Starosel and Hisaraya

Through my amazing language skills (Bulgarians say ne for no, Russians say nyet) I’ve discovered that quite a few of the people staying in the complex are Russian. Now I may be imagining things, but I’m not feeling the love from them in that we are unsmilingly stared at and blanked. This is the complete opposite to the reaction from the Bulgarian police, but more of that later.

Anyway, thick skin intact, we mixed in with friends and foes alike and had our evening meal in the huge dining hall.

This experience reminded me both of a cruise we went on years ago and the Cathedral Peak hotel in South Africa – Copious amounts of food consumed in copious quantities by copiously large people. It’s a weird psychological thing but I saw a woman help herself to 5 chocolate bombs and I just had to have one as surely they must be beyond delicious to have 5? They weren’t.

After a workout in the gym, it was breakfast time. (These feeding frenzies seem to come around so quickly). I’m afraid I have to report I was subjected to the most terrible discrimination at the breakfast station. I requested a pancake and was given one. Just one. In contrast, Steve’s plate was positively overflowing. I asked for another one and I thought the man’s eyebrows were going to hit the ceiling. Obviously portion size here is calculated by physical size. Well that’s not how it works for me buster. I made sure he gave me a full tub of chocolate sauce too.

And so to Hisaraya.

Hisaraya was a very important place. Like many popular settlements, it has hot springs – always a draw. It’s very old; prehistoric remains have been found and it became a Thracian complex before the Romans decided they rather liked it and an emperor named Diocletian took it over and called it Diocletianopolis. (You’ve really made it when you can name a city after yourself haven’t you?) It eventually fell into decline but thanks to the deep pockets of the EU, generous funds were provided in 2007 and onwards to preserve the ruins.

It’s impressive and we enjoyed a few hours meandering amongst the ruins and enjoying our very cheap pensioners ticket accessing the various sites.

There is still an air of decay though, even here. Grand old buildings are literally falling down. Houses have been abandoned, some of the furniture has just been left to rot inside. Despite theEU money, the tourism and the closeness to Plovdiv, Hisaraya does not give the impression of a thriving town.

The heat got to us and we headed back to the car. I noticed 2 policemen and their car on our walk back but thought nothing of it, however S said they gave me a full checking out, mainly concentrating on my boobs and actually grinned at him! Ridiculous. One, they obviously didn’t go to Specsavers and two, when are the men in this country going to join the 21st century?

Too many unanswerable questions, so it was time for a swim back at the hotel. Ignoring the stony stares, we availed ourselves of the powerful jacuzzi jets in the pool. Both of us have stiff backs at the moment – too much relaxing – and these jets are better than a massage.

Tomorrow we head to Sofia for a bit of sightseeing before heading home.