When I travel I always try to find the bright side of life. On my first visit in the course of a business trip in December 1993, this posed a serious challenge. Heating in my Chisinau hotel was not existent, instead it was determined to offer other pleasures to its customers. 25 years later I went again. Now Moldova looked much better., its capital had been spruced up quite a bit, sidewalk cafés packed with customers created a kind of holiday vibe, as were my beloved Georgian restaurants offering mouthwatering Khinkhalis. What Italian restaurants mean for Westen Europe (the easiest way to a slice of Dolce Vita without the need to go to Italy), Georgian restaurants do for Eastern Europe. The density of Porsche Cayenne in Chisinau was almost as high as in the neighbouring Ukrainian capital next door.

But most of the people I met, I could say quasi everybody who did not drive a Porsche, did not want to stay, at least not on the long run. So I was glad to meet Dimitri, the enthusiast sommelier in the Radisson hotel Tasting Room who invited me to a great tour around Moldovan wineries. I became a great fan of the Merlot Serendipity from Et Cetera winery – it was truly a serendipity! Finally I went to Et Cetera and Purcari wineries snd enjoyed fantastic wine pairings. Moldova proved to be no exception. Where there is great wine there is great food!  Finally I went to the huge state-owned wine-growing estate of Cricova. Since centuries they have been storing their wines in miles long underground limestone tunnels. Precious bottles, labelled “Angela Merkel“ or “Wladimir Putin“, specifically bottle for their respective state visits, were lying peacefully next to each other.