This pictures was taken by Plamen today, a member of our new family in Bulgaria. We miss Solnik and we miss meeting you all again. Thanks a lot Plamen.

The last day in Bulgaria this summer is as it used to be. Not exactly homesickness, maybe more travel fever and eagerness to get this flight over. 5 weeks away from work I have never been before. It feels a bit strange, even though I got to work a bit during the holidays. This time the check-in took an incredibly long time. There were 2 queues and of course we were in the wrong queue. That is, I first calculated what queue we should choose and managed to choose the wrong one. The conveyor belt did not work, so we were last checked in. We delivered the car at 19:00, and in addition to the plane being delayed for about an hour, we got in the air approx. 24:00 Bulgarian time. We were not home until 2:30 am Norwegian time.

We got the sign on the door / gate in Solnik. Then we went to the apartment and unpacked all our stuff and put it into the office of the apartment complex. The apartment will be rented out tomorrow, so it’s very convenient and have a room to store our things in.

Today I decided to go to Solnik to find the famous stone from which Solnik has its name. This is a small mountain part that is very salty. The words Sol (Сол) in Solnik means salt. Since no one felt the urge to be with me, I went alone, but agreed to meet the others on the road to Varna. It was a city trip in Varna that was at the top of the wish list for the others in the group. We was told that there will also be a waterfall, but it was reasonably dry there now, certainly after several months of drought.

To get there I had to pass the barbecue area, which is just below the farm. It was a sad sight that met me. This is a barbecue area that former owners of the farm made and made available to all the inhabitants of the village, and some have chosen to empty several loads of building stock on site. Very sad that someone chooses to destroy the space for everyone else.

In Varna, it was first lunch before the ladies rushed all the shops in the area. Charlotte became very concerned about the man without the head, we just had to take a picture of her and the man. Roy and I had still some brain cells left to find a water hole while the ladies finished.

Today we meet in Solnik Garden at 08:00 and an excavator and a lorry showed up just after. They meet at agreed time :-). Vanja and Galin also come soon after. We need a translator between us and the work person. After driving away all the harvest from last fall, which we have already drawn up in several piles, the demolition of the old shed that stood below the house started. Unfortunately, a piece of history disappears. It was a long day and they stayed on until about 15:00. There were eventually about 6 or 7 runs with the lorry. I came a little out of the count. Very good job and teamwork of these two workers in their vehicle.

After that we went home to play with Charlotte in the pool. Then out in Byala center to eat and then a small promenade to the sea at the end.

We are now beginning to see an end of the twig waste that was made last fall. It was hot to work today, but in return we had brought grilled chicken and cold drinks. That kept the forces going. The drink remained cold in a bag of ice cubes.

Today we drove to Solnik and then to Obzor for a lunch at Hotel Dukov, where we have been staying many times while searching for a place to buy in Bulgaria. Very nice that the owner of the hotel came and says hello to us. We can only recommend this hotel for new tourists. This hotel is one of the few open in Obzor all year.

Just off Sozopol, a short drive from the main road south from Burgas towards Primorsko and Turkey, lies this magnificent castle. This man alone, here in white coat, has been responsible for the construction that has taken place over a period of 20 years. And yet it is being built on the castle. We learned that some of the castle was shut down due to preparation for movie recording. Which movie is not known. You can read and see more about the castle below.

Today we started out with our family from Bulgaria to an island outside Burgas called “Saint Anastasia”. This is a boat trip of about half an hour. Halfway through the trip we could see a small island that was our destination. The first thing we noticed at landing was an anchor that was turned upside down. Jorunn and I got a little over this and joked a bit that it had to be a misunderstanding. But without saying anything, we were told that this was made conscious of asking ships and boats to stay away from anchoring on the island. Why: Well, because this was formerly a prison, and it is quicker to understand the cause.
In 1925, a group of 43 political prisoners (communists and anti-facets) settled and escaped from the island to the Soviet Union. Because of this, the island was called “Bolshevik Island” when the Communists took over in 1945. Today the island is protected and contains a church, museum, restaurant and guesthouse for those who want to stay overnight. The island is also sought after for ceremonies, weddings etc.
A small island with great history.

Today we started the day to arrange the climbing plant (clematis) over the pergola. We asked the gardener to remove several branches of the big trees that had grown over and shadowed the creeper plant. A little self gardening work was necessary. It was fine in the end. While Jorunn relaxed in the apartment I went to Solnik and did some more gardening there. Some neighbors came walking and offered to help. When using a translator on the mobile I learned that they lived some houses beyond and that I could just stop by if I needed help. Here I have to say the technology is of great help, although I would rather think 100 years ago ?

Amazingly, there was a work session both afternoon and evening. And don’t you think it got dark quickly.

Today it was a short working day in Solnik. It’s too hot to work in the middle of the day, so we plan to get up early and work before the sun goes too warm. Before driving to the apartment we went on a safari ride down to the beach north of Byala. It was a very bad road, but we arrived at the end. A lovely bath in the sea did well. It was warmer in the sea than in the pool at home in the apartment complex. There was taco for dinner today as well.