Hotel Accord Sofia

... meal at a restaurant with Sopska (pronounced Shopshka) a salad of tomato, onion, peppers and cheese and Tarator, a cold yogurt, cucumber and almond soup. Kind of like Tzaziki soup, YUM!<br><br>So what's up with the mafia? Apparently there is just a wee bit of corruption in Bulgaria. Everything was ready and set for Bulgaria to become a full member of the EU until millions of Euros from the EU "disappeared". This money was supposed to ...

You feel that something is wrong, that even everything is wrong. But you don't know what exactly. If you find yourself in the mad rhythm of the new millennium, stuck in never-ending traffic, following routines dictated by the demands of modern life... wouldn't it be great to relax, enjoy a breath of fresh air - REALLY fresh air? In some place far away from the daily demands, stress and crowds, some place where you can ...

... town for a few hours - plenty of churches of different denominations, mosque, synagogue etc. Weather was fab, 26 degrees, a far cry from the near freezing temperatures back home. After the pasta meal we had a few beers in the hostel before setting off to student town (with the guys we met earlier plus some German people) and its abundance of bars and clubs - not really my cup of tea ...

... panels and chandeliers. I then wanted to go up Mount Vitosha, Sofia's pet mountain which was just a little east of the museum but I only had directions to it from the city. But I looked at the map on the wall in the hostel and decided to be brave and try and get a bus that went down the motorway and intersected with the bus that would take me up to one of the mountain suburbs and the chair lift up, and hope I would get off at the right place and not get lost. And ...

Today we ventured out past the city we took the underground to the second to last stop and began walking towards a store called METRO. We were curious about it and what it was. So we walked for a long long ways, past a gypsy camp. That is the most third world looking place I've ever seen except that every caravan had a satellite dish tacked onto it ...

... the quiet austerity. I had planned to visit a few museums, but as it was a Monday, the day Europe closes, I would be limited to the basilicas. My next stop was the Hagia Sofia basilica. This is where the city derives its name. The structure was built in the 6th century and has endured many earthquakes. Currently it was being reconstructed and there was not much to see. My last church of the day was the ...

... to the hostel to watch. Since I had a cold, I thought it best to rest. Slept in and later took the cable-car up Mt Tampa. Looked around there just a little but I was already feeling drained so took the cable-car down and went back to the hostel for a nap. When I could breathe, the air smelled so much sweeter than usual...maybe it's just an affect of having a cold. The weather has been weird since being in this area - clear in the morning, clouds roll in, afternoon ...

Sophia has been a good introduction to Eastern Europe. There's not a ton to see here, but the weather has been great and I spent a few days wandering around the city. Nights have actually been cool (it has been a long time for me) and I have slept very well. <br><br>Bulgaria has hit the scene as a "new democracy" in about 1990 and you can still see the changes occuring to the cities, countryside and people. Vacant factory building ...

... myself wondering how many folded parts would be appropriate to take, etc. I also realized that the whole folding vs.crumpling of toilet paper debate was totally negated by this public restroom practice. Such deep thoughts coming from this jet-lagged, sleep- and food-deprived head. Anyway, being here does not feel uncomfortable or out of my comfort zone at all. The airport reminded me of those in the Carribbean or in Cancun...Other parts of the city reminded me of Cape Town or Boston ...

... The pottery and tablets were incredible. Three Romanians reported on their excavations and one, Magda (who was one of 2 women to present) had incredible slides and a very thorough presentations. I tried to take lots of pictures but was having lots of difficulty with my digital camera. Another woman, Tanya from Bulgaria, presented a very thorough presentation on pentadaras, those stamps and seals that were used to make uniform repetitive designs on ...