Eastern Europe in the Spring! – Bulgaria – 2024

We are on the River Cruise now and our first stop is in Bulgaria. Bulgaria has a population of just over 6 million people and Sofia is the capital. Our boat stopped and docked in the city of Vidin, located in northwestern Bulgaria on the Danube River.

The photo above is Veliko Turnovo (which used to be the capital) and is home to Tsarevets Fortress. Veliko Tarnovo is one of the oldest towns in the country, dating back more than 5,000 years ago. Tsarevets Fortress is situated on a mountain peak and surrounded by the Yantra river on 3 sides. It includes a palace, church (St Petka), battle towers, residences and other buildings. It was a very interesting place with a unique history.

  • Town street
  • one of the streets in town
  • Photo of the design of the Fortress
  • Walking up to the fortress
  • View of the town as we walked up
  • Inside the church

One day, we drove by bus around the city to see some sights and then headed to the Baba Vida Fort and then out of the city to Dos Alamos winery. When we returned from the winery, Clint and I borrowed bikes from the boat and we drove all over the city, stopping for a refreshing drink or two on the way back to the boat. The bike ride along the river was beautiful.

Baba Vida fortress is the only fully preserved medieval fortress in Bulgaria. 

  • Part of Baba Vida
  • Baba Vida
  • Old wall built by the Romans in the 3rd century, according to our guide
  • More of Baba Vida
  • Dos Alamos winery
  • Inside the winery

We enjoyed out time in Bulgaria, it would have been nice to see more of the country so maybe one day we’ll go back.

We liked getting off the boat and doing things but the boat was okay. Not too much to do on a river cruise but they do have some form of entertainment each evening in the lounge.

Next stop we had was to Donji Milanovac, Serbia.

See you next post !

21 thoughts on “Eastern Europe in the Spring! – Bulgaria – 2024”

    1. It always amazes me sometimes to see the population of different cities or countries. I believe California has a population of about 38 million and Canada, the whole country, is only about 44 to 45 million. Kind of hard to believe!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  6. I like the narrow street with the cobblestones. That fortress is really high up and it looks like quite a steep hike to get there. I liked the beauty of the church as well. How nice you could go on a little bike excursion by borrowing bikes from the boat – good way to get around on your own, take your time, explore the winery.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

      3. Yes and they have lasted all these years. In downtown Detroit, in historic Corktown, which was an Irish settlement years ago, they have red paver bricks in the main streets, but now they are ripping them up to make pedestrian and biking lanes … they have gone back and forth on it, from a historical point of view and they will go ahead with this $25 million project and have stamped concrete instead (their compromise … I’d rather see cobblestones).

        Liked by 1 person

Leave a comment