The Hay synagogue, now Agudath Israel in Moldova.The synagogue got its name from the square near where it was located, "Hayna"The Hayna square was used to sell hay and perhaps even to make some of it from the grass that grew there.The postwar years brought with them new changes. No one needed Sennaya Square anymore, and it was decided to adapt the valuable territory in the city for a sports arena. And already in 1951, the Square changed beyond recognition - the Republican Stadium, the largest and most important stadium in the republic, was built on it.The stadium's history ended in the summer of 2007. Under the pretext of reconstruction it began to be demolished, and now all that is left of it is a stone fence around a vast wasteland. According to the latest information, a new U.S. embassy and a public park will be built there.The Hay Synagogue itself appears in lists even before 1850 as a house of prayer. In 1886 a new building was built, and with it comes the status of the synagogue.It was built in stone and covered with a metal roof, the building was adjoined by a large courtyard. In 1939 three more synagogues were being built in the courtyard and a yeshiva was functioning.The neighboring areas were owned by Jewish families, which may have helped expand the available space. By 1940, the synagogue building and all the facilities inside the courtyard were in very good condition, and in 1940 they were nationalized by the Soviets.In 1941, the Gestapo was stationed in the buildings and basements. Many remembered the shootings, especially of Jews, that took place near this area, with people being gathered at the site of the former Hay Market before the shootings.After 1944, with the coming of Soviet power, there was an employment bureau here, and in 1991 the state transferred the synagogue building to the organization Agudath Israel.The synagogue became active in the 1990s as it began to function. A bet was made on children and young people - yeshivas were opened for boys and girls. The hay synagogue helped the community with getting kosher wine and juice for Shabbat and matzah for Passover.In 2017, with the arrival of Rabbi Pinchas Saltzman to the leadership of Agudath Israel in Moldova, the transformation and intensification of religious and communal work began. Daily programs for children and adults, Torah and tradition studies, summer sites and camps, and Jewish heritage revival projects in Moldova have now become popular.The Agudath Israel community, with its center in the Senna Synagogue, now includes more than 1,000 people in Chisinau, Tiraspol and Balti. Meetings and the celebration of the Sabbath and other Jewish holidays became a permanent feature.A room was reconstructed and built where visitors could stay. There are two Ashkenazi Torah scrolls and one Sephardic Torah in the Aron Kodesh.There is a library of Jewish books in the synagogue.The Mikvah has also been restored and rebuilt. For the first time in Moldova, the synagogue has opened a kosher kitchen with a kosher pizzeria.Since we're talking about food, it's time to head to the promised restaurant. Walk one block along Shchuseva Street in the opposite direction from the stadium and turn left into Str. Bolgarska (Str.Bulgara). We pass by the Moldovan office of the Soros Foundation and right behind it we see the entrance to a restaurant. We can assure you that you will truly enjoy the variety of delicious and kosher dishes of the Bati restaurant! The time for parting has come! Before we wish you a bon appetit, we apologize that, due to great distances and limited energy and time, we could not show more Jewish places of Chisinau. If you have the desire and ability to get to the more distant parts of the city, we recommend getting to the Old Jewish Cemetery at 1 Milanska Street (Str. Milano 1), and not reaching the current borders of the cemetery, in Alunelul Park, to the "memorial sign for the 100th anniversary of the Pogrom", and to the "memorial to the victims of fascism" on Orhei Highway 19 (Str. Calea Orheiului 19).As a bonus, we offer you brief information about these three points. And at the very end, while you're waiting for your order to be filled, we'd like to offer you a musical gift: the popular and touching song "Sleep in Yiddish," written by contemporary poet Mikhail Finkel and sung by Slava Farber, a native of Wertuzhan. Slava Farber.