Bułgaria

The tour began in Nessebar, whose Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Over the centuries, Thracians, Greeks, Romans, Bulgarians, and Turks have passed through the city. From Nessebar, we traveled to Stara Zagora, a city founded by the Romans as Augustus Trajan. Our next stop was the Valley of Roses and Kazanlak. Rose oil is produced here, and is renowned and prized worldwide. We also visited the "Valley of the Thracian Kings" and visited the Kosmatka tomb, as well as the Kazanlak tomb, decorated with paintings and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We visited the Church of the Nativity of Christ in Shipka, commemorating the struggle for the liberation of Bulgarians from Turkish occupation. Then we visited Plovdiv, the 2019 European Capital of Culture. From there, we traveled to the Rhodope Mountains, to the Bachkovo Monastery. Next, we visited the Ethnographic Museum in Shiroka Lyka and enjoyed a "Rhodope treat." We also made a short stop at Lake Dospat before continuing to Melnik. The next day, we visited the Rila Monastery in the Rila Mountains – the most famous and largest monastery in Bulgaria, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Then it was time for the Bulgarian capital, Sofia. From the capital, we traveled to the hills of Stara Planina, where we visited Ledenika Cave with its magnificent dripstones. We also visited the nearby Etyr Open-Air Museum, featuring houses typical of the Bulgarian Revival architecture from the 18th and 19th centuries. Later that same day, we visited Tryavna, one of Bulgaria's architectural gems. The next day, we visited the fortress on Tsarevets Hill in Veliko Tarnovo, from where we traveled towards the Danube to the city of Ruse. On the way from Ruse to Varna, we visited the monumental Monument to the Founders of the Bulgarian State near the city of Shumen, and then stopped at the so-called Madara Rider. On our last day, we visited Varna. The trip took place in September 2021. We also recommend our channel "Trip Film Etudes." We invite you and wish you a pleasant viewing experience. Jadwiga and Zbigniew Panasiewicz