Beauty in the Bulgarian hills

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Entering Bulgaria

The train from Bucharest was empty. There were four carriages. My carriage had two other people in it. There was an attendant that seemed bored out of his mind. The train was bound eventually for Istanbul, and it turned out that he was a Turk. He was a very pleasant guy that I was very sceptical of in the beginning. The seat reservation was casually paid to him on the train. I was sure that he was some local that had jumped on the train at the station looking for a few bob before it took off. The word receipt wasn't in his English vocabulary, nor in my Turkish! Turned out that I was owed a Euro change. He had a single Euro coin, but I told him that was no use to me. He got off at the Bulgarian border and changed it into local money for me. Not a bad auld divil after all!!

We get over the bulging Danube, which was at it's highest level for 100 years. After the bare mountainous countryside in Romania, the Bulgarian scenery was beautiful and lush, with hedge rows almost like the Irish countryside. It's Orthodox Easter Sunday, and before I get off the train the Turk presents me with an egg. It's bright red in colour, but the exact size of a regular egg. I have no idea if this thing is made of plaster or protein! Knowing I'm confused he produces his 'master' and tops it. The locals paint their eggs for the easter. Better for the health than 3 for Eu10 in Tesco!

The train station is in the middle of nowhere outside Veliko Tarnovo. The usual greeting meets me getting off the train: 'Room'. I ignore him and head around to the front of the station. It looks like it's on a small country road. There are a couple of people there but non that look like they'll be any use to me. The first guy reappears. Why did I ignore him? When he heard that I had a booking (I actually had!), he actually turned out ok.

A little old lady appeared and led me to a bus stop. She's explaining to her hearts content. It's in one ear and out the other. All I want to see is a bus to town. 'Today Easter Sunday. Seven o'clock. Maybe no more bus'. She says as she takes off waddling up the road beckoning me to follow. I reluctantly follow her up what is a deserted road with no life on it. I'm waiting for someone to jump out of the ditch any minute. She's telling me about the English literature she has read, about Orthodox Easter, and crucially about the hour it'll take to walk to the hostel!. All the time she is curious as to the deposit I had paid to the hostel.

Like an oasis in the desert, a bus rounded the corner. I certainly wasn't at a stop, but stuck out my hand and it stopped. The little old lady wasn't impressed when I got on, her last chance for a bit of business that day gone. It was my first bus that had a conductor to collect my money on my travels. Luckily I had the 2LV coin that the Turkish guy got for me at the border, otherwise I might have been back to grovel with the old lady! The hostel is up a hill to the back of the town and I eventually make it up there. Along the way I am stopped another couple of times by touts. They actually seemed quite friendly and are my guiding lights in actually finding the hostel.

Veliko Tarnovo

Next day was a full day out and about to investigate what the town had to offer. It is perched in the most beautiful countryside. A river winds through the town, flanked by tiered housed and forested mountainous countryside. One of the most notable things you notice are the amount of Estate agents advertising in English. Seemingly the English have been buying property in the area for some time.

I head for the Tsarevets Fortress. At one time it really must have been a fabulous site. It's difficult to appreciate the way that the river meanders around it until you walk around the fortress. Apart from the entrance ramp, the river follows the fortification for the full exterior. An ideal location for a fortress. It seems like their idea of restoration is a bit of a sham. If something has fallen down, just build it back up with whatever it takes. Oh and if you finish it that'll be an unexpected bonus! Regular bricks and mortar on top of the ancient fortress walls. Rebars sticking out of the sides of walls, ready for 'phase 2'. As critical as I am, it was a beautiful walk around it. They could do with hiring a few gardeners as well (sorry, more criticism!). At the end of the fortress is the execution stone, where the convicted were thrown off a rock down the sheer drop into the river.

Coming out of the fort I meet the room tout from the station the night before. He's watching the people like a hawk. He complains bitterly about poverty. Tarnovo is not a place with jobs or money. He doesn't want to hear of the communists, but is disgusted with what they have ended up with. The average local wage at about EU150 a month. He genuinely seems like a nice guy and before he heads for the train station, he brings me to his favorite 'cheap place' for lunch. A bottle of water and a cheese sandwich for EU0.40. He gets two bars of chocolate as part of the bargain!

I continue on down Gurko Street, a beautifully preserved natural craft and trade center fronting the tiered terrace of houses. I continue on the Asenoutsi Park, which like the fortress is fully surrounded by the second continuous meander of the river in the town. At the point of the park is the Asenevs monument. It's not old, but the money isn't there to maintain it from the vandals. Like the street lights in bundles of four. A cluster with two working is a bonus. Having said that, the town is quite nice, full of shops and full of people. The people were a lot more friendly than the Romanians and seemed to have a lot more life in them.

The next day I tackle a 7km trail to a monastery across the hills to the back of the hostel. It's a beautiful walk, with the view of the fortress getting smaller and smaller along the path. The area was lush with beautiful green forest. The first hour was over rolling hills with the jagged rocky cliffs sheltering the other side of the valley a distance away. They the trail leveled along a shaded forest. The monastery itself was very unremarkable, but the walk was beautiful. The return journey held a surprise in store. Nobody had told me that snakes are quite common in the area. I spotted three on the way back. One of them was good enough to hiss at me! I didn't return the compliment, just fled!

The Bulgarians really were a surprise to me. I was expecting a dour people with little character. What I found was a welcoming country with beautiful scenery, good food and lots to do. A good place for a return trip.