Eastern Europe
BULGARIA - 25th May, 2007
From Greece we headed north to Bulgaria. Attempted to renew our Green Card / EU car insurance at the border and got a no-can-do in Greece have to do so in Bulgaria. In Bulgaria, it was a 'no, no,no, no need - your insurance is still valid' - 7 days left on it. So through we went with one of the easiest border crossings ever! Me thinketh it's the EU to EU country thing!
MELNIK
15 km across the border we stayed at a wee traditional village called Melnik. What an introduction to Bulgaria! Most of the houses / hostels / guest houses are built in Bulgarian revival style - fantastic rustic looking! Again, the brook / river running through the town always adds to a village's atmosphere. Throw in a background surround of volcanic 'sand-looking pyramids' with green green vegetation growing erratically over them and we have the favourite town on the trip so far! I know, I know... it seems we never tire of being impressed by each new place we visit!
Now.. on this note, it must be said that we even made this 'no.1' village status when we were all sober! You see, Melnik is also renowned for it's local 'hang-over free' wine! On several occasions, we put this theory to the test... Dad and Fred were a wee shady one morning, but strongly suggest that it was the many glasses of local liqueur (a clear liqueur -similar to raki / ouzo) that was consumed at the evening's end that was the cause! I may have been a wee 'tired' the third morning - but it was probably due to the lack of sleep and the fact that we had been drinking wine instead of water most days!
RODOPI MOUNTAINS AND NATIONAL PARK
Our next destination was to be Plovdiv - regarded as 'Super Plovdiv' and Bulgaria's most appealing city. Word amongst fellow-travellers seemed to confirm this. So the road through the mountains and national park seemed the most scenic and best travelling route to go. Afterall - it was only 300-400km travelling.
Perhaps we were wrong in thinking that this trip would only take 5 hours or so? Perhaps the calculated distance plus a couple of coffee / food stops was slightly miscalculated! In hindsight we realised the couple of shocking roads and the extremely mountainous, zig-zag, windy drive were the reason the trip took 13 hours. (Of course - minus a few hours we spent exploring a most awesome valley / fjord and cave.)
And so it was at 7.30pm in the evening when we stopped for dinner at a town 17km before Plovdiv that we learnt a few more things about travelling and each other. After sitting down to order a dodgy meal at a pub, Walle's temper came out. Following a nice little barney / argument at the local pub we learned a few more tips for the trip.
Tip # 4 - The Europeans perhaps don't fair so well with long travelling days.
Tip # 5 - Always ensure Walle feeds regularly otherwise a usual genial character turns into a cranky gremlin.
Of course, it didn't help that Walle felt 'out-of-the-loop' with respect to the day's plans... and especially that the day's discussions and plans were changing all the time as sunlight ran out. Never mind - always learning and growing as we travel. :)
PLOVDIV
Well - we all certainly agreed with the recommendations of fellow-travellers and the claim that Plovdiv is Bulgaria's most appealing city! We loved the city centre with it's cafes and roman ruins. This and the walk through the old town and overall atmosphere lead us to continue to like Bulgaria more and more.
With such an enjoyable time had in Bulgaria so far - we wanted to stay longer!!!! The Valley of the Roses, Bulgaria's ancient capital, Veliko Tarnovo, more scenic mountains, national parks and the atmosphere / people willed us to extend our time in this brilliant country. But alas - we could not. We only had 3 days left on our car insurance and this needed to be renewed at the border.
BELOGRADCHIK
A drive up to Belogradchik, near the Serbian / Romanian border, saw us again become impressed by Bulgaria. This town is surrounded by these amazing red red lumpy-bumpy jutting rock-formations and is so lush and green we decided that Bulgaria definitely needs to be visited again! The panoramic view from the castle was so serene, quiet and had us marvelling in nature, life and our travels!
Vote = BULGARIA no.1 :) Of course the fact that it would have to be one of the cheapest EU countries only adds to it's appeal!
From Greece we headed north to Bulgaria. Attempted to renew our Green Card / EU car insurance at the border and got a no-can-do in Greece have to do so in Bulgaria. In Bulgaria, it was a 'no, no,no, no need - your insurance is still valid' - 7 days left on it. So through we went with one of the easiest border crossings ever! Me thinketh it's the EU to EU country thing!
MELNIK
15 km across the border we stayed at a wee traditional village called Melnik. What an introduction to Bulgaria! Most of the houses / hostels / guest houses are built in Bulgarian revival style - fantastic rustic looking! Again, the brook / river running through the town always adds to a village's atmosphere. Throw in a background surround of volcanic 'sand-looking pyramids' with green green vegetation growing erratically over them and we have the favourite town on the trip so far! I know, I know... it seems we never tire of being impressed by each new place we visit!
Now.. on this note, it must be said that we even made this 'no.1' village status when we were all sober! You see, Melnik is also renowned for it's local 'hang-over free' wine! On several occasions, we put this theory to the test... Dad and Fred were a wee shady one morning, but strongly suggest that it was the many glasses of local liqueur (a clear liqueur -similar to raki / ouzo) that was consumed at the evening's end that was the cause! I may have been a wee 'tired' the third morning - but it was probably due to the lack of sleep and the fact that we had been drinking wine instead of water most days!
RODOPI MOUNTAINS AND NATIONAL PARK
Our next destination was to be Plovdiv - regarded as 'Super Plovdiv' and Bulgaria's most appealing city. Word amongst fellow-travellers seemed to confirm this. So the road through the mountains and national park seemed the most scenic and best travelling route to go. Afterall - it was only 300-400km travelling.
Perhaps we were wrong in thinking that this trip would only take 5 hours or so? Perhaps the calculated distance plus a couple of coffee / food stops was slightly miscalculated! In hindsight we realised the couple of shocking roads and the extremely mountainous, zig-zag, windy drive were the reason the trip took 13 hours. (Of course - minus a few hours we spent exploring a most awesome valley / fjord and cave.)
And so it was at 7.30pm in the evening when we stopped for dinner at a town 17km before Plovdiv that we learnt a few more things about travelling and each other. After sitting down to order a dodgy meal at a pub, Walle's temper came out. Following a nice little barney / argument at the local pub we learned a few more tips for the trip.
Tip # 4 - The Europeans perhaps don't fair so well with long travelling days.
Tip # 5 - Always ensure Walle feeds regularly otherwise a usual genial character turns into a cranky gremlin.
Of course, it didn't help that Walle felt 'out-of-the-loop' with respect to the day's plans... and especially that the day's discussions and plans were changing all the time as sunlight ran out. Never mind - always learning and growing as we travel. :)
PLOVDIV
Well - we all certainly agreed with the recommendations of fellow-travellers and the claim that Plovdiv is Bulgaria's most appealing city! We loved the city centre with it's cafes and roman ruins. This and the walk through the old town and overall atmosphere lead us to continue to like Bulgaria more and more.
With such an enjoyable time had in Bulgaria so far - we wanted to stay longer!!!! The Valley of the Roses, Bulgaria's ancient capital, Veliko Tarnovo, more scenic mountains, national parks and the atmosphere / people willed us to extend our time in this brilliant country. But alas - we could not. We only had 3 days left on our car insurance and this needed to be renewed at the border.
BELOGRADCHIK
A drive up to Belogradchik, near the Serbian / Romanian border, saw us again become impressed by Bulgaria. This town is surrounded by these amazing red red lumpy-bumpy jutting rock-formations and is so lush and green we decided that Bulgaria definitely needs to be visited again! The panoramic view from the castle was so serene, quiet and had us marvelling in nature, life and our travels!
Vote = BULGARIA no.1 :) Of course the fact that it would have to be one of the cheapest EU countries only adds to it's appeal!
2007-06-06 16:17:56 GMT
Comments (1 total)
Author:Anonymous
Hey, Liza
I so glad you liked my city - Plovdiv. I keep telling people that it is a wonderful place to visit but they probably think I am biased because I am Bulgarian. Glad you are enjoying the trip, I certainly enjoy reading about it. It is like a virtual trip for all of us stuck in humid, freaky hot Dubai this summer...
--Katerina
<mailto:[email protected]>
2007-06-26 05:58:20 GMT
I so glad you liked my city - Plovdiv. I keep telling people that it is a wonderful place to visit but they probably think I am biased because I am Bulgarian. Glad you are enjoying the trip, I certainly enjoy reading about it. It is like a virtual trip for all of us stuck in humid, freaky hot Dubai this summer...
--Katerina
<mailto:[email protected]>
