One Man in Bulgaria

Emerging from my burrow on the first day of March 2017, it has been a long hard winter. Temperatures are still pretty low and a cold wind blows however there is a blue sky as the sun struggles to bring forth spring. It is Baba Marta day once again. I wrote in detail about this annual event in my blog last year. Once again stalls have been selling martenitsi in the lead up to this celebration and will continue to do so until the end of the week. You can see a friend of mine in the photo. with her mother many weeks have been spent making these. The best are made from local wool and beads. This year I receive seven, worn on my wrist, from my increasing circle of friends. 'Pizho and Penda' are hanging on my door. Text messages are exchanged with distant friends containing images of cards just as we would once have sent cards through the post in my youth. New decorations have been installed at the "Compass" on the way to the sea garden. To celebrate I have lunch at ...

A long time ago in a land far away (well a new 'Star Wars' film is about to hit the streets), actually I am skipping forward from Plovdiv to events last weekend here in Varna. A trip to the tourist Information office a while ago had established that the number 17 or 2 bus would get me to the other side of the river and the opposite headland. I decided to do a recce as I could not find the correct bus stop around the area of the cathedral. It turned out that I was actually standing on the wrong side of the road. The No.17 which I thought was returning was actually heading out because of the new road system. Find the Tourist Information Office walk on to the end of the street and the stop is just around the corner to the left.  The No.2 stops behind the cathedral somewhere.  Returning is easier they all stop here at this junction in Asparuhov.