My apartment is on Blvd. Tudor Vladimirescu, in the Bucsinescu district to the southeast of the town center. The university is to the northwest of the center, however, at the opposite end of town. The walk is about 1 hour uphill (to Copou) and 45 minutes downhill (back home). Fortunately there is a tram line right outside and I don't need to transfer. I bought a monthly pass (5000 lei, about $ 2.50, although it's less for Romanian students) for the tram, now that I know which line I will be using (it's #4/#8 for those of you from Iasi). I am becoming more accustomed to crowded trams, but it's not easy for someone from car-happy Los Angeles! The apartment is $ 100 per month, without utilities. There is usually hot water every morning (something I value greatly!), although it's not uncommon to have ALL the water turned off during mid-day. I didn't make notes on food prices yet; expect those when I have a bit more experience shopping Romanian-style (the salami IS expensive, though!).

With the change in the weather has come a change in the scenery, as the fall colors are coming out on the trees. Perfect for some sight- seeing, and so Thursday I took a short tour of the historical center of Iasi, along Strada Stefan cel Mare (Stephen the Great St.).

First was the Neo-Gothic Palace of Culture, one of Iasi's most recognizable and charming buildings. It sits on a promontory above the river terrace and serves as a visual reference point for central Iasi. It was completed in the 1920s as a government administration building, but it is now home to four museums (I'll save these for another visit). Grand but not grandiose, the Palace of Culture is indeed a prime element of Iasi's skyline, and its image as a city of culture.

Along Stefan cel Mare is the Church of the Three Hierarchs, the most distinctive church in Iasi. It was completed in the 1630s, and its exterior of patterned stone carving was once layered in gold. It now provides the resting place for the crypts of Alexandru Ioan Cuza (the prince who unified Wallachia and Romania in 1859) and Dimitrie Cantemir, the last native Moldavian Prince before the period of Phanariot Greek rule under the Ottomans (1711-1824).

Further up the street is the much larger but less distinctive Metropolitan Cathedral, built in the 1830s as the seat of the Orthodox clergy in Moldavia. As such, the Cathedral hosts the relics of St. Paraschiva, the patron saint of Moldavia. This past week was the annual Feast of St. Paraschiva (Sarbatorile Iasului). The street in front of the church was closed off, and the faithful came from all over Moldavia (and Bessarabia, i.e. the Republic of Moldova) to honor the saint and visit her crypt. Chartered buses filled the parking lot at the Palace of Culture, and vendors were selling religious souvenirs, books, and handicrafts along Stefan cel Mare. Queen Ana, the wife of the exiled King Mihai, was in Iasi for the occasion and attended the mass on Saturday the 14th. Couples, families, and groups of peasant women with headscarves strolled down the street amid the falling yellow leaves.

I decided not to attend the mass or wait in line to view the crypt; instead I took advantage of the weather to see "Poli" face off against 2nd-place "Dinamo" Bucharest. "Poli" played a good game and had two good chances to score, but had to settle for a 0-0 tie. For those of you who don't know already, France beat Romania 3-1 last Wednesday night. I saw it on TV, and before the game the fans were waving their arms from side to side (those of you at KU know this as "waving the wheat!").