Back in November I spent some time touring through Bulgaria and Romania. The trip started with 2 nights in Plovdiv. From there it was on to
Veliko Tarnovo, a culturally and historically important city in the central/north part of the country. The drive from Plovdiv is a bit less than 3 hours and only semi-interesting. My notes on the drive were that parts were as stimulating as the stretch from Chicago to Inidianapolis (i.e., not very stimulating), while others were like driving through the northeast during near-peak foilage season. Not much whatsoever in the way of roadside pitstops. Mostly agri-industrial businesses best I could tell (a John Deere dealership stood out). Some vineyards. Some very small towns with a couple dozen houses with red tile roofs. Not unattractive at all. Many of the houses seemed to have trellises set up for a bit of homemade viticulture. Reminded me of the driveway or sideyard vines I'd see in
Taunton, MA back in the 80s (could still be there, but I'm not current).
Even after the 3-hour drive I still arrived a bit before hotel-check in time. So I parked the car and got to walking around the center. I started on the 'main' level along ulitsa Stefan Stambolov, which featured a contemporary mix of relatively upscale shops, boutiques, and restaurants.
Then, knowing most of the rest of the day would be focused on the historic lower level and Tsarevets Fortress, I spent some time wandering around the 'upper' level, which is more residential, a bit rustic, and home to some suprising sights.
For example, this big, sharp looking building is a
local high school.
And this next one is a monument outside the house / museum of
Petko Slaveykov, followed a couple additional shots of the surroundings.
All in all, an interesting start to the day in Veliko Tarnovo.
No comments:
Post a Comment