It was another case of "Hey, let's go to some random city, there are cheap flights".
"How about Sofia?"
"What's there to do in Sofia?"
"I don't know".
"Ok, let's go!"
Several people were interested from the beginning, but as it got closer, we all started to wonder "why did we choose Sofia?" Sofia isn't exactly a top tourist destination, so we had to do a bit of research on what we could do. But that didn't stop a group of 11 from booking flights and heading to Bulgaria's capital for a long weekend. And we're all glad we did.
Two friends from Seattle, Kiyoshi and BJ, wanted to visit me around the same time, and although Sofia wasn't on their original list of potential stops, they met us there before a few days in Poland and Prague. I think for all of us it was a nice reason to visit a place we wouldn't normally get to. Besides the Asian Americans, the trip included Polish girls (Asia and Ewa), an Aussie (Mark), the Latvians (Irina, Igors, and Martins), and Romanians (Natalia and Lucian). As usual, it was a great mix.
One of the nice things about my job is that I meet people from all over Europe. And luckily it means I have made a couple friends in Sofia (I mean, who doesn't have friends in Sofia?). This was very helpful because we were able to ask for some tips on where to go, what to see, and Maria even took us out for a walk, dinner and drinks (even though she was sick and had to take time off work). Lucy and Dimo, who used to live in Warsaw, also gave us tips of the city; bars, restaurants, and where to avoid so we'd wake up with our kidneys still in place (ok, so that might be an exaggeration). We also learned in our preparation that in Bulgaria, head nods mean the opposite of ours - shaking from side-to-side means yes, while nodding means no. That's not confusing at all. But at least now we all speak a bit of Bulgarian.
Sofia is a pretty compact city. We were able to see most of it just walking around and doing a little sightseeing jog. Between Maria's tour, the free guided tour we took on Saturday, and the Sofia pub crawl during the evening, we got to see most of the city. The city tour prided itself on happening every day. They even had it on a day when a famous Bulgarian Mafia guy was the target of an assassination attempt a couple hours before the tour start...at the exact spot where the tour meets. He survived, but I am guessing he didn't join the tour that day. The tour was very interesting, about 2.5 hours, and took us to most of the city highlights. Of all the interesting historical places, ruins, churches and architecture, the most interesting place for me was the drinking fountains of spring water where locals line up with empty bottles to fill them up to take home. Of course we filled our bottles, and drank the very warm (almost hot) water after it cooled down a bit. I thought it would be more sulfury or metallic tasting, but it was actually pretty good. I enjoyed putting it in the bottle so much that I poured a little out of the bottle just so I could fill it up again.
We had some very nice spring weather (you didn't need a sweater in the sun, but then when a cloud came, you needed it again), which was great for wandering in the parks and for our hike up Vitosha mountain (but also terrible for allergies). Parts of the mountain were snowy and muddy, so we went on the side of Zlatni Mostove, which was warmer and drier. To get there, we took a tram to the last stop at the base of the mountain, and hiked up a couple hours. It was a nice hike, not too difficult (although my favorite Lucian quote was "They should put signs saying how far away it is til the end, like 5 minutes? 10 minutes? How much longer do we have to walk?). At the end we found a huge strip of giant rocks on which we played for a couple hours jumping from rock to rock and having a snowball fight (strange that the air was so warm, but there was still lots of snow in the shadows of the trees). We found lunch at a tiny cottage-style restaurant with no English (all cyrillic writing), using lots of pointing and nodding. Luckily the groups' combination of Russian, Polish, and various other languages helped translate many of the words - my translation contribution was the word "Pectopaht", which is how the Bulgarian word for "restaurant" looks in Cyrillic (similar to Russian). In Cyrillic, it's really "ресторант" (and pronounced almost like "restaurant"), but I like to pronounce it "Pectopaht" because I think it's funny. But nobody else does. So basically my contribution was useless.
In the Spring, they have a tradition (similar to in Romania and Greece) where people wear red bracelets for prosperity, then tie them to trees when they are in bloom (or when they see a stork). We saw these ribbons hanging all over the city, and during our tour one of the tourists hung her own on the tree. It's nice to see people partake in these playful traditions. A lot of people (including our guide), had a few bracelets on their wrists, waiting for the special tree at the special moment.
As for the food, we definitely ate very well (and often). Our hostel, Canape Connection, provided a nice homemade breakfast every day. It wasn't a big variety, but it was still very delicious. My favorite was the burek (what they call bannica), a fluffy (and deliciously greasy) pastry with meat or cottage cheese inside. Maria took us to dinner at Skarabar, where we had Kyopolou (some eggplant and pepper puree), a platter of meats, Ayran (yogurt drink like in Turkey) and Bulgarian beer (my stomach was really confused by the combo). Of course this was followed by rakia (Bulgarian liquor) at a bar down the street to help digest. We also enjoyed a nice lunch at Izbata, which had great soup, shopska salads, kebapche, kofte, and kavarma, which is a pork and vegetable stew in a clay pot. We followed that up with dinner at Lyubimoto, a very friendly place with tailored meals. They didn't have an English menu, so the waiter just asked us what we wanted, and they prepared it. Generally the service was very friendly and very fast, something we weren't used to coming from Poland. And they serve a LOT of cheese. I didn't expect it, but I went through more lactaid medicine than I did in Italy! Every meal had some cheese or dairy in it: fried cheese appetizers, cheese on salads (shopska salad is really good), cheese in pastries and cheese with meats.
But of all the good food, the best was the midnight pocket sandwiches. Of course everything tastes good after midnight, but this stuff was legit. The bread had a few different pockets where they stuffed various fillings. The veggies, sauces and meats were all great, especially with an egg. You just tell the guy what you want, and he keeps piling it into the various pockets until you stop. I didn't figure out how they determine the price (there was no "per topping" price listed), but it didn't matter, because I'd pay whatever number the guy told me (it was different every time). One of the workers called it a ninja sandwich (I didn't catch the joke), but it was easier for us to call them pocket sandwiches, which seemed more logical. It's not like these sandwiches were sneaking around in the night, wearing all black, like a ninja, assassinating their enemies. But they did have lots of pockets filled with good stuff. So our name made more sense. We got these on the way home from the bar the first night, then got them for dinner the next night (the pub crawl guide took us there so you know it's good), then we got them for lunch before heading to the airport on the day we left. So in just 3 days, it evolved from late night emergency food, to our chosen last meal in Bulgaria. I think that about tells the story.
The hostel hosted the 11 of us quite comfortably, in 3 separate rooms. We had a room with 2 big bunk beds, which the hostel claims are the widest beds ever. It's true that the beds were wide, but the mattresses didn't quite align with the beds. It was ok because at least the extra space was like having a shelf next to your face. The weird part about the hostel is that the bathroom and showers were co-ed. I mean, you didn't go into the same shower with a girl (unless you wanted to, I guess it wasn't illegal), but you could be showering (or using the toilet) in a stall next to someone from a different gender.
Another funny thing about the hostel was that there was another group of 11 people staying there, also from Poland. We saw them on our flight, then saw them in the hostel (usually they were drunk), and I can imagine that the hostel was very confused when 2 groups of 11 people were coming from Poland for the same 3 days. We didn't really talk to them, except sometimes showering or using the toilet next to them. I don't know why, but one of the girls refused to make eye contact with me when we were in the bathroom together.
The guys working in the hostel were great. They were very helpful in finding us things to do, showing us pictures of the different mountain hike options (we saw lots of snow and mud on the live cam for one place, so we chose a different route). They printed maps for us, let us call them with questions even when they weren't working, and generally made us feel like friends, not just customers. I love this kind of attitude, because it makes you feel like they're not in it just to take your money.
The Sofia pub crawl was also a fun night. Every night they meet at the statue of a guy with a split-open face (he was killed by an axe to the head so they made the statue look like that too). Doesn't that seem a little morbid? Rather than remember him for what he did in this world, they remember him for the axe that was stuck in his face when he died. The tour took us to some nice alternative bars in the city, one that was like an apartment building where Mark and Ewa had a circle drawing contest on the wall, and another with no lights, only candles inside (which is illegal). And somehow we ended up at a karaoke bar singing Backstreet Boys. I mean, BJ was here, so it had to happen. And no, you can't see the video (you don't want to).
Overall this was a great trip, a bit of spring, sightseeing, food, nature, and the city is very affordable. Taxis were cheap, food and drinks were cheaper than Warsaw, and after we got back I noticed that USA Today called it the most affordable city to visit in Europe. So you'll have to check it out sometime. Even if just for the pocket sandwiches.
"How about Sofia?"
"What's there to do in Sofia?"
"I don't know".
"Ok, let's go!"
Several people were interested from the beginning, but as it got closer, we all started to wonder "why did we choose Sofia?" Sofia isn't exactly a top tourist destination, so we had to do a bit of research on what we could do. But that didn't stop a group of 11 from booking flights and heading to Bulgaria's capital for a long weekend. And we're all glad we did.
Two friends from Seattle, Kiyoshi and BJ, wanted to visit me around the same time, and although Sofia wasn't on their original list of potential stops, they met us there before a few days in Poland and Prague. I think for all of us it was a nice reason to visit a place we wouldn't normally get to. Besides the Asian Americans, the trip included Polish girls (Asia and Ewa), an Aussie (Mark), the Latvians (Irina, Igors, and Martins), and Romanians (Natalia and Lucian). As usual, it was a great mix.
Before the pub crawl
One of the nice things about my job is that I meet people from all over Europe. And luckily it means I have made a couple friends in Sofia (I mean, who doesn't have friends in Sofia?). This was very helpful because we were able to ask for some tips on where to go, what to see, and Maria even took us out for a walk, dinner and drinks (even though she was sick and had to take time off work). Lucy and Dimo, who used to live in Warsaw, also gave us tips of the city; bars, restaurants, and where to avoid so we'd wake up with our kidneys still in place (ok, so that might be an exaggeration). We also learned in our preparation that in Bulgaria, head nods mean the opposite of ours - shaking from side-to-side means yes, while nodding means no. That's not confusing at all. But at least now we all speak a bit of Bulgarian.
Sofia is a pretty compact city. We were able to see most of it just walking around and doing a little sightseeing jog. Between Maria's tour, the free guided tour we took on Saturday, and the Sofia pub crawl during the evening, we got to see most of the city. The city tour prided itself on happening every day. They even had it on a day when a famous Bulgarian Mafia guy was the target of an assassination attempt a couple hours before the tour start...at the exact spot where the tour meets. He survived, but I am guessing he didn't join the tour that day. The tour was very interesting, about 2.5 hours, and took us to most of the city highlights. Of all the interesting historical places, ruins, churches and architecture, the most interesting place for me was the drinking fountains of spring water where locals line up with empty bottles to fill them up to take home. Of course we filled our bottles, and drank the very warm (almost hot) water after it cooled down a bit. I thought it would be more sulfury or metallic tasting, but it was actually pretty good. I enjoyed putting it in the bottle so much that I poured a little out of the bottle just so I could fill it up again.
Walking tour of the city
You know they're Roman ruins from the numbers on the base of the bridge
Filling up water with a bunch of grandparents in trenchcoats
We had some very nice spring weather (you didn't need a sweater in the sun, but then when a cloud came, you needed it again), which was great for wandering in the parks and for our hike up Vitosha mountain (but also terrible for allergies). Parts of the mountain were snowy and muddy, so we went on the side of Zlatni Mostove, which was warmer and drier. To get there, we took a tram to the last stop at the base of the mountain, and hiked up a couple hours. It was a nice hike, not too difficult (although my favorite Lucian quote was "They should put signs saying how far away it is til the end, like 5 minutes? 10 minutes? How much longer do we have to walk?). At the end we found a huge strip of giant rocks on which we played for a couple hours jumping from rock to rock and having a snowball fight (strange that the air was so warm, but there was still lots of snow in the shadows of the trees). We found lunch at a tiny cottage-style restaurant with no English (all cyrillic writing), using lots of pointing and nodding. Luckily the groups' combination of Russian, Polish, and various other languages helped translate many of the words - my translation contribution was the word "Pectopaht", which is how the Bulgarian word for "restaurant" looks in Cyrillic (similar to Russian). In Cyrillic, it's really "ресторант" (and pronounced almost like "restaurant"), but I like to pronounce it "Pectopaht" because I think it's funny. But nobody else does. So basically my contribution was useless.
Models on the rocks
Them are some big rocks!
In the Spring, they have a tradition (similar to in Romania and Greece) where people wear red bracelets for prosperity, then tie them to trees when they are in bloom (or when they see a stork). We saw these ribbons hanging all over the city, and during our tour one of the tourists hung her own on the tree. It's nice to see people partake in these playful traditions. A lot of people (including our guide), had a few bracelets on their wrists, waiting for the special tree at the special moment.
A tourist hanging her bracelet
As for the food, we definitely ate very well (and often). Our hostel, Canape Connection, provided a nice homemade breakfast every day. It wasn't a big variety, but it was still very delicious. My favorite was the burek (what they call bannica), a fluffy (and deliciously greasy) pastry with meat or cottage cheese inside. Maria took us to dinner at Skarabar, where we had Kyopolou (some eggplant and pepper puree), a platter of meats, Ayran (yogurt drink like in Turkey) and Bulgarian beer (my stomach was really confused by the combo). Of course this was followed by rakia (Bulgarian liquor) at a bar down the street to help digest. We also enjoyed a nice lunch at Izbata, which had great soup, shopska salads, kebapche, kofte, and kavarma, which is a pork and vegetable stew in a clay pot. We followed that up with dinner at Lyubimoto, a very friendly place with tailored meals. They didn't have an English menu, so the waiter just asked us what we wanted, and they prepared it. Generally the service was very friendly and very fast, something we weren't used to coming from Poland. And they serve a LOT of cheese. I didn't expect it, but I went through more lactaid medicine than I did in Italy! Every meal had some cheese or dairy in it: fried cheese appetizers, cheese on salads (shopska salad is really good), cheese in pastries and cheese with meats.
Meat!
They're very honest about the prices of wine
But of all the good food, the best was the midnight pocket sandwiches. Of course everything tastes good after midnight, but this stuff was legit. The bread had a few different pockets where they stuffed various fillings. The veggies, sauces and meats were all great, especially with an egg. You just tell the guy what you want, and he keeps piling it into the various pockets until you stop. I didn't figure out how they determine the price (there was no "per topping" price listed), but it didn't matter, because I'd pay whatever number the guy told me (it was different every time). One of the workers called it a ninja sandwich (I didn't catch the joke), but it was easier for us to call them pocket sandwiches, which seemed more logical. It's not like these sandwiches were sneaking around in the night, wearing all black, like a ninja, assassinating their enemies. But they did have lots of pockets filled with good stuff. So our name made more sense. We got these on the way home from the bar the first night, then got them for dinner the next night (the pub crawl guide took us there so you know it's good), then we got them for lunch before heading to the airport on the day we left. So in just 3 days, it evolved from late night emergency food, to our chosen last meal in Bulgaria. I think that about tells the story.
Look at all those pockets to store the goodness - you want one, I know it
The hostel hosted the 11 of us quite comfortably, in 3 separate rooms. We had a room with 2 big bunk beds, which the hostel claims are the widest beds ever. It's true that the beds were wide, but the mattresses didn't quite align with the beds. It was ok because at least the extra space was like having a shelf next to your face. The weird part about the hostel is that the bathroom and showers were co-ed. I mean, you didn't go into the same shower with a girl (unless you wanted to, I guess it wasn't illegal), but you could be showering (or using the toilet) in a stall next to someone from a different gender.
Widest beds in Bulgaria
Another funny thing about the hostel was that there was another group of 11 people staying there, also from Poland. We saw them on our flight, then saw them in the hostel (usually they were drunk), and I can imagine that the hostel was very confused when 2 groups of 11 people were coming from Poland for the same 3 days. We didn't really talk to them, except sometimes showering or using the toilet next to them. I don't know why, but one of the girls refused to make eye contact with me when we were in the bathroom together.
The guys working in the hostel were great. They were very helpful in finding us things to do, showing us pictures of the different mountain hike options (we saw lots of snow and mud on the live cam for one place, so we chose a different route). They printed maps for us, let us call them with questions even when they weren't working, and generally made us feel like friends, not just customers. I love this kind of attitude, because it makes you feel like they're not in it just to take your money.
The Sofia pub crawl was also a fun night. Every night they meet at the statue of a guy with a split-open face (he was killed by an axe to the head so they made the statue look like that too). Doesn't that seem a little morbid? Rather than remember him for what he did in this world, they remember him for the axe that was stuck in his face when he died. The tour took us to some nice alternative bars in the city, one that was like an apartment building where Mark and Ewa had a circle drawing contest on the wall, and another with no lights, only candles inside (which is illegal). And somehow we ended up at a karaoke bar singing Backstreet Boys. I mean, BJ was here, so it had to happen. And no, you can't see the video (you don't want to).
Overall this was a great trip, a bit of spring, sightseeing, food, nature, and the city is very affordable. Taxis were cheap, food and drinks were cheaper than Warsaw, and after we got back I noticed that USA Today called it the most affordable city to visit in Europe. So you'll have to check it out sometime. Even if just for the pocket sandwiches.
Ki, BJ and me in Warsaw (I made them run with WITC). Come back soon!
This is what the guys brought for me from the US - 50 lbs of mini eggs
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