Iași

Iași was the capital of Moldavia from the sixteenth century and briefly of Romania, and it kept the institutions that go with that: the country's first university, founded in 1860, a heavy concentration of churches and monasteries, and a literary life centred on the Junimea circle whose members shaped modern Romanian letters. The landmark is the Palace of Culture, a vast neo-Gothic pile finished in 1925 on the site of the princely court, holding four museums under one roof and a clock tower whose carillon of eight bells plays Hora Unirii every hour. Nearby stands the Three Hierarchs Monastery, whose entire exterior is covered in carved stone ornament in bands, a technique with no real parallel elsewhere. Golia monastery, the metropolitan cathedral holding the relics of Saint Parascheva, and the Copou park with Eminescu's lime tree fill out the centre. The city is busy, student-heavy and rather worn between its monuments.

History

The city is first named in an official document in 1408, a grant of trading privileges by Prince Alexander to the Polish merchants of Lviv, though the Armenian Church is believed to date from 1395. Around 1564 Alexandru Lăpușneanu moved the Moldavian capital here from Suceava, in 1640 Vasile Lupu set up a school teaching in Romanian and a printing press at the Three Hierarchs Monastery, and the first book printed in Moldavia came out here in 1643; the city stayed the capital of Moldavia until 1859 (Wikipedia, Iași).

The main sights

• The Palace of Culture - a neo-Gothic complex housing four museums.
• Three Hierarchs Monastery - a church carved over its whole exterior surface.
• The metropolitan cathedral - focus of the October pilgrimage to Saint Parascheva.
• Copou park - the old public garden with Eminescu's lime tree.

When to go

April to October. The Saint Parascheva pilgrimage in mid-October fills the city with enormous queues and is a remarkable thing to witness but a difficult time to visit casually. Spring in the Copou park is pleasant. Summer is hot and dusty.

Things to know

Between the monuments the city is architecturally patchy, with heavy communist-era building and busy roads. The Palace of Culture museums are large and can absorb a whole day, and their labelling is largely Romanian. Traffic and parking in the centre are difficult. Two days is enough unless you have a particular interest.

Nearby

Cotnari vineyards lie northwest; the Bucovina monasteries are a few hours away.

Key facts