Bulgaria

How time really flies, we are already on our way to our 6^th country and we only have 7 more on our to-visit-list!!

This week we went on a tour in Bulgaria, which has Greece, Turkey and Romania as neighbours.

According to the creation story, the Bulgarian people are a bit forgetful and when God started to hand out the countries, they came too late, everything was already divided.

Luckily God took pity on them and gave them a piece of his own paradise…

Bulgaria, what a blissful time we had here!! First we stopped in Bansko, a charming ski resort about a 160 kilometres from the capital Sofia. We loved it because we both love skiing and we heard that Bulgaria is the new and upcoming place to be.

It is the best resort in Eastern Europe and nestles at the feet of the Pering Massief, one of the 11 national parks in Bulgaria, where you can run into bears and wolves.

But the most dangerous ‘animals’ we encountered here are the people on skis…

A local ski instructor told us that the resorts can compete with Switzerland and France, because the snow isn’t all that different, but they can guarantee the snow here because of the use of snow cannons. 
           

So, no signs of communism here, but brand new ski lifts, miles and miles of slopes and 'après ski' in the typical Bulgarian ‘mechanas’, which actually means meat on a stick and women dancing on the tables.

Bansko is a hot new ski resort, nothing short to his big brothers in Switzerland or France.

After all these sporting efforts, we decided to sniff out a little culture and discover the country. The Sveta Trojitsa, also known as the Trinity Church, dates from the time the Turks were in charge here.

At the entrance you find the emblem of Christianity next to the symbol of the Islam. Next to the church there is a bell tower from which you have a stunning view. We enjoyed the ‘Dancing Koekoerie’ very much. They fend off evil and pray for an excellent harvest. This is very much for real!
           

Bansko might be a small village, but still there are plenty of museums. The most important one is that of Nicolas Fabsarov, who was a famous poet.

If you like the rustic, you can visit the old village, walk up to one of the convents or spend the day in Sofia.

We drive up to Melnik barely 30 kilometres from the Greece border, which is now a quiet town but once residents to over a 10.000 people. The area there is really something to see with hundred of sand pyramids, giving it a fairytale feel.
       ~ MELNIK ~  

Finally, as said before, we ended our visit in Bulgaria with a trip to Sofia. One day isn’t enough, but still you can’t leave without having been here…

See you next time!! 

Big kiss Aurélie <3