Submitted by Julia Ewing on the 2018 spring semester program in Athens, Greece sponsored by the College of Education & Human Development…
I had the opportunity to spend the weekend with my uncle in Bulgaria! I flew to Sofia, Bulgaria on Friday night where he picked me up and we spent the night in an airbnb apartment outside the city. It was pretty late by the time we got settled in, so we ended up finding some quick street food of crepes for dinner.
On Saturday, we got a type of cheese bread, apple pastry and a loaf of bread at a local bakery before heading south to Blagoevgrad which is the town where the American University in Bulgaria is located. We walked around the campus and town for a while, and then headed to the Rila Monastery. On the way, we passed by a junk yard/antique shop which was quite an interesting place. At the Rila Monastery, we spent a while there exploring and inquiring about staying there for the night. It was a very strange place, and the rooms were cold, a bit rudimentary and had a shared bathroom for the corridor. The price they were charging was a bit steep for such little accommodations so we passed. Then, we headed back to Blagoevgrad to find a place to stay. Unfortunately, I got a migraine and ended up getting sick, so we skipped dinner for the evening.
On Sunday, we drove back to Sofia. We drove up the Vitosha Mountains to the Kopitoto Overlook, then drove down to the city and walked around. Before heading to the airport, we had a great Bulgarian meal for lunch! Then, my uncle returned me to the airport, and I returned to Athens!
