Last Days in Bulgaria

Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009--Veliko Tarnovo (Continued)

Late in the evening, I went with the three Frenchmen staying here to see the Light and Sound Show. It takes place at the fortress. There is a good (and free) viewing point from just near where we are staying. Rosa rounded us up and got us out the door. It was an impressive show--better than most such shows which I usually find boring. There were white, red, and blue lights on the fortress walls and on the entire church-topped hill that is inside the fortress. There were also green laser lights and flashing white strobe lights as a part of the show.

Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009--Veliko Tarnovo to Varna

It was cooler and cloudy this morning. At first, I was afraid that rain might be on the way. Rainy weather is not what one wants when heading to a beach resort!

I am having trouble deciding where to stay in Bucharest. I keep getting conflicting information about places when I check websites that have reviews. I have completed an online reservation form for one place that priced higher than my usual budget, but seems nice and centrally located. Will see if I get a response from them.

I was glad to leave Rosa's today. I found her to be quite smothering. Also, the food was too much the same from meal to meal. I have had pork steak for 4 meals, now. Fortunately, I was able to maintain control of what I did and when, although she often tried to guide me. The Frenchmen used a term to describe her that is one that Arne would have used, saying she is "special."

The bus trip to Varna took about 3 1/2 hours. My assigned seat was next to a young boy whose parents were across the aisle from us. He was so excited about going on vacation to the beach. Since the bus left the bus company office in downtown Velika Tarnovo, I was hoping it would take us to the downtown office of the company in Varna. It didn't, though. It took us to the bus station which is 2 km from town. If I had been alone, I would have walked into town. But the three Frenchmen were with me. They wanted to take a taxi. I agreed to accompany them, but I told them that the guidebook reported foreign tourists having trouble with the taxi drivers over-charging and mentioned that we must make sure that he uses the meter. Well, we loaded and the driver took off. I looked at the meter and it wasn't on. I brought it to the attention of the Frenchman in the front seat who was in charge of the trip, and he asked the driver to turn it on. The driver, of course, acted surprised. Anyway, the trip came to $3 using the meter. There is no telling what the driver would have asked us to pay if I had not looked after the situation. That's why I try to avoid taxis!!!

The hotel where I am staying is okay. It is rated as a 1-star facility, but it has cable TV, a/c, private bath. The walls are plain, however. It reminds me of many of the business-class hotels where I stay in India and pay about $12 per night. Here, however, I am paying $35. It wouldn't be so bad if I didn't know that all three of the French guys are staying here for a total of $40 per night. It's frustrating to be a single traveler sometimes.

After checking into the hotel, I went immediately to the office for making reservations for international trains. I asked about the times for the train from here to Bucharest and learned that it leaves at 22:00 and gets into Bucharest at 6:00 except for Saturdays (and maybe one other day she mentioned which I didn't notice because it had nothing to do with my planning). I had intended to stay here for two nights, but I really don't need 2 1/2 days here. Therefore, I decided to take the train tomorrow night, since she said there were still two places available on it. Besides, the cost of the train trip with sleeper car is cheaper than another night at the hotel where I am staying! That will give me 20 days for visiting Romania and Moldova. My current plan had called for 17 days there, so I will review my guidebook to see about adding a couple of other stops along the route.

From the reservation office, I headed off to see the Black Sea for the first time up close. (I've flown over it several times and seen it from the air.) It is a beautiful blue that trends toward aquamarine in the shallow areas at the beach. It's quite pretty. It's a sandy beach--a coarse, beige sand rather than a powdery one.

I was surprised, however, that the beaches were not more crowded. This should be the height of the tourist season, and I was expecting crowds like I had found in Saranda in Albania and on Lake Ohrid in Macedonia. Instead, there was plenty of room on the beaches for people. Of course, there are beach resorts all up and down the coast from here, so that spreads the people out more. But I would have thought that Varna, being one of the two big cities on the Black Sea here would have bigger crowds. Another interesting thing is that women out-numbered men on the beach 3-1. That was around 16:00. Going topless seems to be quite normal for women at the beach here.

Varna is a nice city. It has lots of new modern development around the edges. And the center of the city has had lots of restoration. There are parks and a tree-lined promenade just next to the beach which give a nice look to that area. In addition to being a beach resort, there are old Roman ruins, museums, etc. Tomorrow, while waiting for my departure time on the train, I will explore the parts of the city I have not yet seen.

I had some leftover items in my bag to eat, so I bought some cheese to go with them and a beer and ate in my room tonight. I also bought some more of the special Bulgarian chocolate cake balls dipped in chocolate that I have been eating. These were flavored with cinnamon. Ummmm! Tomorrow, I will spend the rest of my Bulgarian currency on food and seeing the sights.

I went back out around 20:00 to walk among the crowds. Everyone was strolling on the pedestrian streets. Now that I have been at the cyber cafe, I will return to the room.