Gordon: After a little internet research I am able to pose the rhetorical question: in what way can I be distinguished from George Patton, Carrie Fisher, Teddy Roosevelt and Calvin Coolidge, Paul Klee, the Shah of Iran, and Leon Trotsky? While clearly they...
Gordon: This morning we climbed 300 metres above Dospat and then spent most of the remainder of the day on an undulating plateau at around 1500 metres. It was quite reminiscent of Canada, with a mature conifer forest, a number of lakes, and no towns in the...
Ruth: We have spent the last three nights in towns within about 10 kms of each other, but each is located up a different valley and hidden behind deep gorges. The road up the Buinovo Gorge, that we have been exploring for the past two days, might even rival the...
Gordon: Ruth thinks that today’s blog should be titled “The Best Ride Ever” because neither of us can recall a more beautiful single day of cycling. Perhaps it’s just the recency effect.We only covered 40 kms, descending 300 vertical metres, and then...
Gordon: Today we climbed almost 900 metres to pass the ski resorts of Chepelare and Pamporovo, before coasting down to the traditional village of Shiroka Laka. The ski resorts were unappealing out of season, but Shiroka Laka is delightful. The...
Gordon: Years ago I was looking at a map of this part of the world and I was struck by the Rhodope mountains. Here was a large sweep of rugged country with few roads and towns, separating Bulgaria and Greece. It seemed like the kind of region that...
Ruth: Plovdiv won the competition for the European Capital of Culture for 2019 and as a result much activity is in process fixing sidewalks and making last minute repairs to the centre of town. Like Istanbul or Rome the layers of history are deep here. Plovdiv...
Gordon: To break up the ride from Kazanlak to Plovdiv we spent a night in the town of Karlovo. This turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Karlovo is located at the base of the Stara Planina Mountains, so close that an hour’s walk from downtown would...
Gordon: We spent a pleasant night at a hotel in the Shipka Pass. Located at an altitude of 1200 metres, it was cooler than the temperatures we have become accustomed to, with a high of about 24 degrees and a low of 13. The air was very clear, so...
Ruth: I must be getting stronger because after climbing 1050 meters to the top of the Shipka Pass I found the strength to climb up 1000 more steps to see the panoramic view from the top of the Shipka war memorial.
Ruth: Tonight is our third night in the medieval Bulgarian capital of Târnovo. Here we have been spending our days doing two of my favourite things: exploring the sights and eating tasty food. The Turks, Greeks and others in the Balkans argue about the origins...
Ruth: It is all coming back to me now. It’s been two years since we visited Bulgaria for the first time. Since then many of the broken sidewalks have been replaced but otherwise it is the place I remember. Crossing the bridge over the Danube I immediately remembered...