A quick note on Bulgaria

So, here we are, in a Bulgarian town which i can't pronounce let alone spell, but having a good time. Bulgaria has been a great experience for us, as we have continued to run into tremendous hospitality. This time, however, it's come from a variety of different Americans.

John and Nancy were kind enough to put us up for three nights. It was a wonderful visit with some great people. We got some much needed R & R, got to hike up a nearby mountain and get a really cool view of the city of Sophia, and then we got to explore the city itself. John and Nancy also exposed us to some other great things in Sophia, including the US Embassy, which was a very unique and interesting experience, some dining at a local microbrewery, and an authentic Bulgarian meal, prepared by their incredibly kind housekeeper, Sladka.

Sad to leave the comfort and warmth of the Sassers, but excited to see what more the road would bring us, we departed Sophia via a short train ride to a town called Karlovo. From there, we rode about 15 km or so to a smaller town called Kalofer, where we connected with a Peace Corps Volunteer named Matt.

Matt works for an NGO in the town (in the tourist info center) that works with the national park that is near the town, as well as deals with tourism in the town. He was very kind to us, and put us up at his place for the night, and showed us around the town a bit. We went to really the only restaurant in town and had some pretty good food (i did have to send my chicken back to get fully cooked, but it was tasty the second time around) and a couple of beers with our host. Got a good rest, and prepared ourselves for a ride through the Balkan Mountian Range, over the Shipka Pass.

The pass was long, 15km or so from the bottom to the top. It took quite a while and i had to stop a couple of times along the way, but we all made it to the top with little problem. Going up, i did see some brave people going down, attached by a tow-strap. They're even crazier than we are.

At the top, we met an older guy who made all three of us look like wusses. He was a Swiss, who had biked from Switzerland all over the continent, almost 6000 km when we met him. He was headed the opposite direction. His bike was loaded down, front and rear bags, a huge bag on the back, and a 10L jug (which was empty when we met him at the top) for water. He shared with us that he had been hit from behind when in the Ukraine. His left knee was certainly missing a chunk. Nice guy, though.

We made it over the pass, the way down taking only a fraction of the time it took to go up, and at least the same distance, and into the town of Gabrovo, where we had planned to meet a couple of Peace Corp Volunteers, who were also going to put us up for the night.

Casey and Lindsey are from Oregon, and work with the local municipality doing a variety of projects, including work with a women's shelter, a local orphanage, and some teaching at the University. Amanda was another volunteer who lives right next door to Casey and Lindsey, and who will be teaching English starting this fall. Amanda was kind enough to take in our bicycles, while Casey and Lindsey took us in and gave us a place to sleep. They were three more great people, with whom we had a very wonderful time.

We got an afternoon start out of Gabrovo, and made the short ride through Veliko Turnovo to a nearby town named Gorna Oryahovitsa. Yeah, say that ten times fast. Say it once, and i'm impressed. Anyways, here we met Melanie, who is kind enough to put us up for two nights, as we explore the tourist town of Veliko Turnovo in the evenings and rest today before a long ride tomorrow to Russe, where we will stop tomorrow. From Russe, it's across the border to Bucharest, Romania.

It's been a pretty and good ride through Bulgaria, and has been wonderful to meet so many young, kind, and ambitous Americans during our travels. It's been a great insight into the Peace Corps, and great to see what motivates these young people, and the difference they can make within their communities.

Hope all are well!

JC