Day 18: Melnik to Kardzali

In the morning, thinking that we didn't have too far to travel to our next destination in Bulgaria, we lazed about in Melnik with a bit of a sleep in and then a long breakfast (with Wi-Fi) back at the same cafe in which we had dinner in the night before. We were just impressed with the service and efforts of the people running the place, and as the food was good thought it OK to return. 

Winding up breakfast at about 11am, we returned to the guest house where we had washing drying in the sun. It was dry, we packed, and left. It was only a short drive to the nearby Rozhen monastery, which is recognised as one of only a few well preserved medieval monasteries in Bulgaria. Within about 15 minutes we were there... and within about 15 minutes we had seen what was to be seen. The monastery is still practicing, and not really a tourist destination which is dissimilar to what the guidebooks, internet sites and road signs would suggest.

Plugging 'Kardzali' into the GPS unit, it immediately suggested what I had assumed was a service track on approach to the monastery as the route of choice. Oh well, better now than never to test that the Prado had some off road capability. Aside from the track narrowing to receive a few scratches from the encroaching shrubbery, nothing caused issue for the next 50 km or so except for the slow pace of progress. Finally we emerged back onto first gravel roads, then back to the bitumen. The major roads of Bulgaria are not highways, but narrow and winding strips of bitumen. 

GPS Shortcut...

Feeling like Russell Coight

Passing through small villages and soviet style cities, we started to climb into the mountains where it seemed that there were more horse and carts than cars on the road. Passing through pine forests on way up, the temperature dropped considerably although the altitude didn't go much higher than about 2300m. After passing by some ski resort towns, that were a little eery in their level of dereliction (somewhat akin to the some areas in Mongolia, where be it by private or government failure projects have been abandoned), we descended again into farmland. 

Continuing eastward, we were actually travelling along a river valley with Bulgaria on one side and Greece on the other. We stopped for lunch at a roadside rest stop, where we enjoyed tomato, bread and rock melon that we had purchased in Melnik. The rock melon was fantastic!

Turning northward, we headed towards Kardzali, where by Google Earth we had seen that a large lake existed and figured it would be a good place to find our first wild camping site for the trip. Along the route we had chosen, there had been numerous water fill points. I think that these were fed by either or both of springs or mountain streams. Closing on our destination, and after seeing numerous people filling up and drinking from these sources, we decided to stop and fill our water containers (obtained in Neumarkt, Germany) for the first time prior to wild camping such that we had water for cooking and washing in the morning.

Stopping at one of the fill points, we set about filling the two containers that had been thus far simply thieving oxygen in the boot of the car. A fifty percent strike rate seemed OK for these things... only one was water tight, but we filled the two hoping that a bit of moisture would soften the O-ring of the leaking one. Writing this now, some 15 days or more later, this has not proven the case.

Behind the water fill point was an interesting tree.... fresh cherries. Gerle was still marvelling that fresh fruit was still able to be obtained for free, and despite a ladder perhaps indicating private ownership it was 'up and at 'em' to get to some free sweetness. Actually, these cherries would have to be some of the nicest that I have ever tasted. I'm not sure if the variety was any different to the usual supermarket type in Australia, but these were fantastic. Picking a few dozen, the didn't last longer than about five minutes once back in the car and on the road again.

Roadside water fill point

Preparations for camping

Quite roads of country Bulgaria

Hmm.... what's that?

Closer investigation

Mmmm.... looks tasty.

Gold! Yummy cherries.

Approaching Kardzali we stopped at a small supermarket not unlike what is common in Mongolia to get some food for the evening. Before the supermarket was a roadside stall selling fresh vegetables, where stocked up with tomatoes, corn, cucumber, plums and peaches. The supermarket was a little further into the town we were in, and surrounded with cafes filled with people who could not help but stare at both us and the car. Entering the supermarket, the parallels with Mongolia were all around in terms of the food available and the way in which it was being sold. Leaving with beer, cheese, soup bases and some other more Russian style accessories and condiments than what we had come across previously we headed for what we thought was a short drive to the lake. 

The lake in fact was a good distance further, and as it was getting dark now (about 8pm) we figured it would be better to find somewhere to camp sooner rather than later. The first place we headed to off the main road appeared to be a dumping ground for the local peoples rubbish; a shame to see, but something that appeared to be becoming more common on exit from Europe proper. Gerle wasn't happy, and although I wasn't too happy to continue driving, I was glad that we did for what we found was indeed much better.

Heading from the main road on a track not suitable for 2WD vehicles, we crested a hill to find a nice little plateau overlooking a Bulgarian village that was nice and private, as well as free from rubbish. There was even a plum tree overloaded with ripe fruit.

Ready for wild camping

Local Bulgarian tea herbs

Wild plums

As we setup camp for the evening we were surprised by a visitor returning on foot to the village we war overlooking after foraging for plants that through broken Russian communication we established were for use as tea leaves. A middle aged to elderly man, he was very interested in our voyage once it was established that we were from Mongolia, and that Gerle spoke a small amount of Russian. He gifted to us the tea herbs that he was carrying, and in return we offered him some Mongolian vodka which he was pleased to accept. It did seem unfair though that he had spent time collecting the tea herbs, and that we had simply purchased the vodka. He was happy though, so all seemed good. 

Here in Bulgaria was our first wild camping, away from the Europe style camping complete with swimming pools and restaurants. There were plenty of stones around the top of the hill, carefully moved aside from the field in which a crop was planted and harvested prior to our arrival, providing good material to construct a fireplace. With the fire going, we tested our the cooking ability of the Kelly Kettle with a variety of 'Mish Mash', in the pot above the kettle flue. I think we won't try this again, as the Kettle would boil all to quickly without the stew in the pot above heating. 

In the end, we did enjoy a stew (definitely not genuine Mish Mash) of tomatoe, onion and zucchini, but the highlight of the meal was definitely the corn on the cob roasted over the coals adjacent to the Kelly Kettle. By now it was dark, and figuring that we were to exit from the European Union tomorrow, some wine and spirit obtained thus far 'needed' to be drunk. If the lax customs control were to be known earlier, we needn't have indulged. We had wine collected in Greece and Bulgaria to be had, as well as Limoncello and Grappa from Italy that couldn't go to waste. There as also the home made Raki that we had been given in Greece.

Things ended up a little messy... but it was nice to sit and relax beside the fire. A little of a shame that the customs crossing the border the next day didn't inspect our fridge, but not to worry - it just freed up some space for obtaining and trying other drinks en route.

More Russell Coight-esque action

Our neighbours for the evening

Corn on the cob, cooked on the coals

Delicious

Before too much Bulgarian vino...

Heading to bed, all was peaceful except for a last night toilet expedition by both thanks to the late night drinks. The road was distant and not busy, temperature was pleasant and with no one around to disturb we both slept well. Oh yeah... sleeping when drunk is easy too!

Day 17: Meteora to Melnik

So... who knows the tourist hotspots in Bulgaria? 

We certainly didn't! Whilst in the internet cafe in Meteora the day previous, a quick check of Wikipedia and Google Maps lead us to decide upon the town of Melnik in Bulgaria as our first destination. It was on a plausible route, it was renowned for cheese and especially wine production, and was also known for a cultural icon the Kordopulov House and for natural sand sculptures. 

The drive north from Meteora was pleasant, quick freeway winding through the hills, but after leaving the outskirts of Thessaloniki things slowed down somewhat and the road deteriorated as we approached more closely to Bulgaria. Not sure what to expect upon crossing the border, filling up with fuel was a priority. This proved quite entertaining, being welcomed enthusiastically by the owner of the Eteka station we stopped at once he recognised us as tourists. With many relatives in Melbourne, and having visited Australia many times himself he was very interested (in perfect English) about what we were up to. With plenty of advice for both the remainder of Greece and what to do in Bulgaria, he gave us a small bottle of his own home brew (distilled) raki. 

On our way again, the road continued to get smaller and further into disrepair before it rejoined a major highway to the border crossing point. All was going pretty smoothly here, me assuming that Bulgaria had sufficiently implemented the Schengen visa policy to admit Gerle with her Multi-Entry Schengen visa (and me not requiring one). Then, it was question time. They weren't too sure about the Mongolian passport (likely never having seen one before), and also regarding the car. A bit of fuss about nothing, but a little nervous at the time.  Anyway, we were through. 

By this stage we were hungry, and stopping for lunch in the shanty border town in Bulgaria didn't seem too unappealing. Changing some Euros for Levis, we 'dined' at a truck stop. Shepherds Salad was good, so was the chicken snitzel the second time it came out after being sent back for being raw in the middle the first time. No regrets in the following few days either!

The freeway exiting Greece rescinded into a two way track on the Bulgarian side. The change in the economic fortunes  of the two nations was clear in every way imaginable. Thankfully, we were not on the main (busy) road into Bulgaria for too long before heading off on an otherwise empty country road. This took us through a number of small villages and through vast fields of crops before beginning to slowly rise up into some forested country. 

It was here that we arrived in Melnik. The town itself is very small; basically two streets either side of a seasonal watercourse. Driving up one side, it was unsure whether it was actually a road in places, and perhaps we should have been on the other side, until it was realised that the opposite road was in similar condition. Persevering, we drove up the narrow street towards where the GPS was guiding us, amidst stares from the locals who are I guess more used to receiving tourists arrive by bus at the intersection with the main load leading to town. 

Within a few minutes we were through the town, and out other other side. Without signage, we recognised the Kordopulov House from the pictures on Wikipedia and decided to find some accommodation first before returning to have a look inside. Immediately on entering back into town we noticed the sign 'Room for Sleep' and upon investigation found a comfortable home-stay for 35 Levi (or about 17 Euro). The host was a young mother also running a tourist merchandise shop below, and with good English proved quite helpful. 

Kordopulov House

With the car parked and accommodation sorted, we set about exploring what there was to see in Melnik. First stop was the Kordopulov House, which was built in 1754. The structure comprises a ground floor for wine production and also accesses a subterranean network of tunnels for cellaring, a semi-floor for utilitarian purposes such as grain, vegetables and animals, and a living floor. Apparently the capacity of the cellar is about 250 - 300 tonnes of wine. 

Comprising of a mix of styles, dominated by Bulgarian baroque / revival but with Venetian and Oriental influences, this house is recognised as one of the greatest buildings of Bulgarian national revival and is a national cultural monument. 

We toured through the house fairly quickly, which was pretty cosy inside and surprisingly large. It would have been quite a home back in the day, and it was easy to imagine sitting toasty warm amidst winter snow, eating some hearty Bulgarian meal. The winter garden was also good, and led to a roof-top terrace overlooking Melnik and the surrounding sand 'pyramids'. 

After touring through the house alone, we went downstairs to where there was the cellar and wine tasting. Not quite as savvy as the Hunter Valley, after wandering alone through the maze of tunnels comprising the cellar (still in use) we were offered four glasses of wine to taste between us. Unable to communicate with the barmen, who didn't seem too pleased to see us, we couldn't really determine what we were tasting nor the difference between the tastings offered. It didn't matter, as all four glasses tasted quite good. The local style being semi-sweet young vintages. Apparently, so it was written and mentioned many times in Melnik, Winston Churchill was quite in favour of the regions wines. 

The Kordopulov House

Inside the Kordopulov House, the 'Drawing Room' I think this was called.

A bedroom inside the Kordopulov House.

A loom and traditional clothing inside the Kordopulov House

Not so sure... entering the cellar.

No, it's not a gold mine!

Making the yumminess.

After the wine tasting, we walked back down to the village below Kordopulov House and past our accommodation to check out the downtown. It was surprisingly touristy for such a small place, with what appeared to be busloads of Bulgarian, Russian and other eastern European tourists arriving en mass.  

Both sides of the streets were lined with vendors selling fresh and preserved fruits and vegetables, jams, chutneys and honeys as well as endless varieties of local wines packaged in everything from oak casks to 30 litre plastic drums. We picked up two litres of the local red in a plastic bottle for 3 Levi after being impressed by the ~10 year old boy hawking it. Quite a salesman in either his third or fourth language! A few glasses later that night back in our home-stay proved that the label wasn't important.

The sand 'pyramids'

Speaking with the owner of our home-stay, there were four historical ruins on a trail above the town that would provide a good view over the sand 'pyramids' that Melnik was also known for. It was late in the afternoon, and starting to cool down, so I decided to go up and check it out. Gerle was feeling tired and wanted time to freshen before dinner so decided to remain at the home-stay. 

The walk got off to a bad start.... stumbling through a patch of stinging nettles, jumping one foot to the other to try and get out of the situation. Good thing Gerle decided to stay at the home-stay. Anyway, a few metres on and brushing off the nettles, the track cleared as it became a rocky stream bed that would have teemed with water had it been raining. About 20 minutes later, a fork in the track appeared, with two sites in one direction and two in the other. I chose right, and continued up and along a ridge affording views of the sandy cliffs and valleys comprising the sand 'pyramids'. 

As the track started to deteriorate such that it was hard to follow, the ruins of the Saint Nicola Church appeared. It was well overgrown, and completely unprotected, but free of the defacement so common in modern times. Though crumbling, the frescoes were still visible. Apparently the structure dates back to the 8th century. 

With the trail no longer visible, I headed back to the original fork in the road and headed in the other direction. This way provided some excellent views again over the sand pyramids, however with Melnik   sitting below. With the sun setting, the lighting was excellent for some good photographs (had a decent photographer been present). I spent a bit of time up here relaxing, and looking at the ruins of the 'Despots and Tsar's Monastery'. 

The name of the monastery comes from a donors deed dated 1220, and was built between 1209-1211 atop an older and smaller cave monastery dug into the rock. The place had been ruined through collapse of the cliff on which it was built.  Getting a bit hungry, it was time to head down to the village again before a quick shower and a feed.

Sand Pyramids (?) over Melnik, Bulgaria

Sand Pyramids from the 'Despots and Tsar's Monastery'

Houses of Melnik down below

Me, stopped for long enough so as not to look like a sweaty mess...

Sunset over the Sand Pyramids

Sandy cliffs

Mish Mash

When perusing the village earlier in the day, we'd already figured where we'd go to have dinner. Free Wi-Fi signs can be very enticing when traveling. The place was a small cafe come restaurant that we had stopped at for a drink earlier, but the waitstaff had changed in the time we had been absent. We were greeted by a very busy waiter speaking excellent English, who seemed to be running front of house, the kitchen and another side business all at once. He was dealing with a large group of unhappy Russian customers, but was very pleasant to us. 

Going over the menu, it was pleasing to see a change from the Greek fare that we had become used to. Nothing wrong with Greek food (it is excellent) but a change was nice. Given it was more of a family business cafe rather than a restaurant, the choice was limited, but I was happy to see 'Mish Mash' on the menu. I thought that this was the made up name that my Mum gave to a concoction of tomatoes, capsicum, eggs, onion and cheese... but it is in fact a named dish. Not sure it it is Bulgarian or Russian, but either way, it tastes good. Far better than it looks!

Between us we shared some Mish Mash and a Bulgarian style pizza, with a few local beers, and a carafe of both local red and local white wine. Travel in Bulgaria was proving to be great, with friendly people working hard for the tourist dollar - which went quite a way. In contrast to Greece, which is renowned for its tourism, it was competing well in terms of value for money. 

Me... starting to look more like my Dad... happy to see Mish Mash on the menu.

Mish Mash... looks like vomit, tastes excellent. Better with spinach though.