Just a little note to start things off: In Bulgaria you shake your head for “yes” and nod your head for “no.” However, if they know you’re a tourist they’ll sometimes switch and try to do it your way to be helpful. Talk about confusing
Well, I guess technically today is day three of our time in Bulgaria, but in some ways it feels more like day four. After making good time through the Bosphorous Straight we got to the port in Varna about 8 am Saturday morning. However, seeing as our berth wouldn’t be ready until 7 am Sunday, our captain made the decision to drop anchor out in the harbor and wait there until we could debark. Good choice considering the ridiculous cost of fuel (and the surcharge we’d all been charged after our first refueling) but it did make for a somewhat frustrating day of sitting in classes/sitting and doing nothing while starting at the city we could be exploring and beach where we could be working on our summer tanning goals.
Sunday morning I got breakfast with the girls before heading to the Union for a briefing with the US Ambassador to Bulgaria. It started out kind of cool because his wife is the US Ambassador to Serbia and she was there too, but he was pretty longwinded and before too long most of us were either A. napping, or B. waiting impatiently to get off the ship. After the briefing was done we all had to get our passports and clear immigration separately, but it didn’t take as long as we had feared and we were on our way by about 10:45.
On our way from Greece, we found out theres this bridge in Varna that is apparently famous for bungee jumping. (then again we learned about it from Wikipedia, which is one of our few “free” sites though not the most reliable) While none of us had been before, and the 50 leva (about $35) fee seemed a little low, most of us decided that this was one experience we couldn’t pass up. We had a general idea of how to get to the bridge and heard it was about an hour walk from the ship, so after a few jumbled attempts to ask locals for directions we saw the yellow tent on the side of the road.
Anyways. When we finally got to the tent there was a group of 5 or 6 Bulgarian adults who were in the process of going. We were all glad to be able to watch some other people go first, but the extra time standing around waiting and thinking about what we were about to do wasn’t the most helpful. Megan decided that if she didn’t go first and get it over with she would end up chickening out, so while they were finishing up we headed in to sign the consent forms and get in the harnesses.
I seriously wish I could have videotaped the entire process, because I don’t even know how to do it justice with an explanation. The head guy comes up and hands us this clipboard with all the consent sheets (which, of course, are entirely in Bulgarian) and tells us to sign in the order we’re jumping. This man, who barely speaks English, has greasy, graying dreadlocks reaching halfway down his back and is missing more than one tooth, is the one we decided to trust with our lives. Awesome. Luckily, when he saw we were a little wary to sign a form without knowing what it said, he was able to find a creatively translated English version we felt at least a little more comfortable with.
Megan went first and was followed by Alex before it was my turn. Even though we had seen other people jump it was a hundred times more nerve-wracking watching your friends go than strangers. They were both fine and came back in the same condition they left, although Alex’s head actually hit the water! (When we asked why it had happened later dreadlock man smiled and replied—It was joke! Funny.) When the time came for me to go I got set up in my harness, secured to the bungee at my ankles and took off my shoes. They explained how to hook myself the rope that brings you back up and with a little boost I was standing on the railing of the bridge, holding dreadlock man’s hand.
I repeat- I was standing on the railing of the bridge. What?? Who does that? It was crazy because even though I hadn’t felt that scared watching the other people, when I was actually up there I just couldn’t make myself move. I stood for what seemed like an eternity, apologizing that I wasn’t jumping and trying not to look down, when he looks up at me and asks, “Need some help?” I vaguely remember making some indistinguishable sound of confirmation and all of a sudden his hand touched my calves and there I went!
The bridge was about 150 meters, but I’m pretty sure nothing went through my head those few seconds during the free fall. Just when I thought I was going to end up in the river like Alex, the cord caught and I found myself flying back up into the air. I bounced around a few more times and then finally came to a stop, hanging upside down and feeling somewhat like a human yo-yo. It was kind of cool because when I was jumping this big sailboat full of people was nearing the bridge, so as I hung they passed below me all cheering and waving. The guys at the top threw down the cord and on my first attempt I was able to hook it to my harness and begin the process of being pulled up.
Being back on the ground felt so good, and after thanking dreadlock man for his “encouragement” I relaxed and watched the rest of our group jump. All in all we were probably there for about 2.5 hours before beginning the walk back. After stops for both lunch and gelato (yep, its here too!) we were back on the ship and, even though we hadn’t done a lot, feeling pretty exhausted. We decided to nap and shower before venturing out for the evening.
After dinner we headed out to find a coffee and cocktail bar that I found in my guidebook. There was art everywhere, with mosaics and cool fabrics, little figures adorning the walls and a chessboard type pattern on the ceiling. Our waitress spoke great English and when she heard our voices told us there was actually another couple from the US there that night too. Gable Painter (yes that’s his real name) and his girlfriend Amanda came over and hung out with us all night, explaining that they had sold everything back home in the states and have been living here in Varna for the past 2 months. He’s actually a home restorer with two shows on TLC called Flip it Back and Restoration Man, They were really cool to talk to and gave us some great tips about Varna, restaurants, bars and beaches.
Yesterday we got up and decided to go to Nessebar, an old fashioned town about an hour from Varna. The plan was to take a bus, but when we left the port we were bombarded by cab drivers offereing to take us anywhere we wanted. Knowing what we now know about the cost of cabs we quickly declined, but decided it wouldn’t hurt to ask one for directions on how to get to the bus station. Instead of helping us, the man we asked told us he’d take us to Nessebar and back for 40 leva (about $30?) each. Bus tickets would be at least that much roundtrip, and since we didn’t even know where the bus station was we decided to give it a shot.
Nessebar was cute, full of little shops, old churches and lots of people. Our favorite part was this little old man sitting between the ruins of an old church, playing the banjo and singing songs like “Yellow Submarine” by the Beatles. It was kind of touristy though, and after about 4 hours we were ready to head back. Our cab driver, Rumen, had given us his cell phone number and told us to call when we wanted to meet back up. On the way home we asked him if we could stop at one of the huge fields of sunflowers we saw during the drive in, so just as I was starting to fall asleep he pulled off the road and we all got out.
As we were taking some pictures he started walking from the car and towards us, cleaning off the blade of this knife bigger than my hand. We all kind of turned and gave each other weird looks, wondering what exactly he was planning. Just when Katie was starting to feel a little uncomfortable he stepped forward, cut a few sunflowers and handed them to us. Seriously the sweetest old man ever! He drove us all the way back to our boat and told us where to get the best Bulgarian food in all of Varna. He even turned on the radio super loud and rolled down the windows as we all sang along.
We headed to dinner at this great little seafood place just down the port, and afterwards headed to an outdoor concert that’s part of the Varna Summer Music Festival. We got there really early, but when they finally opened the gates it was a mad dash of all these little old ladies who were all dressed up and pushing to get in the gates. Once in we realized it was because there were only seats for about a quarter of us, so we ended up sitting on these big rocks near the back. Even though we didn’t understand a word that they sang, the instruments were unlike those we’d seen before, and by the time it was over I definitely couldn’t feel my legs, the concert was really cool and we were glad we checked it out.
After a stop for dessert we headed back to the ship to get some sleep. Today I’ve just been pulling together some stuff for class and wandering around Varna for a place to find free wi-fi. Tonight we’re planning to go to dinner at a place that was recommended to us and maybe hang out back down by the beach. Tomorrow I have a trip to a local orphanage and we’ll probably do some shopping before getting back on board and setting off for Turkey! Thursday we don’t have classes since theres only one day between ports, and its Candice’s birthday so we ordered an ice cream cake from the ship’s kitchen ☺ Friday we’ll be in Istanbul and I have a trip for class to the headquarters of the World Bank which should be pretty interesting. As always, I’ll let you know!
Well, I guess technically today is day three of our time in Bulgaria, but in some ways it feels more like day four. After making good time through the Bosphorous Straight we got to the port in Varna about 8 am Saturday morning. However, seeing as our berth wouldn’t be ready until 7 am Sunday, our captain made the decision to drop anchor out in the harbor and wait there until we could debark. Good choice considering the ridiculous cost of fuel (and the surcharge we’d all been charged after our first refueling) but it did make for a somewhat frustrating day of sitting in classes/sitting and doing nothing while starting at the city we could be exploring and beach where we could be working on our summer tanning goals.
Sunday morning I got breakfast with the girls before heading to the Union for a briefing with the US Ambassador to Bulgaria. It started out kind of cool because his wife is the US Ambassador to Serbia and she was there too, but he was pretty longwinded and before too long most of us were either A. napping, or B. waiting impatiently to get off the ship. After the briefing was done we all had to get our passports and clear immigration separately, but it didn’t take as long as we had feared and we were on our way by about 10:45.
On our way from Greece, we found out theres this bridge in Varna that is apparently famous for bungee jumping. (then again we learned about it from Wikipedia, which is one of our few “free” sites though not the most reliable) While none of us had been before, and the 50 leva (about $35) fee seemed a little low, most of us decided that this was one experience we couldn’t pass up. We had a general idea of how to get to the bridge and heard it was about an hour walk from the ship, so after a few jumbled attempts to ask locals for directions we saw the yellow tent on the side of the road.
Anyways. When we finally got to the tent there was a group of 5 or 6 Bulgarian adults who were in the process of going. We were all glad to be able to watch some other people go first, but the extra time standing around waiting and thinking about what we were about to do wasn’t the most helpful. Megan decided that if she didn’t go first and get it over with she would end up chickening out, so while they were finishing up we headed in to sign the consent forms and get in the harnesses.
I seriously wish I could have videotaped the entire process, because I don’t even know how to do it justice with an explanation. The head guy comes up and hands us this clipboard with all the consent sheets (which, of course, are entirely in Bulgarian) and tells us to sign in the order we’re jumping. This man, who barely speaks English, has greasy, graying dreadlocks reaching halfway down his back and is missing more than one tooth, is the one we decided to trust with our lives. Awesome. Luckily, when he saw we were a little wary to sign a form without knowing what it said, he was able to find a creatively translated English version we felt at least a little more comfortable with.
Megan went first and was followed by Alex before it was my turn. Even though we had seen other people jump it was a hundred times more nerve-wracking watching your friends go than strangers. They were both fine and came back in the same condition they left, although Alex’s head actually hit the water! (When we asked why it had happened later dreadlock man smiled and replied—It was joke! Funny.) When the time came for me to go I got set up in my harness, secured to the bungee at my ankles and took off my shoes. They explained how to hook myself the rope that brings you back up and with a little boost I was standing on the railing of the bridge, holding dreadlock man’s hand.
I repeat- I was standing on the railing of the bridge. What?? Who does that? It was crazy because even though I hadn’t felt that scared watching the other people, when I was actually up there I just couldn’t make myself move. I stood for what seemed like an eternity, apologizing that I wasn’t jumping and trying not to look down, when he looks up at me and asks, “Need some help?” I vaguely remember making some indistinguishable sound of confirmation and all of a sudden his hand touched my calves and there I went!
The bridge was about 150 meters, but I’m pretty sure nothing went through my head those few seconds during the free fall. Just when I thought I was going to end up in the river like Alex, the cord caught and I found myself flying back up into the air. I bounced around a few more times and then finally came to a stop, hanging upside down and feeling somewhat like a human yo-yo. It was kind of cool because when I was jumping this big sailboat full of people was nearing the bridge, so as I hung they passed below me all cheering and waving. The guys at the top threw down the cord and on my first attempt I was able to hook it to my harness and begin the process of being pulled up.
Being back on the ground felt so good, and after thanking dreadlock man for his “encouragement” I relaxed and watched the rest of our group jump. All in all we were probably there for about 2.5 hours before beginning the walk back. After stops for both lunch and gelato (yep, its here too!) we were back on the ship and, even though we hadn’t done a lot, feeling pretty exhausted. We decided to nap and shower before venturing out for the evening.
After dinner we headed out to find a coffee and cocktail bar that I found in my guidebook. There was art everywhere, with mosaics and cool fabrics, little figures adorning the walls and a chessboard type pattern on the ceiling. Our waitress spoke great English and when she heard our voices told us there was actually another couple from the US there that night too. Gable Painter (yes that’s his real name) and his girlfriend Amanda came over and hung out with us all night, explaining that they had sold everything back home in the states and have been living here in Varna for the past 2 months. He’s actually a home restorer with two shows on TLC called Flip it Back and Restoration Man, They were really cool to talk to and gave us some great tips about Varna, restaurants, bars and beaches.
Yesterday we got up and decided to go to Nessebar, an old fashioned town about an hour from Varna. The plan was to take a bus, but when we left the port we were bombarded by cab drivers offereing to take us anywhere we wanted. Knowing what we now know about the cost of cabs we quickly declined, but decided it wouldn’t hurt to ask one for directions on how to get to the bus station. Instead of helping us, the man we asked told us he’d take us to Nessebar and back for 40 leva (about $30?) each. Bus tickets would be at least that much roundtrip, and since we didn’t even know where the bus station was we decided to give it a shot.
Nessebar was cute, full of little shops, old churches and lots of people. Our favorite part was this little old man sitting between the ruins of an old church, playing the banjo and singing songs like “Yellow Submarine” by the Beatles. It was kind of touristy though, and after about 4 hours we were ready to head back. Our cab driver, Rumen, had given us his cell phone number and told us to call when we wanted to meet back up. On the way home we asked him if we could stop at one of the huge fields of sunflowers we saw during the drive in, so just as I was starting to fall asleep he pulled off the road and we all got out.
As we were taking some pictures he started walking from the car and towards us, cleaning off the blade of this knife bigger than my hand. We all kind of turned and gave each other weird looks, wondering what exactly he was planning. Just when Katie was starting to feel a little uncomfortable he stepped forward, cut a few sunflowers and handed them to us. Seriously the sweetest old man ever! He drove us all the way back to our boat and told us where to get the best Bulgarian food in all of Varna. He even turned on the radio super loud and rolled down the windows as we all sang along.
We headed to dinner at this great little seafood place just down the port, and afterwards headed to an outdoor concert that’s part of the Varna Summer Music Festival. We got there really early, but when they finally opened the gates it was a mad dash of all these little old ladies who were all dressed up and pushing to get in the gates. Once in we realized it was because there were only seats for about a quarter of us, so we ended up sitting on these big rocks near the back. Even though we didn’t understand a word that they sang, the instruments were unlike those we’d seen before, and by the time it was over I definitely couldn’t feel my legs, the concert was really cool and we were glad we checked it out.
After a stop for dessert we headed back to the ship to get some sleep. Today I’ve just been pulling together some stuff for class and wandering around Varna for a place to find free wi-fi. Tonight we’re planning to go to dinner at a place that was recommended to us and maybe hang out back down by the beach. Tomorrow I have a trip to a local orphanage and we’ll probably do some shopping before getting back on board and setting off for Turkey! Thursday we don’t have classes since theres only one day between ports, and its Candice’s birthday so we ordered an ice cream cake from the ship’s kitchen ☺ Friday we’ll be in Istanbul and I have a trip for class to the headquarters of the World Bank which should be pretty interesting. As always, I’ll let you know!
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