September 22, 2016 by Rae

Goodbye Malak Izvor and a Final Afternoon in Sofia

I had a disappointing final night in Malak Izvor. I haven’t been sleeping well there to start with because of the crappy bed and then add in my sore body and all the excitement of the coming days and the night was pretty much shot. 🙁 Plus, it was really cold! I got up twice to add extra blankets!

So I didn’t really want to get up when the alarm rang this morning, but I really didn’t have much time, only about two hours.

The dogs are smart and knew I was leaving. I took them for a short final walk as far as I dared, then came back to finish my packing as a load of laundry tumbled (sheets, towels, and bedding), and they stuck very close, whining a lot and giving me lots of nuzzles and kisses. Penghu got in one final nap across my neck.

Packing finally done, I finished cleaning the house and hung up the laundry, then brought down the trash. A friendly neighbour was there and I tried to tell her I was leaving, but I don’t think she got it. I tried, “I from Malak Izvor to Canada” and “goodbye,” but she still looked confused.

When I got back up to the house, it was really time to go as it was almost 9:30 and the last morning bus is around 10:45. I gave the pets their final cuddles. Mechka and Sausage whined and started howling as I headed through the gate. They knew full well I was leaving them and they were upset. I started crying as I headed down the hill.

Down in the village, I passed another friendly neighbour and she understood that I was leaving. She said thank you (because I always schlep things up the hill for her if we’re coming up at the same time), and she waved and blew kisses as I took the road out. A rather lovely send off!

By the time I was outside the village, I knew I had to really hustle if I wanted even the slightest chance of catching the last morning bus if I didn’t get a lift. Surely it wouldn’t be that hard, what with me trundling along with all that luggage. Well, I tried my damnedest and no one stopped. 🙁 It was easy going to the village turnoff, but then there’s a long steady climb before you head down into Yablanitsa, so the going got tougher.

I had a vague memory of there possibly being a 10:00 or 10:30 bus from Teteven that I could possibly flag down along the way, but I didn’t want to stop at a turnoff in case I was wrong. As long as I kept moving, I had a chance of making a bus. Otherwise, I’d have a three-hour wait for the first afternoon bus and miss out on my last afternoon in Sofia. I’d made a bad gamble and regretted not getting up earlier.

At the start of the final descent, about a kilometre from Yablanitsa, I accepted that I was not going to make it and slowed down a bit since I was no longer in a hurry. And then, I heard a honk behind me. I stopped, turned around, and did a double take as I saw a bus marked София (Sofia) that had its turn signal on and was slowing down to pull over. I thought I was hallucinating!!! But no! The driver motioned for me to hurry to get on (there was no shoulder where he stopped) and I heard “luggage, here” in his prattle, so I understood to leave my suitcase by him. When we stopped in Yablanitsa, he moved it under the bus.

It was an easy ride into Sofia. The other direction, though… Traffic was at a standstill for miles. I don’t know if Max and the new host got caught up in that, but was I glad I hadn’t been waiting for Max to get me to town or I’d still be in Malak Izvor!

We got to the bus station in Sofia at bang on noon. I wanted to find and buy my ticket for Nish (Ниш) today since the bus is leaving at 7:30 am. I went through all the kiosks until I saw one that had Nish listed. I asked for one ticket for tomorrow, but the lady just handed me a business card and rattled off something. I caught “gara,” so I went next door to the train station. It took a bit of wandering around to understand the layout there as there is a whole mess of travel offices outside the train station. I finally realised that my card had an office number and that all the buildings were numbered logically. I eventually found the one I needed.

The surly lady at the counter asked for my passport before processing my ticket request. She completely missed that I said I wanted a ticket for tomorrow, so she was very upset with me when I pointed out that she’d sold me a ticket for today. She mumbled angrily under her breath as she redid it and answered with a very short-sounding yes when I asked her if the bus would pick me up right there. Whatever… My ticket to Nish was 24BGN (18.24CAD). It’ll be interesting to see how much the trip to Belgrade will cost.

It was 12:45 by this point and I was getting rather hangry. I didn’t do a good job of managing my food stores in my final days and have been pretty much subsisting on jam sandwiches, rice with cheese, and berries for several days. The morning’s jam sandwich and coffee were very far away by this point! But my hotel was right by the bus station, so it made sense to go drop off my luggage before grabbing lunch.

The Zenith Hotel was fully booked, so I took a chance on Kom Rooms, as it is literally across the street from the bus station, which was rather convenient for this particular occasion! I’d spotted the hotel on the way in, so I knew right where to go.

The exterior did not look very promising, but the tiny office was newly renovated and the staff was friendly.

Standing in front of the entrance, looking to the bus and train stations. I don’t think you can get any closer!

The entrance did nothing to inspire confidence. It was dark, dank, and smelled.

Up a short flight of dark stairs:

To a door that has seen better days. I was rather impressed with security, though. There’s an electronic lock on the street door and a lock for this one. So that’s three locks total between the street and me.

Through that door into Narnia! Wow, this part was beautiful and smell so sweet and clean!

My door:

And tah-dah! Not what I was expecting at all! The room is cramped, but it was recently redone and is so clean and fresh. I love the breakfast/work nook!

And here’s my little bathroom. My only complaint with this room is the mould around the base of the toilet that would be an easy fix. I’m getting used to these “wet rooms.” Notice where the shower head is located. There is a hook to the right of the sink so you can have a proper shower.

The Zenith Hotel is about the same price (63BGN/48CAD) and has much bigger rooms, but I find that the convenience to the bus station makes this price fair.

I dropped what I didn’t need, including my fleece, and headed across the street and down a ways for a quick slice of pizza. There was a place literally across from the hotel, but they wanted 1.50BGN for an inferior product that had been sitting for a while. The next place is much busier and only charges 1BGN for a big slice with toppings!

I munched as I headed down to the Sofia History Museum behind the mosque. We’ve been here before, but not inside!

By this point, I had exactly 6BGN in cash left, with the plan being to take out a bit more. Thankfully, the entrance fee was only 6BGN, so I didn’t regret not going to a bank first. But when I handed the cashier my money, she nodded (Bulgarian no) and wouldn’t take it. I was confused because the museum was obviously open, but figured it was probably for a special event. As I turned away dejectedly, a security guard ran to me and said in halting English, “Free day today. Welcome!” WOW. I’ve been wanting to go there all summer and the day I finally get to go, there’s no admission charge!

The main reason I wanted to visit the museum is that it’s in the old bathhouse and I’d been told the inside was gorgeous. Well, I was disappointed on that end. There were some lovely floors that might be original, but that’s it.

The exhibits were interesting and covered the history of Sofia from prehistory to today, with almost all the signage translated into decent English.

It was really crowded, so I didn’t have many chances to take pictures. I thought this exhibit was unique because you often see carriages, but not with the horses. Adding these “horses” in full apparel, complete with ostrich feathers, really makes you understand what a spectacle it must have been!

One of the lovely floors:

A rather ornate desk! I don’t think it’s gold plated, but rather just painted:gold-coloured:

I loved this central part of the museum, looking out to the mosque:

I love seeing these travel notes from hundreds of years ago!

I really enjoyed the museum and seeing how Sofia went from being a giant muddy village of single story homes with none of the features of usual settlements this size (bathhouses, amphitheatres, government buildings) at the start of the Common Era to a bustling metropolis by the 19th century, when it became capital of Bulgaria because of its central location. This is when all the streets were paved and better infrastructure was created. Public transportation, which already existed, was greatly expanded too.

Since I had time after I came out of the Sofia history museum, I decided to try my luck at the archeology museum, where we’ve also been before:

There was no price list, so I asked how much and it was 10BGN. Oops. I thanked the lady and left, then went around behind the museum where I knew there was a PostBank ATM. I withdrew 100BGN (more on that later in this post) and went right back to the museum, where the cashier and the security guard gave me a strange look.

This museum was just !!! I spent my whole time going, “Wow!” So many statues and stelae and icons and tablets… All in a beautiful building.

I loved the worn wood floors of the ground floor…

And the tiled floors of the mezzanine, lined with icons.

A glimpse of how stunning the domed ceilings must have been at one time:

I was going to go up to another exhibit room when a guard standing by a gate smiled kindly at me and said, “Tresor?” That’s French for treasure (and Bulgarian, I now know), so I was curious and said yes. He opened the gate and motioned for me to go up… into Ali Baba’s cave. I found myself in a room filled with gold, silver, and jeweled objects and ornaments.

There were a couple of final exhibits after the treasure room, but nothing quite as impressive, although I did enjoy looking at some old books. I really feel like I got my 10BGN worth. What a wonderful museum!

It was about 2:30 by this point and there was a surprisingly biting wind. It would be a 1.5KM walk back to the hotel and then back again for dinner and then back again to the hotel, but since it was on flat terrain, I didn’t mind and felt it would be worth it to go have a rest and get my fleece. I stopped for a gelato en route and went all out, getting two scoops in a waffle cone! I had chocolate hazelnut, of course, topped with cherry cheesecake. Yum!

I stopped at the Billa at the Lion Bridge to get food for the road tomorrow. It was surprisingly difficult. The fruit was in poor condition and I knew I couldn’t get salami or cheese since I had no room to store them overnight. I ended up getting an assortment of buns, some juice, and… peanut butter. Who knows if they have it in Serbia! 😀 Oh, and some Eastern European “Jaffa cakes” for tonight!

I had a rest at the hotel and headed back out around five as I was fading fast and looked forward to unwinding for the evening.

En route, I pondered a conundrum. I’d taken out 100BGN with the plan being to convert 40 or 50BGN to Serbian dinars. I’d taken out 100BGN as opposed to the 40BGN I really needed to finish my stay to get as much possible for my 5CAD withdrawal fee. But I learned this afternoon that Serbian dinars are a closed currency and you can’t buy them out of the country. Moreover, this research told me I was going to have a hard time converting my BGN to dinars in Serbia. So, really, I had to get rid of as many of my leva as I could before crossing the border. Dang!

I pondered my conundrum as I walked and the blindingly obvious solution came to me: euros! I popped into a bureau de change and converted 40BGN to 20EUR. The BGN is “pinned” to the Euro, so the exchange rate is fixed and I wasn’t worried about the rate the way I would have been with other currencies. So I didn’t shop for my bureau de change, just went into the first one I passed (Western Union), which happened to not have ay fees. So now, I’m walking around with a bit of CAD change, a lot of GBP change, a bit of BGN, a few euros, and tomorrow I will add dinars! The euros will, of course, be useful in Greece and Spain, but research told me that they are used in Serbia alongside the dinars. So if I have a hard time getting to an ATM tomorrow, I can use my euro as emergency funds of sorts.

Next on my walk, I passed a bulk nut place and was surprised I had never noticed it because it is joined to the gelato stand! It caught my attention because I hadn’t been able to find trail mix at the supermarket. I’ve seen these sorts of stores all over Sofia.

This place had “energy mix” that looked like raisins and peanuts, so I asked for 100 grams of it. Or, rather, I forgot how to say 100, said energy mix, but wrote out 100 grams. 🙂 The lady was so kind and patient! 100 grams wound up being a decent sized handful, perfect!

I had sushi, of course, for dinner. 🙂 I think the sushi at Happy Grill is what I will miss most about Bulgaria! *hangs head in shame* I had a lovely meal with a good beer.

Coming back to the hotel, I had to take a picture of this sign at the park at the Lion Bridge because I’d seen the same one at the history museum and it made me laugh. Without going to Google Translate, I’m pretty sure the Bulgarian says, literally, “no grass trespassing.” The English is a bit more severe. If I can’t pass the grass, how a I supposed to get across the park?! *goes off to Google Translate* Ah, it’s actually “no trampling the grass”!

So ends my adventures in Bulgaria. What a ride it’s been from being afraid of going into the village shop and having a hard time getting service my first weekend in Sofia to going into a city “cold” with no hotel reservation to tonight, ordering at a bulk nuts place that I found so intimidating my first times seeing them!

While living in a country where I have such a hard time communicating has been challenging, it’s also taught me a lot about the subject. A few words and gestures go a very long way and most people will want to help you, especially if you make an effort and have a good attitude. And, of course, I do not regret learning how to read Cyrillic and hope that I have enough general knowledge of the alphabet to muddle through the differences with the Serbian version. I just won’t be in Serbia long enough to make the same kinds of effort with the language there as I did with Bulgarian.

Tomorrow is going to be an adventure — a land border crossing and then the transfer in Nish. I won’t have internet unless I have time to find a SIM card in Nish, so, worst case, I’ll check in when I land in Belgrade. Now, I’m off to bed. Morning is coming fast!

August 27, 2016 by Rae

A Lazy Morning in Sofia

I was a bit annoyed that I woke up around seven this morning, but then realised I actually felt rested. Quality of sleep is just as important as quantity! I still managed to doze till about 8:30 and then lazed in bed with the iPad till about 9:30. 🙂

When I finally got up, it was to finish off a small job due tonight so that I wouldn’t have to work when I got home (I might, though…). I dressed, packed, and checked out around 10:30.

By this point, I was famished, but marveling that I really don’t get that “coffee, NOW” feeling that so many people do. I could have quickly gone down the block for a Starbucks before work, but I was perfectly fine waiting.

There are lots of these basement shops in Sofia, where you have to bend down to speak to the shop attendant. There are also lots of tiny kiosks with a price list out front where you have to ask for what you want.

I made my way down Vitosha Boulevard to Makis for a sandwich and a cappuccino, doing the entire transaction in Bulgarian. It was amazing to hear a bunch of bla bla bla and have meaningful words emerge from part of it, “za tuk,” and be able to reply without hesitation, “Za tuk!” She was asking me eat in or takeaway and I replied the former. My sandwich was really yummy, loaded with ham, cheese, and their “Makis sauce” that I could eat by the gallon (I think it’s a tomato chutney).

By the time I was done with breakfast, it was 11:18. I thought of going to the history of Sofia museum, then realised I simply didn’t have time. I was still a good 15 minutes from the bus station on foot and I wanted to pop into Billa for some peanut butter and bacon before catching the 12:30 bus to Ribaritsa that would drop me just outside the village.

Billa had Gala apples! This time, I knew that I had to weigh my produce before going to the till. I made a note of the word for apple (which, as it turns out is very similar sounding to Yablanitsa — yabŭlka — I sense a correlation), then went to the weighing machine. Like at Kaufland, it’s only in Cyrillic, but unlike at Kaufland, it did not have pictures. The first screen had two words, one of which I recognised as being “vegetables.” So I assumed the other one would be fruit. Clicked on that and got a menu of words, enough of which I recognised to know I was indeed in the fruit section. I spotted yabŭlka and clicked on it. A label spit out, which I examined and was surprised to see said Gala. I guess they only stock one variety? My four apples were the price of one in Canada, but, to be fair, they were a bit smaller…

I found peanut butter, bacon, and, finally, baking soda. I cannot believe how hard that has been to find! People have seemed to know what I was asking for (I tried “bread soda,” per a couple of dictionaries, and “bicarbonate soda”), but no one seemed to stock it. I tried the spice shelf at Billa (yes, shelf, singular) and was rewarded with this:

At last!

The cashier was not happy with me as I paid with a 50BGN note. I got my car deposit back in 50s and it was only this morning as I dozed that I realised that is going to be a major problem, like trying to pass 500-peso notes in Mexico. I got rid of two at the Plovdiv bus station and the hotel, but I knew the rest aren’t going to be easy. What I understood with my transaction with the cashier is if I have even change, then I’ll have better luck. That is, my total today was 10.57BGN and by giving her 50.57BGN, she only had to give me two 20BGN notes. I feel stupid for not having paid my 30BGN dinner tab last night with a 50. The clerk at the hotel this morning said that I should be able to get the bills changed at a bank, but banks aren’t open on Saturdays. Should have done it in Plovdiv yesterday, dang!

Since I had so few things, I thought I’d be able to fit them all in my bag, but to no avail. So my peanut butter was carried in plain sight, identifying me as a North American! 😀

I got to the bus station around 12:15 (the lineup at Billa was looooong) and by the time I managed to convert a 2BGN note into coins so I could get into the bathroom, it was 12:20. I couldn’t believe I was about to miss my bus! Thankfully, since I knew where to go, I made it at the last second. This bus attendant understood when I said I was going to Malak Izvor, so I didn’t have to do the point to the map and say “on foot to Malak Izvor.” Linguistic tip: learn the shortest, not necessarily best or perfect, way to convey your thoughts! 🙂

It was a long and jerky ride, so I was very glad to arrive at the turnoff around 2:30. It was then a hot, but fairly quick walk into the village. I’m not sure exactly what time I got in, but it was about 2:50, which sounds right considering I’d walked 2KM.

It’s been a great week and a half of touring Bulgaria, but it’s time to get back to my normal routine and crack down on making some real money before I leave in just a few short weeks!

August 26, 2016 by Rae

Returning the Car to Plovdiv and a Friday Evening in Sofia

It’s funny how work is sometimes. It was pretty slow this past week I was traveling (minus the rush work due while I was in Plovdiv). But now that I’m ready to get back to it, projects are pouring in and I am booked through next weekend! Needless to say, I need to get back to my routine. But, first, I had to return the car.

So I woke up at 6:30 this morning with either an easy two-hour drive to Plovdiv ahead of me, or a four-hour technical drive through a windy mountain pass. Even though I was tired and knew I’d have to work whenever I landed in Sofia tonight, there was no question of taking the easy road. The whole point of having the car is to see parts of the country I wouldn’t from a bus seat! I did a bit of today’s drive yesterday, but once I got south of Troyan, it would be a new adventure and one last time to indulge in the sheer pleasure of driving.

I walked the dogs, had breakfast, responded to a few clients, packed, and hit the road around 7:20, with my ETA in Plovdiv being around 11:30, the car being due at noon.

So I drove… Past Troyan, as I went through the Beklemeto Pass, I did a double take when I could have sworn I saw a large stone arch rising above the treetops. It disappeared, so I figured I was imagining things. No! Some time later, I saw it again and a sign saying it was the Arch of Freedom and I could access it by driving 2KM straight up the mountain.

I turned. Up and up and up and up and up I climbed a super narrow and scary one-lane road with increasingly bad pavement.

The final bit was the worst because I had no idea if there would be a place to turn around at the top and I was inching my way through potholes the size of Bulgaria with a sheer drop on my driver’s side and an uncomfortably steep slope ahead of me. The only reason I kept going was because I didn’t want to back down that road unless I absolutely needed to! But I made it, and there was room to turn around!

This arch commemorates the Liberation of Bulgaria in 1878.

It was freezing up there and very windy, but the view!

The drive down was no less terrifying. Here, I’m not even halfway back to the main road!

By the time I got over the pass, I still had about 70KM to Plovdiv. I reached the end of the road and saw signs that said Sofia to the right and Burgas to the right. I am going to do a post about driving in Bulgaria, but let me give you a spoiler: the signage will drive you bonkers. It is either over the top or completely inadequate. I was pretty sure I had to go left, but I called an old man over to confirm. I just said, “Please, Plovdiv?” and he pointed left, then right, exactly what I thought. I thanked him and turned. Yes, I had a map, but this was more efficient!

I pulled over just outside of Plovdiv to top up the fuel (ended up putting in a tad more than I needed to) and to ask Google Maps for directions to the Tany 97 car rental office. I knew it shouldn’t be too hard to get there as it’s right off a main boulevard, with just a couple of blocks to do in streets that are much too narrow to offer both parking and travel in both directions — and yet do!

Sure enough, I got there without incident around 11:15 (it helps that I had walked to the Telenor office on that boulevard and so had more solid landmarks than what I remembered from driving out). Alex, the English speaking clerk I hadn’t met, but chatted extensively on the phone with, greeted me with, “Hi, Rae!” Guess they were expecting me. 😀 He gave the car a once over, I handed him the documents (registration, etc.), and he gave me back my 300BGN deposit without my having to ask for it. Yay! Tany 97 is in both Sofia and Plovdiv and I highly recommend them for car rentals in Bulgaria as they have some of the best prices I saw, they have staff that speak good English, and, perhaps most importantly, their cars are in good shape!

Alex offered to call me a taxi, but I wanted to walk to the bus station (3KM away) so I could get a light lunch and an ice cream en route, so I declined. I headed straight for the donair place I ate at my first night in Plovdiv and got a small donair that was just as good as the first time. Next stop was a Raffy stand for gelato. They didn’t have chocolate hazelnut so I tried chocolate cherry… and have a new favourite. Dang!

I made it most of the way back to the bus station without needing navigation, but I did check the map quickly when I got to the Singing Fountains.

The Plovdiv bus station is a mess. It’s just a collection of stands and buildings with no central office or departures/arrivals board. I walked around a bit and could only see booths selling tickets to Athens, Istanbul, and a few points in Western Europe. Finally, I spotted a bus marked Sofia that appeared to be ready to pull away, so I ran to it, hoping I could get a ticket on board. Nope. The bus driver slammed the door in my face and drove off. That was fine. I would have been upset if I had been walking around for an hour and not received any help, but I knew there were lots of buses to Sofia and I would not have been comfortable on a 2.5 hour bus ride without using the bathroom first! I found a bathroom and then wandered around some more when I saw this sign:

I was pretty sure it says “Tickets for the Plovdiv-Sofia line sold here.” Okay. The arrow is pointing down. Does that mean someone shows up before the bus leaves to sell tickets? That did not seem implausible. But since there was no one around, I went back into the larger building, the one that appears to be the official departure lounge, to again look for any sort of departures board with Sofia on it. Instead, I found that same sign, but with an arrow pointing to the right. Huh? I stared at it for a full minute when someone tapped on my shoulder. I looked up to find a woman smiling at me kindly. “Do?” she asked (“To?”). “Sofia,” I replied. She laughed and pointed to the door right in front of me that was plastered with information on all the tickets I could buy to various places in Greece. She shrugged in solidarity at my confusion. I thanked her and went into the ticket office.

There was a short lineup, so I had just enough time to find the schedule for the Plovdiv-Sofia trips. There was going to be one at 1:00! Perfect! By this point, that meant only 20 minutes to kill. It was my turn to be served when a woman cut in front of me and started talking to the clerk. What the clerk told her was so clear it was like she was speaking English, “I’m working here and will serve the next customer. Get to the back of the line!” It’s sort of like when I had my breakthrough with oral Spanish and realised that I only need to understand a few words to get what is being said. Wow!

I stepped up to the counter and said, “To Sofia, please.” The woman replied in perfect English, “One o’clock?” “Yes.” “14 leva, please.” What service! I’ll take the Plovdiv mess of a station over the Sofia Centralna Avtogara any day!

It was only when I stepped outside that I realised I’d forgotten to ask her what sector to go to. But I figured it would be the same one that I had seen the last Sofia bus at. So now, I had 15 minutes to kill and I realised that what I wanted was a coffee. I’ve somehow managed to avoid getting coffee from the myriads of little stands all over Bulgaria, where you get a shot of espresso in a tiny open cup. The sight of Bulgarians with such a cup is so ubiquitous that it’s almost like the cup of coffee is a mandatory Bulgarian national accessory. Now was the time to join their ranks!

There were several coffee stands at the bus station and I picked one that had a menu with prices. I ordered a coffee with milk and handed over my 60 stotinki. The woman started to yell at me (which I know is just a Bulgarian being a Bulgarian, nothing to take personally) that milk costs extra. Hey, I was just reading your menu, lady! I passed her a 1BGN coin and she slapped change down while still yelling at me. Being in possession of my mandatory Bulgarian national accessory, I yelled back at the same volume, “It’s okay. Thank you very much!” and headed for a bench!

Question: why does “I would like a coffee with very little milk” in my terrible Bulgarian get me a perfect coffee every time while it gets me a cup of milk with a drop of coffee at chains like McDonald’s and Tim Horton’s?!

My coffee hit the spot. When I was done, it was just past 12:50, so I went to see if the bus had arrived it had! We left right on schedule.

I was really tired, but didn’t want to nap and couldn’t focus on a book or magazine. So I just played a word game on my iPad for 2.5 hours straight. It was the perfect way to pass the time, engaging enough to keep me awake, but not too mentally taxing. I was surprised by how quickly the drive passed!

We hit traffic coming into Sofia and the bus suddenly pulled over onto the shoulder. I understood why when I realised there was a metro stop right there. Fully half the bus got off! I was tempted as I knew what stop to get off at for my hotel (NDK), but by the time I realised that I was about to miss an opportunity to try the Sofia Metro… I missed my opportunity to try the Sofia Metro. 🙂

Thankfully, traffic picked up quickly and before we knew it, we were at my least favourite place in Bulgaria:

The only thing I like about it is the bathroom. 😀 Okay, and the croissants, but I didn’t get one this time.

It was 3KM to my hotel so of course I wanted to walk after that long bus ride. My donair and ice cream already felt far away, so I followed my nose to a pizza place and paid a whopping 1BGN for a slice with ham and cheese. 0.76CAD or about 0.50USD, and it was good pizza! I’ve been going to mid-range priced sit down places all week, but if you stick to fast food (which is not all crap), you can eat very cheaply in Bulgaria.

It felt really nice to be able to get to the hotel without needing navigation help. I’d booked at the Hotel Zenith again because I really couldn’t see a point of looking for something else as the price to amenities and location ratio was perfect. I’d asked for the same room as last time, but it was booked, so they gave me the one under it, saying it is identical. It is!

I sat at the desk for an hour and did some work. I should have done more, but I’d reached my limit for the day. The plan was to get a not too late dinner, turn in fairly early, sleep in tomorrow, then work until about 11:00, have a late breakfast/brunch, and grab the 12:30 bus to Teteven. I shouldn’t have to work when I get home, but I’ll need to get cracking, and then some, on Sunday!

By 6:30 this evening, I got the tummy growls, so I headed to the Happy Bar & Grill in front of the Sveta Nedelya Church for sushi. I took a different, more meandering route, than I would have taken in my first days in Sofia, but got there without an extra step. I ordered the same thing I’d ordered in Plovdiv, but remembered it wouldn’t be quite enough, so I decided to add one more roll. I was really curious about the pale pink wrapper used instead of nori on some rolls, so I decided to order a roll with it, realising only when it came that it’s very likely rice paper. This roll was about as unJapanese as you can get, but so yummy, and the first roll with cream cheese that I like. The creaminess of the cheese is cut with the orange and grapefruit. I could see myself eating a roll like this for a brunch! I don’t think there was any fish in it, now that I think about it. I had shrimp (cooked) in one of the rolls and raw fish in the other. Very good dinner! I can’t believe I prefer sushi in Bulgaria than on the coast in Mexico!

When I was done with my meal, I noticed this little device on the side of my table. Ready to order the peach cheesecake (back to my normal diet tomorrow, LOL), I experimentally pressed the “call” button and my server appeared so quickly it was like she was beamed to me! The cheesecake was okay (not as good as their Oreo one), but went down well with the rest of my beer. 🙂 Done, I pressed the “bill” button, and, boom, there’s the server again. I approve of these gadgets! 🙂

It was about 8:00 when I came out of the restaurant and I toyed with the idea of going to a bar for a glass of wine, but I was really done in. It’s been a really full week! I’m off to spending as much time as I can in the comfy bed here. 🙂

August 24, 2016 by Rae

Prohodna (Eyes of God Cave)

A big shoutout to my high school friend Barbara for today’s amazing excursion!

I slept like the dead last night and was still exhausted when I woke up, even after nine solid hours of sleep! It was sheer will power that got me up and on the trail with the dogs. I didn’t want to over do it today since I do have another couple of full days of travel ahead of me. I had originally thought that today would just be an errands day, but Barbara posted a picture to my Facebook wall last week that blew me away after I confirmed it was not Photoshopped and meant a half day excursion!

The Eyes of God. I have not been able to determine ownership of this picture and it is all over the web. If it is yours, just drop me a comment and I will remove it or give you credit. Thank you.

The Eyes of God. I have not been able to determine ownership of this picture and it is all over the web. If it is yours, please drop me a comment and I will remove it or give you credit.

Barbara posted this picture because it was taken in Bulgaria, so she immediately thought of me. I did some research and discovered this amazing geographical formation is in a karst cave known as Prohodna, very easily accessible, and… 30 minutes from Malak Izvor.

I did my work for the day and set off around 10:30 or so. I turned on Google Maps once I got to Yablanitsa and they directed me without any wrong turns to the cave site just north of Yablanitsa. I passed one sign in Cyrillic only just past the town of Karlukovo indicating I was on the right road.

Just as Google Maps insisted I had arrived when I was in the middle of nowhere like I didn’t know existed in Europe, I saw a second sign for the cave. Woohoo!

I still cannot get over how much Bulgaria reminds me of southern SK or maybe the Okanagan.

I parked right near the sign, not realising that I could go straight down to the cave opening. But the road down was just a teeny bit rough and I wouldn’t have wanted to do it in a rental vehicle anyway.

Getting into the cave isn’t very difficult. I think anyone who can walk could get to the formation, especially if they have someone to hang onto.

Standing in the cave looking out towards the parking lot:

This cave system is popular with rock climbers and spelunkers.

And tah dah!!!

I couldn’t believe that the formation was right there and that I could easily take a good shot of the “eyes” without special equipment or having to climb or whatever. Even in daylight, the effect was profound and unmistakable.

You can really see the “nose” as you move towards the back of the cave:

The complex is truly massive and there are hiking trails throughout it.

The hiking terrain wasn’t that different from what I get in Malak Izvor, so I didn’t go far. I did climb up this mini cliff to explore a large cave opening.

Amazing view from up there!

What goes up must come down… Some scrambling on my butt was required!

When I’d had my fill, I went back up to my car and then decided to check out that little building.

Okay. Possibly my dream house. SO CUTE! 🙂

There’s a monastery to the left.

I then retraced my steps to Yablanista and headed west towards Sofia to get groceries at the Kaufland in Botevgrad. I drove around town a bit, but there wasn’t anything that would have made it worth paying to park so I could walk around. So I just went to get my groceries. First, though, I wanted a bit of lunch and I knew that there was a grill right outside Kaufland where I could grab a quick bite.

I could understand the menu well enough, but was glad that it had pictures confirming exactly what you were getting for your 1.70BGN. I picked a kufte plate, three meatballs with a bun and sauce. The transaction went smoothly. I ordered and she told me the price. Once I paid, she put my kufte in the container and said, “Sauce?” I saw I had a choice of ketchup, mustard, or lutenitsa, the wonderful Bulgarian answer to ketchup, a pepper and tomato based sauce that can be mild or spicy. I’ve had spicy homemade lutenitsa in Yablanitsa, so I decided to see what the commercial stuff is like and replied, “Lutenitsa, please.” She had her hand on the ketchup pump and appeared surprised by my choice, but made the switch. Finally, she rattled off something I didn’t understand. Instead of rolling her eyes or making assumptions, she tried again, more simply, and said just one word as a question, “Here?” Ah, takeaway or eat in? I said “Here, please,” and she smiled before adding the bun to my container and telling me to enjoy my meal.

I was hungry. 🙂

I enjoyed my quick lunch. The commercial lutenitsa is very different from the homemade, being completely smooth and mild. There’s just something about red peppers that elevate the most boring dish. I really liked this version of the sauce and could see myself eating it more regularly than the spicy homemade stuff I had that made me sneeze!

After that, I did my shopping. This will likely be my last big shop before I leave. I think the thing I was most excited to come home with was a broccoli! I know I’m already at the point where I have to start eating down some things, like the rice and pasta.

One of my favourite things at these bigger grocery stores is the better cheese selection. Bulgaria has two cheeses — sirene, a crumbly feta-like cheese, and kashkaval a mild white or yellow cheese that you can slice and melt. I’ve found some good uses for the sirene, but all the kashkaval I’ve had has been a disappointment. I’m glad to get to a bigger grocery store for some rich Red Leicester from England (which has displaced sharp Cheddar in my cheese hierarchy) and some Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano, whichever is on sale. Kaufland has the best sour cream I’ve found yet in Bulgaria, so I made sure to grab some.

I headed home after that and it wasn’t until I got to the exit for Yablanisa and Teteven that I realised that the signage was only in Cyrillic. When I research driving in Bulgaria, I read that you can count on road signage to be in both Cyrillic and Latin letters, which is complete horse hockey. Even on main highways (like the one between Sofia and Varna that leads to Yablanitsa), you often only get Cyrillic right until the exit, where the Latin letter sign will be posted just after the exit. Unless you have eagle eyes, you will miss it! I met an American in Plovdiv who is living in Germany and is in Bulgaria for two weeks. She figured it would be a waste of brain space to learn Cyrillic for that short amount of time (same thinking I had about learning more than absolute barebones Bulgarian), but she said she regretted it as soon as she started driving here. Driving here is almost as stressful as in Mexico and I know I eliminated a huge chunk of that stress when I made the decision to learn to read Cyrillic.

I know I mention this quite a bit, but the more travelers (and even expats!) I meet who cannot read Bulgarian, the more I understand just how different my experience has been from most Western tourists because I can read the language. I chatted extensively with the hotel clerk in Veliko Tarnovo and she had me reading all sorts of stuff because she couldn’t believe that I could. In just two months here, I can get through a basic menu, recognise some stores (pharmacy, bookstore, supermarket, butcher shop, etc.), recognise some buildings (police station, town hall, library, museum (and of what), match the street names from my English tourist map to the Cyrillic characters on a street sign, and more. The American living in Germany said she tried to memorise what some words and names look like, rather like trying to memorise Japanese or Chinese characters. Not particularly efficient!

So it’s been a pretty low-key day. I’m debating attempting a long road trip tomorrow, but am cognisant of the fact that I’ll be away Friday and most of Saturday and may not want to spend another three solid days on the go. I just need to come up with a backup plan that needs the car and that is a little closer. Off to walk the dogs and then do some research while I enjoy a beer!

August 23, 2016 by Rae

Tsarevets Fortress, a Taste of Veliko Tarnovo, a Stop in Teteven, and on to Maluk Izvor

I slept soooo well in Veliko Tarnovo. That bed! The room was also dark and despite all the traffic in the evening, things quieted down around ten. I woke up just past eight (!), took a moment to wake up, and then went to have breakfast. I only had four hours till I had to vacate my parking spot and that felt like just the right amount of time for the day, but that I should not waste any of it.

Quite a nice view from my room. Soon as I opened my curtains, these guys waved at me and yelled good morning!

Breakfast was an acceptable buffet. The coffee was out of those popular Nescafe dispensers and too sweet for my taste, but the food was good. I enjoyed a selection of meats, bread, jam, cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers, and olives, which I understand is a fairly typical Bulgarian breakfast.

This is what parking looks like in these car unfriendly towns, people parking almost on top of each other. Both myself and the folks in the light grey car had said we weren’t leaving till noon, so that dark grey car was parked behind us.

That reminds me that I forgot to recount my adventure getting out of my parking spot in Nessebar! It looked like I had a lot of room to get out, but it was all in the wrong places. To avoid a bollard, I would hit a taxi. To avoid the taxi, I would scrape the car on my passenger side. I had to do like I did with Miranda and mentally imagine all the manoeuvres I’d have to do with the car to get it out. I was reasonably confident I’d figured it out when a man knocked on my driver’s side window. All I got of what he said was “Not good.” He made some motions that rather mimicked how I had planned to get out and then he pointed from his eyes to me. It was clear that he was saying, “I’ll spot you.” Well, he did, and it was a great job! I slid out of that spot smoothly, with no extra steps, in a couple of minutes. On my own, I would have had to continually get out of the car to check my clearances. He was my hero of the day!

Back to this morning, the first thing I wanted to do was visit the medieval stronghold of Tsarevets. It was the primary fortress of the Second Bulgarian Empire from 1185 to 1393. My hotel happened to be right by the entrance. I’m pretty sure I couldn’t have parked closer to it!

Looking down from the hotel parking lot.

Around the corner from the hotel, looking towards town, the fortress behind me. When I left with the car, I drove up from the left in this picture and turned left to where that car is in the middle of the picture.

Tsaravets fortress! The ticket booth is right before it. 6BGN to get in.

The man in pink is the ticket checker. He had his hands full a few hours later as I came out of the fortress!

My mood was giddiness. Remember that I’m a medieval history major! This would be my second opportunity to explore medieval ruins (first time was, of course, in Scotland).

The wooden bridge felt very spongy!

This maps shows just how massive the complex would have been. There is quite a lot left still to see!

This was one of the only English signs on the whole property. “You might encounter reptiles” AND medieval ruins? 😀

There was a very clear PA announcement in a couple of languages, including English, which recited the warnings and gave additional information. It sounded like it was narrated by a poor man’s Alan Rickman (RIP), especially when he said, “You may encounter reptiles,” in that flat bored sounding tone of Rickman’s. Made me laugh every time I heard it!

I liked how they hid the modern pipes in these old broken ones:

One of many bells on site.

All the signage was in Bulgarian, what I assume is Russian, and German. Between the Bulgarian and the German, I could get just the gist of what I was looking at. We know from the above sign that I’m at Baldwin’s tower and I’m pretty sure that the site was restored in 1933…

The ceilings inside the tower were low. The main floor reminded me a bit of my house in Malak Izvor.

“Monastery complex” ruins ahead.

Tsarevets was a huge city and had many churches, monasteries, and residential and commercial buildings in addition to being a centre of administration and governance.

The complex is huge, but felt like it had a logical flow. I found myself climbing higher and higher without really noticing it.

This shows where the kings lived and governed.

These are the steps leading up to the church. I rounded the corner and heard québécois accents!

I said to the group of men that it was good to hear my accent again. They laughed. We did small talk for a minute. They are from the Outaouais, where I lived until 2008!

I came out of the church and heard some folks complaining in Spanish about the chill this morning (much appreciated), but that it was better than the unrelenting heat that was worse than anything they’d experienced in Hermosillo. Wait. What?! I had to intervene and asked if they were from Sonora. Yes! I said that I spent two winters in Mexico. We chatted for a bit and I offered to take pictures. I sure didn’t expect to get in some good Spanish practice this morning, but there you have it!

I went around the back of the church hoping to be able to get even further up, but my hopes were dashed by the elevator being closed. 🙁

No stairs either!

I was as far up as I could go, so I headed down, eager to find the “Cliff of Death” the loudspeaker announcer kept on warning us about!

There is a light show here at night. Must be spectacular!

And behold the Cliff of Death! This picture does not convey the sheer drop. Rumour has it there were executions carried out here.

Sumac, just like back in Quebec!

Something about a gate. *wry grin*

These stairs were fun in a long flowy skirt!

Well, that’s graphic! The point of the exhibits up here is for folks to touch them, so there were kids playing executioner and condemned!

I had heard shrieking on my way up, which I initially thought was the kids recreating the executions, but it was actually two gals who got their long hair caught in these very heavy helmets!

Back near the entrance was a catapult.

It was only as I left the complex, a full two hours after I arrived (I can’t believe how quickly time passed!) that I saw this lettering on the walls. Something about restoration in the ’70s, I believe.

I had just over an hour before checkout time when I’d had my fill of Tsarevets, so I decided to check out Veliko Tarnovo.

I would not want to be a bus driver in this town!

This ice cream brand has so many different names! No, I did not indulge…

This “Tequila Bar” made me laugh.

A statue of Bulgaria’s four kings. I didn’t have time to get right down to it.

There were many panoramic view points along the main road, but this was my favourite, a strip of steel and wood leading into the abyss.

This is where I had dinner last night:

You can sort of see how their rear windows overlook the city. I ate downstairs.

I found a Raffy’s gelato stand somewhere around this point. They are all over Bulgaria and, in my opinion, the best. The gal at the hotel agrees with me! I had my favourite, chocolate hazelnut!

This shop name made me laugh.

I headed back to the hotel through an alleyway behind the church.

Notice how modern life is squeezed into this ancient towns, cars parked where they can, rubbish bins under the bridge arches.

Last night, I completely missed this sign saying my hotel was thataway. But guess what? Even in broad daylight, sober, and with my glasses on, I still made a wrong turn getting there. It’s a wonder I found it in the first place!

I thought this wood being chain sawed was very pretty. As I took a picture, I heard one of the workers make a comment that had the word tourist in it. I bet it wasn’t flattering!

I’m so pleased I went to Tsarevets and Veliko Tarnovo! My morning and short evening were just the right amount of time. It was then time to head back to Malak Izvor and work. 🙁 It was surprisingly easy to get out of Veliko Tarnovo, just a couple of turns and then straight west.

I made a small detour to Teteven, a nearby town I’ve been wanting to go back to, to get a late lunch and some groceries. The town’s setting is spectacular!

This is the stand where I had my very first ice cream in Bulgaria. 😀 No, I did not get any today.

“Here…” something happened? 🙂

I was happy to find cold water!

I crossed the river to find the produce market, so reminiscent of Mexico!

A quick slice of pizza sounded ideal for lunch and I found one. I was shocked that the stand had a guy who spoke perfect English. The woman who started to serve me threw her hands up in disgust when she realised I don’t speak Bulgarian. Funny how some people are. The guy at the ice cream stand in Veliko Tarnovo spoke slowly to me and I was able to understand him fine even if I couldn’t always answer (eg. “Cup or cone?” and I’d point to the cup).

Well, it has finally happened; I’ve had pizza with sweet corn! It was actually good! The pizza slice had been there a while, but I actually prefer my pizza at this temperature, so I found this quite good.

I got a few groceries after my pizza and then it was then a very short drive to Malak Izvor, where the doggies and cat were happy to see me. I put on laundry, hoping the threatening rain holds off long enough for my things to dry, and took the pups on a short walk. Now, work! 🙁

I plan to work tomorrow morning and head off in the afternoon to view a local sight or two and then go further afield, past Sofia on Thursday. We shall see how that works out.

A Life By Design

"Sometimes in life, we reach to a right place by departing from a wrong port with a wrong ship!" ~ Mehmet Murat Ildan

Restaurants

Goodbye Malak Izvor and a Final Afternoon in Sofia

A Lazy Morning in Sofia

Returning the Car to Plovdiv and a Friday Evening in Sofia

Prohodna (Eyes of God Cave)

Tsarevets Fortress, a Taste of Veliko Tarnovo, a Stop in Teteven, and on to Maluk Izvor