Svetigeorgi Blagoevgrad

... hauptsaechlich Bulgaren.

Das Kloster wurde 927 gegruendet und durch seine Lage tief in den Bergen half es die bulgarische Kultur in den 500 Jahren in denen Bulgarien zum ottomanischen Reich gehoert zu erhalten.

In den bulgarischen Kirchen, die wie alle orthodoxen Kirchen reich verziert sind, darf man leider nicht fotografieren.

Gruss
Ralf

A lot of Americans celebrated and had fun on this day but not me. I went to the central bus station on time to catch an early bus but somehow the cashier sold me a wrong ticket so I missed the bus, and then she refused to give me the refund. The first really unpleasant experience for this trip. And the day didn't get much better after this. I ended up catching a later bus to Bansko, but because of that I ...

... with some rooms always available for travellers. The Church is stunning with 1200 magnificent murals, inside and out, and also holds Tsar Boris III's tomb; it's believed he was poisoned by the Nazis. We spent the afternoon around the Monastery, and then walked to the nearby village restaurant/pub for dinner. Looking forward to a lovely peaceful evening.

... htuks kinni panna. See osutus oodatust oluliselt raskemaks. Kõku ja Marek otsisid jalad ja kõik meie ülejäänud autoga. Lõpuks pidime küsima abi teiselt kohalikult eestlaselt hüüdnimega Sepo - tema juhatas ka automehed õnnelikult sihtpaika. Saime menüüd paika ja läksime sööma - taaskord väga mõnusasse ja vapustava köögiga paika, mille nime praegu ei mäleta J kõhud said nii täis, et tagasi otsustasime kõndida jala. Lahe päev oli.

... though as we wended our way up to the Monastery on the narrow twisty winding roads, as again they have no snow plows in evidence here, so they we just driving on hard packed snow and ice - thankfully I didn't realize this until after the first half of the journey was over. The Monastery though was spectacular and well worth the visit! It was a huge circular structure 4 stories high and because we were in the mountains ...

Another relaxing morning in preparation for tomorrows ridiculously early start. Headed out with 2 others for an early lunch and to check out the sights of Bansko, a Bulgarian ski resort town. A cucumber, tomato and cheese salad hit the spot. After lunch we wandered around the small town and got to know all the little side streets before stopping for a coffee outside a cafe for some people watching ...

... Two more hours on the bus and we were in Bansko. Got ready and then we went out for a big group dinner. The restaurant was a traditional place and had a gypsy band playing some music. Had some cured ham type of meat and then and amazing (!!!) rice, sauerkraut and shredded pork dish. Blew the one earlier out of the water! On the way back a couple of us grabbed some 2L bottles of beer (for $1.50!) and sat on the balcony for a couple of hours having some drinks.

... at the community center, something having to do with Bulgarian Independence. As far as I can tell there are about 5 different dates which celebrate Bulgarian Indepence, since Bulgaria was under several empires and because different areas became free at different dates. It was a night of folk dancing and singing, mostly very good, tho it had the tendency to drag on at times. But I was glad to be there, especially to see some of my own students dance.

... 3 PCVs when she had been a teacher. The highlight was the speech from Mike, one of the B19s, who made a short speech in both Bulgarian and English. We all elected him to do it 2 weeks ago - rumors were flying about his excellent Bulgarian, and he's a great guy anyway. It was really good. After that there was a reception on the lawn, and people started heading off in cabs for the bus station or for a hostel, and I headed back to Kocherinovo for one last night.

... mistakes the first time around in Spain. I travelled almost every weekend and when it came time for my flight home I barely had any spanish friends. So anyway the peace corps gossip has it that the more controlling rules are new and a result of some unacceptable behavior of a couple people in the class ahead of us. Whatever, the rules still don't bother me. I think it was just ********* this other volunteer cause he's older (32 ...