Alliance Hotel Plovdiv

... and a host who when w e asked if we could sit in the garden, promptly put up an umbrella, handed me a glossy magazine (I'm still not sure why) and told us his life story! Funnily enough, it was so interesting and we heard the good the bad and the ugly about life in Bulgaria.<br><br>After our rather full day and dinner in a Balkan Restaurant we headed to bed and set the alarm for 5.30am to ensure we did not miss the train to Varna the next morning.<br><br>

... Bulgarian culture and religion were preserved during 500 years of Ottoman rule, so most of them are located in some out-of-the-way, mountainous region, and this monastery is one of the major ones. Inside its chapel is a 500 years old icon of St. Mary which is said to have healing power so there was a line of people waiting to pray in front of it and touch it. <br><br>I went back to the city and ...

... in Bulgarian. Realising I had not really many options (he had the 50 euro and the Lev it had been changed into) I signed the sheet and collected the reduced amount of Lev. Luckily the money we received covered the train bill and we had a little left over for some food. It did leave a bit of a bitter taste in our mouths, but I did learn a valuable lesson to always to ask the rate on the inside of the exchange BEFORE handing over any money! Back in the rain we wandered around Plovdiv old town ...

... We mucked about at the very bottom of the mountain on the ski's while Sharone endeavoured to give us some basic tips on control and technique. In typical form though, I was apparently determined to run before I had learned to crawl and consequently was sliding about all over the place in what could only be called an absurd parody of skiing. Eventually we decided that walking up hill was no fun at all and we got some lift passes and headed up to the top of Pamporovo to make ...

... the Nebet Tepe Citadel. The Nebet Tepe was created as early as the 5th century B.C.!! We also stopped by the Roman amphitheater which was discovered in 1980. Crazy how long some of this stuff stays hidden. We had a neat dinner at a hidden place in the park, called Central Park. The food was great and all the entrees were named after fairy tales or places in Central Park...it was fun! Layton ate something called The Big ...

... finding our way, and in the end we made it and met everyone for dinner. Went to a cute place in the park. Had a salad and stuffed chicken wings. I was starting to feel a bit ill, I think too much sun and not enough water, so I headed back after dinner for another early night. Hopefully I feel better tomorrow! Thur July 5 Yummy hotel breakfast again this morning, but it probably wasn't the best idea! Me and another girl ...

... between late 19th and early 20th centuries, to honor the Russian liberators, including 200,000 who died fighting the Ottomans. Plovdiv (population 350K) is laid back. More importantly, it is old. It was known as Philipopolis to the Romans in the 3rd century AD. Most of the current day Plovdiv center was built on top of the old ruins. Theatre or stadium seating are exposed sporadically all over the town. The amphitheater, which could accommodate 5,000 - 7,000 ...

... By the time we reached Petar's musty shack Diyan was shaking with paranoia and confided to me,  "If my parents catch me, it will be a very bad situation.  Very bad.  You must not tell anyone!"  "Sure sure, no problem."  I said.  Petar spoke not a single word of English and his tiny apartment was billowing with cigarette smoke and reggae cassettes. I really had no choice but to stay. Diyan and I ate a lunch of nutella and ...

Another city and another good time. I'm finding over and over that I am enjoying the smaller towns and cities much more than the capitals. It makes me feel sorry for all the travellers I see doing the capital hop through the region - they are missing all the good stuff! <br><br>Plovdiv is more central in Bulgaria and is surrounded by mountains. The further I travel into Bulgaria the more mountainous the areas should become. Plovdiv is a sophisticated little ...

... on as there was other people coming down the hill, I noticed his comrade emerge from a small staircase to my right and staring intently, definitely sizing me up. Continuing on the pedestrians were thinning but the thick bush was not and realising that they could jump me at any minute, drag me into the scrub and help themselves to the camera, excess cash ...