manned by Russian peace-keepers, whose arrival put a stop to the fighting in the ‘90s. So, before I continued South to the Romanian border, I hopped on a bus to check out Tiraspol, the capital of this “little USSR”, for myself.

Is Transnistria a country? It depends on who you ask. Locals say yes, Moldovans would probably say no. But the region certainly stands out; the local currency, the Transnistrian Ruble, is the only one in the world that uses plastic coins (I spent an hour collecting all four varieties of the Transnitrian coins), and the Transnistrian flag is the only one that still displays the communist hammer and sickle. It uses the Romanian spoken language but the Cyrillic alphabet in writing.

Visiting Transnistria isn’t difficult; you need to bring your passport so you can get a visa at the border. Transnistria’s tourism may not have been bustling during February, but it meant the streets were quiet as I wondered between the many Lenin statues and busts, and visited the Transnistria Supreme Council, officially known as the “Supreme Council of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic”, and the House of Soviets (the city hall).

Transnistria’s history is fascinating, and relics of its Soviet past are everywhere, but there was a sense of fragility in this unrecognised country, and I left wondering how much longer things really could last the way they are. With its reliance on Russia for protection, the PMRs foundations seemed shaky and vulnerable, and its future dependent on the actions of the countries around it. For now, though it remains an improbable and peculiar part – or not, depending on who you ask – of an equally intriguing country that still holds the atmosphere of the Soviet world.

Cycling Central Moldova – 00:00
Visiting Transnistria – 07:07
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BACKGROUND:
For the last 1.5 years, I’ve been on a cycle tour from Tromsø in Northern Norway to Baku, Azerbaijan, while interviewing locals along the way for my blog. Cycle touring for beginners like me can be intimidating; I’d ridden a bike 4 times in the previous 10 years before this journey, but I decided to jump in at the deep end and learn about bikepacking and touring while I was on the road. After watching a few videos on “how to cycle tour”, I set off, and covered 11 countries by bike (and took detours to another 2).

Long distance cycle touring alone was always going to be a challenge, but I got used to it after a month, and eventually started to appreciate it. I didn’t have much cycling gear or expertise, and I resorted to using an old Trek mountain bike that I got for free, which was frustrating at times, but I found motivation in the locals I met along the way, and the far-flung places I reached off the beaten track.

The adventure by bike showed me a new side of travel. I’d never interacted so much with local people and my surroundings when I’d been abroad, or been so exposed to the kindness of strangers. Travelling slowly as I pedalled made me feel immersed in the countries and cultures I cycled through, and it forced me to stop in some of the more obscure places the world has to offer. All in all, cycling the world shows you a side of some countries most travellers never get to appreciate.
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