We made it! Kristen calculated that we had been traveling for 17 hours, including waiting and the layover in Amsterdam. We flew in on a Bulgarian Air plane that, as it landed, encountered some serious turbulence due to the Balkan mountains. On descending further we could see the sharply defined Balkans and the mountain valleys, and then Mt. Vitosha and a great view of the central city, including the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.
After going through the passport control area and baggage claim (where one of my bags lost a wheel), we were greeted by the Professional Fellows' Country Director for Bulgaria, Emil Metodiev, and some of our Bulgarian mentees. Kristen and I rode to the hotel with Emil in a taxi to check in. Our hotel is the Best Western Art Plaza Hotel on Hristo Belchov Street in the central Sofia area. The city of Sofia is in an area that has been inhabited since at least 7,000 BCE. The buildings in the area are quite old, built in brick covered with plaster and roofed with red clay tiles. The streets are narrow and paved with cobblestones.
On arriving at the hotel, Kristen and I got settled and then decided to go for a walk even though it was raining. The man at the front desk pointed us in the direction of Boulevard Vitosha, one block away. This is the big main shopping district in Sofia, with the boulevard actually being a wide pedestrian-only street lined with lots of shops and cafes. As we walked along, the rain lifted and the sunset lit the buildings to reveal soft rainbow colors. Very beautiful.
We walked all the way down to the church of Sveta Nedelya, where a church has existed on that site since the 10th century. In 1925 it was almost completely destroyed but then rebuilt to preserve what was left. Then we headed back, pausing to look at the stores...shopping may be in order and the Bulgarian lev is 1.7 to the U.S. dollar.
At the hotel, we met back with Regina, Joanna, and Leah, and were joined by Emil who is our country coordinator, plus Regina's Bulgarian mentee, Ani. After discussing the dinner plans it was decided that we needed to find an ATM to withdraw some money. Field trip to the ATM! The machine had an English option and I was able to hold the first of my Bulgarian money in my hands.
Then we were off to an Italian style place for a wonderful group dinner, which included some Bulgarian style dishes. Some of my tablemates had shopska salad, the national salad of Bulgaria with shredded sirene cheese on top of lettuce, tomato and cucumber (with a green pepper on the side). Emil and Susana discussed the situation for community organizing work in Bulgaria with some fantastic insights on funding problems and educational issues. Among other things we will be meeting with Roma people this week to discuss the issues facing their community.
Emil also let us know that tomorrow will be focused on planning the community workshops we will be expected to facilitate on Monday. In the afternoon we will discuss community organizing work with Professional Fellows alumni, followed by a break. It will be Valentine's Day, and while that is definitely being celebrated in Bulgaria, February 14 is Wine Day in Bulgaria and our hosts will treat us to a special "Wine and Love" dinner in the evening.
We headed home to the hotel when jet lag began to overcome us...after all of that travel this was not unexpected, but I was certainly glad to get into my bed and just rest.
PS: For the extra curious and those not on Facebook, please keep an eye on this link for photos. I have also included the link at the right hand side of the blog for easy access. While I am posting some photos on Facebook, I know that some are not on Facebook, so I wanted to make photos easier to share. Enjoy! Just a few photos are posted now but I will post more.
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