The short marshrutka ride from Chişinău out to the village of Butuceni feels like traveling back in time, as drivers overtake locals in donkey carts on steep, frequently unpaved mountain roads. But the clock turns back even further in the impressive Orthodox cave monastery of Orheiul Vechi, which was dug into these rocky cliffs by local monks in the 13th century. The medieval icons below are illuminated only by candlelight and by jagged windows chiseled out of the cliff face, giving the impression that not much has changed since then. Behind the…
