Orheiul Vechi, Moldova

Orheiul Vechi is 60 km (~37 miles) from Chişinău; about 20 km (12.5 miles) from the Curchi Monastery.  It offers a beautiful landscape and basically an open air archaeological museum.

Entrance to the cave monastery

There is a a cave monastery dug by Orthodox monks in the 13th century.  The caves are in the side of a limestone cliff high about the Raut River.



The caves were inhabited until the 18th century, until they were taken over by local villagers.  A handful of monks returned in 1996 and began to restore it.

Where monks used to sleep

The Orheiul Vechi Cultural Landscape was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.