Discover Moldova with #MOLDPRES: Yard with Acacias, perfect destination for escape from urban routine

An oasis or relaxation and magic titled, Yard with Acacias, in the summer of 2023 appeared in the heart of the Calarasi district, where the tourism is developing constantly. This is not a mere place for accommodation, but also a refuge with personality. Why? We will tell you in the following article.    

The Yard with Acacias is the tourist business of the Mocreac family from the Raciula village. The house belongs to grandparents, but the initiative to restore it came out of the wish to preserve the authenticity and create a place where the family assembles in a pleasant atmosphere.   

„We are a big and united family. Being many of us and having no enough space when we go home to the parents, we thought to restore the house of the grandparents,’’ one of the hosts, Ana Mocreac, said.  

The project on restoration was initially a personal wish, but subsequently, the family members wanted to share their treasure with other people.  

Although the pandemic brought challenges and temporarily ceased the works, the family managed to open the holiday house in the summer of the last year.  

Being inspired by the styles of the English houses and the Tuscan one, the family carefully preserved the façade and the exterior, intervening only in order to restore them. In contrast with this, the interior was completely reinvented.   

„The exterior, which is one of a traditional Moldovan house and which are met more and more seldom now, was fully preserved and looks just as in 1950s, when the house was built. What we have inside, however, deals with contemporaneity already. This is a combination between tradition and modernism,’’ Ana said.    

Why Yard with Acacias?

Even the choice of the name has an explanation. There are many acacias in the vicinity and one of the neighbours has bees which produce acacia honey. The decision was taken to name the boarding house Yard with Acacias, as the ‘’entire yard is rented, not only the house,’’ Simona said. Having a mini-stadium and a special area for hammock, the Yard with Acacias becomes a full destination, providing an authentic and relaxing experience for all those who choose it.      

Guests’ experience

The house has 6 sleeping places, divided into 3 chambers, nearby a fully endowed kitchen. People willing to have activities in open air can make exercises at fixed bar, play football, badminton and other sports activities, benefiting from all equipment needed. In the evening, they can admire the magic of the sunset and watch movies in open air on a screen set in the back of the house, sitting down in coloured bean bags comfortably.       

„Thus, the guests have possibility to escape from the routine of the city, practicing various activities. We have table games for all tastes, chess table, darts. One of our guests said that one should come for 3-4 days to the Yard with Acacias, in order to try everything. In the long run, we are set to organize also hiking nearby the settlement.’’ Simona noted.     

The Calarasi district presents also other places of tourist interest, giving guests opportunity to explore and enjoy diverse experiences.  

„The Yard with Acacias serves not only as destination of relaxation, but also as starting point for visiting tourist objects from the area, such as the Honey House, the Raciula, Harbovat and Harjauca monasteries or the Native Home from the Palanca village,’’ Margareta said.     

The house’s rules

The family members said that the rules had not created in order to impose, but to encourage a pleasant and respectful experience for all those who enter the holiday house.  

„We ask the guests to avoid getting the volume of the speakers high, taking into account the presence of the neighbours who share with us the joy of this space,’’ Ana said.    

Also, the Yard with Acacias encourages the sorting of the waste in the concerned categories: plastic, paper, glass and organic waste.  

„This simple, but significant practice shows our responsibility towards the nature around us,’’ Ana noted.  

The impact on the local community

„We are at the beginning of the way and our contribution so far can seem minimal,’’ Margareta said.  

Nevertheless, in those four years when the restoration process lasted, more people from the village had possibility to work on the family’s project.

„We indirectly generated several jobs. In the long run, we will analyze the option to employ local residents to take care of the house, to maintain the garden and keep order,’’ Margareta also said.    

Challenges and achievements

Despite its natural beauty, the Yard with Acacias has not avoided challenges. Simona, one of the hosts, shared with us the difficulties which she faced in the development of the tourist business. ‘’It is difficult for one to develop a tourist business, when the road is full of mud and when one does not have water and sewerage system,’’ she said.    

Ana, with a note of optimism, highlighted their recent achievement - the house’s connection to the centralized system of water supply, thus replacing the need of the use of a reservoir with 5 tons, from where the water has been earlier pumped. ‘’Before the New Year, due to a project implemented by the local authorities with the support of the community, the house was connected to the centralized water system. Now, many things have been simplified,’’ Ana said.   

Plans for future

Nevertheless, the team of the Yard with Acacias looks forward with much enthusiasm and bold plans. ‘’We are set to restore the hovel, preserving its traditional shape, to modernize the stadium, to plant trees and berry bushes, so that the guests can enjoy the fruits of the nature,’’[ Ana said.     

We end with the confidence that this success story will continue to be written and the way to the Yard with Acacias will be always powdered with authentic experiences and hospitable warmth.