Though we had never heard of Veliko Tarnovo, it was well-regarded by other travelers we met and was a convenient place to meet up with David (our host in Lucerne), who also happened to be traveling through Bulgaria at the time. Located in central Bulgaria, Veliko Tarnovo sits along the meandering gorge of the Yantra River and once served as the capital of the Bulgarian empire from the 12th to 14th century (before the Ottomans conquered the area).
On our first full day here we went with David to the nearby folk village of Etar where we watched artisans use traditional techniques to make a variety of crafts (woodcarving, weaving, cutlery making). Being a bit unsure about what else to do here, we did as the Bulgarians did and stood in a long line to sample what looked to be delicious vanilla and chocolate drinks and fresh-baked cinnamon rolls, but which, disappointingly, turned out to be buttermilk, wheat juice and plain bread. The highlight of the day, though, was the adventure of getting to Etar on public transportation. Our first obstacle was that none of us can read Cyrillic, making the rare posted timetable useless to us. Second, while everyone was extremely helpful and eager to please, no one spoke English or seemed to know much about the bus system (including the people working at the bus station). Finally, we were reminded several times that in Bulgaria nodding your head means “no” and shaking your head side-to-side means “yes”—very confusing when you ask whether the bus you are on actually goes to the city you are aiming for.
On our second day we visited the extensive Tsarevets fortress in town. Mostly built between the 5th and 12th centuries, it was a defensive stronghold and home to the royal family before being destroyed by the Ottomans in 1393. The grounds were nice, with excellent views of the area, but we found the life-size animatronic talking mannequins of some imaginary royal family a bit creepy. In the afternoon we visited another folk village, Arbanasi, with Nadege, a French woman we met at our hostel. The highpoint of the village was the late 16th century Church of the Nativity. The plain exterior, built to look like a small barn to disguise the structure from the Ottomans, belies the amazing frescoes covering every room of the interior.
The highlight of our stay in Veliko Tarnovo, however (besides getting to spend time with David and meeting Nadege), was our nearby Bulgarian mehana (tavern) where we ate dinner each night. Things didn’t start well the first night when the owner came to take our orders. David asked the owner if he spoke English to which the man responded by throwing the menu on the ground, telling us this was Bulgaria (in Bulgarian, of course, but the meaning was clear), and pointing to the exit. We apologized, didn't leave, and after a few minutes were able to sheepishly put in our orders. Luckily, the simple, fresh food here was delicious and cheap, and we stayed for several hours (and several rounds of beer). We’re sure this contributed to the owner’s gradually warming up to us as the night wore on. We had clearly enjoyed the food, were having a good time, and were communicating with the few Bulgarian words we knew and through hand gestures and pointing. By the end of the night, the owner was pouring us tastes of his homemade pear brandy (60 percent alcohol) and showing us the details of his moonshine operation - including the huge plastic bin full of fermenting pears. The food was so good, (and the experience so odd and fun), that we decided to return for dinner on our second night. Once again, the food was delicious (we had fresh roasted pepper, tomato, cucumber, and feta salad each night), and our host continued to warm to us, bringing us his private stash of homemade pickled hot peppers and sneaking in a few English words. After dinner Patrick asked for a glass of his pear brandy, which so flattered the man that at the end of the night he gave Patrick an entire bottle of it!
Click on the photo below for our Veliko Tarnovo photo album.
On our first full day here we went with David to the nearby folk village of Etar where we watched artisans use traditional techniques to make a variety of crafts (woodcarving, weaving, cutlery making). Being a bit unsure about what else to do here, we did as the Bulgarians did and stood in a long line to sample what looked to be delicious vanilla and chocolate drinks and fresh-baked cinnamon rolls, but which, disappointingly, turned out to be buttermilk, wheat juice and plain bread. The highlight of the day, though, was the adventure of getting to Etar on public transportation. Our first obstacle was that none of us can read Cyrillic, making the rare posted timetable useless to us. Second, while everyone was extremely helpful and eager to please, no one spoke English or seemed to know much about the bus system (including the people working at the bus station). Finally, we were reminded several times that in Bulgaria nodding your head means “no” and shaking your head side-to-side means “yes”—very confusing when you ask whether the bus you are on actually goes to the city you are aiming for.
On our second day we visited the extensive Tsarevets fortress in town. Mostly built between the 5th and 12th centuries, it was a defensive stronghold and home to the royal family before being destroyed by the Ottomans in 1393. The grounds were nice, with excellent views of the area, but we found the life-size animatronic talking mannequins of some imaginary royal family a bit creepy. In the afternoon we visited another folk village, Arbanasi, with Nadege, a French woman we met at our hostel. The highpoint of the village was the late 16th century Church of the Nativity. The plain exterior, built to look like a small barn to disguise the structure from the Ottomans, belies the amazing frescoes covering every room of the interior.
The highlight of our stay in Veliko Tarnovo, however (besides getting to spend time with David and meeting Nadege), was our nearby Bulgarian mehana (tavern) where we ate dinner each night. Things didn’t start well the first night when the owner came to take our orders. David asked the owner if he spoke English to which the man responded by throwing the menu on the ground, telling us this was Bulgaria (in Bulgarian, of course, but the meaning was clear), and pointing to the exit. We apologized, didn't leave, and after a few minutes were able to sheepishly put in our orders. Luckily, the simple, fresh food here was delicious and cheap, and we stayed for several hours (and several rounds of beer). We’re sure this contributed to the owner’s gradually warming up to us as the night wore on. We had clearly enjoyed the food, were having a good time, and were communicating with the few Bulgarian words we knew and through hand gestures and pointing. By the end of the night, the owner was pouring us tastes of his homemade pear brandy (60 percent alcohol) and showing us the details of his moonshine operation - including the huge plastic bin full of fermenting pears. The food was so good, (and the experience so odd and fun), that we decided to return for dinner on our second night. Once again, the food was delicious (we had fresh roasted pepper, tomato, cucumber, and feta salad each night), and our host continued to warm to us, bringing us his private stash of homemade pickled hot peppers and sneaking in a few English words. After dinner Patrick asked for a glass of his pear brandy, which so flattered the man that at the end of the night he gave Patrick an entire bottle of it!
Click on the photo below for our Veliko Tarnovo photo album.
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