Bulgarians and Americans often ask me, ‘Do you like Bulgaria’, or ‘Why do you like Bulgaria’. This past weekend is a perfect example of what I really like about living here. Hiking, visiting interesting historical places, meeting new hiking friends and chatting, seeing wild pigs, eating, drinking, and dancing till early morning. I understand very well that Bulgaria has many problems..but I also like to them to recognize how rich they are because of their beautiful nature, and close knit families.

I headed with one of my favorite hiking groups to Byalarusse where we saw the ‘Medieval’ town of Cherven..this town was a thriving center, including many types of craftsmanship before before being conquered by the Turks. If you look through my recent pictures, you’ll see only the remnants of the city. We also went to see the Ivanovo Monastery in the Rocks..long ago it was a functioning church, built right into the rocks..many of the wall paintings were still there (my camera didn’t take very good pics..I only kept one), but you can see many other pictures at this site: http://www.bulgariamonasteries.com/en/ivanovo_monastery.html

Then, we went to a functioning monastery in the rocks, Barsarbovo Monastery, very pretty. But, one of my favorite parts is always the festive evenings. Everyone brings a little food to the Hija (hut), and it turns into a feast of food, drinking, and dancing. No one is standoffish like many of the social functions I’ve been to in Boston. Everyone sings. I wish I had taken a video clip, but I was having too much fun.