Bulgaria
March 2018
hmmmmm
So, Bulgaria. Sofia… the capitol.
Why?
Because it’s there… and we haven't been
Over all impression; it’s a repeat
We thoroughly enjoyed our vacation from the boat. 8 days 7 nights. We took an apartment close to downtown through booking dot com Internet images looked great and reviews were outstanding. It did not disappoint. Alex (proprietor) did a fantastic job with the remodel of the old apartment. Very modern. Even the window curtains had a remote control. The only thing a bit off was the ‘handicap assessable’ description. It was on the 5th floor, which is really the 6th for us Americans; the ground floor is ‘the ground floor’ followed by the 1st floor then the 2nd… etc. 103 steps. 
We arrived after dark. Spitting rain and a chilly breeze. After caching our breath (103 steps up) we had a tot of Jameson to unwind. Our bellies wanted a bit more than grog so we set off down the block in search of dinner… Bulgaria unlike most of the other EU countries we have visited eats dinner between 6-8pm. Many restaurants were closed or closing. We found something open and stepped in. They spoke some english and the menu had english subtitles so we placed an order. The table wine was very doable. The starter salad was pleasant. The dinner… was A - May - Zing!!! We ate so much it hurt. We hurt… By 10 pm they were closing up so we payed our bill… the second best part of dinner… Prices are about HALF what we pay in the US or the EU… A HUGE dinner, starters and more wine than we should have drank… the equivalent of just over 20 US dollars. We paid in lev’s, the Bulgarian currency. 
We waddled home and up 103 steps, 6 flights…. ugh
The next day was dreary… which was fine because we had no plans. We also had no expectations about what we would see or experience. The bakery across the street provided our breakfast, Jim made the 206 steps (up and down) plus to get us the most delicious chocolate croissant like roll we've ever had. An excursion after breakfast to find a grocery. We also purchased laundry detergent because the apartment was equipped with a washing machine! Kathy had preplanned. Why do laundry before you go in vacation when you can do it ON vacation?
Local Cuisine. Lots of meat, on a stick or a rod or a big ole’ platter. Accompanied with grilled vegetables. Our favorite dish / food was a ‘sache’. Mixed grilled meat and vegetables served on large, heavy and HOT clay tile, supported by a metal stand, sizzling as it is placed on the table.
Sofia offers many tours around the city and several are FREE…
The Culture Tour. Nearly 3 hours with our guide. The tour, stopping every few blocks at a site of interest. Explanations of customs; dress and rituals. Food sampling and snippets of history.
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| Jim learning to make a traditional bracelet for spring they are later placed on a flowering tree |
Bulkan Bites. FREE food tour. It was sunny and warm and everyone want to go on th tour today. They turned a few people away but we managed a spot. Our guide phones ahead to the restaurants with our numbers so they could prepare the samples for us. The tour gave us an opportunity to try food and drink we would probably have never tried otherwise as well as see some of the city and scoping our dinner options.
Banitsa. A bread made with a film type dough filled with local cheese. Baked
Shopska Salad. Tomatos, cucumbers, onions, pepers and local white cheese
Ljutenica. a thick relish of tomatoes and red peppers
Tarator. a very, very thin soup of watery yoghurt and cucumbers. A summer specialty.
Sheep stomach… The waitress said this is a VERY special dish. Jim enjoyed it, maybe not enough to order ever again… the stomach was bland, filled with minced meats and liver…
Boza… a thick breakfast drink of rye, what and millet… boiled, sweetened and chilled.
Ayan. a cold yogurt peerage (taste like buttermilk to us)
The Sightseeing Tour. Fun and educational An introduction to the city and history. We saw lots of religious buildings:
Mosques, Synagogues, and Churches. Repurposed Bath house, now a museum. Lots of old ruins… it is impossible to build anything new without disturbing or unearthing foundations and artifacts from previous civilizations.
They, like so many european countries, have had to make the decision as to what to persevere and what to build over. Sofia has tried to preserve while building up and over certain sites. There are public tunnels and walkways to view these relics while walking around and under the city.
An amusing story about the city’s statue of ‘Saint Sofia’. She is placed on the site where a statue of Lenin had been. Sofia means wisdom in greek, therefore she holds an owl in one hand. A laurel wreath in the other…meaning peace and success. There is some controversy over this impressive statue. She is considered too erotic (hints of her boobies through a thin gown) and pagan. THE St. Sofia also has nothing to do with the city or its history. It just happens she had the right name for the city and was commissioned for the ‘spot’… 
The neighborhoods have an old, communist feel to them. Many of the buildings are ridgid and stern. Severe in appearance. No adornment. Showing considerable wear.
The official language of Bulgaria is…. Bulgarian. They didn’t have a written language until about 600 years ago. It was the first slavic language to be written down. Originally with the Glagolitic alphabet but was replaced with the Cyrillic alphabet. Two Byzantine brothers, Saint Cyril and Methodius, are said to have created the alphabet after researching, combining and creating the letters that are used today.
We spent an afternoon at the Ladies (Women’s) Market just down the block from our apartment… The stalls were originally all run by women but as times change… so did the market. Both men and women are vendors now. It’s the largest and busiest market of the city. Fresh fruits, vegetables, dry goods and pottery can be purchased at very reasonable rates. There are also a number of pop up stalls, women selling their canned fruits and vegetables. Men selling old stuff; tools, bowls, wire and fencing.
Fridays in Bulgaria. One of our tour guides, Nora, asked, ‘what’s special about today?’ *Well, back in the US it’s Good Friday. Bulgaria celebrates Greek Orthodox Easter next weekend; so that can’t be the answer…. Nora went on to enlighten us… ‘It’s Friday!… ‘we’ in Bulgaria go to work late… and leave early… and don't usually do much ‘work’ on Friday…. ‘
haah… not a bad idea (for some)
Our last full day… with no tours planned, we decided to ride the cable car / gondola up Mount Vitosha. Hearty skiers and snow boarders take the open gondola, we opted for the closed touristy one. We navigated the subway, $1each, to bus #122, another dollar. We and several other tourist hopped on. The Cable car building is at the end of the bus line… but we did think it odd that the driver turned the bus off and kind of stretched out a bit. A pleasant smile on his face. Nap time? We made the short trek up to to the building. Odd. No one around. And, the cable car isn't moving. The door has a posting on it; Bulgarian and English… Closed today due to high winds… uggg
We all (10 of us) stand around then remember… the bus! catch the bus. We quickly head back to the bus stop where our driver is patiently waiting…. for us. He apparently knows the lift is / was closed but… well. He speaks no english and non of the passengers spoke Bulgarian. We all climbed back on the bus… Idea… a quick text to Alex the apartment proprietor who, by the way, was planning on meeting us at the ski lodge… had planned to snowboard today. He too, had just discovered the lifts were closed. ‘Hang on he says’… get off at the bus stop by the mall. I’ll get you directions for the #66 bus. It goes almost to the top of th mountain!” We relayed the information to our fellow cable car hopefuls.
Our driver declined to charge us the bulgarian lev ($1) for the return trip. We all exited the bus and waited for Alex’s text when the bus driver, knowing we all wanted to get to the mountain top, came running back to us with a note book. In a large square he had written the #66 and was pointing across the road to the bus stop opposite. … the bus that would take us to the mountain top… What a guy. We thanked him and quickly crossed the road. Alex, came through with the directions as well. and the times for the bus heading north, up… we had to wait 45 minutes. In that time, many more tourist showed up for the “gondola” bus… and we became the bearer of news… closed today but… take the #66 bus. Ride it to the end. By the time #66 arrived, we were 15 tourist strong and non of us positive we were doing the right thing.
The ride up the mountain was worth the lev’s we spent. The old bus had seen a LOT of cobble stone and pavement over the years, but she chugged along faithfully up and up and up. We left the city behind, the forest taking over. Pines and white birch. Then a few snow flakes, then a lot. We noticed signs along the way encouraging then insisting on chains for the tires. A police blockage stopped many travelers hoping to make the top… not today without chains though. We crept up and up till the cobblestones were covered in ice and snow, the clouds spitting hail then parting for a quick glimpses of the the spectacular vista below and ahead.
The scraggly old man, with a worn and tattered back pack leading us to ? . Then he runs up the craggy rocks on the side of the mountain road. ??? He breaks off a big pine branch and starts handing our pieces for us to ??? smell… Nice, pine sap too. He does indeed lead us to the ski lodge… hard to miss because there’s only one road that dead ends at the lodge. It’s snowing like crazy and windy as all get out…
To our surprise, people are skiing and snow boarding… The lift is NOT running so they walk, with their gear, to the top and ski down… very dedicated or ???
We headed to the lodge and found the kitchen open. Soup: bean and or chicken noodle. Cabbage and pork too. Very hearty and tasty.
The weather was not improving and we had no idea if / when the next bus was… waiting out side under the questionable bus stop didn't seem like the best idea. One of the other passengers in our group was able to find the bus schedule… there;s one there right NOW, next bus in 1 hour and 30 minutes…. geez. Jim and Kathy grabbed their belonging and hurried to the bus stop… slipping, sliding and shivering. Too late. Trudge back up the mountain road. Warm up … then head down to the stop again. Within minutes the bus was pulling up. Another 15 minute wait (on the warm bus) so others have time to make the scheduled run… there’s only one more bus today!
We bounced and wove out way back down the mountain. Snow blurring our vision, then dwindling to flurries, then green grass, flowers and the city. An all day adventure for the price of a few dollars.
Departure day. We packed our belongings and stowed them in the ‘lock box’ provided by Alex and set out for a walk about. Lunch at Einstein’s Pizza under the city among remnants of old ruins. Then, on to tour a museum… but being Monday, it was closed. So we wandered around till we decided to head to the airport and check in early. Collect the bags, underground to the subway train. The airport. A rental car in Cyprus for our ride home and for the next week…. because it was cheaper than a taxi ride.
Nazdra’ve….
... cheers
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