THIS IS WHO WE ARE The official name of Moldova is The Republic of Moldova. Moldova is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. In the past Moldova was part of the region called Bessarabia. In comparison to the world, the country is very small. Approximately 3.43 million people live there. The same amount of inhabitants live in the city Berlin, for example. The capital of Moldova is Chişinău, pronounced Kischinau. Romania is Moldova s neighbour in the west. In the north, east and south the Ukraine borders Moldova. Once, Romania and Moldova were one country. That s why the countries are still very similar in many ways. Landlocked country A landlocked country is a country which has no access to the ocean and is therefore only surrounded by other countries. There are 44 landlocked countries in the world. Is the country in which you live a landlocked country? The two rivers Dnister and Pruth border the heartland of the country. The river Dnister is an important road for ships. They transport wood, animals and agricultural products. Because the soil is very fertile in Moldova, fruits and wine are cultivated here. The river Dnister (Picture: wikipedia/wikisax) Activity: Following rivers Pick a map of Eastern Europe. Look for Moldova first and then follow the rivers Dnister and Pruth. Through which countries do the rivers run? Where do they run to? Into other rivers? Into the ocean? Discussion: Do you know the most important and largest rivers of your country? What are their names? Are there ships on them? What do the ships transport?
THIS IS HOW WE LIVE The children on our homepage live in a children s home in Străşeni. Some of the children live there because their parents went abroad to work and earn money. This is because Moldova is one of the poorest countries in Europe. The majority of the Moldovan population belongs to the Moldovan Orthodox church. They celebrate Christmas from the 7th to the 8th of January. The capital city Chişinău, celebrates its birthday each year on the 14th of October with huge parades and attractions. Chişinău Day (Picture: flickr/em und Ernie) Dancing Moldovans on Chişinău Day (Picture: flickr/em und Ernie) One custom in Moldova is the Mărţişor. The Mărţişor is a talisman which is attached to a red-white cord. The colours represent the snow and the sun, symbolic for the changeover from winter to spring. It is presented to girls and women on the first of March. They carry it until they see a blossoming tree. Then they hang it on the tree and make a wish. Mărţişor Mărţişor Selling Mărţişors in Chişinău (Picture: wikipedia/turbojet) (Picture: wikipedia/nicubunu) (Picture: wikipedia/gikü) Discussion: Do you know any talisman from your country? Which ones? On which events are they used? When do you present them? To whom?
THIS IS OUR SCHOOL The children from Străşeni go to a boarding school. A Moldovan child has the obligation to go to school from age 6 to 15. Nevertheless, some children don t go to school because they have to help their families in the fields. Primary school takes 4 years, then the children go to a secondary school. The language which is spoken in Moldova is Moldovan. It is a sort of Romanian dialect. In the past, Moldova was part of the Soviet Union. Therefore many people still speak Russian, some even better than Moldovan. Activity: Count to 10 in Moldovan Try to count to ten in Moldovan. The numbers are written down as you pronounce them. The correct spelling can be seen in brackets. one............................ uno two............................ doi three........................... tre-i four............................ patru five............................ tschintsch (cinci) six............................. schasse (şase) seven........................... schapte (şapte) eight........................... opt nine............................ nuoä (nouă) ten............................ setsche (zece) Sowjet Union From 1922-1991 some countries in Eastern Europe and Asia were formed into the so-called Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), which was commanded by Russia. In short form, we call it the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union was very large and covered almost 1/6th of the world. Russia and the Soviet Union are often considered to be the same. Indeed, Russia had a dominant position within the Soviet Union but 14 other countries were also a part of it. The people spoke Russian and Moscow was the capital of the founded empire.
THIS IS OUR FAVOURITE DISH The closeness to Romania can be also seen in Moldovan food. They do not eat much fish. Meat is often served with fruits. A lot of grapes are grown in Moldova, some of which are processed into wine. The children from the children s home in Străşeni also eat grapes during lunch time. The Moldovans eat very healthy. Half of a meal consists mostly of beans and vegetables. Many meals are served with corn and feta cheese. A traditional Moldovan dish is Mămăligă, corn porridge, eaten with feta cheese. This is also known under the Italian name as Polenta. Mămăligă What you need: 1 litre milk 225 grams of corn/maize meal 80 grams of feta cheese 120 grams of butter 1 pinch of salt Mămăligă with sour cream and feta cheese (Picture: wikipedia/ Igor.skokan) How to do it: 1. Boil the milk and add one third of the butter (40g). Under constant stirring add the corn meal. 2. Reduce the heat and leave it alone until it turns into porridge. 3. Crumble the feta cheese and stir it into the porridge. Add some salt. 4. Heat the rest of the butter until it is fluid and a little bit brown and pour it over the porridge. Mămăligă is an excellent side dish to meat meals.
THIS IS OUR FAVOURITE GAME As in many others countries around the world, the Moldovan national sport is soccer. Chess is also very popular. For the Moldovans chess is so important that it has even become established as a subject in school. Chess Chess is also called the game of kings and is originally from India. A chess game has 32 pawns, each player has 16. The goal of the game is to capture the king of the opponent. In the chess language this is also called checkmate. Can you play chess? Do you know the rules? Chess (Picture: wikipedia/lee Daniel Crocker) The children from the children s home in Străşeni play the following game: Musical Chairs While music is playing, the children run around a chair. There are dolls (or any other objects) located on the chair. There is one doll less than the children. When the music stops, every child must take one doll. One child is left standing without a doll and has to leave the game. With each round, one doll is taken out of the game and this continues until a winner remains at the end.
THIS IS OUR FAVOURITE SONG In the video you can see the Moldovan children singing while the teacher is playing the accordion. The accordion, the harpsichord, the violin and the flute are typical musical instruments that can be heard in Moldovan music. Cembalo Akkordeon Violine (Picture: flickr/dalcrose) (Picture: flickr/msam.ch) (Picture: wikipedia/frinck51) The traditional musical groups are called Tarafs and they play old gipsy tunes. They are very popular in Moldova. Moldovan music has gained worldwide recognition through the Eurovision Song Contest, in which Moldova has been participating since 2005. Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest is a traditional music competition. Each country in the European Broadcasting Union, can participate with one song. The winning country is elected to equal parts by a jury and by the public s telephone votes.
THIS IS OUR FAVOURITE SONG This is the song from the boarding school in Străşeni: Let s go to school Let s go to school, let s go to school, Let s hurry, children! The bell is ringing And it calls to come. Chorus Put the books in your schoolbags, Get ready with your exercise books. Take care with the pencils, And don t forget the sponge. Chorus Let's all learn well, enjoy the studies. Don't leave for tomorrow, What can be done today. Let's hurry, children. Chorus