Anyone for Bulgaria

On Apr 17, 12:07*pm, Jack Campin - bogus address
wrote:
The scenery is as expected for an east European country, mostly dull
and depressing with lots of semi derelict houses and a countryside
that is littered with rubbish.

I haven't seen much rubbish in Hungary, Romania or the Czech Republic.
More in Slovakia and a LOT more in Croatia and Bosnia, where broken
fridges roam the hills like sheep. *Maybe it's a south-Balkan thing?

==== j a c k *at *c a m p i n . m e . u k *=== *http://www.campin.me.uk ====
Jack Campin, 11 Third St, Newtongrange EH22 4PU, Scotland == mob 07800 739 557
CD-ROMs and free stuff: *Scottish music, food intolerance, and Mac logic fonts

just orange air pollution....

Martin wrote:

On Fri, 17 Apr 2009 00:57:20 -0500, "Gregory Morrow"

wrote:


Martin wrote:

On Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:33:55 +0100, (David Horne,
_the_
chancellor (*)) wrote:

tim..... wrote:

Having just come back from a trip does anyone want a report?

Absolutely. We've considered a visit there.

I'll consider a short one on Valencia which, somewhat to my surprise
(after initial impressions) was well worth 5 days... indeed, could
have
stayed longer.

We have a Bulgarian friend who is a professional pianist in NL.



Who eats Valencian oranges...???

;-)

Are you suggesting she sucks?


No...!!!


--
Best
Greg

"tim....." wrote in message
...
(Sofia tomorrow)

OK, 4 days later!

Day 3) Back home this is Good Friday, but here it isn't, it's a normal day!
Try and get breakfast at 8:00 as I want to catch the 8:45 bus, but no-one is
in the hotel to serve it, they all appear to live off site. Go and pack and
by the time they arrive to serve breakfast, it is time for me to go. Oh
well, I can grab some pastries in the bakery for not very much!

Walk to the bus station (next to the rail station) and the bus is just
arriving. Sometimes you pay in the office, and sometimes you pay the
driver. On this bus, it's the driver - 12 Lev to Sofia, more than the train
fare. We leave early at 8:35, perhaps it's the one before running late?
Running out of Bansko we pass some of the missing hotels and lots of half
finished apartments, lots of opportunities for foreign investors here(!).
After one more stop at a bus station (Razlog) we run fast along the main
road, just picking up a couple of people at village bus stops. It's a small
30 seater bus and has about 20 people on it, so not many people do this
route.

We stop half way at Bladoevgrad for a toilet/cigarette break. Most people
get of the bus, I assumed to take a break. The toilet is disgusting, but I
have little choice but to use it, I can't survive 3 hours on the bus
otherwise. When the bus restarts, most of those that got off, stayed off,
there are now only 6 on the bus, and one of those gets off at the next
village. Hm only 5 go all the way, is it worth running this bus? (Well
obviously it is for me, but is it really viable?). The main road into Sofia
is awful, they need to spend some money on this (but as it will be me paying
for it if they do, perhaps not!). Approaching Sofia I'm expecting to go to
the shiny new bus station by the main rail station that I saw two days ago,
but no. We are dropped off at some "out of town" bus station. Fortunately,
it's right next to a tram route so there must be any easy way to the town
centre. (Though I don't know how I would have found this if I were doing
the journey in reverse.)

Including departure day I'm to be in Sofia for 5 days, and the "bus" company
offer a "5 day" travel pass. I find the kiosk for this, having taken the
precaution of printing off the Bulgarian description of the ticket that I
want from their web site, I'm not expecting a problem. However, I have
great difficulty in making the lady understand that I want it from "today",
just why would a foreigner be buying a ticket in this out of the way
location for any other day? Just how hard is "Da". And then I realise my
voice is saying "yes" and my head is saying "no". I'll never get used to
this (and I don't).

Catch the tram to my hotel which is a quite nice three star at 43 Euro per
night by "lion" bridge (Lavov most). As it's a nice day (which it has been
so far, every day) I decide to do the sights of Sofia first in case the
weather gets worse. I wander through the town centre which is quite compact
and easily walkable. TBH there isn't really that much of interest. The
only interesting buildings are the (if I counted correctly) 7 churches. All
the other "interesting" buildings are not very. On this walk I find one
restaurant with a (English) menu outside, it's by the Russian church. I
note this location in case I don't find anything else.

As I return to my hotel I pass a "workers" style cafe. These sometimes make
an interesting experience so I go in and point to some food. I get a bowl
of soup and a "burger" floating in mashed potato. The soup is very oily,
but otherwise tastes OK, but when I get to the "meat" I cannot chew it. I
realise I have the Bulgarian speciality of tripe soup! The main course is
completely cold - um, won't be doing this again. Back in the hotel I find
that the room is exceptionally warm just like the one in Riga, what is it
about these ex"soviet" states? Why is it compulsory to provide heating that
can't be turned off?

Day 4) The breakfast in the hotel is offered by the adjoining cafe which is
separately managed. It is not particularly good, with a poor fixed choice
served with two day old sliced bread instead of the advertised fresh
baguette. As this is the only breakfast that I have so far actually had, I
can't compare it with anything else, so perhaps this is normal or perhaps
not?

Today, for no reason other than it's the end of a line and it has several
services a day (so I won't get stuck there) I'm going to take the train to
Kyustendil. This is a little diesel train (again a new "German" one) and by
the time that it leaves (9:55) it is standing room only. On the outskirts
of Sofia we pass a shanty town of even more derelict houses than seen
elsewhere, surrounded by even more rubbish. I learn on the return journey
that this is "gipsy-town". We make good progress to Pernik, where most of
the passengers get off, but from there we trundle along really slowly, no
faster than the Bansko train.

The fifth half hour of the ride is through some stunning mountain scenery
and there's a station in the middle where a dozen or so walkers get off.
The other five "half hours" are dull and uninteresting (except for their
dullness!). When we get to Kyustendil I find that it isn't even the end of
the line, there is an onward branch, but the last service of the day (for
Saturday) left 30 minutes before we arrived, well that's useful! I have an
hour here, which I expect to be enough!

Kyustendil is surprisingly nice. It's one of the most clean and tidy east
European towns that I have even been to. It has one very large hotel and a
pedestrianised main street full of cafes and restaurants and a nice main
square, not what I expected at all. I could easily have spent longer here
though it doesn't have any real "sights". I discover that this "niceness"
is because it has a spa, but I fail to actually find it.

The return train is almost full, mainly of people returning from Saturday
shopping to the local villages. We stop at the mountain station and pick up
a dozen walkers. I wonder if they are the same ones, they will have had
three hours here? This train only goes as far as Pernik. I was expecting
to change into an "express" from a different branch, but we are all herded
by a load of "security" guards onto the last carriage of the most tatty
train that I have ever seen and are given a lecture about what to do by one
of these security people (not that I understand these instructions). Is
this a return to Soviet style domination, no I'm sure that you have worked
out (as I did) that this is a "football"special!

In the evening I ride the one metro line. In fact it's only half a line,
running from the town centre north westwards to a lucky(!) suburb. It not
the slightest bit useful for anything else. It is currently being extended
to the south-east and as previously noted will have two town centre stations
and will be useful(?) to the tourist for travelling between them (opens some
time in 2009). This new part also serves the football stadium which will be
useful to foreigners should their team ever play Bulgaria. A second N-S
line is also under construction (completed 2012) connecting the current one
city centre station with the railway station, Lavov most and NDK (see
below), so at that point the system may be of some real use to tourists.

Day 5) Sunday. I decide to spend the day touring the tram network and
visiting some minor sights. The latter are mainly the parks to the south of
the centre and the soviet monuments within them.

But first breakfast! I arrive and am told "there is no breakfast today".
The manager of the cafe has resigned and decided not to come in to work
today, so we are given a packed lunch of a cheese and ham sandwich made with
some more of yesterday's stale bread, an apple of the "tastes like chalk"
variety that I refuse to buy from my local tesco and a bottle of water!

Sofia has a network of about 15 trams lines and I like to take the
opportunity to ride these. It gives one the opportunity to see parts of a
town that wouldn't normally be seen, derelict factories, soviet housing
blocks and the occasional pretty part. Sofia is a bit short on the pretty
parts! I get my ticket checked on this trip and note that a couple of
people are fined for not having one.

I visit Bulgaria square with the "monument of the Bulgaria state", which is
now surrounded with scaffolding because it was so badly built it is falling
down and dangerous, and NDK - the National Cultural Centre, a monstrosity of
a building which houses cinemas, a theatre and various other things, and
then I walk to Boris Gardens, via the National football stadium to see the
Russian Army monument, another monstrosity (that you ought to see).

As I haven't seen any other restaurants at all (really) I go to the one that
I found two days ago (it's called the Victoria and is in my guide book as a
"pizza" restaurant). The outside tables are fully reserved, a couple in
front of me decide that they don't want to wait, I wonder what else they
will do. I haven't seen any other restaurants, let along ones with seating
outside! I ask the waitress to confirm the story about the tables and she
says that there are tables inside, that's OK by me! I am offered a choice
of smoking or not! The menu on the outside offers a choice of about 15
things and I have already decided on a couple that I like, but inside I am
offered a menu of about 200 things, can they really manage this much! I
note that very few of them come with accompanying vegetables, so I choose
one that comes with "chips". I also choose an "appetiser" of potatoes with
cheese and ham (baked in the oven). My main course comes first and I wonder
if they have forgotten the appetiser, but as it has to be "baked" they are
still cooking it. The chips that come with my filet of veal are about
enough to make up half a small potato, and they are cold, but the meat is
good. Then my appetiser arrives and it's about the size of 4 appetisers,
well that makes up for the lack of veg on the main! I note that other
things served in the restaurant are large, the people next to me have soup
that has a arrived in a bowl as big as the one that I do my washing up in
(though obviously it's not made of plastic!) Quirks aside, I quite liked
this place, perhaps I should have come here more often.

Day 6) Today the weather is dull and miserable, and guess what, no breakfast
today either, the same stale sandwich as yesterday, but there is
coffee/juice on the table today! Look guys, there's a bakers three shops
away selling the most wonderful bakery items and you think that serving
stale sliced bread is acceptable? Well I don't! (Not that I say so at the
time).

I have decided to go on the train to Mezdra because it runs though another
scenic mountain area. Before I catch the train, I nosey around the bus
station. Boy am I glad that I didn't need to catch a bus. It's a mass of
separate counters for each of about 30 different bus companies and if you
want to go somewhere, you first have to find the right counter. But it's
all in unreadable (for me) script. Between the national bus station and the
rail station is the International bus station. This is being rebuilt to
have a nice new facilities, but even as it is, at least there is an
acceptance that the customers need information in a script that they can
read. Go here for buses to Greece/Serbia/Hungary etc.

Another interesting scenic ride, but it isn't really worth it. Mezdra has
nothing of interest to offer for my two hours and I just wander around the,
very small, shopping area. The only thing of interest is the chaos on
return. The train that I am catching requires reservations and the ticket
office has to have the piece of paper with the free seats on that I
mentioned previously, but they don't have it. Everyone is trying to buy a
ticket, but they can't sell any because they don't know how many seats are
free! With 10 minutes to go the list arrives and they sell tickets. As
before, when the train arrives, there are more than enough seats available
for everyone. Why do they persist in this farce? When I get back the
weather is even worse and I stay in fo the rest of day.

Day 7) I need to be at the airport by 9:30 and horary, there is breakfast.
A new cafe manager has started and he has provided a buffet breakfast. It
is quite basic, with things that are different to what I get at
home -colourless jam and florescent yellow cornflakes, but it is all quite
tasty and, at last, someone who's capable of serving bread made today!

And finally I have to pay, and for today's cock up the credit card machine
isn't working. He expects me to pay cash, though he will take Euro. Not
that that helps me. I have to go across the road and get some from the
Bank, But he can't give me the exact change (not that it would be any use
to me) so I have to over pay. Hang on a minute. I had two days with crummy
breakfast, you inconvenience me by making me pay in cash when I specifically
selected a hotel that took cards and YOU want to round UP the bill. I don't
complain as the amount is tiny in comparison with the total bill, but I
think it says a lot about the (lack of) movement by Bulgaria into the
commercial world, even after almost 20 years!

Finally for my return journey to the airport I find a connection that only
gives me with a five minute walk, instead of the 20 minute one on the way
in. Though the usefulness of this information will depend upon which hotel
you stay at.

tim

On Apr 19, 6:50*pm, "tim....." wrote:
"tim....." wrote in message

...

(Sofia tomorrow)

OK, 4 days later!

Day 3) Back home this is Good Friday, but here it isn't, it's a normal day!
Try and get breakfast at 8:00 as I want to catch the 8:45 bus, but no-one is
in the hotel to serve it, they all appear to live off site. *Go and pack and
by the time they arrive to serve breakfast, it is time for me to go. *Oh
well, I can grab some pastries in the bakery for not very much!

Walk to the bus station (next to the rail station) and the bus is just
arriving. *Sometimes you pay in the office, and sometimes you pay the
driver. *On this bus, it's the driver - 12 Lev to Sofia, more than the train
fare. *We leave early at 8:35, perhaps it's the one before running late?
Running out of Bansko we pass some of the missing hotels and lots of half
finished apartments, lots of opportunities for foreign investors here(!).
After one more stop at a bus station (Razlog) we run fast along the main
road, just picking up a couple of people at village bus stops. *It's a small
30 seater bus and has about 20 people on it, so not many people do this
route.

We stop half way at Bladoevgrad for a toilet/cigarette break. *Most people
get of the bus, I assumed to take a break. *The toilet is disgusting, but I
have little choice but to use it, I can't survive 3 hours on the bus
otherwise. *When the bus restarts, most of those that got off, stayed off,
there are now only 6 on the bus, and one of those gets off at the next
village. *Hm only 5 go all the way, is it worth running this bus? *(Well
obviously it is for me, but is it really viable?). *The main road into Sofia
is awful, they need to spend some money on this (but as it will be me paying
for it if they do, perhaps not!). *Approaching Sofia I'm expecting to go to
the shiny new bus station by the main rail station that I saw two days ago,
but no. *We are dropped off at some "out of town" bus station. *Fortunately,
it's right next to a tram route so there must be any easy way to the town
centre. *(Though I don't know how I would have found this if I were doing
the journey in reverse.)

Including departure day I'm to be in Sofia for 5 days, and the "bus" company
offer a "5 day" travel pass. *I find the kiosk for this, having taken the
precaution of printing off the Bulgarian description of the ticket that I
want from their web site, I'm not expecting a problem. *However, I have
great difficulty in making the lady understand that I want it from "today",
just why would a foreigner be buying a ticket in this out of the way
location for any other day? *Just how hard is "Da". *And then I realise my
voice is saying "yes" and my head is saying "no". *I'll never get used to
this (and I don't).

Catch the tram to my hotel which is a quite nice three star at 43 Euro per
night by "lion" bridge (Lavov most). *As it's a nice day (which it has been
so far, every day) I decide to do the sights of Sofia first in case the
weather gets worse. *I wander through the town centre which is quite compact
and easily walkable. *TBH there isn't really that much of interest. *The
only interesting buildings are the (if I counted correctly) 7 churches. *All
the other "interesting" buildings are not very. On this walk I find one
restaurant with a (English) menu outside, it's by the Russian church. *I
note this location in case I don't find anything else.

As I return to my hotel I pass a "workers" style cafe. *These sometimes make
an interesting experience so I go in and point to some food. *I get a bowl
of soup and a "burger" floating in mashed potato. *The soup is very oily,
but otherwise tastes OK, but when I get to the "meat" I cannot chew it. *I
realise I have the Bulgarian speciality of tripe soup! *The main course is
completely cold - um, won't be doing this again. *Back in the hotel I find
that the room is exceptionally warm just like the one in Riga, what is it
about these ex"soviet" states? *Why is it compulsory to provide heating that
can't be turned off?

Day 4) The breakfast in the hotel is offered by the adjoining cafe which is
separately managed. *It is not particularly good, with a poor fixed choice
served with two day old sliced bread instead of the advertised fresh
baguette. *As this is the only breakfast that I have so far actually had, I
can't compare it with anything else, so perhaps this is normal or perhaps
not?

Today, for no reason other than it's the end of a line and it has several
services a day (so I won't get stuck there) I'm going to take the train to
Kyustendil. *This is a little diesel train (again a new "German" one) and by
the time that it leaves (9:55) it is standing room only. *On the outskirts
of Sofia we pass a shanty town of even more derelict houses than seen
elsewhere, surrounded by even more rubbish. *I learn on the return journey
that this is "gipsy-town". *We make good progress to Pernik, where most of
the passengers get off, but from there we trundle along really slowly, no
faster than the Bansko train.

The fifth half hour of the ride is through some stunning mountain scenery
and there's a station in the middle where a dozen or so walkers get off.
The other five "half hours" are dull and uninteresting (except for their
dullness!). *When we get to Kyustendil I find that it isn't even the end of
the line, there is an onward branch, but the last service of the day (for
Saturday) left 30 minutes before we arrived, well that's useful! *I have an
hour here, which I expect to be enough!

Kyustendil is surprisingly nice. *It's one of the most clean and tidy east
European towns that I have even been to. *It has one very large hotel and a
pedestrianised main street full of cafes and restaurants and a nice main
square, not what I expected at all. *I could easily have spent longer here
though it doesn't have any real "sights". *I discover that this "niceness"
is because it has a spa, but I fail to actually find it.

The return train is almost full, mainly of people returning from Saturday
shopping to the local villages. We stop at the mountain station and pick up
a dozen walkers. *I wonder if they are the same ones, they will have had
three hours here? *This train only goes as far as Pernik. *I was expecting
to change into an "express" from a different branch, but we are all herded
by a load of "security" guards onto the last carriage of the most tatty
train that I have ever seen and are given a lecture about what to do by one
of these security people (not that I understand these instructions). *Is
this a return to Soviet style domination, no I'm sure that you have worked
out (as I did) that this is a "football"special!

In the evening I ride the one metro line. *In fact it's only half a line,
running from the town centre north westwards to a lucky(!) suburb. *It not
the slightest bit useful for anything else. *It is currently being extended
to the south-east and as previously noted will have two town centre stations
and will be useful(?) to the tourist for travelling between them (opens some
time in 2009). *This new part also serves the football stadium which will be
useful to foreigners should their team ever play Bulgaria. *A second N-S
line is also under construction (completed 2012) connecting the current one
city centre station with the railway station, Lavov most and NDK (see
below), so at that point the system may be of some real use to tourists.

Day 5) Sunday. *I decide to spend the day touring the tram network and
visiting some minor sights. *The latter are mainly the parks to the south of
the centre and the soviet monuments within them.

But first breakfast! *I arrive and am told "there is no breakfast today".
The manager of the cafe has resigned and decided not to come in to work
today, so we are given a packed lunch of a cheese and ham sandwich made with
some more of yesterday's stale bread, an apple of the "tastes like chalk"
variety that I refuse to buy from my local tesco and a bottle of water!

Sofia has a network of about 15 trams lines and I like to take the
opportunity to ride these. *It gives one the opportunity to see parts of a
town that wouldn't normally be seen, derelict factories, soviet housing
blocks and the occasional pretty part. *Sofia is a bit short on the pretty
parts! *I get my ticket checked on this trip and note that a couple of
people are fined for not having one.

I visit Bulgaria square with the "monument of the Bulgaria state", which is
now surrounded with scaffolding because it was so badly built it is falling
down and dangerous, and NDK - the National Cultural Centre, a monstrosity of
a building which houses cinemas, a theatre and various other things, and
then I walk to Boris Gardens, via the National football stadium to see the
Russian Army monument, another monstrosity (that you ought to see).

As I haven't seen any other restaurants at all (really) I go to the one that
I found two days ago (it's called the Victoria and is in my guide book as a
"pizza" restaurant). *The outside tables are fully reserved, a couple in
front of me decide that they don't want to wait, I wonder what else they
will do. *I haven't seen any other restaurants, let along ones with seating
outside! *I ask the waitress to confirm the story about the tables and she
says that there are tables inside, that's OK by me! *I am offered a choice
of smoking or not! *The menu on the outside offers a choice of about 15
things and I have already decided on a couple that I like, but inside I am
offered a menu of about 200 things, can they really manage this much! *I
note that very few of them come with accompanying vegetables, so I choose
one that comes with "chips". *I also choose an "appetiser" of potatoes with
cheese and ham (baked in the oven). *My main course comes first and I wonder
if they have forgotten the appetiser, but as ...

read more »

did you manage to learn any Bulgarian ?

"Kris Tonastik" wrote in message
...
On Apr 19, 6:50 pm, "tim....." wrote:
"tim....." wrote in message

...

(Sofia tomorrow)

OK, 4 days later!

Day 3) Back home this is Good Friday, but here it isn't, it's a normal
day!
Try and get breakfast at 8:00 as I want to catch the 8:45 bus, but no-one
is
in the hotel to serve it, they all appear to live off site. Go and pack
and
by the time they arrive to serve breakfast, it is time for me to go. Oh
well, I can grab some pastries in the bakery for not very much!

Walk to the bus station (next to the rail station) and the bus is just
arriving. Sometimes you pay in the office, and sometimes you pay the
driver. On this bus, it's the driver - 12 Lev to Sofia, more than the
train
fare. We leave early at 8:35, perhaps it's the one before running late?
Running out of Bansko we pass some of the missing hotels and lots of half
finished apartments, lots of opportunities for foreign investors here(!).
After one more stop at a bus station (Razlog) we run fast along the main
road, just picking up a couple of people at village bus stops. It's a
small
30 seater bus and has about 20 people on it, so not many people do this
route.

We stop half way at Bladoevgrad for a toilet/cigarette break. Most people
get of the bus, I assumed to take a break. The toilet is disgusting, but I
have little choice but to use it, I can't survive 3 hours on the bus
otherwise. When the bus restarts, most of those that got off, stayed off,
there are now only 6 on the bus, and one of those gets off at the next
village. Hm only 5 go all the way, is it worth running this bus? (Well
obviously it is for me, but is it really viable?). The main road into
Sofia
is awful, they need to spend some money on this (but as it will be me
paying
for it if they do, perhaps not!). Approaching Sofia I'm expecting to go to
the shiny new bus station by the main rail station that I saw two days
ago,
but no. We are dropped off at some "out of town" bus station. Fortunately,
it's right next to a tram route so there must be any easy way to the town
centre. (Though I don't know how I would have found this if I were doing
the journey in reverse.)

Including departure day I'm to be in Sofia for 5 days, and the "bus"
company
offer a "5 day" travel pass. I find the kiosk for this, having taken the
precaution of printing off the Bulgarian description of the ticket that I
want from their web site, I'm not expecting a problem. However, I have
great difficulty in making the lady understand that I want it from
"today",
just why would a foreigner be buying a ticket in this out of the way
location for any other day? Just how hard is "Da". And then I realise my
voice is saying "yes" and my head is saying "no". I'll never get used to
this (and I don't).

Catch the tram to my hotel which is a quite nice three star at 43 Euro per
night by "lion" bridge (Lavov most). As it's a nice day (which it has been
so far, every day) I decide to do the sights of Sofia first in case the
weather gets worse. I wander through the town centre which is quite
compact
and easily walkable. TBH there isn't really that much of interest. The
only interesting buildings are the (if I counted correctly) 7 churches.
All
the other "interesting" buildings are not very. On this walk I find one
restaurant with a (English) menu outside, it's by the Russian church. I
note this location in case I don't find anything else.

As I return to my hotel I pass a "workers" style cafe. These sometimes
make
an interesting experience so I go in and point to some food. I get a bowl
of soup and a "burger" floating in mashed potato. The soup is very oily,
but otherwise tastes OK, but when I get to the "meat" I cannot chew it. I
realise I have the Bulgarian speciality of tripe soup! The main course is
completely cold - um, won't be doing this again. Back in the hotel I find
that the room is exceptionally warm just like the one in Riga, what is it
about these ex"soviet" states? Why is it compulsory to provide heating
that
can't be turned off?

Day 4) The breakfast in the hotel is offered by the adjoining cafe which
is
separately managed. It is not particularly good, with a poor fixed choice
served with two day old sliced bread instead of the advertised fresh
baguette. As this is the only breakfast that I have so far actually had, I
can't compare it with anything else, so perhaps this is normal or perhaps
not?

Today, for no reason other than it's the end of a line and it has several
services a day (so I won't get stuck there) I'm going to take the train to
Kyustendil. This is a little diesel train (again a new "German" one) and
by
the time that it leaves (9:55) it is standing room only. On the outskirts
of Sofia we pass a shanty town of even more derelict houses than seen
elsewhere, surrounded by even more rubbish. I learn on the return journey
that this is "gipsy-town". We make good progress to Pernik, where most of
the passengers get off, but from there we trundle along really slowly, no
faster than the Bansko train.

The fifth half hour of the ride is through some stunning mountain scenery
and there's a station in the middle where a dozen or so walkers get off.
The other five "half hours" are dull and uninteresting (except for their
dullness!). When we get to Kyustendil I find that it isn't even the end of
the line, there is an onward branch, but the last service of the day (for
Saturday) left 30 minutes before we arrived, well that's useful! I have an
hour here, which I expect to be enough!

Kyustendil is surprisingly nice. It's one of the most clean and tidy east
European towns that I have even been to. It has one very large hotel and a
pedestrianised main street full of cafes and restaurants and a nice main
square, not what I expected at all. I could easily have spent longer here
though it doesn't have any real "sights". I discover that this "niceness"
is because it has a spa, but I fail to actually find it.

The return train is almost full, mainly of people returning from Saturday
shopping to the local villages. We stop at the mountain station and pick
up
a dozen walkers. I wonder if they are the same ones, they will have had
three hours here? This train only goes as far as Pernik. I was expecting
to change into an "express" from a different branch, but we are all herded
by a load of "security" guards onto the last carriage of the most tatty
train that I have ever seen and are given a lecture about what to do by
one
of these security people (not that I understand these instructions). Is
this a return to Soviet style domination, no I'm sure that you have worked
out (as I did) that this is a "football"special!

In the evening I ride the one metro line. In fact it's only half a line,
running from the town centre north westwards to a lucky(!) suburb. It not
the slightest bit useful for anything else. It is currently being extended
to the south-east and as previously noted will have two town centre
stations
and will be useful(?) to the tourist for travelling between them (opens
some
time in 2009). This new part also serves the football stadium which will
be
useful to foreigners should their team ever play Bulgaria. A second N-S
line is also under construction (completed 2012) connecting the current
one
city centre station with the railway station, Lavov most and NDK (see
below), so at that point the system may be of some real use to tourists.

Day 5) Sunday. I decide to spend the day touring the tram network and
visiting some minor sights. The latter are mainly the parks to the south
of
the centre and the soviet monuments within them.

But first breakfast! I arrive and am told "there is no breakfast today".
The manager of the cafe has resigned and decided not to come in to work
today, so we are given a packed lunch of a cheese and ham sandwich made
with
some more of yesterday's stale bread, an apple of the "tastes like chalk"
variety that I refuse to buy from my local tesco and a bottle of water!

Sofia has a network of about 15 trams lines and I like to take the
opportunity to ride these. It gives one the opportunity to see parts of a
town that wouldn't normally be seen, derelict factories, soviet housing
blocks and the occasional pretty part. Sofia is a bit short on the pretty
parts! I get my ticket checked on this trip and note that a couple of
people are fined for not having one.

I visit Bulgaria square with the "monument of the Bulgaria state", which
is
now surrounded with scaffolding because it was so badly built it is
falling
down and dangerous, and NDK - the National Cultural Centre, a monstrosity
of
a building which houses cinemas, a theatre and various other things, and
then I walk to Boris Gardens, via the National football stadium to see the
Russian Army monument, another monstrosity (that you ought to see).

As I haven't seen any other restaurants at all (really) I go to the one
that
I found two days ago (it's called the Victoria and is in my guide book as
a
"pizza" restaurant). The outside tables are fully reserved, a couple in
front of me decide that they don't want to wait, I wonder what else they
will do. I haven't seen any other restaurants, let along ones with seating
outside! I ask the waitress to confirm the story about the tables and she
says that there are tables inside, that's OK by me! I am offered a choice
of smoking or not! The menu on the outside offers a choice of about 15
things and I have already decided on a couple that I like, but inside I am
offered a menu of about 200 things, can they really manage this much! I
note that very few of them come with accompanying vegetables, so I choose
one that comes with "chips". I also choose an "appetiser" of potatoes with
cheese and ham (baked in the oven). My main course comes first and I
wonder
if they have forgotten the appetiser, but as ...

read more »

did you manage to learn any Bulgarian ?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Da :-)

tim

On Apr 20, 12:06*am, "tim....." wrote:
"Kris Tonastik" wrote in message

...
On Apr 19, 6:50 pm, "tim....." wrote:

"tim....." wrote in message

...

(Sofia tomorrow)

OK, 4 days later!

Day 3) Back home this is Good Friday, but here it isn't, it's a normal
day!
Try and get breakfast at 8:00 as I want to catch the 8:45 bus, but no-one
is
in the hotel to serve it, they all appear to live off site. Go and pack
and
by the time they arrive to serve breakfast, it is time for me to go. Oh
well, I can grab some pastries in the bakery for not very much!

Walk to the bus station (next to the rail station) and the bus is just
arriving. Sometimes you pay in the office, and sometimes you pay the
driver. On this bus, it's the driver - 12 Lev to Sofia, more than the
train
fare. We leave early at 8:35, perhaps it's the one before running late?
Running out of Bansko we pass some of the missing hotels and lots of half
finished apartments, lots of opportunities for foreign investors here(!).
After one more stop at a bus station (Razlog) we run fast along the main
road, just picking up a couple of people at village bus stops. It's a
small
30 seater bus and has about 20 people on it, so not many people do this
route.

We stop half way at Bladoevgrad for a toilet/cigarette break. Most people
get of the bus, I assumed to take a break. The toilet is disgusting, but I
have little choice but to use it, I can't survive 3 hours on the bus
otherwise. When the bus restarts, most of those that got off, stayed off,
there are now only 6 on the bus, and one of those gets off at the next
village. Hm only 5 go all the way, is it worth running this bus? (Well
obviously it is for me, but is it really viable?). The main road into
Sofia
is awful, they need to spend some money on this (but as it will be me
paying
for it if they do, perhaps not!). Approaching Sofia I'm expecting to go to
the shiny new bus station by the main rail station that I saw two days
ago,
but no. We are dropped off at some "out of town" bus station. Fortunately,
it's right next to a tram route so there must be any easy way to the town
centre. (Though I don't know how I would have found this if I were doing
the journey in reverse.)

Including departure day I'm to be in Sofia for 5 days, and the "bus"
company
offer a "5 day" travel pass. I find the kiosk for this, having taken the
precaution of printing off the Bulgarian description of the ticket that I
want from their web site, I'm not expecting a problem. However, I have
great difficulty in making the lady understand that I want it from
"today",
just why would a foreigner be buying a ticket in this out of the way
location for any other day? Just how hard is "Da". And then I realise my
voice is saying "yes" and my head is saying "no". I'll never get used to
this (and I don't).

Catch the tram to my hotel which is a quite nice three star at 43 Euro per
night by "lion" bridge (Lavov most). As it's a nice day (which it has been
so far, every day) I decide to do the sights of Sofia first in case the
weather gets worse. I wander through the town centre which is quite
compact
and easily walkable. TBH there isn't really that much of interest. The
only interesting buildings are the (if I counted correctly) 7 churches.
All
the other "interesting" buildings are not very. On this walk I find one
restaurant with a (English) menu outside, it's by the Russian church. I
note this location in case I don't find anything else.

As I return to my hotel I pass a "workers" style cafe. These sometimes
make
an interesting experience so I go in and point to some food. I get a bowl
of soup and a "burger" floating in mashed potato. The soup is very oily,
but otherwise tastes OK, but when I get to the "meat" I cannot chew it. I
realise I have the Bulgarian speciality of tripe soup! The main course is
completely cold - um, won't be doing this again. Back in the hotel I find
that the room is exceptionally warm just like the one in Riga, what is it
about these ex"soviet" states? Why is it compulsory to provide heating
that
can't be turned off?

Day 4) The breakfast in the hotel is offered by the adjoining cafe which
is
separately managed. It is not particularly good, with a poor fixed choice
served with two day old sliced bread instead of the advertised fresh
baguette. As this is the only breakfast that I have so far actually had, I
can't compare it with anything else, so perhaps this is normal or perhaps
not?

Today, for no reason other than it's the end of a line and it has several
services a day (so I won't get stuck there) I'm going to take the train to
Kyustendil. This is a little diesel train (again a new "German" one) and
by
the time that it leaves (9:55) it is standing room only. On the outskirts
of Sofia we pass a shanty town of even more derelict houses than seen
elsewhere, surrounded by even more rubbish. I learn on the return journey
that this is "gipsy-town". We make good progress to Pernik, where most of
the passengers get off, but from there we trundle along really slowly, no
faster than the Bansko train.

The fifth half hour of the ride is through some stunning mountain scenery
and there's a station in the middle where a dozen or so walkers get off..
The other five "half hours" are dull and uninteresting (except for their
dullness!). When we get to Kyustendil I find that it isn't even the end of
the line, there is an onward branch, but the last service of the day (for
Saturday) left 30 minutes before we arrived, well that's useful! I have an
hour here, which I expect to be enough!

Kyustendil is surprisingly nice. It's one of the most clean and tidy east
European towns that I have even been to. It has one very large hotel and a
pedestrianised main street full of cafes and restaurants and a nice main
square, not what I expected at all. I could easily have spent longer here
though it doesn't have any real "sights". I discover that this "niceness"
is because it has a spa, but I fail to actually find it.

The return train is almost full, mainly of people returning from Saturday
shopping to the local villages. We stop at the mountain station and pick
up
a dozen walkers. I wonder if they are the same ones, they will have had
three hours here? This train only goes as far as Pernik. I was expecting
to change into an "express" from a different branch, but we are all herded
by a load of "security" guards onto the last carriage of the most tatty
train that I have ever seen and are given a lecture about what to do by
one
of these security people (not that I understand these instructions). Is
this a return to Soviet style domination, no I'm sure that you have worked
out (as I did) that this is a "football"special!

In the evening I ride the one metro line. In fact it's only half a line,
running from the town centre north westwards to a lucky(!) suburb. It not
the slightest bit useful for anything else. It is currently being extended
to the south-east and as previously noted will have two town centre
stations
and will be useful(?) to the tourist for travelling between them (opens
some
time in 2009). This new part also serves the football stadium which will
be
useful to foreigners should their team ever play Bulgaria. A second N-S
line is also under construction (completed 2012) connecting the current
one
city centre station with the railway station, Lavov most and NDK (see
below), so at that point the system may be of some real use to tourists..

Day 5) Sunday. I decide to spend the day touring the tram network and
visiting some minor sights. The latter are mainly the parks to the south
of
the centre and the soviet monuments within them.

But first breakfast! I arrive and am told "there is no breakfast today"..
The manager of the cafe has resigned and decided not to come in to work
today, so we are given a packed lunch of a cheese and ham sandwich made
with
some more of yesterday's stale bread, an apple of the "tastes like chalk"
variety that I refuse to buy from my local tesco and a bottle of water!

Sofia has a network of about 15 trams lines and I like to take the
opportunity to ride these. It gives one the opportunity to see parts of a
town that wouldn't normally be seen, derelict factories, soviet housing
blocks and the occasional pretty part. Sofia is a bit short on the pretty
parts! I get my ticket checked on this trip and note that a couple of
people are fined for not having one.

I visit Bulgaria square with the "monument of the Bulgaria state", which
is
now surrounded with scaffolding because it was so badly built it is
falling
down and dangerous, and NDK - the National Cultural Centre, a monstrosity
of
a building which houses cinemas, a theatre and various other things, and
then I walk to Boris Gardens, via the National football stadium to see the
Russian Army monument, another monstrosity (that you ought to see).

As I haven't seen any other restaurants at all (really) I go to the one
that
I found two days ago (it's called the Victoria and is in my guide book as
a
"pizza" restaurant). The outside tables are fully reserved, a couple in
front of me decide that they don't want to wait, I wonder what else they
will do. I haven't seen any other restaurants, let along ones with seating
outside! I ask the waitress to confirm the story about the tables and she
says that there are tables inside, that's OK by me! I am offered a choice
of smoking or not! The menu on the outside offers a choice of about 15
things and I have already decided on a couple that I like, but inside I am
offered a menu of about 200 things, can they really manage this much! I
note that very few of them come with accompanying vegetables, so I choose
one that comes with "chips". I also choose an "appetiser" of potatoes with
cheese and ham (baked in the oven). My main course comes first and I
wonder
if they have forgotten the appetiser, but as ...

read more »

did you manage to learn any Bulgarian ?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Da :-)

tim

I'll always remember eating Krap ;-)

On Apr 15, 8:01*pm, "tim....." wrote:
Having just come back from a trip does anyone want a report?

tim

http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/200...cheap?page=all
Bulgaria

In addition to boasting some of Europe's last deserted beaches,
Bulgaria's mountain ranges are a delight in summer. For a scenic,
culture-rich trail, drive and walk through the heart of the Balkan
ranges; take in the medieval tsars' capital Veliko Tarnovo, with its
hilltop fortress and breath-taking Preobrajenski monastery; or breathe
in the Rose Valley, where most of Europe's rose oil is produced. On
the way to Sofia, stop in the quiet 19th-century village of
Koprivshtitsa, where every house is a masterpiece. The Rodopi
mountains in the south are more beguiling yet: explore pine-forests,
caves, national revival villages such as Shiroka Laka, and Bulgaria's
Ottoman heritage - Muslim villages frozen in time. This region, home
of the Mystery of Bulgarian Voices choir, is the birthplace of
Orpheus; visit the scary Devil's Throat cave, where Orpheus reputedly
entered the underworld.

Value for money The pound used to be worth three Bulgarian levs, but
has dropped by a third recently. Still, if you avoid the overpriced
seaside resorts, Bulgaria is still astonishingly good value for money.
Boutique hotels outside the big tourist spots are startlingly
affordable.

Best beaches Some of Europe's last deserted beaches survive along the
Bulgarian coast. Most white-sand gems are in the south, part of a
secretive and under-visited region, the forested Strandja national
park. Ropotamo, south of the ancient town of Sozopol, is set in a
lush, protected lagoon, while Sinemorets, a few miles from the Turkish
border, has several dreamy beaches. And up near the Romanian border,
the natural reserve of Durankulak has some very private wild spots for
diving, bird-watching and romantic getaways.

If resorts are your thing, try Sveti Konstantin, a boutique complex
with a classy beach near Varna, or the grand-sounding Riviera holiday
club, set in a private park for an exclusive feel. Albena, with its
4km strip of beautiful sand and clear waters, boasts good water
sports.

Family favourites The excellent-value Hotel Kaliakra (albena.bg) in
Albena is ideal for families - right on the beach with a kids'
swimming pool, playgrounds and kindergarten (at an extra charge). If
you don't need a beach, the five-star hideaway spa-hotel Park Hotel
Pirin (parkhotelpirin.com) at the foot of the Pirin mountains offers
family suites with two or three bedrooms that work out quite
reasonably. The speciality here is decadent beauty and spa treatments,
but little ones can enjoy the children's pool and playroom, and in the
evening the open-air garden restaurant is great for families.

Cultural highlights The capital, Sofia, boasts the Balkans' most
extravagant cathedral, Alexander Nevski, the funky ethnographic and
archaeological museums, and attractive art galleries, all within a 10-
minute trot across the emblematic Communist-time yellow tiles. Loiter
with intent in hilly Plovdiv, a gorgeous ancient town bristling with
cobbled streets and impressive Roman remains. Varna on the coast is
the kind of stately, pedestrianised belle-epoque town you didn't
expect here. Hear some top talent in the turn-of-the-century opera
house, wander around the Roman thermae, and gawk at the world's oldest
gold treasure in the beautifully appointed archeological museum.

Summer climate Summer in Bulgaria runs from June to early September
and it is reliably warm, dry and sunny. The seaside enjoys a breeze
that cools it down at night. The mountain regions can get hot and
sticky, but nights are always fresh. You can expect 25C to 30C this
summer and rain is highly unusual, but take the usual precautions
against sunburn.

Culinary treats Food is a fusion of Balkan, Middle Eastern and central
European cuisines; head for the traditional tavernas called mehana and
don't miss the traditional pastry banitsa and delicious chunky dips
lsuch peppery lyutenitsa and aubergine-based kyopolu. Must-try
regional dishes slow-cooked in earthenware dishes are Bansko's kapama,
kavarma, and mussaka. Bulgarian red wines are outstanding, too.

How to get there Direct return flights for under £200 from London to
Sofia take three hours (Wizz Air, Bulgaria Air, EasyJet, British
Airways). All these plus Thomson Airways also fly to Varna and Burgas
on the coast.
Kapka Kassabova