Thursday 26th June 2008

We dumped waste water, emptied the chemical toilet and filled with fresh water and then paid for our stay, a very reasonable €14 (£11.20) per night. Before leaving for Bulgaria, I had one important task – buy a small fan. After a tour of the many shops in Asprovalta we found a suitable fan that will hopefully help make any similarly hot nights more bearable. At the same time I found a very cheap frappé whisk which should enable us to make those lovely frothy cold coffees in the van. The whisk, made in Greece, has interesting English information on the packet. Amongst other things, it tells me “Rotonda mixer is the strongest little machine with lots of advantages, opposite similar which are in trade.” and “The movement's transmission system is being done with stainless axis of rotation, assuring the best function of the motor, without having a central running of the axis (while preparing anything of the above). So the motor has an unlimited existence.”. I found the technical information fascinating and am glad to know that the motor will never fail – time will tell!
We left Asprovalta at 10:00 and, following the Struma River valley, we crossed the border before noon at Kulata. All of the border restrictions mentioned in our guide books had gone – no visas, no 'disinfection fee', no 'variable road tax'. Bulgaria's entry into the EU last year meant that they simply glanced at the passport and made a cursory inspection of Henrietta, all of which delayed us by no more than 5 minutes compared with the 2 hour queues that there used to be at some border crossings.
We took the first signposted turning to Melnik just a few kilometres from the border but this turned out to be a mistake. Almost immediately we were transported back many years by the views of agricultural practices – men and women were hoeing the crops, grass was being cut and turned by hand to make hay and there were many horse and carts. The road was reasonable to start with but after the first village, it disintegrated. There was more pothole than asphalt and it was second gear for about 4 miles as we traversed the ridge to the next village. There were lovely views although I had to stop to admire them as I couldn't take my eyes off the road whilst I sought the least bumpy route by weaving across the road. By the time that we reached better (not good) road after the next village, the shower door had un-latched itself and was swinging around and the contents of the bathroom shelves were rolling around the bathroom. For the rest of the day, whenever we opened the fridge or cupboards, objects, dislodged by the rollercoaster ride, would throw themselves at us!
Melnik is a very pretty but touristy village at the centre of an important Bulgarian wine-producing area. The traditional buildings have been restored thanks to EU funding for “promotion of the cultural, tourist and human resources in the cross-border region”. I assume that this must have been transitional funding because they certainly could not have achieved it all since they became full members. We wandered around the village, ignoring the overpriced local wine on sale and decided to try some of the local cuisine. However, with the temperature still in the early 30's, we could only manage salads although they did include local cheese, smoked ham and salami.
Melnik is backed by high sandstone cliffs and this scenery continued as we drove 6km into the hill to Rozhen Monastery. I have said that the hills were sandstone but they are really only slightly compacted sand. The road was covered in sand washed down whenever there was any rain and the hills had been sculpted into weird formations, known as Melnik Rock Pyramids, by the wind and rain. The monastery, probably built in the 13th century, was interesting and very peaceful until the thunderstorm struck. Fortunately we were able to shelter under the wooden balconies that lined the courtyard, only having to dash across the open area to get to the church. We are now in Bulgarian Orthodox country and, although the church interiors are different, there are many similarities to Greek Orthodox, an example of which are the frescoes covering the interior and parts of the exterior of the church.
Driving back to Melnik and on then to the main road, we headed north for 40km, taking a turning to Rila Monastery. Thirty kilometres beyond the town of Rila and up in the mountains, this is one of Bulgaria's most important monasteries. On the way we went through another thunderstorm and we were pleased to see the outside temperature drop from 35°C to below 20°C. After the storm had passed, the temperature rose again but only to the early 20's, very pleasant. We drove 1km beyond the monastery to Camping Bor, set in a national park with a fast-running stream bordering the site. Camping Bor is basic, as are most Bulgarian campsites, with just open, sloping grass and very primitive shower/toilet facilities. We were directed to the flattest area and were surprised to be told that there was electricity – this turned out to be two multi-point extension leads, covered in a wet plastic bag and fed off the supply of a street lamp! However, it worked and we were soon settled in with the kettle on. The wildlife in the park is varied and we can testify to this at least in the area of flying beasts. I have never seen so many and so varied a collection of flies, insects, beetles and other wee beasties, including a small, black butterfly. After a walk around the site, we decided that we would eat in this evening as we didn't fancy being eaten alive!
Photos: One of the Melnik Rick Pyramids; The restaurant at Camping Bor – everything was cooked on the wood fire.