Bulgaria Aug 4 through 6

Aug 4:
We set two alarms--one on the cell phone and one on George's watch-- to be sure we got up at 5:00 am, so we'd be on time for the 6:00 am bus to Golden Sands, Bulgaria. After a bit of a fitful night due to the heat and jet lag, we woke on time, packed our gear and went downstairs to the hostel office. The young man in the office was just waking up and called us a cab--George checked us out and the cab showed up immediately! Our cabbie took us on a roller coaster ride through the early dawn light--"threading the needle" once between a moving bus and a parked car. You just have to belive these drivers do not have a death wish and trust their skills. He sped through the side streets, which have parked cars on both sides--parked partly on the street and partly on the sidewalk. This makes an interesting dilemma for pedestrians-- brave the streets or walk on the building sides with dogs sleeping under the cars and dripping air conditioners, or compete with the careening vehicles in the street! Our cabbie did obey the light signals and other rules of the road, but he wasn't shy about moving forward. Got us to the bus stop right across from the train station in plenty of time to catch the bus. We saw others with luggage waiting, so had the right place. The bus came on time and, although the bus attendant didn't speak much English, we managed to communicate where we were going and ascertain that this was the right bus. For only 30 Euros each (about $43.00 American), we got a round-trip ticket to Golden Sands. The bus was spacious and air conditioned! No on board bathroom, so we stopped periodically for a bathroom and snack break. I sure wouldn't have wanted to drive that bus through the city streets-- We were soon out in the countryside and enjoyed the trees and rolling hills. Saw a man driving a cart pulled by a horse on a parallel track to the highway-- what a great way to get to work. Also saw a flock of sheep in a pasture, tended by a shephard and a couple of dogs. There was a shack that, presumably, the shepard stayed in--plywood and looked pretty flimsy. When we made our first stop, the bus pulled away without passengers, but since no one else was alarmed, I assumed it was refueling. Since all announcements to the bus passengers were in Romanian, we couldn't understand much, so followed our fellow passengers on faith! At this stop, we purchased our tickets. There were some large vulture-like birds circling over a field--white heads and tails and brown bodies-- very wide wingspan. They didn't have long necks, but also weren't shaped like raptors, so I'm not sure what species they were! When we got to the Bulgarian border, we weren't sure what to expect--After a bit of a wait, the bus roster was examined. A Bulgarian official took both our passports away (concerning me a little-- I hate being parted from that document!). He returned them to the bus attendant, but, for a nano-second as the bus started to move and we hadn't gotten them back, we had a bit of a scare. Then the bus attendant came into view with all the passports and returned them to us with nice stamps added to our collection! The Bulgarian landscape was, again, rolling hills-- fields and small forest lands, dotted with red-tiled roofed houses-- not many, though. It's very green, the result of unseasonably heavy rains, according to the locals. Crops included sunflowers, corn (LOTS of corn!), and possibly flax. Enjoyed another stop at a very modern gas station where we got chips and drinks (it is a dead ringer for the roadside minimart-gas stations in the U.S. ) The four-lane highway is well-maintained and smooth. Stopped at a small town about an hour south of the border and many passengers transferred to another bus for points south of Golden Sands, includin "Sunny Beach." Arrived right on time at 1:00 pm in Golden Sands at the Grand Hermitage Hotel. We hadn't written down the address of the place we had reserved, only had the name. The driver (not a cabbie, but the brother of the cabbie owner), took us to a nearby hotel with internet access, paid by ten minute increments. Found the information needed and drove through narrow back roads, really more path-like narrow driveways than roads. Partially paved, gravel and dirt--very twisty. Arrived at Bambook (Bulgarian for "Bamboo"--and there is lots of native bamboo growing by the roadsides) and found no one there at first. It was very hot and we were soon soaked in sweat! We chatted with a high-school age boy at the house next door, whose family was visiting there from Greece. He informed us that the owner was away until later in the afternoon and that he spoke only Bulgarian! We commented that his English was very good--he said he had studied it in school. His goal is to live in New York and knew all about the city! When I told him I had been there, he was very impressed. We decided to go into the house and look around, as it was open. We stashed our packs out of sight of the road and poked around the guesthouse a little. Shortly, a small woman came up the stairs and greeted us sleepily--she had been napping in this heat and wasn't aware that we had booked the room. Turned out that when they checked their internet messages, we had actually booked a tent!!! Glad they had a room available, because the tent would've just been too hot. The room was on the top floor of the three-story guesthouse with a nice view of the Black Sea and coastline to the north--white limestone cliffs that catch the light at odd moments in the day and are very impressive. There are four or five red-tiled roofed houses below this house--very picturesque. These houses are local folks summer homes. Interestingly this guest house has identicle roof tiles to the ones on our house! All the houses have big gardens with lettuce, squashes, beans, and fruit trees ----apples and plums in the yard. We can pick ripe plums right off the trees for snacks! They are delicious. Got settled in the room after a nice chat with the owners of the Guesthouse, Lyn and Wes. Lyn is from England, Wes from Australia and neither one speaks Bulgarian! Sat on the small terrace outside our room and enjoyed the sea breeze and the view, and a little reading/crocheting. Made a trip to town with Wes to the grocery store (another cross-cultural adventure)-- found food for a few days. Breakfast comes with the room --so only needed lunch/dinner food we can cook here. We haven't been to a restaurant for dinner yet! Showered and cooled off after the trip and chilled. Washed a few clothes. I was overcome with fatigue around 4:30 pm and had to sleep-----George enjoyed a visit with our hosts.












Aug 5:
Up early-- still feeling the effects of the time difference, but we both felt better and more energetic today-- it's cooler and we slept well last night. Cooling breezes were great--we left the doors and windows open. woke early and took several picutres of the dawn breaking-- very peaceful here. Dozed off again, but was up early. Breakfast downstairs with Lyn and Wes -- melon wedges, one scrambled egg, and a plate of goat cheese, tomatoes, and another kind of cheese. Got acaquainted--great conversation! Compared our traveling experiences and generally had a good laugh! Wes led George and I down the path to the beach. He swims in the morning down at the point below the house. "Pirates Beach" below the house has less expensive umbrella and chaise lounges and beyond that beach is the nude beach and the gay beach-- good places to enjoy the sand and sun for everyone. We walked down the beach at the water's edge until I found the hotel with the internet. We bought 20 minutes and sent a message to Dorina and Rose about where we are and plans for the next few days-- and that we can't communicate every day because we don't have internet at the Bambook Guesthouse. Walked quite a ways down the beach, lots of little shops and places to eat--and vendors selling jewelry. The beach is full--vacationers from all over, but not many speaking English--mostly folks from Romania, Bulgaria-- also some from Germany. Heard many languages---great to be here! Folks are in all stages of dress and undress on the beach-- women go topless without comment and many of the little children are sans suits. Very healthy attitudes. Stopped at "Magdelena's Fish Bar"--owned by a friend of Wes's for a wine/beer and a nice break out of the sun. Took a dip at Pirates Beach on the way home--water is so warm that you can literally walk right in. Lyn was making a pork dish, so invited us to join them for a very low dinner price! Spent the rest of the late afternoon on the terrace, reading and crocheting. We could smell dinner coming--so joined them on the patio with our bottle of wine--which turned out to be pretty good!! Visited until late -- finally feel like our energy is back and we are with the time zone now.
Aug 6: Woke several times in the night to a chorus of dogs---turns out there is a female dog in heat somewhere in the neighborhood! She must have been sauntering through the neighborhood, exciting all the fenced in dogs-- Despite that, we had a good rest and woke refreshed. Enjoyed a breakfast with our hosts of goat cheese, tomatoes, and chilled melon wedges (my personal favorite!). George had toast with homemade plum jam-- great stuff made by Lynn! Headed out to the beach--decided to go to the area in front of the hotels since the umbrellas are a little bigger. Spent a very relaxing day reading and swimming periodically to cool off. The waves are pretty big--it's fun to ride them. We got a bit fried, even though we were scrupulous about staying in the shade and had sunscreen on---oh, well!! We learned that white beach umbrellas do not stop UV totally! Of course, we don't spend a lot of time on the beaches of the Northwest Coast for what should be obvious reasons! Stopped by Magdelena's for a Bulgarian Salad and wine/beer--great dinner! The salad is a big pile of cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, cilantro-like greens and grated goat cheese. The chilled salad was a nice contrast to the heat. We got acquainted with the other guests at the house after dinner--Ivar and Jennie from Sweden, Lyn and her husband from Australia, Harry from Turkey, and Lynn and Wes from Britain. Great conversations comparing work experiences, unions, politics, etc. We played a card game until late while the beer flowed! Great crowd and lots of laughs and great stories!