Journal · Hanul Cu Noroc

About this place

Guides and stories about Duruitoarea Veche and its surroundings: the cave where people lived 160,000 years ago, the lake a hundred metres away, the coral reefs left on dry land. All written here, with the sources in plain sight.

A group of people on a rock, looking out over the valley at Duruitoarea Veche

Itinerary

A weekend in northern Moldova: a two day itinerary

A cave, a lake, fossil reefs and a fish soup over the fire. Two full days, without much driving.

Detail of the relief model: Lake Costesti-Stanca, the dam and the villages of Varatic, Costesti and Saptebani

Practical

How to get to Duruitoarea Veche

The drive from Chisinau, the border crossing from Romania, and what you find at the end.

View from the Duruitoarea cave towards the Prut valley

History

What was found in the Duruitoarea cave

Five cultural layers, a cave bear and a Paleolithic human tooth.

Museum

The Paleontology Museum in Duruitoarea Veche

The only rural paleontology museum in Moldova, with exhibits over 250,000 years old.

A limestone reef wall with grottoes, lit by the evening sun

Nature

Toltre: coral reefs in the middle of a field

Millions of years ago, the rocks around the village were the floor of a tropical sea.

A fisherman on the shore of Lake Costesti-Stanca

Fishing

What fish you can catch in Lake Costesti-Stanca

26 species, two months of closed season, and a fish soup made on the shore.

Fish cooked over a wood fire, in the open air

Cooking

Fish soup (uha), on the shore of the lake

The recipe of the Costesti-Stanca fishermen: fresh fish, grains, greens and a wood fire.

Grass covered mounds at sunset, in the Suta de Movile reserve

Nature

Suta de Movile: over 3,500 mounds, not a hundred

Over 3,500 mounds on the terraces of the Prut, a short drive out of the village.

Come and see them all

Nine rooms and 36 beds, 100 metres from Lake Costesti-Stanca. From May through October.

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Phone and WhatsApp: +373 798 48 077