Orheiul Vechi (Butuceni) e la città di Soroca, la perla del nord
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This visit is led by Alfredo Ferrari
09:00 Meeting with the guide and departure by "deluxe" minibus for the archaeological-museum complex of Orheiul Vechi and its rock monasteries (Location of Butuceni and Trebujeni). 10.00am arrival in Butuceni and meeting with the local guide, short visit to the ethnographic museum. Visit to the rock monasteries of Pestere and Bosie. Followed by a visit to the "Gospodaria traditionala taraneasca" (ancient traditional country house). 12.00 pm transfer by minibus to the village of Trebujeni. with visit to the ruins of the "Federeu", the ancient thermal bath, climb to the tuff caves of Trebujeni with a general panoramic view of the Orheiul Vechi valley and the Raut river with caves, caverns, hills, sites, necropolises and ancient hermits. The whole history of Moldova is here, in Orheiul Vechi - open-air museum complex where the first inhabitants settled around 40,000 years ago. 1.00 pm transfer to a traditional restaurant in the area for lunch. 2.15pm departure for Soroca. Around 4.00pm arrival in Soroca and visit of the city. Departure for the return to Chisinau at approximately 6:00 pm, with arrival scheduled for approximately 8:00 pm.
The "Complexul Muzeal Orheiul Vechi" is located between the towns of Trebujeni and Butuceni in the province of Orhei just 55 km from the capital. This is perhaps the largest and most interesting open-air museum complex in all of Moldova and is made up of archaeological monuments, fortifications and ethnographic objectives from various eras dating back to the Paleolithic. From the top of the highest promontory inserted in these small valleys, the bell tower (clopotnita) of the rock monastery of Pestera which dates back to the 15th-16th century stands out (a short distance away a massive stone cross dating back to the 28th century is also visible), it it is completely dug into the bowels of the rock and in fact only the bell tower remains visible from the outside. About one km from Pestera there is another rock monastery, that of Bosie completely dug into the rocks and particularly interesting for the votive writings engraved on the walls in the ancient Slavonic language dating back to the 15th-16th century. In the central body of this monumental area there is the actual citadel of Old Orhei where in the 14th century nomadic tribes from Mongolia settled and transformed the pre-existing native settlement into a truly oriental-type settlement, renaming it "Sehr-al-Jedid " which meant "New City". Of all this today only the ancient fortifications and part of a mausoleum and a mosque as well as the necropolis remain. From the year 1368, after a terrible flood caused by the overflowing of the Prut and Nistru rivers, the Mongols abandoned the area which returned to be occupied by the native populations who returned the appearance of Old Orhei once again to Moldavian style.
Soroca, for a long time an outpost of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, is today known as the Roma capital of the Republic of Moldova. The "Hill of the Gypsies" is famous, populated almost exclusively by Roma with their singular and impressive homes. But certainly the main attraction is "The Fortress" which is located in the heart of the city of Soroca, along the right bank of the Nistru river. In the medieval period the fortress was part of a vast defensive system of the Principality of Moldova which included 4 fortifications on the Nistru, 2 on the Danube and 3 in the northern part of the country. In this way, in the form of a "belt", all national borders were protected. Soroca Fortress was built on the ruins of an old fortification on the bank of the Nistru River. In 1499, on the order of Voivode Stephen the Great, a square wooden fortress was erected on the site of the ancient Genoese fortress Olihonia (Alciona). Subsequently, in the years 1543-1546, during the period of the principality of Petru Rares, the fortress was rebuilt entirely in stone, as it is today, that is, round and with a diameter of 37.5 meters, with 5 equal bastions equidistant from each other. The master builders based their calculations on the supreme law of harmony "golden section", a fact which made the fortress unique in its kind, placing it among the best examples of defensive architecture in Europe. Soroca Fortress is also known as the place where the Moldavian and Russian armies led respectively by the famous Dimitrie Cantemir and Tsar Peter I united during the campaign against the Ottoman invaders in the year 1711. The fortress is the only monument medieval in Moldova which has been preserved as it was originally conceived and in the entrance bastion there is a small military basilica. Of panoramic interest is the "Lumanarea Recunostintei" (The Candle of Gratitude) a monument located on the southern hill of the city made up of 600 steps that rise from the Nistru river to the top of the Soroca hill on the top of which stands a candle-shaped chapel 29.5 meters high. Its nighttime illumination is visible as far as the cities of Otaci, Camenca and coastal Ukraine. From this peak an incomparable picturesque landscape can be admired.
Soroca is also the gypsy "capital" of Moldova, on the hill overlooking the city there is in fact a neighborhood entirely populated by Roma with their characteristic, and sometimes eccentric, homes of considerable visual impact.
Excursion time:
Every day with departure at 09.00 from your hotel or accommodation in Chisinau.
