Bulgaria, Kosovo and Macedonia

[RooFlyer]

Meal as usual on QR was top notch:



Amuse Bouche


Soup



Appetiser egg plant and grain salad


Main of Arabic chicken


Hot chocolate and choccies to finish.

Superb. Wines have been posted before by others but I might do them later.

Currently enjoying an hour's free very fast wi fi ( per device, with separate email). US$10 if you want the entire flight.

 

[RooFlyer]

The flight was almost entirely in the dark. They lit it up for breakfast at about 2.5 hrs before scheduled landing. The breakfast was OK - generous portions, as with all QR meals and good variety. I just had some cereal and the fruit.

We arrived 30 mins early though, and parked at a remote stand - a very remote stand. And then we waited .... and waited ...

The busses were there:



The cleaners and the stairs were there:



... but the driver of the truck carrying the stairs was not. He turned up 30 mins after we parked and we de-planed 5 mins later, and were drove for abt 15 mins till we got off in a distant part of the terminal. A silly end to a great flight. QR absolutely runs rings around its competitors in J, at last. The only fault I find with the current J seat is that its not very private and you can get quite a bit of light spillage if the person adjacent to you has their TV on during the night.

Through arrival security - fortunately there was a business priority lane, which I zoomed through, then to the lounge for a shower. I knew to go straight there, as there would be the usual game of 'there is a queue, but wait nearby and I will try to get you in first'. Which of course he did, or at least before the 5 names supposedly on the list before me.

I recall someone posting a while back that the J lounge was pretty bad. This time, like all the other ones, i found it pretty good - although a bit crowded, at 5am local. But still easily got a seat for a hot chocolate and some muesli.

The airport as a whole was very crowded at 5-6am; lounges, concourses, security, the lot. Obviously peak time for long haul arrivals.

 

[RooFlyer]

I lost track of time in the lounge and looked at a screen - my flight was on 'Final call' - and at a distant gate, to boot. I hauled cough and arrived at the gate breathless, with the last bus abut to depart. That would have been my first ever missed flight, but fortunately my record is still intact .

An A320 with 3 x 2-2 in J. Recliners with no IFE or wi-fi, but ipads were available.





Printed menu and wine list (same as the long haul) and breakfast was offered, but I'd had mine.

Hauling out of Doha:



I dozed for the first bit and woke up to some great scenery first near the Iran-Turkey border (we traversed up Qatar's ally Iran) and then in eastern Turkey.


These are lakes at the bend in the route close to Azerbaijan







Sofia airport is medium sized and didn't look very busy until we hit the immigration arrivals hall - packed to the gills. Only 30 mins to get through, albeit much longer than I'm used to. Went to ATM for cash, then authorised taxi desk, got chit then taxi and into town. I got to the Intercontinental 1 hour after we arrived, which was pretty good, considering the immigration delay.

 

[RooFlyer]

First impressions of Sofia are excellent. Its very clean; lots of well kept gardens with summer flowers and loads of sculptures; lots of great 19th-early 20th century buildings, heaps of museums and galleries; nice outdoor restaurants. Traffic isn't heavy and is pretty orderly . Its about 30 degrees today - the European heat wave has just missed Bulgaria, but tis still pretty warm.

I have a night at the Intercontinental before joining a tour at another hotel tomorrow.



Interesting restaurant at the front of the hotel!!



I've given up chasing status with hotels, but somehow am still IHC gold, so got a bit of a welcome spread in the room:



The front rooms have views, but I asked for a quiet room at the back. Pretty nice, very spacious:

 

[RooFlyer]

I went for my usual orientation walk; I'm joining a city tour tomorrow, which will cover much the same ground, so some history tomorrow; just some pics for now.













Under the area between the buildings in the following 2 pics, with the perspex domes, they found a lot of Roman ruins when excavating for the Metro about a decade ago. Now on display.

 

[RooFlyer]

I have lounge access at the Intercon;, its small but nice; good food selection and a selection of Bulgarian wines:














Not bad; I don't doubt I'll find better. The tour I'm on over the next 2 weeks visits some wine areas and I have already observed a couple of good looking wine tasting places in Sofia.

 

[RooFlyer]

Sofia is the capital of Bulgaria, and as I mentioned above, quickly likable. The greater city has a population of about 1.5 million and is located about mid way between the Black and Adriatic seas.

Its had a colourful history; from Wikipedia:

Sofia has been an area of human habitation since at least 7000 BC. The recorded history of Sofia begins with the attestation of the conquest of Serdica by the Roman Republic in 29 BC from the Celtic tribe Serdi, raided by Huns in 343–347 AD and 447 AD, conquered by Visigoths in 376–382 AD, conquered by Avars and Slavs in 617 AD, and on 9 April 809 Serdica was surrendered to Krum of Bulgaria. In 1018, the Byzantines ended Bulgarian rule, while in 1040 it was shortly restored. The town was conquered by the Pechenegs in 1048 and 1078, by the Magyars and Serbs in 1183, and by the Crusaders in 1095 and 1190. The rule of the Second Bulgarian Empire lasted from 1194 until its conquest by the Ottomans in 1382. From 1520 to 1836, Sofia was the regional capital of Rumelia Eyalet, the Ottoman Empire's key province in Europe. Bulgarian rule was restored in 1878. During World War II Sofia was bombarded by the UK and US Air Forces and at the end of the war, it was seized by the Soviet Army.

In 1946 Bulgaria became a one-party socialist state and part of the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc. The ruling Communist Party gave up its monopoly on power after the revolutions of 1989 and allowed multi-party elections. Bulgaria then transitioned into a democracy and a market-based economy.

Bulgaria is a member of the European Union, NATO, and the Council of Europe; it is a founding state of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)

Its not in the Eurozone however; currency is the Lev, with abt 1.2 Lev to the A$. Plenty if banks and my citi debt card accepted without fee at several of them.

Downtown is low-rise and very pleasant, although its obvious that traffic can get jammed up. However, road rules are obeyed and traffic cops are about. The streets are clean, except for some dog droppings. Lots f shady parks and many streets are tree-lined. Pretty quiet before 10am, when most shops open.

Language is Bulgarian, using Cyrillic 'Russian' script - the Bulgarians claim to be the inventors of Cyrillic

There is a two-line metro, including a line from the airport (where you have to remember to buy a ticket for your check-in sized suitcase!). The 2 stations I used both had ticket machines and a person selling tickets. Cost 1.6 lev for 1 station, but that was probably enough for a whole zone. Again, clean and efficient, with basic signs and on-train announcements also made in English.





There's also a tram service trough the town, but I didn't try that. Oh, and McDonald's lovers will be at home here - its everywhere!

 

[RooFlyer]

One of the biggest attractions in Sofia is the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, one of the largest eastern orthodox churches in the world - it can hold 5,000. Its not that old - dating from the end of the nineteenth century. Almost across the road from the Intercon.





No charge to go in and no restrictive dress standards - I was in shorts and sandals, and ladies didn't need a scarf.

 

[RooFlyer]

The nearby St Sofia church on the other hand, dates from the 4th century and is the city's second oldest. Its been destroyed and re-built of course and the present basilica, with cupola, is believed to have been built during the reign of Byzantine Emperor Justinian I in the middle of the 6th century (527-565) and so is contemporary with the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople.





The ceiling:



Under the church is the crypt and remnants of the more ancient structure and also remnants of ancient Serdica, the town that preceded Sofia. It costs 6 lev to see it and 15 more to take pictures! But well restored with level walkways and interpretative panels.

 

[RooFlyer]

A few pics of the street-scape from this mornings walk around (except for the first, taken yesterday afternoon)

 

[Pushka]

Is there any relationship with Hagia Sofia in Istanbul? I think Constantinople sounds grander too!

 

[RooFlyer]

Is there any relationship with Hagia Sofia in Istanbul? I think Constantinople sounds grander too!

No, just the reigning Emperor I think.

The oldest surviving structure is the Rotunda church of St George, dating from the 4th century, Emperor Constantine. Sofia at that time was known as Serdica.

Today the church is completely surrounded by a Soviet era building and access is via a laneway.







Thank goodness for Google translate camera app:







There are a number of ancient frescoes, parts dating from the 4 th century but most from the 10th-14th century.

 

[RooFlyer]

As I noted above, Bulgaria has been invaded a number of times, like many European countries. One of the more dramatic was when the Russians helped rid the country from Turkish - Ottoman - occupation. Our local Sofia guide repeatedly referred to this as 'the liberation', without any other qualification. I didn't ask the question, but it seems that Bulgarians must have a mixed attitude to the Russians - the liberators' in the nineteenth century, and occupiers in the post WW2 twentieth century.

There are a number of stark reminders of the Russians in Sofia today. There is the 'Russian church' - built abt 1880s for those Russian liberators who stayed behind.





Then there is the main cathedral, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. Named after a Russian saint, and also built in the 1880s.



Real gold leaf over the domes - 60 kg in all:





No chairs in these eastern Orthodox churches - all but the ill and infirm have to stand - except for the Patriarch and members of the Royal Family, who all get thrones, on the right.



During Soviet control, churches were maintained as 'museums' but those brave enough to attend could attend and the museum-keeper AKA priest might attend to them. No open services.

This is the royal palace for the former Bulgarian king. The Bulgarians were very practical. When they were liberated, and obviously needed a monarchy, instead of creating their own, they borrowed from existing Royal Families in Europe - thus instantly cementing alliances





But the most interesting things in the above 2 pics are the road-making materials (obviously) - the 'yellow brick road'. I thought they were merely yellow glazed or painted regular bricks. But no. The yellow is a natural colour of a very rare and particular limestone, which the Bulgarians lined a couple of key streets with in the late 19th century. Cost a gazillion, even back then.




The Intercon frontage has the yellow bricks - obviously a special place / Oh, and that's Czar Nicholas II on his horse, there.



Oh, and remember the Captain Cook restaurant at the Intercon, that I puzzled about when i arrived? Turns out it has nothing to do with the English navigator and explorer. Its a fish restaurant. So the words 'Captain' for the sea and 'Cook' for restaurant - are a play on words.

 

[EestiTiger]

Oooo - just noticed this trip report! I was getting ready to start with a new one myself starting in Bulgaria next week Love your pics so far!

 

[Denali]

Righto - successful shopping in Adelaide. I shall reveal my prize purchase on board (as long as it works as intended

 

[RooFlyer]

Ah ... that would be RooFlyers patented extra-comfy sky mattress when J r F isn't enough!

Mattress for J and F beds

I have always slept poorly on planes. No matter how otherwise nice the experience in J or F, it's always been a struggle. Either the bed is to hard, or the seat bumps are in the wrong place, or the foot well is to narrow ( and apologies to those who have to fly Y, I know I'm spoiled to fly...

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

 

[RooFlyer]

I arrived in Sofia a day before my tour was due to begin - in fact more than 24 hrs. Exodus is a UK based company, with an Australian office and @JohnM introduced me to them when we did Iran together with Exodus.

The UK planeload was due to arrive at 13:15 on my second day and the tour to convene at 15:30 for a 2 hour walking tour of Sofia. Group of 12 this time (max 16) and 3 x Australians, 1 x Canadian, 1 x USA and the rest Brits; mostly it seems in the 40-65 range. Tour got off to a bit of a shaky start when it emerged that 4 of the group hadn't had lunch, for some reason, so the whole group de-camped to a nearby restaurant for an hour. Wasn't all bad, as we got to chat and get to know each other and the tour continued without missing anything - we just finished later, which in the warm afternoon was OK. the tour covered the same territory and I had done already, but lots more interesting detail. Such as 'Sofia' isn't pronounced as I and most do, as 'So-fee-a' but rather as 2 syllables, So-feea.

So some pics from about the town:

Lions are the symbol of Bulgaria and are everywhere, especially on government buildings. This one guards the tomb of the unknown soldier with the St Sofia church behind it.





Excavations have revealed the Roman ruins of Serdica, the town that preceded Sofia. The structures are actually coverings of the old ruins underneath, to preserve them. Thats one of 2 remaining mosques in the city at the end. Can't see it, but it sits opposite a very large synagogue, and there is a catholic church and of course an orthodox church nearby.



The local guide is pointing to where some of the old ruins are left exposed and are rapidly decaying:






One of the gates of the Roman walled city. Now underneath an office building.



Saint Sofia: A statue of Lenin used to occupy this place, looking back to the Communist party HQ building. It and other soviet relics are now in the museum.



Palace of culture, in nice parklands:



Former HQ of the communist party, on the left; President's building on the right. Opposite it, on my left is an identical building of the Prime Minister, so the Party viewed them both. Underneath the perspex bubbles are the roman ruins, pictured above.

 

[RooFlyer]

Arms of the city ... more lions ...



Court attended by lions ...



National theatre building in classical style:







But not escaping the lions ...



A long pedestrian mall, with heaps of cafes and bars ... very pleasant.

 

[RooFlyer]

The tour hotel was the Sofia Place hotel, close to the mall. A bit downmarket from the Intercon but quite OK. the aircon worked!







After the tour, there was supposed to be an 'optional welcome dinner', but there was no mention of this when our main guide briefed us on the next day's activities (leaving at a leisurely 10:00am) and then bade us good-bye for the day, so several of us went to 'Moma' restaurant for some Bulgarian fare.



The menu was extensive, with ots of meat and vegetable dishes; again, I'm not so much into my food and taking pics at the table on the first meeting I thought wasn't a good idea, but I snuck a few. Fortunately most were interested in the wine - so we chose this Melnik (local grape variety) ay 40 LEV, abyt A$35. It was pretty light style and we were a bit sus with the ENglish label, but never mind. We are visiting the town of Melnik tomorrow, so will follow it up.

Melnik grape I The best Bulgarian wines from the Melnik grape variety!

According to a very popular story, Melnik wine was Winston Churchill’s favourite – it is even claimed that Churchill had 500 litres of this wine delivered to him annually! Whether this is true or not, it is certain that the Melnik wine has a captivating t

www.bulwine.com

Shashlik stye:

 

[VPS]

Sofia looks very different to my visit in 1982 apart from the Yellow Brick Road. We stayed in a nice hotel with lovely tiled bathrooms. I was on the 3rd floor. Only problem was if you wanted water you had to take a bucket downstairs to get it.