The Donau River separates the countries of Romania and Bulgaria.  Somewhat surprisingly, there is only 1 bridge linking the 2 countries by road.  This bridge, dutifully named the “Friendship Bridge” brought our Orient Express riders into the 7^th country to be visited on this trip. 

 

Our first destination in Bulgaria was the Ribarska Kobila campsite, situated in the vicinity of the town of Ruse… however, upon arriving at the campsite, the driver of the Tour vehicle met the campsite owner, named George.  Mildly intoxicated, George was able to speak a few words of English to explain that this was indeed the Ribarska Kobila, he then pointed to a brownish field containing early communist era cabanas; the sense of gloom on the land evoked thoughts of abandonment, or at least of a place where time has ceased to be noticed.  George’s assistant, who appeared sincere, kind and cross-eyed, led the driver around the campsite, while humming what could perhaps be a Bulgarian hymn, the morose sound melting into the air.  With few words it was decided between driver, George, and the assistant that this was not such a place for camping any longer, but a place to sit quietly, descending into utter intoxication, with no plans or motives. 

 

Of course, this reality hardly encapsulates the desires of the Orient Express cyclists.  Hence a new first night’s destination in Bulgaria needed to be found.  Descending further down the road beside the Ribarska Kobila, directly to the side of the Donau, was located what could only be described as an Oasis.  The Lulaika Hotel.  A land of swimming pools, the possibility for pinkish colored cocktails, and patios which stretch to the wild and unseeing river’s edge.  This was to be our destination.

 

As the cyclists arrived they quickly transferred between the mode of a journeyer crossing a continent by bicycle, to the pose of the jet set; lacquered to their deck chairs sipping drinks, baking in the summer sun, hearing faintly the splash of scantily clad men and women in the pool; all the pleasures of relaxation eroding the pain of weary legs.  The next day’s hard ride in the farthest recesses of their minds…

 

Afterthought

 

It’s difficult to assess the nature of people’s choices, or to decide on their merits.  What is it that George and his assistant at the Ribarska Kobila ponder so deeply?  Causing them, apparently, not to notice the capitalistic fervor of the Hotel Lulaika going on less than a kilometer down the road. Perhaps these humans, like us all, put down roots in ideas, and when the ideas collapse: the previous communist Bulgarian state in this case, they’re left with nothing but the soil and the wind.   Regardless, we at TDA feel that it is lucky to come into contact with both sides of the economic equation; capitalistic success, and despondent questioning.  The destination is often unknown.

So this would appear to be the year of half tours for me. First, Arusha to Cape Town and now, Budapest to Istanbul. There are many challenges in joining a tour at the halfway point. My biggest struggle is trying to learn everyone’s name. This is the largest group ever for the Orient Express. In just less than week we will cross the finish line in Istanbul with nearly fifty cyclists and staff.

Right now we are enjoying a day of rest in Varna, Bulgaria. This place is a hidden gem. Since we entered this country our route has led us through the rolling hills of agriculture and primary industry. Picturesque fields of sunflowers, where many of the locals still travel by horse and buggy. But Varna is a beach resort town on the Black Sea. Our hotel is right in the middle of pedestrian mall so the all the action is right out the front door. Its only a two minute walk to the water. The boardwalk is lined with restaurants and bars and the nightlife lasts until the sun rises. There is always music on the streets from the eccentric collection of street entertainers. The beaches are endless, the water is warm and apparently the clothing is optional. We should have two rest days here.

Two days from now we will cross into Turkey our final country of the tour. Last year we had temperatures of nearly 50 degrees. But the forecast is much more favourable for us. Although the end draws near, cycle touring is all about the journey not the destination. I must admit I’m envious of those who will keep cycling all the way to Beijing.

So this would appear to be the year of half tours for me. First, Arusha to Cape Town and now, Budapest to Istanbul. There are many challenges in joining a tour at the halfway point. My biggest struggle is trying to learn everyone’s name. This is the largest group ever for the Orient Express. In just less than week we will cross the finish line in Istanbul with nearly fifty cyclists and staff. Right now we are enjoying a day of rest in Varna, Bulgaria. This place is a hidden gem. Since we entered this country our route has led us through the rolling hills of agriculture and primary industry. Picturesque fields of sunflowers, where many of the locals still travel by horse and buggy. But Varna is a beach resort town on the Black Sea. Our hotel is right in the middle of pedestrian mall so the all the action is right out the front door. Its only a two minute walk to the water. The boardwalk is lined with restaurants and bars and the nightlife lasts until the sun rises. There is always music on the streets from the eccentric collection of street entertainers. The beaches are endless, the water is warm and apparently the clothing is optional. We should have two rest days here. Two days from now we will cross into Turkey our final country of the tour. Last year we had temperatures of nearly 50 degrees. But the forecast is much more favourable for us. Although the end draws near, cycle touring is all about the journey not the destination. I must admit I’m envious of those who will keep cycling all the way to Beijing.

105kms took us into Varna, a huge tourist destination. Located right on the coast of the Black Sea, this Bulgarian town is home to some incredible cathedrals, museums and parks. The seaside is also something not to be missed. I made sure that I had a swim in the Black Sea. It was incredible. Piotr and I were tossed around only 5 feet off the shore by gigantic waves and an intense current. But we splashed around for over half an hour in the salt water. I do believe that we were only a few of us that dared to swim in September. However, it was worth it and surprisingly warm. Others went to the Archeological museum, the many shops on all of the wonderful pedestrian streets and dinned on local food. The staff also gave the adventure riders a nice surprise and put them up in a small hotel that was located right on the pedestrian streets. The original camping space was 10kms out of town and didn’t seem convenient for a rest day in such a great town. Tomorrow we head to Pomorie another town on the Black Sea coast. A swim might be in order there also as long as the weather stays nice.

The riders got more than they bargained for this day. It was meant to be a long day, but it turned out to be longer. We sent the riders on the back roads to the town of Sumen. The highway would have been too busy. So, instead of riding 130kms with large trucks and heaps of traffic, the group of very tough men and women rode a total of 155kms on the quieter back roads. By 7:00pm, Piotr and Shanny had to go out and pick up some of the riders, as it was becoming too dark to ride safely to camp. I was riding as sweep again that day and therefore had to get picked up also (by my own truck). Dinner was late that night and we all ate in the dark at this really nice park that we happened to be camping in. This route was new for the tour this year, as we were told that Veliko Tarnovo was very worth seeing. After walking around the town, I have to agree with its beauty. Very old buildings, on cobblestone roads, with a castle up on one of the hills made for a very lovely evening walk. I do believe that this is a segment in the trip worth keeping. Not to mention the challenging ride you get to have. Some of the riders also purchased local artists work in the form of paintings and vases and hand woven scarves. Now if only they would purchase things that would fit in their luggage, I would be happy!

We have entered Bulgaria with 9 new riders with us. This was not before leaving Romania in style with our fancy police escorts. One more time, thanks goes out to the men and women in blue of Bucharest. Our first day in Ruse was met with much of the same glamour as that of Romania. A meeting with the mayor of Ruse was the initial welcome wagon for our cyclists and staff. We were also interviewed by numerous local media. To top it all off, the president of the local cycling association took many of the participants to the bicycle hot spots. One of which was an old Olympic distance velodrome. Today we have come to the beautiful city of Veliko Tarnovo, a popular tourist town that is built on three large hills with a river zigzagging throughout it. Tomorrow is the longest day left on the trip, full of rolling hills and the potential of some very steep climbs. The riders will be making good use of our refreshment stop after lunch I imagine.

I feel strange this morning - not for health reasons but from seeing almost everyone else get on bikes to ride while I did not. After feeling really slow yesterday and feverish for first half of the night decided to take a rest or one of Brian's "mental health" days. Probably the clouds and strong winds had something to do with it too. Brian's still dealing with the nerve injury plus he was up all night with the flu bug so he decided to head for Istanbul by train. He figured he wouldn't be riding anymore anyway. Joy decided to go along too - her bike isn't working well since the accident and her injury still bothers her. So today after breakfast Kerry and I jumped in the van with Craig. We get to do the route in luxury today. We made it through Burgas with only one turn error. Fortunately as we retraced we didn't pass any cyclists until we were back on the correct route. When we made the error Craig pulled over a guy to ask. That sent us back to where we belonged. Though we couldn't understand his words we got the gestures. Momentarily had a little confusion when we forgot the sideways head shake means "yes" and up/down shake means "no". We finally got out of Burgas heading south into the interior on highway 98. This is still a good highway although not as smooth and well maintained as E87. Lots of hills again. Once back in the van I don't notice the difficulty of the ups and downs. We're in what is called the Strandzha - a region of plateaus, hills and valleys covered by virgin forests. Really beautiful area and am wishing I had biked it. Oh well. We got to Malko Turnovo and made our way through the town to the road (E87 again) to the Turkish border. We found the motel half way to border and it is a wreck. It looks like it was nice at one time but not now. We read in the Rough Guide to Bulgaria to check with the national park headquarters off the town square for lodging. So with the help of a local woman we found that place easily. Here we were really lucky. The woman in the park office speaks English well. Sheand another woman there arranged for us to get rooms tonight in the hospital. No camping available. So commenced another interesting vignette of this trip. The office lady pointed the way but we still needed another person to help us find the hospital. Once we found the hospital we eventually found a person who knew why we were there. Then three women tried to figure out the arrangements until a nurse who spoke English arrived and helped organize things. There seemed to be some concern on their part about room sharing even though all rooms have two twin beds. They were also concerned about which people were couples. Eventually it all got sorted out and Craig got keys for all the rooms. I think Casey and Kerry have the best place - they have a bedroom, sitting room and private bath. Haven't figured out yet what ward we're on - probably psycho in line with the theme of this tour. After setting us up we went to the hospital cafe to try for some lunch. We got some tea, then the director, Miroslav, came in and helped find some food. So we all had chicken soup and bread and a Cappy and Craig had a chicken cutlet. This is a working hospital but not the busy place you see at home. No nurses stations. Of course the patients are on other floors. We are occupying most of the 5th floor. The director said there are only 10 - 15 patients at this time with a maximum capacity of 45. Went down to the small town square with Daniel and walked around. This seems to be a nice peaceful little town. There are many wood sheathed houses here - look like old untreated barnwood - as well as the stucco we have been seeing. Most houses have tile roofs. Back in my room finally reading Istanbul I can hear few cars, but many birds, also roosters, dogs, donkeys. The only problem I have with this place is the sagging bed springs. That was easily remedied by dismantling the frame and putting the mattress on the floor. Now I am back in Japan on a futon. I'll get this off early tonight as I don't expect many more thrilling events to occur today. Never know for sure though. Tomorrow we cross into Turkey heading into to a hotel rest day. Take care as you start a new week.

It's Sunday which means its the start of another Tour week - in this case week 8, the last week of the tour. Wow! Shanny gave us a little pep talk this morning - make the most of these last few days, enjoy the company of the great people we've met, congratulations because we're the first (Tour) to ride from Paris to Istanbul. I certainly agree with all that - these are all really great people in the group and some I hope to retain as lifelong friends. I'll miss the Tour but also am ready to go back. Sheila says there was a big bonfire last night. They had 2/3 smores – no graham crackers. Must have been sticky business. But the weather was nice and a full moon over the Sea was beautiful. Unfortunately I missed - not enough sleep yesterday and a slight touch of some bug. Today started out foggy and cool - two layers for me. The bug, water or effects of fresh food bothered me a little bit, but I am lucky so far. Jim is down a second time, Craig was down yesterday, Kerry got it again - nasty stuff- fortunately it usually lasts only 24 to 36 hours. Today was a hilly day starting with the ride out of the Camp Mosquito Haven. Down near the beach where the cabins were the mosquitoes weren't too bad, but back in the woods by the entrance the swarmed all over. We had rolling hiils up to the lunch van and they weren't too bad. Just a lot ups followed by downs. We followed Route 9/E87 again. Some traffic and lots of tour buses but few big trucks - probably because it was Sunday. I rode by myself most of the way to lunch. Chuck charged ahead and Daniel left earlier and I couldn't catch him. Sean and Shanny passed me about 2/3 to lunch. After lunch we had a little downhill, then the BIG hill. We passed "25K" painted on the road as we started to go uphill. Eventually as we pased 20K, 15K, 10K, 5K, 1K, 300, 200, 100 I realized they must have had a race on that hill recently. Before that we figured there would be a development or casino there. That was a tough hill for me today - no legs. I finally caught up with Daniel at the hilltop and Shanny came up at the same time. At the top was a little drink stand, so we rested there awhile. Fortunately that was the last uphill for the day. We had a good fast downhill for 10K or so then flat into Pomorie. I drafted behind Sean and Shanny there - luckily they weren't going too fast – probably because Sean had turned around and did 10K back up the hill. He really liked the downhill on which he got up to 72K. Tonight our campsite is at a small motel just above the Black Sea about 100 yards away. A few people are camping but most of us are staying in the motel cabins. These are nice compared to others we have had. The cost is 32 lev per unit. Since Chuck and I are cheap we got the twins at 8 apiece(4 euros) and Brian got the full size room to himself. He's still suffering an injured nerve in his leg and needs to stretch out. We're trying to convert the Tour to the Constant Comfort Tour (no more camping). Went out to check out the moon rise but too early or too cloudy. Sean looked at my bike re clicking noise from crank area. Changed my cleats but neither of us is sure that was the problem. Time for bed. Good Sunday. Phil Here's our new itinerary from Pomorie: Malko Tarnovo Kirklareli Day off Saray Tayakadin Istanbul

Stayed awake last night until after 10 to email. Then up this morning at 6 to try to catch a sunset over the Black Sea. It was foggy to the east, but eventually the sun broke through at 7. Meanwhile I enjoyed a nice walk on the beach by myself and part of the time with Sheila and Sean. Walter with his ever-present videocam was also crazy enough to be up then on a rest day. Since there is no restaurant or food vendor nearby as in the hotel cities, Sean and Shanny put out the usual breakfast goodies. Did a little more housework today - cleaned my muddy bike and squeaky chain. Chuck is down to the mindset that there are only 6 more riding days and if its made it this far he expects no more problems. Brian had ordered 2 cabs. On to a day in Varna (BapHa in the letters on signs). Varna is a large resort city and therefore has a lot of shopping in its very nice city center. There is an opera house and theatre on the main square along with numerous restaurants and cafes. Although Varna dates back almost 5000 years the current city architecture seems to be very recent - 18th to 19th century, the earliest. The big Cathedral of the Assumption at the west end of the center was built in 1886. Varna is also a large seaport. The Archeology Museum is supposed to be impressive particularly with a collection of ancient gold jewelry (world's oldest gold they said on their billboard coming into town). I imagine Sandy made her way over their. I'm amazed at how she manages to maximize the cultural and shopping aspects of this tour while spending as much bike/van time as anyone else. I actually kind of like the site where we are lodging, but we have been spoiled by our previous hotels that have often been located very close to city centers. I spent 4 hours in the city then cabbed back. Finished the laundry, bike cleanup and most packing. (Note for future: don't dry socks on bare bulbs - they roast rather quickly if not attended to). I went back to the beach after 5PM and found Kerry and Casey, David, Jennie, Walter(asleep), Vic, Tim, Lincoln over there. Since others said the water was nice, I jumped right in and found they were right. Some good little waves, a bit of an undertow and probably about 80 deg F makes for much more fun than a little swimming pool. I think there may be a beach bonfire being planned for tonight and I heard rumors of "smores" too. I may just stay home and start reading up on Istanbul finally and get to bed early. With all that running around the old bod needs some rest. Have a great weekend.