Goodbye Greece, Hello and Goodbye Bulgaria

Saturday 9 June

Before we leave the campsite Keith gives Eugene a good wash. He is absolutely filthy, the small amount of rain that we’ve had over the past few months has been ‘dirty’ rain. We ‘d bought a step ladder a few weeks ago so Keith was able to reach the roof and give that a good clean, we seemed to have picked up all sorts, fruit, leaves, branches and something even growing up there.

We’re going with the Snooper and the TomTom together. Already there’s a 4 hour difference, but they both agree on the direction so we head off. We drive up to the top of the mountains and the view is stunning, we are high.

We’re a little unnerved by the ‘bear’ signs dotted around but secretly hoping that we might get the chance to see one, from a distance of course.

 

Imagine my delight when we stopped at a set of traffic lights at the roadworks, a bear sitting by the bin 😉.

We do see a fox and a stoaty looking thing and the beautiful tortoise strolling across the road.

TomTom tells us to leave the motorway which we do to find that 12km along the road it is closed, so we have to take a detour again only to end up where we left the motorway. Both Snooper and the TomTom are fully up to date so why they’re not picking up the closures is frankly frustrating. Keith is absolutely ready to burst.

When we stop to try and sort out with the paper map we realise we’ve programmed Snooper to go to an entirely different location, 100 miles from where we want to go, no wonder the poor thing is beeping and shouting at us.

We turn round as TomTom tells us to leave the motorway at junction 13 and join the A2 which we do but we miss the junction and end up on 24km of toll road going in the wrong direction! Keith absolutely is livid. It’s a very nice toll road full of tunnels, 6 euros we turn around and go back 24km another 6 euros.

We finally get to our beach spot but the place is packed with locals and the police are doing the rounds so after a swim we decide to head to a campsite not to far away.

We find Camping Agiannis 19 euros with our Acsi card and the electricity is 16amp so we can have the air conditioning on tonight, yippee. But first impressions don’t always count the place is a dump, it’s obviously for the locals who have caravans on their pitches long term which they have extended with tarpaulins and sheds, washing machines, you name it they’ve got it, actually it reminded us of the campsite in Herm lol.

We get chatting to a lovely couple Tony & Marion Morgan (who have been to Guernsey many times on their boat) who are in the process of having an 18 ton truck converted in Poland into a camper truck and intend travelling through South America. You can catch their travels at www.twoinatruck.co.uk. We were fascinated by the toilet that they are having installed, it burns the waste, ingenious, it’s called a Cinderella.

Just as we get the chairs and beers out we can hear the rumble of thunder, 10 minutes later the heaven open and it pours down, Eugene is covered in ‘dirty’ rain again.

It’s fair to say Keith can have drink tonight lol

Much to our surprise we have a very quiet night and with the air conditioning on it was heaven and decide to stay for another night. We need to get to the camper dealer in Thessaloniki which is open on Monday so it’s easier to stay here.

Sunday 10 June

We head down to the swimming pool which is lovely but it’s full of testosterone young men play fighting and bum diving to show off to the girls. It all gets a little to much for us after nearly 7 months of peace and qui so we spend the rest of the afternoon sat outside Eugene reading and sleeping of course.

Monday 11 June

We find the campervan dealer in Thessaloniki and they check the gas for us and didn’t find any issues and much to our surprise didn’t want any payment for a 5 minute job, bargain we’re both feeling so much happier that this is now resolved.

We’ve decided to leave Greece and head to the Bulgarian border, we stop at a motorway cafe for our lunch, big mistake 17 euro for 2 rolls and 2 cups of coffee. We take the toll roads which are in a terrible state, potholes and deep crevices in the road, some Keith doesn’t see until we’ve gone hurtling over them at speed with the feeling that we’ve taken off and landed with a bang.

The Greek Border officer asks where we’re going, ‘well Bulgaria obviously’. He then asks if we have the original number plate as the letters are missing, “well no we took the letters off the number plate on the way up here so we could drive through the border on false plates, what do you think!”

Next check is the Bulgarian side, they don’t even stop us and wave us by. As we head on we pass the miles of stationary trucks waiting to get into and out of Greece.

Bulgaria

We’re in Bulgaria and we know absolutely nothing about this country, our trip planning only extended as far as Greece so we’ve been busy with the free WiFi over the past few days trying to do our research.

We stop at the garage to fill up with fuel, here it’s 2.33 LEV per litre, that’s about £1 a litre.

Bulgaria doesn’t have ‘toll’ roads so we need to get a Vignette which is placed on the windscreen which costs 30 LEV about £15 for a month.  Getting this was also a challenge, the woman behind the counter wanted us to write down the letters next to our numbers, ‘we don’t have letters’ ‘well you need some’ ‘we don’t have letters’ reluctantly she gives in and we fix the Vignette to the windscreen and off we go.

Our first stop is a small campsite Camping Kromidovo run by an English couple, John & Sarah which is basically their back garden. After a few Snooper and TomTom issues we arrive in the village and the roads are terrible, no asphalt just dirt and dust pot holed tracks which have speed humps which are not marked and difficult to see, it’s a slow bumpy drive.

The site is lovely and Sarah & John provide a warm welcome. There’s a public mineral bathing pool at the end of the road so we head there for a couple of hours 4 LEV each and 3 LEV for 2 large beers, that’ll cool us down.

We have a quiet night, the electricity is good so we can have the air conditioning on, but unfortunately it went off in the night and annoyingly the freezer had started to defrost and we had to through out what meat we had in there.

We met a lovely English couple, Vern and his wife travelling in their red VW T5, we were to bump into them a couple of times over the next few days.

Tuesday 12 June

We found the German supermarket and finally I could buy some decent ham and cold meats, something that was lacking in Greece. Keith got a litre of Vodka for 10.74 LEV, less than £5, we’ll have a couple at that price.

The town of Melnik is officially Bulgaria’s smallest town and one of the country’s most famous wine centers, they do have a wine museum here, but it was 600 meters walk up the track and it was just to hot at 36 degrees to drag ourselves up there so after a quick walk round the town we headed back to Eugene to cool down.

As we head further up the mountain the temperature started to drop, we could hear the thunder and then it started raining. We went looking for a wild camping spot by the river which is about 2 hours drive away but this being Bulgaria, Snooper and TomTom not agreeing it tuned into a painful 3 hours. We couldn’t find the wild camping spot we were looking for and couldn’t find anywhere suitable along the river because all the tracks and car parks were too muddy. We ended up at Kamping Eco Dospat which is right by the Dospat lake. Vern and his wife arrive as we’re checking in.

The host doesn’t speak English so using Google translate on his phone he motions for us to talk to it lol. At only 12 LEV less than £5 with electricity and showers we decide to stay.

The temperature has dropped to 12 degrees and it’s drizzling so we put out the awning and contemplate putting on a jumper. It got really cold overnight and I had to put a blanket on the bed, but it’s better than being so hot it’s impossible to sleep.

Wednesday 13 June

We wake up to temperature of 12 degrees and a little overcast. Vern and his wife left early in the morning, Vern wasn’t feeling too well so they went in search of a doctor, we hope that everything was okay.

After a shower we set off to Yagodinska Cave and the drive takes us through the Rhodope Mountains.  The drive is stunning a windy mountain road edged with pine forests and deep gorges.  All along the roadside are timber huts that are used for the quarry workers.

The drive through the gorge was small, a little tight with the huge overhangs of the mountain, but we managed to get through without any issues.

As we neared the road to the caves we were approached by a guy offering a 4×4 drive up to Orlovo Oko (Eagles Eye) which is a sightseeing platform built 1563 meters above sea level in the Rhodope Mountains.

We dropped him down to 50 LEV for an hours round trip, and it was worth every penny.  We settled ourselves in the back of the Mitsubishi Warrior and held on for ride.  The Warrior snaked its way up the mountain pass over ridges and boulders that Keith said more than once ‘You can’t drive over that’. Keith was thankful that he’d put his underwear on this morning after an hour of bone jangling and bum slapping on the seat lol.

Next we entered the Yogodina Cave in the Buynovo Gorge which is the 4th longest cave in Bulgaria and the longest in the Rhodope Mountains.  The temperature in the cave is between 6 and 8 degrees and we could feel the chill as we stood outside in the road waiting to enter.  The cave is full of Stalagmites and Stalactites, but we didn’t think it was that spectacular.

By the time we left the caves the heavens had opened and it was pouring down and we had to take it nice and slow to navigate the gorge.

Snooper and Tomtom both provided us with a route to our next stop. We found ourselves in a tiny village which looked like time had practically stood still for the past 80/90 years. Both devices delivered us straight into someone’s garden much to the surprise of the old man and women pottering about. They looked at us as if we’d just landed from Mars.  Turned around and had to go back the way we had come through the narrow gorge.

Our stop for the night was at Pamporovo Ski resort over 1700 meters up the mountain in a carpark which was free.  The drive up was not that great with the roads turning into rivers and having to drive the other side of the road because the sides of the mountains tumbling into the road by the force of the rain.

Stayed in a carpark which was free and very quiet until we were rudely woken at 3am by a 2 hour hail storm, hail stones the size of small gobstoppers it was so loud inside Eugene it was deafening and we thought the roof lights would smash or we would have huge dents in the roof, we could practically hear the lightening as it struck the ground and the loudest thunder we’ve ever heard. Apart from that it was a very quiet night.

Thursday 14 June

We took a fairly good road all the way to Plovdiv. We parked in a fruit market carpark for 5 LEV. The gates are locked at 9pm and reopened at 8.30am with someone on site overnight.

We walked the 30 minutes into town and could hear the distance rumble of thunder and the skies starting to get darker.

We finally managed to find a telecom shop and get a sim card for the mifi. 6gig for 9.98 LEV to be used within 15 days, but as it turns out its rubbish.

It absolutely poured down and we sheltered in a coffee shop for an hour to use the wifi. Dressed in shorts and t-shirt we wondered around the old town.  The Amphitheater is a music school and someone was playing the drums, the sound was amazing.

We took a very long and wet hike through the park up to the largest granite monument in the world, The Lone Soviet Soldier the Alesha Monument who looks out over the city to the east and today it was my turn to be glad to have put my underwear on a 54 year in a wet t-shirt isn’t a good look.

Friday 15 June

We took the motorway to Alexandrovo Camping for 35 LEV £16, which is situated within the tiny village of Alexandrovo. The owners Matt & Kako have a fantastic place and we had the place to ourselves. The decking overlooks the beautiful Bulgarian countryside and the only sound we can hear are the birds and the beak clacking of the storks nesting nearby. We settled ourselves on the decking for an afternoon of chilling out and use of the free WiFi catching up with the family and a little more research for Romania.

We took a walk into the village and grabbed a beer at the local, even though we said hello to everyone that came past, not one person replied. Matt & Kako have a great place and if we return to Bulgaria we would head straight here, this has to be one of the best campsites I think we have stayed on.

Saturday 16 June

Again we used the motorway and Snooper & TomTom both agree on the route for a change. We’re heading up the Shipka Pass.  On the way we stop and have a look at the Shipka Monastery just as the heavens open, so a quick look round.

We head up the pass and stop at a few monuments on the way and the rain doesn’t let up.

The Buzludzhanski Monument stands at the top of the mountain ridge and can be seen for miles.  It looks like a UFO, but unfortunately is been neglected and is falling down.  We spent the night in the free carpark just below monument.

Sunday 17 June

We leave Buzludzhanski in the clouds and head to Tryavna for a quick look round and a coffee before heading to the most expensive campsite in Bulgaria.  23 euros at Camping Veliko Tarnovo but they do have a swimming pool and the temperature has gone from 13 degrees this morning to 28 degrees.

We’re leaving Bulgaria in the morning and heading to Romaina.

Have we liked Bulgaria, I think we have, although the rain and the loud thunder takes some getting used to.  We have’t found the people that welcoming, we have tried to say hello in Bulgarian in shops, when we’re sitting outside the cafe, but get absolutely no response from anyone, which is a shame.  The internet signal is so frustrating and I’ve had a right time trying to get this blog in order.

a la perchoine

Shirena & Keith

xxxxx