Still the tourist

Sally and I have had the most fabulous two days in Plovdiv, we will come back here again.
We set the alarm today and after breakfast made an early start with the morning sun in full flow we headed off to visit Shipka Church and Buzludza.
It's not too far but the countryside from Plovdiv is so beautiful you can just poodle along and drink in the views.
Our first stop was Shipka Church and just as we arrived the bells started to toll.
Such a pleasure to visit here, in fact it's so worth seeing I'm only going to post a few pics as it's a place you have to see first hand.

Our second stop was the former communist headquarters at Buzludza, situated on the top of the pass and dominates the skyline with full 360 panoramic views, wow.
Most impressive from the outside and both amazing and spooky on the inside. Once finished in marble and mosaics now virtually just a part demolished symbol of communism.
The work that must have gone into this was immense the piece of land that it stands on was clearly once walled paved lit and manicured.
Even now walking up the main entrance steps feels special
From the inside it's as though you can see the whole of Bulgaria.
For such an impressive structure it seems crazy that people would want to try and destroy it just for what it stood for.
This was on our bucket list and is a must for those able to visit and climb inside.
Tomorrow we will be back on the build and inspecting just how bad the woodworm is on our floors, but for now we are enjoying traditional Bulgarian food and hospitality in Gabravo.

This is my impression of how I feel some people think the whole of Eastern Europe looks like, drab and grey in reality it's a rich diverse mix of culture and tradition