Tourism in Transnistria

8/9/2019 Tourism in Transnistria

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Tourism in Transnistria: Examining the Last Remants ofthe USSR The unrecognised country of Transnistria is a post-Soviet "frozen conflict" zone situated

!et een #oldova and U$raine in Eastern Europe% &ormally $no n as the 'ridnestrovian#oldavian Repu!lic (or )'#R)* this !rea$a ay state proudly cele!rates its Soviet heritage -statues of Lenin line the streets hile the Transnistrian flag is the only flag in the orld tostill feature the hammer and sic$le em!lem%

Eager to find out more a!out this reclusive and marginalised ould-!e nation + !raved theheavily militarised Transnistrian !order, arriving in the capital of Tiraspol ust in time for+ndependence .ay%

INTRODUCING TRANSNISTRIA... THE PRIDNESTROVIAN MOLDAVIAN REPUBLIC

/ fe ee$s ago + as sat in a trendy !eer garden in 0ucharest ith a Romanian friend% +told him + as planning to visit Transnistria and his response as a coc$tail of surprise anddisgust%

"1hy do you ant to go there2" he as$ed% "This is a stupid place%"

#oldova itself as once a region of Romania !efore Russian influence moulded it into the)#oldavian Soviet Socialist Repu!lic%)

+n 3443 this Soviet repu!lic !ecame an independent state !ut there are those on !oth sidesof the !order ho regret the divide%

T o days later in the #oldovan capital of 5hisinau e sat chatting ith a local studentnamed #arin% "1e are Romanians really " he told us spea$ing on !ehalf of the #oldavianpeople% "1e are the same !lood !ut Russia has made things complicated !et een us%" Thetruth of his ords as clear to see% + spotted graffiti tags in the capital reading "fuc$ offRussia%" #ean hile on 63st /ugust during our !rief stay in 5hisinau the city cele!rated theLim!a 7oastr8 festival% Translating to )9ur Language ) this pu!lic holiday recognisesRomanian - and not Russian - as !eing the national language of #oldova%


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#arin)s father had fought in the 344 1ar of Transnistria and he told us that for him it as

a very sad place%This small strip of land east of the River .niester sand iched !et een #oldova andU$raine remained pro-Russia even after the 3443 fall of the USSR% Tensions !et een#oldova and its !rea$a ay state erupted into conflict !ut the pro!lem as Transnistriahad served as a ma or la!our pool for Soviet industry - and Lenines;ue 'resident +gorSmirnov as sitting on one of the largest stoc$piles of eaponry in Eastern Europe% Theconflict reached an uneasy ceasefire in 344< hich has remained in place since%

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igor_Smirnovhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igor_Smirnovhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igor_Smirnovhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igor_Smirnovhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igor_Smirnov


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.epending on ho you spea$ to then Transnistria could !e descri!ed as the !rea$a ay state

of a !rea$a ay state%The next day e hit the road% Little more than an hour south of 5hisinau the first chec$point

as operated !y #oldavian authorities% / simple !arrier crossed the road here auniformed guard pulled us over to ta$e a nonchalant glance at our passports% It's not as ifyou’re leaving the country his shrug seemed to say%

"=ood luc$ " he added%


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WELCOME TO TIRASPOL

0ri!ery seems to !e something of a national sport in Transnistria%

".on)t give them any more than five Euros at the !order " our contact had advised% "0utthey)ll as$ for more once they see your foreign plates%"

1e passed a chec$point manned !y a team of uniformed soldiers% They ore guns at theirsides hile !ehind them poorly disguised !eneath a camouflage net a Soviet tan$ stood


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atch over the road% The soldiers aved us through and e made it a fe hundred metres !efore !eing flagged do n at the next chec$point%

The next set of guards signalled us to par$ !eside the road and e ;ueued in line for visas ata small office unit - the temporary $ind that you might see serving administrative duties on aconstruction site% 1hile the visa as easy enough to ac;uire (the usual stac$ of forms signedin triplicate* next e ere as$ed to pay road tax%


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+t too$ us half an hour of negotiations stood across a des$ from a middle-aged soldier hosat dead-eyed !eneath the green and red flag of Transnistria% 1e got off alright - payingaround >? - although the car !ehind us as persuaded to hand over more%%% accounting forsome administrative fee or other%

/fter an hour at the !order e ere !ac$ on the road a road signed only in Russian and !ythe time e reached the outs$irts of the Transnistrian capital e ere once again stopped%This time it as a high ay patrol% /pparently e)d passed through a no-drive zone in ourconfusion and the eager officers ere hungry for their o n slice of the pie% =iven thealternative of a trip do n to the police station e paid them their dirty money and ere

!ac$ on our ay%

0y the time e arrived in Tiraspol e felt cheated and a!used apprehensive of hat thefollo ing days ould !ring%

"@ou)ll !e fine once you)re in the city " our host assured us% "+t)s ust the road police you needto atch out for%" This turned out to !e sage advice%


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/fter my experiences of touring 7orth Aorea and from hat + had already heard a!out

Transnistria + as anticipating the co ed gazes of oppressed masses trapped in an austeredictatorship%

+nstead + as met !y calm confidence - disinterest even - from the huge cro ds that hadgathered in the capital to cele!rate Transnistria)s independence%

The next


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1hile Transnistria)s +ndependence .ay is archetypical of the ay many people vie this !rea$a ay socialist repu!lic over the coming ee$ + ould discover that in many ays itrather mas$s the authentic un-documented attractions hich serve to ma$e Transnistriasuch a rich destination to explore%


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The truth is very different%

The capital itself is a simple city ith little on offer in the ay of entertainment% Do everthe clean ide streets ith their neatly hite ashed cur!s are lined ith a good selection of

!ars restaurants and even nightclu!s hile the supposed curfe mentioned !y somecommentators is utter nonsense - late night drin$ing is not ust permitted in Transnistria itseems to !e actively encouraged 3F%

5itizens of Tiraspol appear to !e content comforta!le and in some cases really ratheraffluent% S eethearts al$ through the city)s green par$s hand-in-hand or hang )love loc$s)


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on the !ridge that spans the .niester% 9n one afternoon a pedestrianised street in the centre as overrun !y an outdoor art class young children dra ing s$etches of trees andmonuments% @ou can !uy literally anything you need in the city (from ne shoes to areplacement US0 ca!le* and the prices are some of the lo est +)ve encountered in Europe%

There may not !e much to do in Tiraspol !ut after the chaos of +ndependence .ay hadsu!sided + found it a very pleasant place to be%

9utside of the capital mean hile there is a vast amount to see and do around Transnistriaitself%%% !ut only if you loo$ for it% Russian is the only language spo$en here and even in


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restaurants it)s rare to find a menu in English% 1hat)s more the country is so undocumented !y estern tourists that there really is no guide!oo$ - you)ve ust got to get out there andfind it for yourself%

@ou shouldn)t conclude though that getting a!out in Transnistria is in any ay difficult% 1hile my (limited* comprehension of the Russian language perhaps allo ed me to get moreout of the experience than others the foreign tourists + met at the hostel managed ust fine

ithout% Each evening over !eers + as hearing reports of !izarre monuments or a!andoned !rutalist structures in distant rural locales


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'u!lic transport in the '#R is regular and cheap either !y trolley !us or marshrutka 6F%

&or the price of 6 Transnistrian Ru!les (G %


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factories train stations theatres and monuments, a!andoned preserved and ripe forexploring%

CAPITALISM IN THE PMR

.espite voicing an enthusiastic support for the tenets of #arxism-Leninism Transnistria isin no ay a communist state%


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The currency used in the '#R is the Transnistrian Ru!le% /s you might imagine it)s anunrecognised currency%%% and that means you on)t !e a!le to ta$e it out from an /T#%Rather you)ll need to dra out US .ollars or Russian Ru!les !efore changing them up atone of the many !ooths scattered a!out the streets% Iirtually no here seems to accept !an$cards%

There is clearly a lot of money in the '#R% +t)s a $ind of free mar$et socialism if you ill, theresidents of Transnistria en oy free healthcare free education and a heavily su!sidisedpu!lic transport system%%% !ut they also pay a flat rate tax set at 3 C%

#y host Timoti at the Tiraspol Dostel referred to it as "1ild 1est capitalism" - everythingis for sale and !usiness is unrestricted% =iven the proliferation of communist insignia inTransnistria though you)d !e forgiven for getting confused%

http://www.moldovahostels.com/http://www.moldovahostels.com/http://www.moldovahostels.com/


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The a!sence of common glo!al !rands such as say #c.onald)s and Star!uc$s appears at

first glance to !e a statement of defiance against 1estern commercialism% Do ever it)sactually the result of U7 restrictions hich place heavy limitations on foreign investment inthe '#R%

+nstead small enterprise thrives ith locally managed shops !ars and restaurants ta$ing thelion)s share of the mar$et% @ou can al$ do n Tiraspol high street and !uy an i'ad from anameless electronics store%%% or en oy typical Russian cuisine at independent venues suchas Andy's Pizza % 1hile many in Tiraspol ould pro!a!ly still opt for a #acdonalds if it


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eren)t for the trade em!argo the lac$ of familiar capitalist !randing gives the place arefreshing feel%

That)s not to say Transnistria is ithout its investors%

Three main companies seem intent on carving up the profits of a micro-nation open to !idders, Kvint is a distillery !ased in Tiraspol no gro n fat on lucrative profits and ith amain factory hich features on the ? Transnistrian Ru!le !an$note%


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Then there)s IDC an /merican technology and telecommunications firm ho o n the localmo!ile net or$ as ell as a string of consumer electronics outlets%

0ut the largest name in Transnistrian commerce is Sheriff %

The company o ns petrol stations supermar$ets a television channel constructioncompany a mo!ile net or$ t o !read factories and a distillery% The firm also lends its name(and petrodollars* to the nation)s premiere foot!all team: Sheriff &5%


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Sheriff or )JK MN ) as founded in the early 4 s !y t o former officers of the Transnistrian+nterior #inistry, Ii$tor =ushan and +lya Aazmaly% Some claim that the Sheriff name is afront for money laundering on a vast scale hile a < B report !y the 005 intimated thatformer president +gor Smirnov is the true izard !ehind the curtain%

Rumours a!ound that Transnistrian profits come largely from the sale of eapons%7umerous high security plants around the country have !een lin$ed to arms manufacturing

hile some ould have you !elieve that this unrecognised nation is merely a Russianpuppet: a pool of eapons industry and money laundering hidden !ehind a veil ofautonomy%

'assing a chec$point near 0endery !y !us + spotted a tan$ ith a Russian flag painted onthe side of its turret%

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/crossing_continents/3586815.stmhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/crossing_continents/3586815.stm


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The t o countries clearly en oy close ties !oth culturally and in terms of military resource,

!ut ho deep those ties go is anyone)s guess%"Sixty per cent of the industry of the old Soviet repu!lic of #oldova is on our side of the.niester River " reported local radio star /ndre Smolens$y in a < 3 intervie ith an

/ustralian ournalist % "9ur reality is exploitative capitalism%"

1hatever the truth may !e it seems reasona!le to conclude that !lac$ mar$et economy isresponsi!le for a reasona!le proportion of Transnistria)s evident poc$ets of ealth%

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/europes-rogue-mini-state-clings-to-soviet-satellite-status-with-threat-of-nuclear-device/story-e6frg6so-1225929671443http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/europes-rogue-mini-state-clings-to-soviet-satellite-status-with-threat-of-nuclear-device/story-e6frg6so-1225929671443http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/europes-rogue-mini-state-clings-to-soviet-satellite-status-with-threat-of-nuclear-device/story-e6frg6so-1225929671443http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/europes-rogue-mini-state-clings-to-soviet-satellite-status-with-threat-of-nuclear-device/story-e6frg6so-1225929671443


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ESCAPE FROM TRANSNISTRIA

/ccording to local la all tourists planning to stay more than


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=oing on local advice + decided not to !other% This didn)t pose a pro!lem during my stayand not once as + as$ed to sho my passport or any accompanying paper or$% Do ever itdid ma$e things a little more exciting hen it came time to leave%

+ had arrived !y car and my friends left the same ay - apparently getting stung at the !order here they ere ordered to pay fines in recompense for their unauthorised stay%

.espite threats of reporting the incident to the )9ffice of 5orruption ) the guards ouldn)t !udge, they had these tourists in !reach of a legitimate la and ouldn)t give up so easilyBF%

Three days later + finally left the country myself ta$ing the train from Tiraspol to 9dessa inU$raine% This re;uired a little stealth ho ever as my lac$ of papers ould have displeasedany local !order guard% + as in no real danger - the guards ould simply demand a fine anamount of money hich as considera!ly more significant to them than it as to me%7evertheless it made for good sport%


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Transnistria doesn)t o n its o n trains and those stopping in Tiraspol are generally

controlled !y #oldova U$raine or Russia% /s the train)s staff ould li$ely consider Tiraspolas a part of #oldova + only needed to get on!oard to !e - effectively - across the !order%

'ic$ing up a tic$et from the train station + aited in a near!y par$% The station)s platform as !usy ith officials chec$ing passports and documentation for the passengers aiting to !oard% /s soon as the train pulled up + dashed around the end of the !uilding onto theplatform and hopped ;uic$ly onto the closest carriage% 9ne of the !order guards sa me !uthe as already too late: as far as the rest of the orld as concerned + had already left the)country%)


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+ gave the guard a cheerful ave from the indo as the train set off to ards U$raine%

#ore .ar$ Tourism%%%

3F hough not on the city streets! it should be noted"

Documents

Tourism in Transnistria