Bulgaria

Shortly before 11 o’clock on the 27th of September, 2024, I entered Bulgaria which was my 100th country. I was on a five hour bus journey with a bunch of Spanish teenagers, but at the least the seat next to me was clear for my stuff. Halfway there we stopped at the border and did the passport thing which was relatively smooth. 

Once at the bus station in Sofia, I got a taxi to the airport to pick up a car. I was persuaded to keep the car – a Renault Captur with a sunroof and Apple Car Play, for both Bulgaria and Romania as I was permitted to take it across the border. There was an additional cost, but it meant not having to fly to Bucharest, and also that I could see Constanta on the Black Sea. 

Sofia was bathed in beautiful sunshine which almost made it look attractive. The drive to the Anel Hotel was hazardous. Bulgarian road signs and road markings are tragic and are surely designed to confuse tourists. It was a baptism of fire. 

I went out strolling looking for some elegant communist structures and I actually found some. My favourite was the cathedral of Alexander Nevsky which the odd-hatted woman in the gift shop said was the largest in the Balkan Peninsula. There is some dispute as to whether the Balkans is a peninsula at all, but I’ll leave that to geographers to decide.

I scuttled around for a few hours before the streets started to look a little more hostile. I took refuge in the hotel balcony bar where I was the only patron. 

The following morning I was greeted with more sunshine as I left Sofia and headed for Bulgaria’s second biggest city, Plovdiv, about 90 miles away. Bulgarian drivers are quite interesting. The nicer the car, the more aggressive the driver.

I arrived at the Ramada Grand Hotel and Casino and I have to say it’s the nicest Ramada I have ever seen. With the delights of Plovdiv on my doorstep I went for a three hour stroll to see what I could see. 

In the evening I popped into the casino (no surprise there), and I have to say Bulgarian men act like pigs in a casino. Rude, unfriendly, and flicking ash on the tables. Later in the evening, some dancing girls came in to the casino. I’ve never seen this before, and I wondered if it was to distract the punters. It didn’t work – everybody ignored them. 

The following morning I went to see the Roman amphitheatre which I had missed the day before. It wasn’t open. Then it was off to the Black Sea coast to the town of Burgas 150 miles away.

 

I checked in to the Primpretz Grand Hotel on the beach and managed to get the last few hours of sun by the pool before the rain started. There were only three people round this fabulous pool. The season had ended a month before which suited me fine. The facilities were excellent – gym, sauna, steam room, indoor pool, balcony, wine – so I decided to stay a second night. After the previous night in the casino, I had more levs than I knew what to do with, so paying in cash seemed the best option. Anyway, the weather forecast was dismal. 

The hotels in this part of the world are interesting. Lots of jacuzzi bathtubs, fridges stocked to the max, check out at 12, balconies, but no ironing boards, and I haven’t seen a trouser press in weeks. 

The next day I had 55 miles north to the Black Sea resort of Varna. The weather was still abysmal, but there was another casino. I was relieved of my levs. 

I ended up having a fleeting visit driving through Varna where I took a picture of a fabulous looking church, but ended up staying 10 miles north in an area called Golden Sands. 

The next morning was cool but sunny and I walked around for a while before heading to Constanta in Romania. I had to go a much longer route than I’d planned and followed the border on a road full of potholes for about 20 miles inland before crossing. 

The border crossing was easy – 50 trucks in one lane, and me in the other. Bulgaria done – no need to return!