We left Bansko in the early morning, now heading for Plovdiv.
The first part of the journey was by an old narrow-gauge train from Bansko to Septemvri (5 hours for about 100 km); here we changed to a modern train – to get into Plovdiv just another hour later.
This gallery contains 15 photos.
Today we used Bansko as a base for a trip into the Pirin Mountains. A 45 minute drive got us to the station of a chairlift … from here it was half an hour up the mountain – before making … Continue reading
We left Gorno Draglishte and continued to Bansko … here we changed vehicles and carried on to Belitsa and its Dancing Bears Park. This park serves as a refuge for former dancing bears, freed from their previous lives.
This morning we had a further opportunity to explore Gorno Draglishte – this time by horse carriage.
This gallery contains 8 photos.
From Rila Monastery we continued to the small village of Gorno Draglishte, less than two hours away. After arrival George showed us around the village with a stop at the washing machine and a short walk into the fields behind … Continue reading
From Sofia we made our way South into the mountains, the Rila Monastery being our destination. This Orthodox world heritage listed monastery is the largest and supposedly most impressive of all monasteries in Bulgaria.
The roots of the monastery go back to the year 927, however it was only in the 14th century, that it was moved to its present location. Its church – the Church of Nativity – was built in the first half of the 19th century, it is surrounded by the monastery, a beautiful four level building with nicely decorated balconies. The mountainous backdrop adds to the atmosphere – allowing one to easily forget the hundreds of other tourists.
From Veliko we continued to Bulgaria’s capital – Sofia – a three hour bus ride away (without toilet stop … ).
After arrival we went for a quick lunch in a market hall – to the have an orientation walk around town, taking in the most important sights and leaving plenty of time for personal exploration.
This gallery contains 12 photos.
Veliko Tarnovo turned out as our first stop in Bulgaria. We had a full free day to explore the city. Most of us joined a free city walking tour in the morning to get some orientation in the former capital … Continue reading
Around Midday we made our way to the train station to catch a train to make our way across the Friendship Bridge – spanning the Danube river – from Romania into Bulgaria.
This morning we enjoyed a city walking tour; our guide provided good insights into way of life during Communist times and did show some of the hidden treasures … including one of the churches, that has been moved to make place for the Palace of Parliament.
