Author: Snoo

Waking up 2 hours before you need to get up at 5am and not being able to get back to sleep is unkind. However, it’s now 1.30pm and I have had a beer and some pintxos in a local bar in Bilbao so the horrid o’clock feels like it was last week. Husband has nicked all the hangers for his now well-creased wardrobe. There has also been one costume change as we are set to meet up with Elke, our guide, who will show us Bilbao by bike, with numerous stops in more bars to eat more pintxos and gaze at the amazing buildings that look out at you all around town. The pintxos so far have been great – tortilla, little hamburgers with eggs, tuna and anchovy rolls, and some delicious cake. More photos to come! 

A little beep reminded me that the chimney sweep was coming today at 1pm. I rushed around cleaning out the log burner and grate which were overflowing with ash from last winter. 

He turned up bang on time and I went out to greet him (our front door bell doesn’t work so sometimes people come and go without me noticing). He didn’t get out of his van straightaway so I hovered a bit and then heard him talking to someone on his phone. Not quite knowing whether to wait till he had finished or pretend I wasn’t really there, I decided to pick up a few chestnuts from the drive and walk back into the house. For the next 5 minutes I was just hanging around between the front door and the back door, waiting for the knock, and I even popped upstairs to look out the window to see if he was still there.

Finally, I heard the van door slam and then he walked to the back door, which I had left open. I welcomed him in warmly and he apologised for being on the phone for so long – I guess he had seen me shifting around uneasily…
He said it had been a while since he’d been here – I couldn’t deny that as I had no memory of him ever being in my house. But I offered him a tea or a coffee and he said he’d have whatever I was having. 

So, he attached a Hoover type machine to the log burner flue while I busied myself making him a coffee. We had a bit more chitchat about how long I had lived here, if I worked, just general stuff. He then started on the chimney in the dining room. After a few minutes,  he said “Would you like to see Basil?”

Now, I am quite a broad minded person and hearing this question I was completely dumbstruck. Weird images starting appearing in my brain, confusion on what he was talking about and the beginning of panic – had I been over-friendly offering him a coffee? Was he taking advantage of an old(er) lady home alone? So there was probably a pregnant pause that for me lasted hours. 

“You know Basil! The brush! He’s popped his head out the top. It’s good luck to have a look!”

Understanding and relief flooded in as I realised what he meant. Probably far too eagerly, I rushed out in my bare feet (chestnuts are very spiky) to look at the sweep’s brush poking out of the top of my chimney – I even rushed back inside to take a photo…

As he was tidying up, I followed him out to his van. And again, quite out of the blue, he said “do you like small dogs?” while unlocking his van with his remote key. Mild panic crept back as I tried to work out why he would randomly ask me such a question. Innocently, he wanted me to meet his cocker spaniel who was sitting quietly in the front of the van…

As he left, I shook his hand (I thought this was what brought you luck). Clearly my mind was in overdrive today…but not as much as Husband’s!

Husband has ironed his entire wardrobe and keeps muttering “Friday night, Saturday night” while staring at the aforementioned ironed clothes. He keeps checking and re-checking the weather for Bilbao for the next few days and then disappears upstairs to bring down yet more clothes.  There’s a row of assorted footwear too… Me? I packed in five minutes with whatever was clean and comfy. 
Meet Basil!  

So today is double whammy day – the dentist and the hygienist. My gums seem to swell in anticipation of such visits and I usually spend the week leading up to a hygienist visit frantically flossing twice a day. This time, I am sailing close to the wind and have flossed just twice in the last few days.

Going to the dentist and the hygienist are my least favourite activities. I am not sure when the tide turned as I loved going to the dentist when I was little. I remember my oldest brother always hated the dentist and always had a filling but I seemed to escape without having any. I remember having a tooth out under gas – I was told to look up and read a word on the ceiling over and over again and then close my eyes. I then felt a huge rubber mask go over my mouth and nose and I remember laughing about it. I had a vivid dream and when I woke up I was completely fine. But maybe something subconsciously happened while I was under… It wasn’t till I was in labour that I realised that it must have been laughing gas – but that’s another story best left untold though.

There was one really great dentist I went to who put noise-cancelling earphones on you and played you whatever music you wanted to drown out those horrible drilling noises and high pitch whinings. I wasn’t prepared for such luxury and when he asked me what I would like to listen to, my mind went completely blank. In the intervening silence, he said he would choose something. So I had Adele’s 19 keeping me calm while he poked around with his instruments of torture. It was exactly what I would have chosen if I wasn’t in such a blind panic. I often wonder what other people would choose…perhaps it could be a new type of game show on Radio 4 – Guess the Celebrity Dentist Playlist – hmmm that was hard to type let alone say… Feel free to send me your suggestions!

Not only is it dentist/hygienist day but tube strike day. So I may have to go home early to “beat the crush” in the same way that everyone else goes home early thus creating the “crush”.

So next time I write, I’ll have great teeth but my hair desperately needs a cut … the Bulgarian mullet needs to go!

Oh Lordy! Am sitting next to a picker. If you don’t commute regularly, you won’t know what I am talking about. But there are some people who spend most of their journey time picking, scratching, stroking and eating odd bits of their body and then brushing the detritus on the floor. Today’s picker is balding and has obviously bumped his head. Every few minutes his fingers are up there scratching and picking. Then he checks what bounty he has found and flicks it on the floor. However hard I stare at him in absolute disgust, he is totally unaware of his behaviour. Why do people lose all sense of proprietary when stepping on a train? If it wasn’t such a bulging train with people three deep in the aisles, I would move but I am stuck here for the next 40 minutes. Have mercy on me….

Having peaked in terms of blogging every day in Bulgaria, I took a more relaxed view of the Walking Ladies 2015 tour and am writing this a week after we got back. Some of the details will be slightly jumbled as my brain fails to keep up with events – maybe if I was writing this in my early 70s, clarity would prevail. And there’s the ‘What happens on tour, stays on tour’ clause…but here are my highlights…

You pay to enter Wales via the Severn bridge but you are free to leave at any time. We drove down to one of the notoriously wettest parts of the UK on the hottest day of the year. I was worried about motorways melting but the journey was easy, jam-free and we found somewhere to park in St David’s. Slight apprehension when we couldn’t find a taxi to take us to St Dogmaels but it turned out fine and we arrived at our guest house for our first night on tour. Lorna chose the first room leaving Sue and I to get second pickings. We had a beautiful room overlooking the river with armchairs and plenty of space. Lorna and Erika were squished into the box room looking out onto some roofs. This room choice was a major theme and Sue and I lucked out every night. We ended up blaming the courier company always putting Lorna’s bag in the most accessible room…but I wasn’t complaining. Dinner in the Ferry Inn was good – fish pie with Pembrokeshire potatoes and a couple of pints of Rev James.

We had been advised to start very early before the weather got too hostile for walking so reluctantly (speaking personally) we arranged breakfast for 6.30AM!!! I think we finally received it at 7.15 and then headed off around 8. Glacial doesn’t get near the speed at which rubbery poached eggs were presented. But the sun was shining and we set off in high spirits. I took one photo and then my phone told me it was too full to take anymore…we didn’t find the official start but found ourselves on the path very quickly which, despite events which unfolded later, was easily followed and marked with an acorn sign.  It was a gorgeous path – you could always see the top of any steep bit and the views are amazing. You end up with slight neckache as you stare at the sea most of the time.  

It really is a coastal path with very steep drops which I found very worrying at times. Best not to look down too often and there are many signs reminding you that ‘cliffs can kill’ with scary graphics of a person falling headfirst off a cliff. But you can look down at your feet and inland when it gets too much.

Big thanks to Erika are due – while I had packed clothes galore (was still in Bulgaria mode thinking I could pack as much as I like as it was going to be carried for me – forgetting I was carrying everything), she had brought a library and some binoculars and hardly any clothes. Without her, I would have walked past seals bobbing around in the sea, guillemots and razorbills clinging to outcrops, oyster catchers, skylarks, stonechats, shags, peregrines, to name but a few. This was walking with added extra and while our pace slowed to 1 mile an hour at times, it was worth it.  A few times, we had to stride out to make up time, but given the gentleness of the path, this wasn’t difficult.

We stopped in Newport, Goodwick, Trefin and St David’s. Day 2 had the greatest dramas as we kept losing Lorna. Unwisely, we hadn’t sorted out the “what if one of us gets lost” drill. (This has happened to me previously when I lost my young children on the metro in Paris. It scarred me for life as I am sure it has them – but I am forever thankful to the undercover French drug enforcement officers who had to break their cover on the metro to bring my children back to me.) After shouting out “Lorna” for quite a few minutes, we decided to keep walking along the path in the knowledge that she knew we would be on it. Mobile phone reception is very patchy but we eventually made contact and an hour or so later met up further along the path. It was a joyful reunion but shortlived. While Sue and I stopped to smell some sweetpeas outside a lovely cottage, Lorna disappeared. It was déjà vu. To this day, no-one knows how it happened. Another anxious half-hour but again we met up and all was fine in the end.

We did get some great eye candy thanks to a younger lad walking his dog – he was making full use of the gorgeous sunny weather and for that, I thank him. We met a few other walkers – all very friendly – including another group of walking ladies who had at least 10 years on us and who were an inspiration. Another group pointed out some burial stones that we had completely missed and a Dutch couple kept popping out at various points.

Chef of the week award goes to Geoff at Garn Fach for his salmon en croute and unforgettable pear strumble crumble. He also gets an award for the best dressed chef – his black and white apron was very fetching. Beth was hostess with the mostest of the tour. 

The third day saw the Gang of Four reduced to the Three Musketeers. It was meant to be the longest day in terms of mileage but in hindsight Day 2 was the toughest. Arriving in Trefin at the end of the day, the first place we saw was a pub so, in true tour style, we satisfied our thirst with one pint each of the local ale while trying to work out where the guest house was. Lorna had arrived earlier and was well-refreshed. Having checked in and picked our sarnies for the next day, we returned to the pub for more beer and food. 

Awaking with very clear heads – beer and walking works well, Welsh wine not so well – we set off for a final day on the path. A day with lots of options but a purpose of staying together. We got to wear our waterproofs for an hour or so, but the bad storm passed by and we walked in sunshine most of the day. Stopping for a coffee and an ice-cream, Lorna decided to walk ahead but promised to wait at the next signpost. Ok, so we dawdled a bit, but Sue was keen to get Everyone a coffee. We arrived at the signpost but Lorna was missing. We still hadn’t worked out a plan B. Luckily we spotted a pink dot waving a stick on the other side of the cliff so panic over.

More details I am sure will come to mind but it was a great walk. I love walking and spending time with these three wonderful ladies. We have great laughs and best of all we build our memories. We have started planning for next year, already…

After a wakeful night probably due to the seersucker sheets and duvet cover making me feel like I was lying in a large corrugated cardboard tube, or maybe because I had a couple of local brandies after a vat of wine, and another pint of yoghurt and jam, we set off downhill in the sunshine. We stopped off briefly for a tour photo at the meadow we passed yesterday. It was about a 10-minute freewheel to the bottom (took a good hour yesterday to get up it). The road undulated along another river and we stopped at Lucky for a cup of coffee and more honey/jam buying. The bikes were loaded into the van for the last time and I got to ride shotgun up to the Wonderful Bridges. Shopping moved up a gear as there were women selling socks, aprons and bags alongside the road.

The Wonderful Bridges were ok – I think I missed the story about the dragon while I was shopping….

Next stop was the Bachkovo monastery – was quite busy but we lit candles for our nearest and dearest. The monks were wearing some lovely hats and had very long beards. We walked down to the roadside shopping area and spent our diminishing funds on two plates and a cheese pastry.

We then drove into Plovdiv – a must-see place to visit!! We stayed in the youth hostel (our average age was probably 58) but it was in the old town. Last nights are always tinged with sadness – we had a lot of laughs along the way and met some very funny people. We walked around the old town – saw the amphitheatre (which was staging Carmen later – we popped up after dinner and sat watching for free in a windy-but-free spot sipping more local brandy) and the old Roman arena. After a final drink with Anthony and his girlfriend, and a promise to arrange an Iron Curtain trail for next time, we went to a local restaurant where the food was ok – the plates were more interesting, in my view.

Waiting at Sofia airport for my flight home. I have 2 Lev which isn’t enough for a coffee but the guy has let me pay with my Visa card – so I had to buy one last cheese pastry to make the transaction worthwhile. Can’t wait to see the kids, Husband and the gorgeous pussy cats.

Photos will follow shortly as my iPhone is full up on photos so had to use my camera. And that means I have to read a manual when I get home….

Thanks for reading! Next stop St Dogmaels and the Walking Ladies (I seemed to have put on weight despite the rigorous cycling – but maybe it’s just my calves that have doubled in size….)

My calves are now the size of a Bulgarian shot putter so clearly today was going to be a breeze in the saddle. It was mainly downhill all day – so spent a lot of time not actually pedalling but was going very fast. Managed the yellow jersey on one leg. I would say, overall, I would get the white jersey, being the youngest and always coming last or second last.

So downhill all morning with maybe a short undulating section. We saw two eagles soaring in the pine forest. Lunch at Laki was good – Shopska salad and meatballs. We puffed up a 7km hill after lunch – no need to play country alphabet today. The views were great. Picked some wild strawberries from the side of the road – so sweet. Just before we got to Borovo we found a hill top meadow – one to put in your brain and revisit on a cold miserable day in Blighty. Hotel is great – view are superb. Dinner was more meatballs but they were delicious.

In bed – strange seersucker combination with bed sheet and duvet. But have had some Bulgarian wine so I think it won’t feel to 1970s while I sleep…

Forgot to photo my food today but here are some shots of the lovely alpine meadow flowers.

Delicious traditional Bulgarian breakfast of homemade square pastries that we filled with cheese, yoghurt, pine honey, and jam and some French toast that was meltingly good.

We then cycled a little way to Devil’s Throat cave. I kept getting the name wrong and embarrassing myself. The cave is where Orpheus went to meet Hades and beg for his beautiful wife to be returned to him. Orpheus played his music to Hades who relented but gave one condition. As Orpheus walks out of the underworld, he mustn’t look back to look at his wife. Silly man forgot the instruction and turned round to see Eurydice disappear into thin air. There is a fountain that springs out of the side of the cave about one-third from the bottom which is his tears. You drink from the fountain, chuck a coin in and make a wish. Neil and I shared 10p’s worth of wish as we couldn’t find any other coins. It did feel like we were descending into The Underworld – it was lowly lit and the waterfall was gushing. They can’t trace where the waterfall goes and where the river starts – they have tried putting paint in the water and it takes two hours for it to appear in the river… I like a mystery.

So having descended into hell and returned full of wishes, we set off down a lovely long hill in the sunshine following a river. And that’s really where the day peaked. For the next 5 hours it was a long, slow, slog uphill for miles and miles and miles. I started going through the alphabet naming countries (Kilimanjaro remembered). I sang 10 green bottles. I sang One Man Went to Mow. But best of all I stopped every 10 minutes and just stood still. It was very, very hot. Even the passing Bulgaruan motorists parped their horns in mockery.

However, we had the best lunch yet! The Shopska salad remains a firm favourite. Neil went for the pork and chicken skewers. We ummed and ahhhed over an egg dish but didn’t order it. It came anyway and was one of the tastiest dishes so far 🙂 poached eggs on top of cheesy, buttery, peppery yoghurt. Sounds very weird but it was very good.

Replete (or should that be topped up from breakfast) we walked round the town which had a lot of traditionally built houses. We then got back on our bikes and descended back into hell. It was tough. I dug deep. The problem with stopping was that I attracted all the local flies. Not sure why they chose me. No flies on Neil! Just as we hit the sign that indicated a 10% hill up, we saw the Penguin van charging like a white horse down the hill to our rescue. Ok, so we cheated a few kilometres but we got out at the top and free-wheeled 12km into town.

A swim, sauna, beer, wine and more salad and yoghurt and it was time for bed.

Cheese, feta and yellow, tomato, spam and toast. What better way to start the day when you face 50km of up and down in the Bulgarian mountains?

Am failing big time in terms of capturing food and it’s associations for this “food” blog. But I do have a photo of food to share below. We started out in brilliant sunshine which accompanied us all the way. We passed many photo opportunities regarding food – crazy scarecrows that resembled large underpants, and quite a modern scarecrow that could compete with Sara Lund’s Norwegian sweater. We also passed numerous hill folk picking mushrooms and wild strawberries but I was camera shy.

It was hot today. At one point, Neil stopped to put on his very fetching white hat, only to be set upon by marauding sheep dogs. I was slightly ahead and when the first sheep dog seemed intent on following me, I had to change up a gear and pedal for my life. We both survived unharmed.

Today’s coffee stop was in the stands at Borino football pitch. Delicious coffee but the pitch looked in need of some attention.

We cycled in the blazing sun to the Yagodina caves through an amazing gorge. Photos below. The cave was cool and really good. While slightly claustrophobic following an earlier incident in Cheops in Cairo, there was always enough headroom to be comfortable. We came out and had a delicious lunch. Not a trout to be seen 🙂 the salad made an appearance but I chose the meatballs. They did not disappoint. I also had Bulgarian’s version of Lassi – known locally as Butermilk. Have tasted better but was ok.

After lunch it was a slow slog up along a river to Trigrad. The hotel here is great. We’ve just had dinner of salad and moussaka – portion sizes are very large. Great company for dinner and a lot of laughs.

Summary: sunshine/cave and a great evening meal – thanks to Ken, Janice, Lara and Luigi.

Nylon sheets! So not a great night’s sleep as slithering around a lot. Breakfast was half a pint of yoghurt with a spoonful of muesli and the cherries we bought in the market. I cycled into the town to find a cashpoint and stumbled into a Bulgarian bakery. I love bakeries, particularly those in other countries. I want to buy one of everything but even I realise that’s not practical. I chose two large pastries – one looked cheesy and the other just yummy.

We cycled from the hotel – our dinner of cheese, tomato and cucumber salad, grilled chicken, chips, wine and a half-pint of yoghurt with berries came to Lev5 – that’s about £2 for the two of us. Weather was great – we had a pitstop in Lidl as Neil needed a pump and then another stop at a bike repair shop run by a handsome Bulgarian heavy metal fan that wore a top that had “I like to drink blood” and “death is good”. Maybe the translator had misheard. Bike fixed we puffed up to the top of a mountain through pine forests. We passed people picking wild strawberries and mushrooms and a few horse-drawn carts. We stopped for lunch by a beautiful lake. Am getting used to the enormous salads. Neil had trout – vaguely hoping it had been caught that morning but couldn’t say for certain. I had deep fried cheese (Walking Ladies’ favourite snack – but it has to be Wensleydale). We also tried the local summer soup – honestly, it was like watered down tatziki – maybe we needed a hotter day. After lunch it was a freewheel down to Dospat – a town where the people live in the more traditional way.

Dinner (what’ll it be tonight?) is coming up now. Tomorrow is cave day!

Summary: it’s still cold – should have realised cycling in the Bulgarian mountains would not be balmy. But 37 miles in the saddle was good fun.