Although our train-bus-train ride there was a bit rough, we really enjoyed Plovdiv once we caught up on sleep. The old town is very pretty to wander around, as it is a jumble of cobblestone streets and preserved old buildings. My favorite part was the Roman Amphitheatre, built in the 3rd century A.D. It is still used in the summer!
We spent one of our days in Plovdiv taking the bus to Bachkovo Monastery and going on a hike there. Getting there was half the fun. Our hostel gave us directions to the bus station and then told us to catch us a certain bus and tell the driver where we needed to get out. Bulgaria uses the Cyrillic alphabet (fun fact: Bulgarians invented that alphabet), so we needed some help with signage. At the bus station, a security guard took pity on us and basically escorted us to the right ticket counter and then to the right bus. On the bus, I guess we talked about and asked about Bachkovo a few times, because when we got to the town, the entire bus was shouting “Bachkovo” at us. The driver knew we wanted the monastery and signalled for us to wait. Another round of shouting ensued when we finally got to the monastery. It was a great welcome. We couldn’t take pictures of the monastery, but we actually enjoyed our hike to the remote buildings on the monastery grounds better anyway.
We took lots of pictures of the amphitheatre and on our hike, so I’ll let those tell the story.
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Jessica
dillhorn
Hi Jessica,
I enjoyed reading your Bulgarian travelogues. Pretty accurate depiction, I should say. I’m glad you had a good time in my native Plovdiv and that you took the opportunity to visit Bachkovo Monastery. It’s not as grandiose as the Rila Monastery but is still very nice. Speaking of Rila Monastery – you took some great photos of it….What about the surrounding area? It’s spectacular, isn’t it?
I knew you wouldn’t be impressed by the capital (that’s why it wasn’t one of my recommendations). In my opinion, Sofia is a big, overcrowded, business city and there’s really nothing to see there (except for The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral).
I’m ashamed to admit that I haven’t been in Veliko Tarnovo (should take a road trip to VT next time I’m in Bulgaria) and really liked your story and pictures of the town. If you’re curious to know what is the “artistic style” used in the creepy church murals…it’s called Socialistic Realism – a style of realistic art developed in the former Soviet Union and became the dominant style in the counties under the Communist Umbrella. It depicts the hardship of the Proletariat and was the only “approved” style back in the day. As you probably saw yourselves, there’s still a few Communist propaganda relics left (from murals and sculptures to some unsightly, concrete buildings).
Despite the horrible train-bus-train ride from Turkey to Bulgaria (and the smelly van to Rila Monastery) I hope you enjoyed you stay.
What is your next stop in your itinerary?
Best,
-Krassi