Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Bulgaria-my 74th country visited!

Bulgaria-my 74th country visited!

I spent time in several interesting cities in Bulgaria from the ports of Burgas and Varna.



Country Background

The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, formed the first Bulgarian state in the late 7th century. In 1389, Bulgaria was overrun by the Ottoman Turks and nearly 500 years later regained independence with Russia's help.
Bulgaria fell under the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when the country held its first multi-party election since World War II and began moving toward democracy. In 2001, Simeon Borisov Saxe-Coburg, the former king of Bulgaria who was forced from his throne after World War II, returned to power as prime minister.











 
Bulgaria has a lively mix of ethnic groups — Bulgars, Slavs, Thracians, Armenians, Greeks, Romans, and Turks. Some villages have a church, some have a mosque, and some have both. The former Soviet satellite is a peaceful nation — a rarity in the Balkans.

Bulgaria relies on the Black Sea for fishing, commerce, and tourism at major beach resorts. Varna is the country's largest seaport and second-largest city. Bourgas and Sozopol are the primary fishing ports

My October 2014 Visits

Burgas Port to Nessebar Pomorie Sozol, Ravadinovo

Today, I took a full day shore excursion from the port of Burgas, Bulgaria. Our visits included, 1. The more than 3,000-year-old site of Nessebar, Bulgaria, a UNESCO world heritage site, 2. The well-preserved old town of Sozopol, Bulgaria; 3. Traditional Bulgarian lunch at a seaside resort of Selena along Sozopol’s coast, 4. And 5. 2 sites in Pomorie:  a visit to the Thracian tomb and to the monastery St. George the Victorious and 6. A fun visit to a quirky mid evil castle Ravadinovo, near Burgas.
Nessebar, Bulgaria
Its cobbled streets, well-kept medieval churches, and iconic two-story timbered houses from the 19th century display evidence of the numerous cultural layers - from the second millennium BC, from Ancient Times, including the Thracians, and the Medieval period, until the present time.  Importantly, there remain structures and monuments from each era. 
One of the oldest towns in Europe , Nessebar, situated on a rocky peninsula and connected to the mainland by an isthmus, is a rich city museum who's architectural heritage is defined by more than three millennia of history including occupations by various groups including The Greeks, The Romans, the Byzantines, The Turks, the Ottomans, and of course the Bulgarians.  It had even been conquered by some of the Crusaders.
 
 
 
We began our visit by entering the imposing ancient city walls.
 
Our tour guide provided comprehensive descriptions of some of the following:
Monuments from the Middle Ages include the 5–6th century Stara Mitropoliya ("old bishopric"; also St Sophia), a basilica without a transept; the 6th century church of the Virgin; and the 11th century Nova Mitropoliya ("new bishopric"; also St Stephen) which continued to be embellished until the 18th century. In the 13th and 14th century a remarkable series of churches were built: St Theodore, St Paraskeva, St Michael St Gabriel, and St John Aliturgetos
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
Wooden houses built in the 19th century are typical of the Black Sea architecture of the period
 
Because we visited in October, we enjoyed the luxury of a visit with very few tourists.  The residents were serious yet friendly people playing the role of background actors.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


Sozopol, Bulgaria

Ancient Sozopol, with its charming old town of meandering cobbled streets and pretty wooden houses, huddled together on a narrow peninsula, is a jewel along the coast.  Less crowded than Nessebar, it provides a welcoming canvas for a growing number of tourists for both its history and its coastal beauty.

Time in Sozopol has different dimensions - fishermen are still seen catching what the sea has to offer on wooden boats; older women sit in front of the picturesque houses, chatting, knitting, selling freshly picked figs, homemade jams and jellies, while almost everyone who decides to dig in the ground or to build something stumbles upon remnants from the past – clay vessels, ancient coins, wooden objects, little statues and much, much more.

Sozopol’s Old Town was declared a museum-reserve by Ministerial Decree № 320 on September 7, 1974. The reserve includes more than 180 residences, constructed from the middle of the 18th century to the beginning of the 19th century. Houses in the Old Town are built of stone and wood and conform to the so-called Black Sea school of architecture.

  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 



 
 
 
 
 
 



The tomb is known as the hollow hill and presents a corridor, burial chamber and ancillary facilities. Built according to the Roman building techniques, it is assumed that it belonged to a wealthy family and was used as a mausoleum and later on as a temple for providing Thracian religious rituals.

 
 
 
Karla and Nina, tour guide
The Monastery St. George the Victorious in Pomorie

The Monastery of St. George is the only functioning monastery in Southeast Bulgaria with a unique assortment of structures including an impressive 20-meter high belfry tower, holy spring, and a collection of paintings and frescos from the 18th and 19th century.

We even toured the mill where they produce their own distilled spirits.  Throughout our visit, we spotted monks and even a couple of woman engaged in their daily routines.

The present-day church was built in 1856 over the foundations of the preceding one

 

 
 
 
 
 
 


 
The Castle of Ravadinovo, near Sozopol

Here is the websites description which I cannot improve upon:

The Castle of Ravadinovo combines various building and decorating styles and materials and it is definitely interesting to see what some ancient castles must have looked like when they were new. If you are driving from Burgas down south the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria, there is no chance of missing the impressive construction of picturesque steeples and towers with some of the roof trusses still bare- a sight to behold. Many visitors perceive The Castle of Ravadinovo as an utterly mystical and romantic place, for others, it is the closest to a Disneyland or fairy tale adventure which they can experience in this part of the Balkans. The best way to describe the Castle of Ravadinovo is probably in a statement made by one of its visitors - 'this is the most unusual building in the most unusual location'. Indeed, the castle bizarrely stands in the middle of a farm field, just a stone-throw from the highway. Its architectural design is unusual, a bit extravagant and exotic for this country.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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I found the country to be a very beautiful, the people were hauntingly sweet navigating their conflict with the past present and future.  The generation gap is huge as the younger generation is comfortable with and excited about having life choices---which is unchartered territory for their parents and grandparents from this former Soviet satellite.

 

Our ship was also supposed to dock in Varna, a little farther north in Bulgaria but very choppy seas prevented us from doing so.

 

I would definitely return and visit the capital of Sofia in the west.