the globe says
Transnistria
Fly to Chișinău, Moldova, then a rattling marshrutka across a border that officially is not one, into a country that officially is not one.
A Soviet-era hotel or a homestay booked through local hosts.
The USSR preserved in amber: Lenin statues, hammer-and-sickle flags, a state cognac distillery, Sheriff — the company that owns everything — and surreal ordinary life.
Tour the Kvint cognac distillery, then walk the embankment at dusk with an ice cream like everyone else in the republic.
May to September
Spasibo — thank you; Russian is the lingua franca.
In Europe's Shadow by Robert D. Kaplan — Romania, Moldova, and the ghosts between.
Bender fortress on the river, and Chișinău's vast wine cellars back across the 'border.'
Register your stay as required, carry euros or Moldovan lei to change, and monitor the regional situation before going — this one is sensitive to events in Ukraine.