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Sala Pasilor Pierduti (The Hall of the Lost Steps)

The Al. I. Cuza university in Copou houses an exquisite hallway, in which you can get lost in poetic reverie. The hallway is empty, long and narrow, and its walls are covered with large paintings that allude to T.S.Eliot's Wasteland and have an intensely epic, allegorical and dreamy character. A lonely guardwatch protects the hallway, and the door is heavy, with small windows that let the light trickle in through dust. It is a lonely place, yet while school is in season it is tread by thousands of steps every day, which only make it lonelier. You might also want to explore the rest of the building. A piece of advice: freeing your mind from the confines of Euclidean geometry won't make it any easier to find your way through the place, but you will feel less frustrated when you find out you've changed floors just by crossing a seemingly level hallway. The classrooms use both the Arab and the Roman numbering system, which makes it hell when you're late for an exam, and learned men all agree that the third floor dissapears during full moon. You have been warned.

The Catacombs
   
    This network of tunnels was built hundreds of years ago for military purposes, and connects several strategic points of Iaşi, including some monasteries. It is unknown to most visitors and indeed to many locals, but will soon be opened for tourism. The entrance will be in front of Hala Centrala (see entry under shopping), but as of april 2010, this is still a construction site. In the mean time, you may be able to get a glimpse of the old tunnels if you pay a visit to Casa Bolta Rece (see entry under eating).

Copou Park

This tame, bench and rosebush laden park is a popular destination for youth in heat and the contemplative elderly. It's a pretty park, and you should not put your feet on the benches (you might get fined). There are several large bushes through which you can walk, and an

Bulevardul Copou (Copou Boulevard)

Copou is a large hill in Iasi, which contains a university, a botanical garden and many old, fancy houses. Rose bushes line its sides, and there are many parks and old trees scattered between the buildings. It's a popular place to go for a walk, and for locals it is considered the rich area. Head onto the side streets for the quietest, serenest part of Iasi

Metropolitan Church

Metropolitan Church Be careful not to wear short skirts in this chuuch. The elderly are quite protective of in-church propriety. If you go in the summer, you'll enjoy vast rose bushes all around the grounds of the church. If you're thirsty, there is a water fountain at one end of the courtyard. There are always beggers at the entrance of this church, which is one of the most profitable for beggers in Iasi. Locally, this church is called "Metropolia". Metropolia contains the remains of "Saint Paraschiva", an important local saint. If you like chaos and celebrations, go to Iasi from 12-16 of October of any year. The city floods with peasants and religious pilgrims from Romania and abroad. The city completely changes during this period, and the Stefan cel Mare boulevard is almost impossible to walk through

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