Monday, March 1, 2010

Christmas in Plovdiv

Day 3 & 4 – December 24 & 25, 2009

In order to get to Sofia, Bulgaria, we had to get up at the crack of dawn to catch a 7 AM bus.  Unfortunately the bus was cancelled since it was Christmas Eve, despite the man at the hostel telling us “Bulgarians don’t celebrate Christmas on the 25th.  In reality they do, albeit contradictory to the traditional Eastern Orthodox celebration of Christmas on January 7.  The wait was worth it, because the bus to Sofia actually had heat.  Once in Sofia, we quickly had to locate the train station and get tickets to the city of Plovdiv.  I approached the ticket window and asked the woman if she spoke English. She looked at me and said “No.” Ok then…. since it seemed that the next train was in 15 minutes we didn’t have much time to waste.  Standing there relatively clueless, I heard a woman say, “Can I help you get a ticket?”  She was a savior – she helped us get tickets, then walked with us to the track and even showed us which car to get in. Yes, there are kind people in this world who will go out of their way to help strangers!

The train was pleasant – I think I could easily travel all of Europe via train, as it is very comforting and also gives ample time for diving into your favorite book. Once in Plovdiv, we dared to take a taxi – but this time the driver actually dropped us off right at the hotel.  Hotel Hebros – wow what a great place. The staff awaited our arrival, handed us sparkling wine, and since we had missed the lunch, they quickly informed us that lunch would be served for us on Christmas day. This would become the theme of Hebros – as all of our interaction with the staff was telling them what time we wanted to eat!  The dinner that night was a traditional Bulgarian Christmas Eve meal – it’s a vegetarian meal that follows the 40-day Advent fast.  It includes grains, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. Walnuts, in particular, are found on the Bulgarian Christmas Eve table. The nuts are cracked in order to predict success or failure for the coming year. Another special aspect of the Bulgarian Christmas Eve meal is the round loaf of bread, into which a coin is baked. The person who finds the coin will be rewarded with good fortune. The 7-course meal included:
o   Bread (no coin was found inside L)
o   Pickled vegetables
o   Cabbage with rice
o   Peppers stuffed with beans
o   Mushroom/ apricot medley
o   Pear and apple soup
o   Pumpkins with warm walnuts
Just writing this is making me feel full again.  Needless to say the food coma set in and Christmas Eve ended, only after watching a little History Channel.

Christmas Day was a continuation of the feast – with a fresh European breakfast.  Afterwards it was time to walk around Plovdiv.  The 2nd largest city in Bulgaria, Plovdiv was developed on seven hills, and is referred to in Bulgaria as the “city of the seven hills”.  Walking through the narrow cobblestone streets you can find over 200 archeological sites, a Roman theatre, churches, mosques, museums, and 30 art galleries.  It is a major cultural center, and is host to many musical, theatrical, and film events.  It also has a modern appeal, with the main street in the center of town consisting of many modern clothing and accessory shops, and of course, a McDonalds. (Talk about McDonalds ruling the world – did you know there are only 7 out of 50 countries in Europe WITHOUT a McDonald’s, including Albania, Armenia, Northern Cyprus, South Ossetia, Iceland, Vatican City and Kosovo).   

As we explored the city, we found a treasure – a health food store that sold vitamins, supplements, and other hard-to-find-in-Albania ingredients and foods. (They actually sold peanut butter there but it was pretty expensive).  After touring the city it was time for the last official meal at Hebros - a lunch of potato soup, stir-fry with curry and baklava.  If you’ve never had baklava before, you’re missing out.  It’s a very rich dessert with layers of phyllo dough filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey.  I never had it before I came here, and it’s tradition in Albania to make it for the holidays.  Ok, enough food talk.  With Christmas over with, it was time to leave Plovdiv and head back to Sofia.

Plovdiv

Roman theater in Plovdiv
Streets of Plovdiv



downtown Plovdiv - only 8600 km to Columbia, SC!

Hotel Hebros