Better to Travel hopefully than to Arrive!!!

We had started our journey towards an unfamiliar place for tourism!!! Chances are, Bulgaria isn’t a country that is high up on anyone's travel list.

On our day of arrival at Sofia airport, we are welcomed with border police :P :D wherein we spent more than half an hour in their routine rituals of investigating regarding our purpose of visit :D Having concluded by their investigation that we are not terrorists , they were amicably cleared our formalities to step in to their country. Upon this experience , we felt the country is more safe and secure. 

We tried to be more optimistic though :) in order to gear up our spirits for our purpose of travel.  

In fact the ultimate thought going on in every one’s mind is , this would have been a big surprise for us if they would have stopped us at the entrance itself, after so much of planning. 

After the immigration clearance, we saw the airport with no charm, I could see either lights are switched  off or the display of closed boards :O !!!!Duty free closed, exchange center was closed, pre paid taxi- closed :O I was in a pause what if the person we hired for picking us from airport also would have been left by then. 

After a series of unsettling moments,to my ultimate surprise, one guy is still waiting with placard in his hand displaying “Mr Yogesh Gajare”  our PM for "Project Bulgaria". It was really a great sigh of relief for me on seeing that placard. Thanks to Vladimir (the tour guide for next two days) awaiting us.

We were five people started in two vehicles with all our luggage, entered into the streets of Sofia and stopped in front of a house. At the outset, from the outer look and feel of the guest house in pitch dark, we were like its going to be one more bitter experience to stay there.

Should never judge by cover page!!!!

We are welcomed with a local lady with a great hospitality and enthusiastic smile on her face. The house is so spacious and impressive at a glance. we happned to exchange our smiles and wishes to each other.I wished her Kak si (how are you doing) and she was so happy to listen to that and continued in her own language.Even though we could not understand but we were able to feel her emotion :) 

Having had a great sleep ,we all got ready at our own Indian punctuality making the guide to wait for more than 20 minutes :) we had nice home made breakfast with yogurt offered by her and started our travel towards Iskar Lake-One of the longest river , that runs solely in Bulgaria.

Interestingly we happened to see many river rafters all the way and all got excited to do it. We started inquiring Vladimir about the possibilities to fit it in our tour plan as we need to halt for more than couple of hours. so after a few photos(200+ :P) it was time to move to next location Melnik

After we decided to hit the road again towards Melnik, Rocky mountain ranges and with a great variety of vineyards,I'm thankful to the serendipity so far.

I had the best raspberry wine here and got a chance to taste many other wild berries.We just halted at Melnik to have our lunch and were just mesmerized by the organic food.

Here we go!!!, Vladimir has confirmed about river rafting team availability and we immediately started towards the place with great excitement.

we were short of A towel and a change of clothes though as this was an unplanned trip.I was just as excited by our upcoming water rafting tour as by the fact I decided to write about it. 

We were already in the mood for some action when we arrived at the Iskar lake setting up the raft and equipment while we met Dimitroh , our rafting guide who was awaiting us on location. Our group  all of them - carefully paid attention while he explained the different orders he would be yelling to keep us safe on the river. Everything looks fine and promising until he had asked us to sign on a document that "Rafting at your own risk" :D :D :D We looked at each others faces posing rhetorical questions subconsciously and proceeded signing the documents. We headed towards the place to start the rafting.

 We quickly got into the raft, exercising our muscles and synchronizing to the guides yells as we had learnt to manoeuvre around easy obstacles. The first part of the river was quite simple, with a few rapids interrupted by stones, during which the guide exposed his knowledge about the trees and the river flow. By the time guide said “Now we are getting on 5 meters drift”,  the team had been getting comfortable and enjoying the thrilling experiencing all the way.

The rest of the river drifted by fast with the adrenaline rush present in our minds. We caught up with the paddle, observed the tranquil flora and quickly it was time to make a landing where Vladimir waited for us with the car. While our rafter guide and male tour mates stored the equipment away, we chatted excitedly about each of our favorite parts of the river - in the end.

We requested Vladimir to join us to Velliko tour and so he dropped us at cathedral church , Sofia and went to pick his essentials for next days stay in Velliko.

we all were sitting in front of the church trusting our instincts.This is a paradoxical situation that has no pattern on probabilities of his return, which made it hard for everyone to think for a while.We all left our luggage including passports in his car, but we were all occupied eventually in sightseeing. 

Than-kingly he came late by 15 minutes with no surprises for the rest of our journey :)

Ignorance is always a bliss. People could be tension free if they think simple and sweet :)

We continued our journey towards Velliko Tarnovo in the same vehicle, checked in a new hotel and quickly wrapped ourselves under the comforters.

Next day morning, We headed towards Krushuna waterfalls and caves. It had been truly an enlightening and life changing experience walking across the forests , climbing the rocks and caves to reach the tip of the waterfall starting from the lowest part of it.

 

We had a plan to walk around the waterfall. We continued walking along the path and continued ascending, first by steps, then by steep slippery path and some natural bridges formed in between.

Water was freaking cold but very refreshing. It was hard to stay long in such cold water but it was so pleasant to plunge into the coolness of waterfall. The trekking to the waterfall can be hard , but the natural beauty, sound of the flowing water and the cool breeze is sure to mesmerize and keep up your energy high with enthusiasm.  Apart from always being adventurous and exciting, it's all worth to trek through forests to reach such beautiful Drizzling Waterfalls

We were tired a little bit but it is worth for sure to make it! It is very nice atop, and we descent by another path on the opposite side of the waterfall.

We all had great fun plunging and sprinkling the waters at each other and all posed for the new LIRIL  find :D. The winner is.............................................."Yogi Gajavetz" :p. 

Upon reaching back to the point where we started, we found wide variety of grilled meat and sea foods. We all had to have enough food to rejuvenate ourselves for the next visits.

Having sumptuous lunch cum dinner, We took a quick drop at Tsarevets Fortress. We started wandering in our own directions.

 Fortress is on a great elevation and we caught a glimpse of a entire city,the roadways and the bridges.We did cover a lot of ground visiting the ancient walls and admiring the church at the peak. 

Even though it looks quite old from outside, the interior is with modern frescos.

We all rejoined for a Cappuccino  at the end of the trip.Cappuccino had a great taste I ever had so far, with creamy natural milk and with a touch of vanilla on top.Best part of this location is day light is quite long i.e, till 9 pm in the evening which helped us to cover vast areas on the same day.

We had reached Varna on the same night and next day morning started with a refreshing English breakfast with our usual followed by a Cappuccino. Restaurant has a great refreshing ambience.

Interestingly, the hotel is in the sea garden and adjacent to the sea shore- black sea coast. we walked down the streets preparing our body and mind revitalised by the sound of waves. We found the compound wall is built with unused bikes.

There we saw group of people playing volleyball. Inspired by the sight, we too started playing for sometime in the beach. Enjoyed the view and the nature for a quite good amount of time, we started moving towards Burgas (another sea coast)- sunny beach.

Here we are “ free zone beach” — Kela Beach :P unforgettable part of the trip.

Travel teaches you to move on , infact this always tunes me to stabilise my emotions. Sometimes there is no use crying over spilled milk. You just need to make yourself realise and move on.

The moment we reached Sunny beach, we had to face little bitter experiences. Couple of us lost their jackets, one of us lost their phones, and one guy’s wallet was fully drenched in waters. Having experienced all bitter together at the same instance, we all were out of mood- Reflexive action :) We all felt them as bad omen for a while.But thanks to the spirits of everyone!!! The sooner everyone realised the purpose of our visit the quicker we restored to outset expressions :P

We took a wonderfully scenic walk along the beach before taking a spontaneous swim and drenching down others. we did n't realise the literal meaning of free zone board which was displayed at the entrance until we saw people nude :D :D :D :D :D taking sun bath. This was almost everyone's very first experience to see so :D:D:D:D:D:D  In fact this cheered up everyone’s mood :) :D ;) :P So, again after few pics (100+) , time to set off again.

We headed out to see the loveliest spots of old Nessebar as it caught our eye from sunny beach. It was looking like an island from a longer distance.

We all were damn hungry by then we reached there and we looked for a great restaurant to have a bon appetite!!

Dinner had not been this relaxing for ages with wide variety of sea foods. On one side was the sea - seagulls flying around,on the other side with a group of restaurants facing the sea.On the table was a plate of perfectly grilled fish,lobsters and crabs on the other side, a bowl of salad with mouth watering chicken kowarma  and mussels:) and a glass of a local beer -the ideal finale to a perfect evening with gentle sightseeing.

we went for a lazy walk around old Nessebar and found a proper local market where we all started setting our foot in garment shops.We found them pretty cheap with premium quality.

Meanwhile, I started modelling on the streets of nessebar :)

Modelling on the streets of Nessebar!!!

We walked on the roads of nessebar until all the sea food got emulsified :) and we reached the hotel back in a taxi, ripped us off though :(

Next Day is Rila day-- Rila Lakes, Rila Monestary and Rila Hotel

Rila is the cream of the crop !!!!!! My entire struggle to figure out a guide to visit Rila has not gone in vain. Every minute detail about it is, just amazing. words are mere ut times!!!!This ended up being one of my most favourite days in Bulgaria for everyone of us.

 We hiked to the top of a mountain (see below where the snow is) just to see the famous Seven Rila Lakes and the most amazing views we had seen in Bulgaria to date.I was just amazed to feel drizzling with hail storms thrust, smelling the clean air ,with slight mist clinging to the mountain slope, with mesmerising frozen lakes around, slowly we reached the lower lake (lowest of all). 

While walking around the path many stunning views opened up. We had to walk  extreme steep climbs which would directly hit to the frozen lakes if we fail to slip over there. Each lake has a shape and they were named after their shapes. We continued to walk through “The Fish Lake”,“The Trefoil”,The Twin”,“The Kidney” with the snow still remaining everywhere,made this as a memorable trip for most level of fitness.These nature wonders are just amazing and they are just magnificent.

Finally at the fifth Lake "The Kidney"

Frankly speaking, I didn't believe that I would climb an altitude of 2350m, not because I was frightened but I felt numb in many instances. I have lost my signals from hands/legs to brain :) I have to admit this was the most adventurous in our travel.We were there to hike up – so after a few photos(1000+ :P) it's time to set off again as our tour guide was also behind us. I need to hats off to the lady, elder among us made it with out hitch.Touchwood nobody stumble down nor lost their energy levels. It was around 7 to 8 kms walk at 2 degrees. We had to cross acute slopes many a times. We know we would be sliding down if we stumble. We decided to slide to move further and we continued the same to speed up the hiking. The trek was full of both positive and negative emotions, it was too challenging but too marvellous. Looking ahead it is worth saying that we didn't reach the summit- the sixth and seventh rile lake(The eye and The Tear shaped) due to the bad weather conditions and our endurance. But I could say it was unforgettable journey!

Afterwards we drove to the world famous Rila Monastery.

I will not write lots about its history – will let you experience it once you are there. Entering inside the Monastery you will admire the beautiful paintings all around you.

I informed my tour mates that by no circumstances I was going to join any sightseeing on our last day in Bulgaria. Lets opt our own choice of travel and explore individual. I love to listen to my instincts and infact it helps in how to be wise too.

Wouldn’t it be nice to explore the world on your own terms ?

To read my journey as a Solitary Traveler, click here.

The entire trip was a fun project for us to do along the way, plus we have some great details of our journey that would otherwise have been forgotten over time.  We even managed to pick up a few new friends as we went, which we are always grateful for.

I went without any expectations and was blown away by the country’s affordability, amiable locals, incredible history, scenery, beaches, nature (lakes,waterfalls, mountains everything) and best part of amazing organic food. Everything about this country is a win.

Most importantly, Bulgaria is just a beautiful country. Unfortunately I could not manage to join any of the free walking tours in any city but i’m sure it open your eyes to know how many layers of history are hidden here. The people are humble and polite, the streets are calm , girls are hot and pretty. It is easy to simply wander and enjoy the country for what it is.

Lots of mountains around!!!!!!

Believe it or not, Bulgaria is actually a fairly mountainous country. It has two major ranges – the Balkan Mountains and the Rhodope Mountains.We traversed almost all mountain ranges and black sea coast. The best part of this travel experience is, we witnessed all seasons in a week time.

Summer, winter, rainy and spring, autumn what not . Best time to visit this place is last fortnight of may till mid of june. I’m actually thankful for the choice of place and time made by our PM “ Yogi :)” I’m sure it would not have been that fun if we have gone earlier or later this month.

 

Cheese and yogurt!!!!!

 If you are cheese lover and you want great cheese, head to Bulgaria. There are so many varieties of cheese here.Try a traditional Shopska salad (tomato, cucumber, pepper, and white cheese). They claimed, the bacteria which is used to make yogurt grows in their mountain ranges and thats how their yogurt is the best!! Thats promising and true in fact. I did not see the bacteria though :P

Rose Rose Rose Everywhere!!!!

Blossomed roses shows how fertile is their soil. In fact, the roses grown in Bulgaria’s “Rose Valley” produce most of the world’s rose oil . If you want a very “Bulgarian” souvenir to take home, be sure to pick up some rose oil, which can be found for sale just about everywhere.