Brod Sofia

... night in Istanbul and head into town. <br>First impressions are as expected - monumental eastern block buildings are interspersed with crumbling 60's blocks that make the Aylesbury estate look welcoming. Everywhere looks oddly quiet until we vere into a side street to find cafes, night clubs, and hotels rushing past - this is where life seems to happen in Sofia. <br><br>The Art Hostel is clearly hippy ...

... a telephone call that would get the manager out on the street to find and rescue us. It was nice to be able to relax finally after the 20-odd hour trek, though also a bit difficult, because the manager wouldn't stop talking to us, and offering us Bulgarian wine, "Just a little! Only a little!" It was a little dodgy, but at the next hostel we stayed at in Sophia, we found the manager was similarly prolix; and we learned from another couple there that they'd had the same experience at ...

... sisse. Jõudsime platsile nibin-nabin, vaid 8 sekundit enne. Lahti läks päris korralik ilutulestik. Nagu ikka - kõik kallistasid kõiki ja soovisid head uut. Laval algas mingi rahvuslik kultuuriprogramm. Esinejaid oli igast vallast. Meie panime pidu ja jõime üle piiri toodud napse. Nagu piltidelt on näha, siis tagasi end ei hoitud :) Kuskil ühest hakkas tiba jahe ja otsustasime edasi minna klubidesse. Esimene, kuhu kohe ...

... They even made our beds... We were in bed within an hour of leaving. Next stop, border crossings. Bang, bang! A rapping on the door, suggested we were coming to the border. 3am... To our horror we had to get off the train. We hurried to the door and were one of the first off. On our way to the office, a lady from the train was screaming (think she was attacked or mugged) and the cops were off. That was a little unsettling... We then headed to the office ...

As you will probably notice..(no updates) I was pretty busy this last weeks &#305;n Sofia. In the last weeks I managed to feel more at home here and start my activities as volunteer in the biketour organization. Besides this I started Bulgarian language lessons and tried to get in contact with people of the Sof&#305;an Rhythms of Resistance band. All was pretty chaotic and took ...

... us and replied, "Want half a sandwich?"After that we decided to turn back. But no sooner had we turned tail than thunder pealed nearby and the dark clouds that drifting lazily overhead unleashed hell. First rain, then hail, then a downpour. We met two nice girls from England on the way down, and as we all sheltered under a tree I began to worry for my camera. I put it inside our travel bag and waited for a momentary lull. When no ...

... followed was a very eventful train ride for 12 hours (lets just say these guys would fit right in on Bowen, they are just as...original as the rest of you), and we got to Sophia at about 6:00 in the morning. Basically, noone got any sleep, so we were all exhausted. They had to leave to go to Plovdiv, and we said our goodbyes and swapped emails, but i'm totally staying in touch.

... more seeing some of the parks in town then met up with Alison (from USA) back at the hostel. Had lunch with her and chatted for a while. I went and got my bus ticket for the next day, took a nap then up to the lounge for free dinner and beer. Another movie night - this time I saw Superman Returns. I liked Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor. Several people during this part of the trip...all women actually...asked if I get lonely traveling by myself. Yes and no. I've been meeting ...

... to it. We found an inside market that sold everything from olives to hardware. So we bought some really yummy mini choclate eclairs and baklava. We found a restaurant with loads on the menu and cheap wine. I love Bulgarian food!! Next day. We had decided to go with a hostel day trip instead of trying to get to Rila Monastery on our own. It sounded like a bugger trying to get four different buses and then walking for ages. Expensive ...

... have checked that you haven't got worms and given yourself a score from 1 to 10, then and only then can the kids take the ride on the waterslide!!! Anyway, back to my travels.... Arrived in the capital of Sofia a couple of days ago and i was pleasantly surprised by the shear beauty of the city, certainly the nicest city i have visited overseas so far. The former Stalinism era Communist Party Building is a white colonnaded quad-triangle, simply ...