(6790,1,'2012-06-04 19:47:11','2012-06-04 17:47:11','The weather was beautiful on Saturday morning. So A. and I decided to go to the park in the early afternoon. Now this in and of itself isn\'t really worth of writing about. It\'s spring. People go to the park in the spring.\r\n\r\nWhat makes this different is that it basically rained every day in May so a warm, sunny day with blue skies and a light breeze was a welcome change. The weather was so nice in fact that I put in my contacts and dug out my sunglasses. I then evicted my umbrella to make room for the case of my sunglasses. I painted my toenails and put on a pair of sandals.\r\n<a title=\"Beer by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7329735098/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7222/7329735098_f49e0b21e1_z.jpg\" alt=\"Beer\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThat\'s how sure I was that it was going to be a wonderful day. Now don\'t get me wrong, it was a wonderful day. We to the metro to the city center. We walked to the park. We drank a beer. We wandered around the park for a while with what seemed to be half of Sofia.\r\n\r\nThen it started to spit rain. Only the sun was shining and it was raining at the same time. That\'s kind of weird. (On a side note, I was told once by a Bulgarian student that when this happens bears are getting married. Right, because when else would bears get married?! Really though I think it\'s such a lovely saying--there\'s something kind of magical about a moment where is sunny and rainy all at once.)\r\n\r\nSo we started to started to make our way to the city center. Why not have another beer somewhere and wait out the spitting rain?<!--more-->\r\n\r\nWell we decided to go <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/pages/FunHouse/138629359481285\" target=\"_blank\">Fun House The Clock, an Art Restaurant</a>. I am not sure what\'s up with the name but the restaurant/bar is really cute. They have a lovely garden out front and probably 8 or 9 tables inside. It\'s both cool and cozy.\r\n<a title=\"Rainy day in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7329731124/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7239/7329731124_4b4a8c1031_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rainy day in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nBy the time we got to the restaurant there was no more rain. We sat outside, ordered beer and salads and not more than 5 minutes into our salad did it start raining. We shuffled our chairs under the large outdoor umbrellas to wait out the storm assuming that it would let up as quickly as it came on. No luck.\r\n\r\nAfter a bit of this, we retreated indoors with our beer. Because really, what\'s the point of getting wet sitting outside if you could sit inside just as easily and be dry?\r\n\r\nThe salads were excellent. I had a chicken salad. It was hot chicken with roasted onion and mushrooms in a cream sauce served on a bed of romaine lettuce with a few cherry tomatoes mixed in for color and a dash of balsamic vinegar. I thought it was delicious. It was not at all what I imagined when I ordered it but I have to say I was really please with it. A. ordered the Moroccan tuna salad and was equally happy with this dish. It was a mayo-less tuna salad with tomatoes and herbs also served on a bed of lettuce. The colors of this salad were amazing.\r\n\r\nThe thing is after we drank our beer and ate our salads and figured that we could walk back to the metro. The problem? Upon paying or bill and exiting the restaurant it was clear that the rain had not really let up. We ducked into a cab but only after getting pretty wet and then we headed back to Mladost.\r\n\r\nI am convinced that this is what I get for excavating my sunglasses after 6-plus months of disuse, painting my toenails a cheery color, donning sandals and leaving my umbrella at home.\r\n\r\nThe is, was it raining in Mladost when we climbed out of the cab? Nope. <em>Go figure</em>.','This weekend in Sofia','','inherit','open','open','','6785-revision-5','','','2012-06-04 19:47:11','2012-06-04 17:47:11','',6785,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/04/6785-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(6791,1,'2012-06-04 19:48:21','2012-06-04 17:48:21','The weather was beautiful on Saturday morning. So A. and I decided to go to the park in the early afternoon. Now this in and of itself isn\'t really worth of writing about. It\'s spring. People go to the park in the spring.\n\nWhat makes this different is that it basically rained every day in May so a warm, sunny day with blue skies and a light breeze was a welcome change. The weather was so nice in fact that I put in my contacts and dug out my sunglasses. I then evicted my umbrella to make room for the case of my sunglasses. I painted my toenails and put on a pair of sandals.\n<a title=\"Beer by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7329735098/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7222/7329735098_f49e0b21e1_z.jpg\" alt=\"Beer\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThat\'s how sure I was that it was going to be a wonderful day. Now don\'t get me wrong, it was a wonderful day. We to the metro to the city center. We walked to the park. We drank a beer. We wandered around the park for a while with what seemed to be half of Sofia.\n\nThen it started to spit rain. Only the sun was shining and it was raining at the same time. That\'s kind of weird. (On a side note, I was told once by a Bulgarian student that when this happens bears are getting married. Right, because when else would bears get married?! Really though I think it\'s such a lovely saying--there\'s something kind of magical about a moment where is sunny and rainy all at once.)\n\nSo we started to started to make our way to the city center. Why not have another beer somewhere and wait out the spitting rain?<!--more-->\n\nWell we decided to go <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/pages/FunHouse/138629359481285\" target=\"_blank\">Fun House The Clock, an Art Restaurant</a>. I am not sure what\'s up with the name but the restaurant/bar is really cute. They have a lovely garden out front and probably 8 or 9 tables inside. It\'s both cool and cozy.\n<a title=\"Rainy day in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7329731124/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7239/7329731124_4b4a8c1031_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rainy day in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nBy the time we got to the restaurant there was no more rain. We sat outside, ordered beer and salads and not more than 5 minutes into our salad did it start raining. We shuffled our chairs under the large outdoor umbrellas to wait out the storm assuming that it would let up as quickly as it came on. No luck.\n\nAfter a bit of this, we retreated indoors with our beer. Because really, what\'s the point of getting wet sitting outside if you could sit inside just as easily and be dry?\n\nThe salads were excellent. I had a chicken salad. It was hot chicken with roasted onion and mushrooms in a cream sauce served on a bed of romaine lettuce with a few cherry tomatoes mixed in for color and a dash of balsamic vinegar. I thought it was delicious. It was not at all what I imagined when I ordered it but I have to say I was really please with it. A. ordered the Moroccan tuna salad and was equally happy with this dish. It was a mayo-less tuna salad with tomatoes and herbs also served on a bed of lettuce. The colors of this salad were amazing.\n\nThe thing is after we drank our beer and ate our salads and figured that we could walk back to the metro. The problem? Upon paying or bill and exiting the restaurant it was clear that the rain had not really let up. We ducked into a cab but only after getting pretty wet and then we headed back to Mladost.\n\nI am convinced that this is what I get for excavating my sunglasses after 6-plus months of disuse, painting my toenails a cheery color, donning sandals and leaving my umbrella at home.\n\nThe is, was it raining in Mladost when we climbed out of the cab? Nope. <em>Go figure</em>.','This weekend in Sofia','','inherit','open','open','','6785-autosave','','','2012-06-04 19:48:21','2012-06-04 17:48:21','',6785,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/04/6785-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6793,1,'2012-06-05 05:55:32','2012-06-05 03:55:32','Each year at school we have a St. George\'s Day Party. The Bulgarian staff host this party for the American teachers. It\'s reciprocal as the American teachers host a big Thanksgiving party in November. St. George\'s day is in May but between a couple of major holidays and graduation during the month of May we end up having our party the first Friday in June.\n\nIt\'s great fun. We eat lamb, salad, rice with internal organs mixed in (well, I don\'t eat that), grilled veggies and bread. We drink wine and beer and usually some rakiya as well.\n\nI\'m not sure how the tradition of games started as a part of St. George\'s Day but the international teachers also participate in a series of games that the Bulgarians have created to challenge us. The games are Bulgarian inspired and usually require teamwork, speed, a some knowledge of Bulgarian language, culture and food and a willingness to embarrass yourself in front of yo.','St. George\'s Day Party ','','inherit','open','open','','6792-revision','','','2012-06-05 05:55:32','2012-06-05 03:55:32','',6792,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/05/6792-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6800,1,'2012-06-14 06:05:52','2012-06-14 04:05:52','I\'ve got soccer on my mind. Yep. Somehow the thing that\'s driven me back to blogging after a week away is soccer.\r\n\r\nIn my defense, I\'\'ve been busy over the last week and I really haven\'t had a chance to sit down, write a post, upload photos and press publish. It\'s because it\'s the end of the school year and things are busy, busy around here and school to-do list is a mile long. So long that I don\'t even have a personal to-do list. Maybe today\'s the day I remember to run a load of laundry.\r\n\r\nYou shouldn\'t worry too much. It hasn\'t been all work and no play these days. It\'s just been 60% work, 20% finding ways to feed myself that don\'t involve me cooking or having groceries at home and 20% sleeping. Like last night A. and I went to a new restaurant in Sofia (more details on that later). The basic recipe for success was hamburger + beer + football.\r\n\r\nYep. Football. Or in my mind Soccer. Or maybe I should stick with calling it football. Even though it\'s soccer.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nAnyhow, it turns out that there\'s a big football-soccer thing going on right now. Lots of teams are playing. Lots of people are watching. And I spent a little bit of time thinking about and watching soccer, well football, well soccer.\r\n\r\nIn the course of one evening, I managed to call football soccer more times than I\'d like to count.\r\n\r\nThe response? Lots of cringes. <em>I\'m sorry</em>. But even after four years living in Europe, this is a hard habit to kick. I am not sure why because I\'ve adjusted to holiday (rather than vacation), toilet (rather than bathroom) and a slew of other British English-isms. It\'s also not like I\'ve ever regularly watched or played this sport.\r\n\r\nThen I went on to call the series (if I am even allowed to say this), the World Cup.\r\n\r\nResponse? Long stare. Potentially this was a slightly incredulous one but I am not thinking about that. This cup I was made to understand is not the World Cup.<em> Oh</em>. It\'s the European Cup 2012. Turns out the World Cup is every four years as is the European Cup and there are two years that separate the two events.\r\n\r\nI watched and watched. These guys run around a big field. A lot. I like the drama of this sport. When people get hit they like on the ground holding a body part for a while. Usually until a referee comes over or a teammate pulls them up off the ground. I think it\'s interesting that the clock doesn\'t stop for them when this happens. Luckily for me there\'s plenty to keep me busy even though I don\'t really know the rules.\r\n\r\nThis became painfully obvious when a referee made some call and I asked what the call was because sometimes these seem like important things to do.\r\n\r\nThe response? Eyes narrow. Off sides. Followed up by the question you do know what that is, don\'t you? Me: Um, yes? It has to do with the line of play and the football and the location of the players on the field. This is received by a long, long pause. Then it\'s explained to me.\r\n\r\nThe thing is, I woke up this morning with this question: why do I need to know what an off sides is?\r\n\r\nIsn\'t it enough if the referee knows it and calls it? Can\'t I just sit back and watch men kick a ball around a field to each other while trying to score, like I always have?','Soccer, Football, Soccer ','','publish','open','open','','soccer-football-soccer','','','2012-06-14 06:05:52','2012-06-14 04:05:52','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6800',0,'post','',5),(6795,1,'2012-06-06 05:57:12','2012-06-06 03:57:12','Each year at school we have a St. George\'s Day Party. The Bulgarian staff host this party for the American teachers. It\'s reciprocal as the American teachers host a big Thanksgiving party in November. St. George\'s day is in May but between a couple of major holidays and graduation during the month of May we end up having our party the first Friday in June.\n\nIt\'s great fun. We eat lamb, salad, rice with internal organs mixed in (well, I didn\'t eat that), grilled veggies and bread. We drink wine and beer and usually some rakiya as well.\n\nI\'m not sure how the tradition of games started at our school party as a part of St. George\'s Day because as I understand it, this is not a traditional party of the holiday. Nevertheless, the international teachers also participate in a series of games that the Bulgarians have created to challenge us. The games are Bulgarian inspired and usually require teamwork, speed, a some knowledge of Bulgarian language, culture and food and a willingness to embarrass yourself in front of your Bulgarian colleagues.\n\nThis year the party was inside rather than around the fountain due to all of the rain that we\'ve been having lately. So instead of having physical challenges we were given Bulgarian language challenges. This of course was a hoot for our Bulgarian colleagues who by in large speak English much, much better than we speak Bulgarian.\n\nWe were given a St George\'s Day survey to complete. Then we had to read and pronounce the names of long difficult Bulgarian villages. Next, we given an envelop with a Bulgarian idiom in it and the English \"translation\" was taped on the outside of the envelope. Our job was to arrange the Bulgarian words inside the envelope to come up with the Bulgarian idiom. Finally we blind-folded one of our teammates and they were lead to a table as if they were a new baby and given the opportunity to pick out two objects that would represent them. Then a second teammate had to read the \"baby\'s\" fortune as if they were the godmother. This was very funny because the objects were things like dried Bulgarian sausage, Bulgarian pottery, rakiya and the like.\n\nNeedless to say, these activities had our Bulgarian colleagues in stitches and they were pretty fun to participate in. Things got even more fun after the games when the music changed and everyone started dancing the horo. After five or six traditional Bulgarian songs, we switched gears and started dancing to pop music laced with Bulgarian dance/party classics--one about a bicycle was a huge hit.\n\nWe talked, danced and socialized until 10pm when it was time to either go home or go out. We went out.\n\nThe whole night was a blast.','St. George\'s Day Party ','','inherit','open','open','','6792-revision-2','','','2012-06-06 05:57:12','2012-06-06 03:57:12','',6792,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/06/6792-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6796,1,'2012-06-06 07:41:37','2012-06-06 05:41:37','Each year at school we have a St. George\'s Day Party. The Bulgarian staff host this party for the American teachers. It\'s reciprocal as the American teachers host a big Thanksgiving party in November. St. George\'s day is in May but between a couple of major holidays and graduation during the month of May we end up having our party the first Friday in June.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343885524/\" title=\"Bulgarian table by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7078/7343885524_63d513cd36_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Bulgarian table\"></a>\nIt\'s great fun. We eat lamb, salad, rice with internal organs mixed in (well, I didn\'t eat that), grilled veggies and bread. We drink wine and beer and usually some rakiya as well.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158677371/\" title=\"teachers by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7081/7158677371_41184fab18_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"teachers\"></a>\nI\'m not sure how the tradition of games started at our school party as a part of St. George\'s Day because as I understand it, this is not a traditional party of the holiday. Nevertheless, the international teachers also participate in a series of games that the Bulgarians have created to challenge us. The games are Bulgarian inspired and usually require teamwork, speed, a some knowledge of Bulgarian language, culture and food and a willingness to embarrass yourself in front of your Bulgarian colleagues.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343887812/\" title=\"the party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8149/7343887812_f3f5b03e48_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"the party\"></a>\nThis year the party was inside rather than around the fountain due to all of the rain that we\'ve been having lately. So instead of having physical challenges we were given Bulgarian language challenges. This of course was a hoot for our Bulgarian colleagues who by in large speak English much, much better than we speak Bulgarian.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158676225/\" title=\"game by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7158676225_ae6b086c12_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"game\"></a>\n\nWe were given a St George\'s Day survey to complete. Then we had to read and pronounce the names of long difficult Bulgarian villages. Next, we given an envelop with a Bulgarian idiom in it and the English \"translation\" was taped on the outside of the envelope. Our job was to arrange the Bulgarian words inside the envelope to come up with the Bulgarian idiom. Finally we blind-folded one of our teammates and they were lead to a table as if they were a new baby and given the opportunity to pick out two objects that would represent them. Then a second teammate had to read the \"baby\'s\" fortune as if they were the godmother. This was very funny because the objects were things like dried Bulgarian sausage, Bulgarian pottery, rakiya and the like.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158681605/\" title=\"prizes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7221/7158681605_e117f79713_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"prizes\"></a>\nEveryone who participated won some kind of a Bulgarian prize. So that elicited a lot of laughter as well. \n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343882362/\" title=\"rakiya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7235/7343882362_1220dbbcf3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"rakiya\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158682545/\" title=\"dried meat by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7077/7158682545_b390d3b735_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"dried meat\"></a>\nNeedless to say, these activities had our Bulgarian colleagues in stitches and they were pretty fun to participate in. Things got even more fun after the games when the music changed and everyone started dancing the horo. After five or six traditional Bulgarian songs, we switched gears and started dancing to pop music laced with Bulgarian dance/party classics--one about a bicycle was a huge hit.\n\nEven Mama Dog our campus dog wanted in on the action. \n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158674031/\" title=\"mama dog waiting outside by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7099/7158674031_15d55a330f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"mama dog waiting outside\"></a>\n\nWe talked, danced and socialized until 10pm when it was time to either go home or go out. We went out.\n\nThe whole night was a blast.','St. George\'s Day Party ','','inherit','open','open','','6792-revision-3','','','2012-06-06 07:41:37','2012-06-06 05:41:37','',6792,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/06/6792-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(6797,1,'2012-06-06 07:41:41','2012-06-06 05:41:41','Each year at school we have a St. George\'s Day Party. The Bulgarian staff host this party for the American teachers. It\'s reciprocal as the American teachers host a big Thanksgiving party in November. St. George\'s day is in May but between a couple of major holidays and graduation during the month of May we end up having our party the first Friday in June.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343885524/\" title=\"Bulgarian table by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7078/7343885524_63d513cd36_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Bulgarian table\"></a>\r\nIt\'s great fun. We eat lamb, salad, rice with internal organs mixed in (well, I didn\'t eat that), grilled veggies and bread. We drink wine and beer and usually some rakiya as well.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158677371/\" title=\"teachers by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7081/7158677371_41184fab18_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"teachers\"></a>\r\nI\'m not sure how the tradition of games started at our school party as a part of St. George\'s Day because as I understand it, this is not a traditional party of the holiday. Nevertheless, the international teachers also participate in a series of games that the Bulgarians have created to challenge us. The games are Bulgarian inspired and usually require teamwork, speed, a some knowledge of Bulgarian language, culture and food and a willingness to embarrass yourself in front of your Bulgarian colleagues.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343887812/\" title=\"the party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8149/7343887812_f3f5b03e48_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"the party\"></a>\r\nThis year the party was inside rather than around the fountain due to all of the rain that we\'ve been having lately. So instead of having physical challenges we were given Bulgarian language challenges. This of course was a hoot for our Bulgarian colleagues who by in large speak English much, much better than we speak Bulgarian.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158676225/\" title=\"game by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7158676225_ae6b086c12_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"game\"></a>\r\n\r\nWe were given a St George\'s Day survey to complete. Then we had to read and pronounce the names of long difficult Bulgarian villages. Next, we given an envelop with a Bulgarian idiom in it and the English \"translation\" was taped on the outside of the envelope. Our job was to arrange the Bulgarian words inside the envelope to come up with the Bulgarian idiom. Finally we blind-folded one of our teammates and they were lead to a table as if they were a new baby and given the opportunity to pick out two objects that would represent them. Then a second teammate had to read the \"baby\'s\" fortune as if they were the godmother. This was very funny because the objects were things like dried Bulgarian sausage, Bulgarian pottery, rakiya and the like.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158681605/\" title=\"prizes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7221/7158681605_e117f79713_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"prizes\"></a>\r\nEveryone who participated won some kind of a Bulgarian prize. So that elicited a lot of laughter as well. \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343882362/\" title=\"rakiya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7235/7343882362_1220dbbcf3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"rakiya\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158682545/\" title=\"dried meat by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7077/7158682545_b390d3b735_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"dried meat\"></a>\r\nNeedless to say, these activities had our Bulgarian colleagues in stitches and they were pretty fun to participate in. Things got even more fun after the games when the music changed and everyone started dancing the horo. After five or six traditional Bulgarian songs, we switched gears and started dancing to pop music laced with Bulgarian dance/party classics--one about a bicycle was a huge hit.\r\n\r\nEven Mama Dog our campus dog wanted in on the action. \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158674031/\" title=\"mama dog waiting outside by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7099/7158674031_15d55a330f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"mama dog waiting outside\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343879778/\" title=\"mama dog by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7238/7343879778_36aea0c181_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"mama dog\"></a>\r\n\r\nWe talked, danced and socialized until 10pm when it was time to either go home or go out. We went out.\r\n\r\nThe whole night was a blast.','St. George\'s Day Party ','','inherit','open','open','','6792-revision-4','','','2012-06-06 07:41:41','2012-06-06 05:41:41','',6792,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/06/6792-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(6798,1,'2012-06-06 07:41:47','2012-06-06 05:41:47','Each year at school we have a St. George\'s Day Party. The Bulgarian staff host this party for the American teachers. It\'s reciprocal as the American teachers host a big Thanksgiving party in November. St. George\'s day is in May but between a couple of major holidays and graduation during the month of May we end up having our party the first Friday in June.\r\n<a title=\"Bulgarian table by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343885524/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7078/7343885524_63d513cd36_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bulgarian table\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nIt\'s great fun. We eat lamb, salad, rice with internal organs mixed in (well, I didn\'t eat that), grilled veggies and bread. We drink wine and beer and usually some rakiya as well.\r\n<a title=\"teachers by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158677371/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7081/7158677371_41184fab18_z.jpg\" alt=\"teachers\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI\'m not sure how the tradition of games started at our school party as a part of St. George\'s Day because as I understand it, this is not a traditional party of the holiday. Nevertheless, the international teachers also participate in a series of games that the Bulgarians have created to challenge us. The games are Bulgarian inspired and usually require teamwork, speed, a some knowledge of Bulgarian language, culture and food and a willingness to embarrass yourself in front of your Bulgarian colleagues.\r\n<a title=\"the party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343887812/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8149/7343887812_f3f5b03e48_z.jpg\" alt=\"the party\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThis year the party was inside rather than around the fountain due to all of the rain that we\'ve been having lately. So instead of having physical challenges we were given Bulgarian language challenges. This of course was a hoot for our Bulgarian colleagues who by in large speak English much, much better than we speak Bulgarian.<a title=\"game by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158676225/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7158676225_ae6b086c12_z.jpg\" alt=\"game\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWe were given a St George\'s Day survey to complete. Then we had to read and pronounce the names of long difficult Bulgarian villages. Next, we given an envelop with a Bulgarian idiom in it and the English \"translation\" was taped on the outside of the envelope. Our job was to arrange the Bulgarian words inside the envelope to come up with the Bulgarian idiom. Finally we blind-folded one of our teammates and they were lead to a table as if they were a new baby and given the opportunity to pick out two objects that would represent them. Then a second teammate had to read the \"baby\'s\" fortune as if they were the godmother. This was very funny because the objects were things like dried Bulgarian sausage, Bulgarian pottery, rakiya and the like.\r\n<a title=\"prizes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158681605/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7221/7158681605_e117f79713_z.jpg\" alt=\"prizes\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nEveryone who participated won some kind of a Bulgarian prize. So that elicited a lot of laughter as well.\r\n<a title=\"rakiya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343882362/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7235/7343882362_1220dbbcf3_z.jpg\" alt=\"rakiya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"dried meat by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158682545/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7077/7158682545_b390d3b735_z.jpg\" alt=\"dried meat\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nNeedless to say, these activities had our Bulgarian colleagues in stitches and they were pretty fun to participate in. Things got even more fun after the games when the music changed and everyone started dancing the horo. After five or six traditional Bulgarian songs, we switched gears and started dancing to pop music laced with Bulgarian dance/party classics--one about a bicycle was a huge hit.\r\n\r\nEven Mama Dog our campus dog wanted in on the action.\r\n<a title=\"mama dog waiting outside by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158674031/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7099/7158674031_15d55a330f_z.jpg\" alt=\"mama dog waiting outside\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"mama dog by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343879778/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7238/7343879778_36aea0c181_z.jpg\" alt=\"mama dog\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWe talked, danced and socialized until 10pm when it was time to either go home or go out. We went out.\r\n\r\nThe whole night was a blast.','St. George\'s Day Party ','','inherit','open','open','','6792-revision-5','','','2012-06-06 07:41:47','2012-06-06 05:41:47','',6792,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/06/6792-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(6799,1,'2012-06-06 07:45:23','2012-06-06 05:45:23','Each year at school we have a St. George\'s Day Party. Here\'s<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/06/04/a-late-st-georges-day-party/\" target=\"_blank\"> last year\'s party</a>.  The Bulgarian staff host this party for the American teachers. It\'s reciprocal as the American teachers host a big Thanksgiving party in November. St. George\'s day is in May but between a couple of major holidays and graduation during the month of May we end up having our party the first Friday in June.\n<a title=\"Bulgarian table by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343885524/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7078/7343885524_63d513cd36_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bulgarian table\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nIt\'s great fun. We eat lamb, salad, rice with internal organs mixed in (well, I didn\'t eat that), grilled veggies and bread. We drink wine and beer and usually some rakiya as well.\n<a title=\"teachers by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158677371/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7081/7158677371_41184fab18_z.jpg\" alt=\"teachers\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI\'m not sure how the tradition of games started at our school party as a part of St. George\'s Day because as I understand it, this is not a traditional party of the holiday. Nevertheless, the international teachers also participate in a series of games that the Bulgarians have created to challenge us. The games are Bulgarian inspired and usually require teamwork, speed, a some knowledge of Bulgarian language, culture and food and a willingness to embarrass yourself in front of your Bulgarian colleagues.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"the party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343887812/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8149/7343887812_f3f5b03e48_z.jpg\" alt=\"the party\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThis year the party was inside rather than around the fountain due to all of the rain that we\'ve been having lately. So instead of having physical challenges we were given Bulgarian language challenges. This of course was a hoot for our Bulgarian colleagues who by in large speak English much, much better than we speak Bulgarian.<a title=\"game by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158676225/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7158676225_ae6b086c12_z.jpg\" alt=\"game\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nWe were given a St George\'s Day survey to complete. Then we had to read and pronounce the names of long difficult Bulgarian villages. Next, we given an envelop with a Bulgarian idiom in it and the English \"translation\" was taped on the outside of the envelope. Our job was to arrange the Bulgarian words inside the envelope to come up with the Bulgarian idiom. Finally we blind-folded one of our teammates and they were lead to a table as if they were a new baby and given the opportunity to pick out two objects that would represent them. Then a second teammate had to read the \"baby\'s\" fortune as if they were the godmother. This was very funny because the objects were things like dried Bulgarian sausage, Bulgarian pottery, rakiya and the like.<a title=\"Bulgarian table by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343886718/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7221/7343886718_481d1ed2bd_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bulgarian table\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"prizes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158681605/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7221/7158681605_e117f79713_z.jpg\" alt=\"prizes\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nEveryone who participated won some kind of a Bulgarian prize. So that elicited a lot of laughter as well.\n<a title=\"rakiya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343882362/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7235/7343882362_1220dbbcf3_z.jpg\" alt=\"rakiya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"dried meat by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158682545/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7077/7158682545_b390d3b735_z.jpg\" alt=\"dried meat\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nNeedless to say, these activities had our Bulgarian colleagues in stitches and they were pretty fun to participate in. Things got even more fun after the games when the music changed and everyone started dancing the horo. After five or six traditional Bulgarian songs, we switched gears and started dancing to pop music laced with Bulgarian dance/party classics--one about a bicycle was a huge hit.\n\nEven Mama Dog, our well loved campus dog, wanted in on the action.\n<a title=\"mama dog waiting outside by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7158674031/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7099/7158674031_15d55a330f_z.jpg\" alt=\"mama dog waiting outside\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"mama dog by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7343879778/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7238/7343879778_36aea0c181_z.jpg\" alt=\"mama dog\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nWe talked, danced and socialized until 10pm when it was time to either go home or go out. We went out.\n\nThe whole night was a blast.','St. George\'s Day Party at ACS','','inherit','open','open','','6792-revision-6','','','2012-06-06 07:45:23','2012-06-06 05:45:23','',6792,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/06/6792-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(6801,1,'2012-06-14 06:04:59','2012-06-14 04:04:59','I\'ve got soccer on my mind. Yep. Somehow the thing that\'s driven me back to blogging after a week away is soccer.\n\nIn my defense, I\'\'ve been busy over the last week and I really haven\'t had a chance to sit down, write a post, upload photos and press publish. It\'s because it\'s the end of the school year and things are busy, busy around here and school to-do list is a mile long. So long that I don\'t even have a personal to-do list. Maybe today\'s the day I remember to run a load of laundry.\n\nYou shouldn\'t worry too much. It hasn\'t been all work and no play these days. It\'s just been 60% work, 20% finding ways to feed myself that don\'t involve me cooking or having groceries at home and 20% sleeping. Like last night A. and I went to a new restaurant in Sofia (more details on that later). The basic recipe for success was hamburger + beer + football.\n\nYep. Football. Or in my mind Soccer. Or maybe I should stick with calling it football. Even though it\'s soccer.<!--more-->\n\nAnyhow, it turns out that there\'s a big football-soccer thing going on right now. Lots of teams are playing. Lots of people are watching. And I spent a little bit of time thinking about and watching soccer, well football, well soccer.\n\nIn the course of one evening, I managed to call football soccer more times than I\'d like to count.\n\nThe response? Lots of cringes. <em>I\'m sorry</em>. But even after four years living in Europe, this is a hard habit to kick. I am not sure why because I\'ve adjusted to holiday (rather than vacation), toilet (rather than bathroom) and a slew of other British English-isms. It\'s also not like I\'ve ever regularly watched or played this sport.\n\nThen I went on to call the series (if I am even allowed to say this), the World Cup.\n\nResponse? Long stare. Potentially this was a slightly incredulous one but I am not thinking about that. This cup I was made to understand is not the World Cup.<em> Oh</em>. It\'s the European Cup 2012. Turns out the World Cup is every four years as is the European Cup and there are two years that separate the two events.\n\nI watched and watched. These guys run around a big field. A lot. I like the drama of this sport. When people get hit they like on the ground holding a body part for a while. Usually until a referee comes over or a teammate pulls them up off the ground. I think it\'s interesting that the clock doesn\'t stop for them when this happens. Luckily for me there\'s plenty to keep me busy even though I don\'t really know the rules.\n\nThis became painfully obvious when a referee made some call and I asked what the call was because sometimes these seem like important things to do.\n\nThe response? Eyes narrow. Off sides. Followed up by the question you do know what that is, don\'t you? Me: Um, yes? It has to do with the line of play and the football and the location of the players on the field. This is received by a long, long pause. Then it\'s explained to me.\n\nThe thing is, I woke up this morning with this question: why do I need to know what an off sides is?\n\nIsn\'t it enough if the referee knows it and calls it? Can\'t I just sit back and watch men kick a ball around a field to each other while trying to score, like I always have?','Soccer, Football, Soccer ','','inherit','open','open','','6800-revision','','','2012-06-14 06:04:59','2012-06-14 04:04:59','',6800,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/14/6800-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6802,1,'2012-06-14 06:06:57','2012-06-14 04:06:57','I\'ve got soccer on my mind. Yep. Somehow the thing that\'s driven me back to blogging after a week away is soccer.\n\nIn my defense, I\'\'ve been busy over the last week and I really haven\'t had a chance to sit down, write a post, upload photos and press publish. It\'s because it\'s the end of the school year and things are busy, busy around here and school to-do list is a mile long. So long that I don\'t even have a personal to-do list. Maybe today\'s the day I remember to run a load of laundry.\n\nYou shouldn\'t worry too much. It hasn\'t been all work and no play these days. It\'s just been 60% work, 20% finding ways to feed myself that don\'t involve me cooking or having groceries at home and 20% sleeping. Like last night A. and I went to a new restaurant in Sofia (more details on that later). The basic recipe for success was hamburger + beer + football.\n\nYep. Football. Or in my mind Soccer. Or maybe I should stick with calling it football. Even though it\'s soccer.<!--more-->\n\nAnyhow, it turns out that there\'s a big football-soccer thing going on right now. Lots of teams are playing. Lots of people are watching. And I spent a little bit of time thinking about and watching soccer, well football, well soccer.\n\nIn the course of one evening, I managed to call football soccer more times than I\'d like to count.\n\nThe response? Lots of cringes. <em>I\'m sorry</em>. But even after four years living in Europe, this is a hard habit to kick. I am not sure why because I\'ve adjusted to holiday (rather than vacation), toilet (rather than bathroom) and a slew of other British English-isms. It\'s also not like I\'ve ever regularly watched or played this sport.\n\nThen I went on to call the series (if I am even allowed to say this), the World Cup.\n\nResponse? Long stare. Potentially this was a slightly incredulous one but I am not thinking about that. This cup I was made to understand is not the World Cup.<em> Oh</em>. It\'s the European Cup 2012. Turns out the World Cup is every four years as is the European Cup and there are two years that separate the two events.\n\nI watched and watched. These guys run around a big field. A lot. I like the drama of this sport. When people get hit they like on the ground holding a body part for a while. Usually until a referee comes over or a teammate pulls them up off the ground. I think it\'s interesting that the clock doesn\'t stop for them when this happens. Luckily for me there\'s plenty to keep me busy even though I don\'t really know the rules.\n\nThis became painfully obvious when a referee made some call and I asked what the call was because sometimes these seem like important things to do.\n\nThe response? Eyes narrow. Off sides. Followed up by the question you do know what that is, don\'t you? Me: Um, yes? It has to do with the line of play and the football and the location of the players on the field. This is received by a long, long pause. Then it\'s explained to me.\n\nThe thing is, I woke up this morning with this question: why do I need to know what an off sides is?\n\nIsn\'t it enough if the referee knows it and calls it? Can\'t I just sit back and watch men kick a ball around a field to each other while trying to score, like I always have?','Soccer, Football, Soccer ','','inherit','open','open','','6800-autosave','','','2012-06-14 06:06:57','2012-06-14 04:06:57','',6800,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/14/6800-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6827,1,'2012-06-23 08:57:04','2012-06-23 06:57:04','On Thursday afternoon I had the chance to meet up with Rebecca and Merlin who write the <a href=\"http://merlinandrebecca.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">blog merlinandrebecca</a> which I\'ve been obsessed with ever since <a href=\"http://dailynibbles.com\" target=\"_blank\">my college friend S. who writes this blog</a> introduced me to their blog. She told me: I read their blog and I think you\'d like it. <em>No kidding</em>. They write detailed thoughtful posts about the traveling they are doing (2 weeks in each of the 50 European countries) and take unbelievably beautiful photos wherever the go.\r\n\r\nI took this single photo the day that we met up.\r\n<a title=\"the baths in downtown Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7417988644/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7116/7417988644_79b6a3aebe_z.jpg\" alt=\"the baths in downtown Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow, I would absolutely recommend their blog as the perfect place to start reading before your plan a trip in Europe.  While you wont get here\'s where to stay information they do a wonderful job capturing the spirit of the country, places to go, things to do, food to taste and they make a point of connecting with locals. Moreover the blog is incredibly positive which makes it a pleasure to read whether or not you\'re actively planning travel.\r\n\r\nHow it did happen that I met up with Merlin and Rebecca?\r\n\r\nWell, here\'s the back story: at the end of April <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/02/spring-time-in-skopje/\" target=\"_blank\">I went to Macedonia with friends</a>. We traipsed around the country on our way from Skopje to Lake Ohrid. After spending a whole day wandering through Ohrid and taking 100s of photos, we headed back to our rooms before dinner. It was then I thought I\'d check my google reader and see what was going on on the internets.\r\n\r\nThe very first post was one from Merlin and Rebecca. They were <a href=\"http://merlinandrebecca.blogspot.com/2012/04/castle-hunting-zamokot-samuil.html\" target=\"_blank\">in Ohrid too</a>. They had exactly the <a href=\"http://merlinandrebecca.blogspot.com/2012/04/oldest-place-youve-never-heard-of.html\" target=\"_blank\">same photos posted to their blog</a> that I had just taken. It was a surreal small world moment. So I posted a comment on their blog about it and suggested that if they wanted to meet up in Sofia I\'d be up for it.\r\n\r\nI was still up for it when they emailed me last week.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nThen they asked me if I could point them to local bookstores that might carry English language guide books for Kosovo. Um, okay. I directed them to two different ones and then I asked my twitter friends the same question. Interestingly we both came up with the same two: Booktrading and Helicon. My ACS friends added the bookstore next to the grocery store in the Serdika Mall to the list. Luckily I decided to also copy pages from my Lonely Planet Western Balkans guide book for them just in case. It\'s a good thing I did because Kosovo guidebooks don\'t seem to be very popular in Sofia and maybe in general.\r\n\r\nSo I met Rebecca and Merlin Thursday early evening and we went on a impromptu stroll through the city. I gave some abbreviated history lessons, pointed out some landmarks and talked generally about life in Sofia. Truthfully I gave a shorter and significantly less good <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/freesofiatour\" target=\"_blank\">Free Sofia Tour</a> tour. Somehow I only managed to take a single over the course of the whole evening. I guess these things happen when you\'re having fun.\r\n\r\nI was reminded while strolling through the city what an interesting mix of old and new there is in Sofia. I also had a chance to reflect on the fact that part of what makes Sofia special are the surprises. You can be walking down a residential street and all of a sudden there\'s the women\'s market. Or you can take a underpass to cross a street and ta-da Roman ruins. And in the summertime, you can pop down one of many little alleys that open into gardens and find yourself enjoying beer and a salad in the night air tucked away in a little corner of the city.\r\n\r\nThe major difference between my meandering through Sofia and the Free Sofia Tour is that at the end of our tour we settled in for a beer in the park in front of the Sveti Sedmochislenitsi Church on Graf Ignatiev and then we had dinner in the courtyard garden of Ugo on Rilski a block from my old apartment.\r\n\r\nHere\'s the part where I have to say, Rebecca and Merlin are such nice people. They were friendly and outgoing but not in the shallow-friendly way. More specifically, they had thoughtful and interesting things to say about their time in Bulgaria but also their travels through the Balkans as a whole. I was really impressed. They were also funny.\r\n\r\nWe spent the second part of the night telling stories, asking each other questions talking about life and generally getting to know each other. It was lovely and I am really glad that we had a chance to meet up. At the end of the night I was convinced that I must visit Georgia soon rather than later and that Americans would have a better reputation abroad if everyone were more like Rebecca and Merlin.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, a big thanks to Merlin and Rebecca for meeting me in Sofia and letting me see the city through your eyes for an evening. After four years here, Sofia is at times both familiar and frustrating so it was wonderful to feel like it was new again. Good luck on the remainder of your travels. I am looking forward to reading all about them.','Meeting up and blogging Europe ','','publish','open','open','','meeting-up-and-blogging-europe','','','2012-06-23 08:57:04','2012-06-23 06:57:04','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6827',0,'post','',3),(6804,1,'2012-06-15 06:24:02','2012-06-15 04:24:02','There\'s a new restaurant in town. Boom Burger. Apparently you can <a href=\"https://foursquare.com/v/boom-burgers--steaks/4fb366d3e4b0d0b77bfd014d\" target=\"_blank\">check it out on foursquare </a>but the don\'t have a website or a facebook page. I read it about earlier this week on this<a href=\"http://sofiqm.wordpress.com/2012/06/12/shock-awe/\" target=\"_blank\"> food blog being written by an American in Sofia</a>. Based solely on the pictures, I decided that I must go and that I must go sooner rather than later.\r\n<a title=\"Boom burger the restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372484324/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8014/7372484324_24776396bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger the restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nYep I read about the hamburger joint on the 12th of June and one day later I was there. Eating a hamburger.\r\n\r\nActually, to be more precise I started out ooo-ing and ahh-ing over how cute the restaurant interior is. Then I moved on to drooling over the menu. Next I ogled some Heinz ketchup and French\'s yellow mustard before nibbling at the some french fries and then I shoved a really delicious hamburger in my face.\r\n\r\nIt was an amazing experience.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7187236653/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5469/7187236653_f0f26c4920_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI spent the whole time thinking to myself: it\'s like I\'m in America, reading a Bulgarian menu, in America. Then I ordered my hamburger in Bulgarian. It was an odd wonderful moment.\r\n\r\nSo wonderful that I didn\'t even care when my hamburger came a little rarer then I\'d have liked it. Well maybe a lot rarer than I\'d have liked--mine was more than just a little pink but A\'s hamburger had only a hint of pink. Then again I am kind of picky about these things. After all I\'m more or less a vegetarian at home when left to my own devices. Note to self: next time get it cooked longer.\r\n<a title=\"Tastes like America by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372479596/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8148/7372479596_a03d10b63a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tastes like America\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI know that I just wrote a pretty <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/12/hamburgers-in-mladost/\" target=\"_blank\">glowing review of the hamburger at Brown\'s Bakery</a> in September/October but these hamburgers blow the Brown burger out of the water. Also, Brown\'s Bakery in Mladost is no more. It\'s been replaced by a Don Domat.\r\n\r\nNow here is what\'s great about Boom Burger. They aren\'t trying to do too much. Their menu fits onto one page. They have five burgers on the menu. A classic hamburger, a cheese burger, a Boom burger with bacon, a chicken burger and a veggie burger. They serve fries and onion rings. There are even salads on the menu--not that I am going to a hamburger restaurant to have a salad but it\'s a nice nod to health. Oh and they serve beef steaks as well.\r\n<a title=\"hamburgers in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7187253603/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7083/7187253603_0eb48a8948_z.jpg\" alt=\"hamburgers in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThey make a thick juicy hamburger patty. The buns are light and airy with a little bite. The hamburgers are served with pickles on the side as well as real American condiments. They even have Cholula hot sauce. That\'s crazy. I\'ve never seen this stuff in Bulgaria before.\r\n\r\nI am not really sure what the deal is with this restaurant or who owns it but they\'ve got the American hamburger down. They also have good service and a clean bright interior with full ceiling to floor glass doors that can slide open in good weather.\r\n<a title=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372475844/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5117/7372475844_df6f81f7b3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe had two hamburgers, french fries and beer and the total was less than 30 leva. So it\'s not cheap but it\'s good. Really good. In fact I\'m already plotting a return visit.\r\n\r\nWhat if you want to go too? Well, you should. Boom is off of Vitosha Street at #15 on Kurnigradska. Hint, hint, that\'s the same street Murphy\'s the Irish pub is on as well as <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> one of my all time favorite shops in Sofia.','Boom Burger in Sofia ','','publish','open','open','','boom-burger-in-sofia','','','2012-06-14 21:25:10','2012-06-14 19:25:10','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6804',0,'post','',11),(6805,1,'2012-06-14 21:16:16','2012-06-14 19:16:16','There\'s a new restaurant in town. Boom Burger. Apparently you can <a href=\"https://foursquare.com/v/boom-burgers--steaks/4fb366d3e4b0d0b77bfd014d\" target=\"_blank\">check it out on foursquare </a>but the don\'t have a website or a facebook page. I read it about earlier this week on this<a href=\"http://sofiqm.wordpress.com/2012/06/12/shock-awe/\" target=\"_blank\"> food blog being written by an American in Sofia</a>. Based solely on the pictures, I decided that I must go and that I must go sooner rather than later.\n\nYep I read about the hamburger joint on the 12th of June and one day later I was there. Eating a hamburger.\n\nActually, to be more precise I started out ooo-ing and ahh-ing over how cute the restaurant interior is. Then I moved on to drooling over the menu. Next I ogled some Heinz ketchup and French\'s yellow mustard before nibbling at the some french fries and then I shoved a really delicious hamburger in my face.\n\nIt was an amazing experience.\n\nI spent the whole time thinking to myself: it\'s like I\'m in America, reading a Bulgarian menu, in America. Then I ordered my hamburger in Bulgarian. It was an odd wonderful moment.\n\nSo wonderful that I didn\'t even care when my hamburger came a little rarer (well maybe a lot rarer) then I\'d have liked it.  Then again I am kind of picky about these things and I\'m more or less a vegetarian at home when left to my own devices. Note to self: next time get it cooked longer.\n\nI know that I just wrote a pretty <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/12/hamburgers-in-mladost/\" target=\"_blank\">glowing review of the hamburger at Brown\'s Bakery</a> in September/October but these hamburgers blow the Brown burger out of the water. Also, Brown\'s Bakery in Mladost is no more. It\'s been replaced by a Don Domat.\n\nNow here is what\'s great about Boom Burger. They aren\'t trying to do too much. Their menu fits onto one page. They have five burgers on the menu. A classic hamburger, a cheese burger, a Boom burger with bacon, a chicken burger and a veggie burger. They serve fries and onion rings. There are even salads on the menu--not that I am going to a hamburger restaurant to have a salad but it\'s a nice nod to health. Oh and they serve beef steaks as well.\n\nThey make a thick juicy hamburger patty. The buns are light and airy with a little bite. The hamburgers are served with pickles on the side as well as real American condiments. They even have Cholula hot sauce. That\'s crazy. I\'ve never seen this stuff in Bulgaria before.\n\nI am not really sure what the deal is with this restaurant or who owns it but they\'ve got the American hamburger down. They also have good service and a clean bright interior with full ceiling to floor glass doors that can slide open in good weather.\n\nWe had two hamburgers, french fries and beer and the total was less than 30 leva. So it\'s not cheap but it\'s good. Really good. In fact I\'m already plotting a return visit.\n\nWhat if you want to go too? Well, you should. Boom is off of Vitosha Street at #15 on Kurnigradska. Hint, hint, that\'s the same street Murphy\'s the Irish pub is on as well as <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> one of my all time favorite shops in Sofia.','Boom Burger in Sofia ','','inherit','open','open','','6804-revision','','','2012-06-14 21:16:16','2012-06-14 19:16:16','',6804,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/14/6804-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6806,1,'2012-06-14 21:23:39','2012-06-14 19:23:39','There\'s a new restaurant in town. Boom Burger. Apparently you can <a href=\"https://foursquare.com/v/boom-burgers--steaks/4fb366d3e4b0d0b77bfd014d\" target=\"_blank\">check it out on foursquare </a>but the don\'t have a website or a facebook page. I read it about earlier this week on this<a href=\"http://sofiqm.wordpress.com/2012/06/12/shock-awe/\" target=\"_blank\"> food blog being written by an American in Sofia</a>. Based solely on the pictures, I decided that I must go and that I must go sooner rather than later.\n<a title=\"Boom burger the restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372484324/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8014/7372484324_24776396bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger the restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nYep I read about the hamburger joint on the 12th of June and one day later I was there. Eating a hamburger.\n\nActually, to be more precise I started out ooo-ing and ahh-ing over how cute the restaurant interior is. Then I moved on to drooling over the menu. Next I ogled some Heinz ketchup and French\'s yellow mustard before nibbling at the some french fries and then I shoved a really delicious hamburger in my face.\n\nIt was an amazing experience.\n<a title=\"Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7187236653/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5469/7187236653_f0f26c4920_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI spent the whole time thinking to myself: it\'s like I\'m in America, reading a Bulgarian menu, in America. Then I ordered my hamburger in Bulgarian. It was an odd wonderful moment.\n\nSo wonderful that I didn\'t even care when my hamburger came a little rarer then I\'d have liked it. Well maybe a lot rarer than I\'d have liked--mine was more than just a little pink but A\'s hamburger had only a hint of pink. Then again I am kind of picky about these things. After all I\'m more or less a vegetarian at home when left to my own devices. Note to self: next time get it cooked longer.\n<a title=\"Tastes like America by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372479596/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8148/7372479596_a03d10b63a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tastes like America\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI know that I just wrote a pretty <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/12/hamburgers-in-mladost/\" target=\"_blank\">glowing review of the hamburger at Brown\'s Bakery</a> in September/October but these hamburgers blow the Brown burger out of the water. Also, Brown\'s Bakery in Mladost is no more. It\'s been replaced by a Don Domat.\n\nNow here is what\'s great about Boom Burger. They aren\'t trying to do too much. Their menu fits onto one page. They have five burgers on the menu. A classic hamburger, a cheese burger, a Boom burger with bacon, a chicken burger and a veggie burger. They serve fries and onion rings. There are even salads on the menu--not that I am going to a hamburger restaurant to have a salad but it\'s a nice nod to health. Oh and they serve beef steaks as well.\n\nThey make a thick juicy hamburger patty. The buns are light and airy with a little bite. The hamburgers are served with pickles on the side as well as real American condiments. They even have Cholula hot sauce. That\'s crazy. I\'ve never seen this stuff in Bulgaria before.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372475844/\" title=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5117/7372475844_df6f81f7b3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia\"></a>\nI am not really sure what the deal is with this restaurant or who owns it but they\'ve got the American hamburger down. They also have good service and a clean bright interior with full ceiling to floor glass doors that can slide open in good weather.\n\nWe had two hamburgers, french fries and beer and the total was less than 30 leva. So it\'s not cheap but it\'s good. Really good. In fact I\'m already plotting a return visit.\n\nWhat if you want to go too? Well, you should. Boom is off of Vitosha Street at #15 on Kurnigradska. Hint, hint, that\'s the same street Murphy\'s the Irish pub is on as well as <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> one of my all time favorite shops in Sofia.','Boom Burger in Sofia ','','inherit','open','open','','6804-revision-2','','','2012-06-14 21:23:39','2012-06-14 19:23:39','',6804,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/14/6804-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6807,1,'2012-06-14 21:24:02','2012-06-14 19:24:02','There\'s a new restaurant in town. Boom Burger. Apparently you can <a href=\"https://foursquare.com/v/boom-burgers--steaks/4fb366d3e4b0d0b77bfd014d\" target=\"_blank\">check it out on foursquare </a>but the don\'t have a website or a facebook page. I read it about earlier this week on this<a href=\"http://sofiqm.wordpress.com/2012/06/12/shock-awe/\" target=\"_blank\"> food blog being written by an American in Sofia</a>. Based solely on the pictures, I decided that I must go and that I must go sooner rather than later.\r\n<a title=\"Boom burger the restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372484324/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8014/7372484324_24776396bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger the restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nYep I read about the hamburger joint on the 12th of June and one day later I was there. Eating a hamburger.\r\n\r\nActually, to be more precise I started out ooo-ing and ahh-ing over how cute the restaurant interior is. Then I moved on to drooling over the menu. Next I ogled some Heinz ketchup and French\'s yellow mustard before nibbling at the some french fries and then I shoved a really delicious hamburger in my face.\r\n\r\nIt was an amazing experience.\r\n<a title=\"Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7187236653/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5469/7187236653_f0f26c4920_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI spent the whole time thinking to myself: it\'s like I\'m in America, reading a Bulgarian menu, in America. Then I ordered my hamburger in Bulgarian. It was an odd wonderful moment.\r\n\r\nSo wonderful that I didn\'t even care when my hamburger came a little rarer then I\'d have liked it. Well maybe a lot rarer than I\'d have liked--mine was more than just a little pink but A\'s hamburger had only a hint of pink. Then again I am kind of picky about these things. After all I\'m more or less a vegetarian at home when left to my own devices. Note to self: next time get it cooked longer.\r\n<a title=\"Tastes like America by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372479596/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8148/7372479596_a03d10b63a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tastes like America\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI know that I just wrote a pretty <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/12/hamburgers-in-mladost/\" target=\"_blank\">glowing review of the hamburger at Brown\'s Bakery</a> in September/October but these hamburgers blow the Brown burger out of the water. Also, Brown\'s Bakery in Mladost is no more. It\'s been replaced by a Don Domat.\r\n\r\nNow here is what\'s great about Boom Burger. They aren\'t trying to do too much. Their menu fits onto one page. They have five burgers on the menu. A classic hamburger, a cheese burger, a Boom burger with bacon, a chicken burger and a veggie burger. They serve fries and onion rings. There are even salads on the menu--not that I am going to a hamburger restaurant to have a salad but it\'s a nice nod to health. Oh and they serve beef steaks as well.\r\n<a title=\"hamburgers in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7187253603/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7083/7187253603_0eb48a8948_z.jpg\" alt=\"hamburgers in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThey make a thick juicy hamburger patty. The buns are light and airy with a little bite. The hamburgers are served with pickles on the side as well as real American condiments. They even have Cholula hot sauce. That\'s crazy. I\'ve never seen this stuff in Bulgaria before.\r\n\r\nI am not really sure what the deal is with this restaurant or who owns it but they\'ve got the American hamburger down. They also have good service and a clean bright interior with full ceiling to floor glass doors that can slide open in good weather.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372475844/\" title=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5117/7372475844_df6f81f7b3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia\"></a>\r\nWe had two hamburgers, french fries and beer and the total was less than 30 leva. So it\'s not cheap but it\'s good. Really good. In fact I\'m already plotting a return visit.\r\n\r\nWhat if you want to go too? Well, you should. Boom is off of Vitosha Street at #15 on Kurnigradska. Hint, hint, that\'s the same street Murphy\'s the Irish pub is on as well as <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> one of my all time favorite shops in Sofia.','Boom Burger in Sofia ','','inherit','open','open','','6804-revision-3','','','2012-06-14 21:24:02','2012-06-14 19:24:02','',6804,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/14/6804-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(6808,1,'2012-06-14 21:25:05','2012-06-14 19:25:05','There\'s a new restaurant in town. Boom Burger. Apparently you can <a href=\"https://foursquare.com/v/boom-burgers--steaks/4fb366d3e4b0d0b77bfd014d\" target=\"_blank\">check it out on foursquare </a>but the don\'t have a website or a facebook page. I read it about earlier this week on this<a href=\"http://sofiqm.wordpress.com/2012/06/12/shock-awe/\" target=\"_blank\"> food blog being written by an American in Sofia</a>. Based solely on the pictures, I decided that I must go and that I must go sooner rather than later.\n<a title=\"Boom burger the restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372484324/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8014/7372484324_24776396bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger the restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nYep I read about the hamburger joint on the 12th of June and one day later I was there. Eating a hamburger.\n\nActually, to be more precise I started out ooo-ing and ahh-ing over how cute the restaurant interior is. Then I moved on to drooling over the menu. Next I ogled some Heinz ketchup and French\'s yellow mustard before nibbling at the some french fries and then I shoved a really delicious hamburger in my face.\n\nIt was an amazing experience.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7187236653/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5469/7187236653_f0f26c4920_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI spent the whole time thinking to myself: it\'s like I\'m in America, reading a Bulgarian menu, in America. Then I ordered my hamburger in Bulgarian. It was an odd wonderful moment.\n\nSo wonderful that I didn\'t even care when my hamburger came a little rarer then I\'d have liked it. Well maybe a lot rarer than I\'d have liked--mine was more than just a little pink but A\'s hamburger had only a hint of pink. Then again I am kind of picky about these things. After all I\'m more or less a vegetarian at home when left to my own devices. Note to self: next time get it cooked longer.\n<a title=\"Tastes like America by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372479596/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8148/7372479596_a03d10b63a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tastes like America\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI know that I just wrote a pretty <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/12/hamburgers-in-mladost/\" target=\"_blank\">glowing review of the hamburger at Brown\'s Bakery</a> in September/October but these hamburgers blow the Brown burger out of the water. Also, Brown\'s Bakery in Mladost is no more. It\'s been replaced by a Don Domat.\n\nNow here is what\'s great about Boom Burger. They aren\'t trying to do too much. Their menu fits onto one page. They have five burgers on the menu. A classic hamburger, a cheese burger, a Boom burger with bacon, a chicken burger and a veggie burger. They serve fries and onion rings. There are even salads on the menu--not that I am going to a hamburger restaurant to have a salad but it\'s a nice nod to health. Oh and they serve beef steaks as well.\n<a title=\"hamburgers in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7187253603/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7083/7187253603_0eb48a8948_z.jpg\" alt=\"hamburgers in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThey make a thick juicy hamburger patty. The buns are light and airy with a little bite. The hamburgers are served with pickles on the side as well as real American condiments. They even have Cholula hot sauce. That\'s crazy. I\'ve never seen this stuff in Bulgaria before.\n\nI am not really sure what the deal is with this restaurant or who owns it but they\'ve got the American hamburger down. They also have good service and a clean bright interior with full ceiling to floor glass doors that can slide open in good weather.\n<a title=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372475844/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5117/7372475844_df6f81f7b3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe had two hamburgers, french fries and beer and the total was less than 30 leva. So it\'s not cheap but it\'s good. Really good. In fact I\'m already plotting a return visit.\n\nWhat if you want to go too? Well, you should. Boom is off of Vitosha Street at #15 on Kurnigradska. Hint, hint, that\'s the same street Murphy\'s the Irish pub is on as well as <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> one of my all time favorite shops in Sofia.','Boom Burger in Sofia ','','inherit','open','open','','6804-revision-4','','','2012-06-14 21:25:05','2012-06-14 19:25:05','',6804,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/14/6804-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(6809,1,'2012-06-14 21:26:13','2012-06-14 19:26:13','There\'s a new restaurant in town. Boom Burger. Apparently you can <a href=\"https://foursquare.com/v/boom-burgers--steaks/4fb366d3e4b0d0b77bfd014d\" target=\"_blank\">check it out on foursquare </a>but the don\'t have a website or a facebook page. I read it about earlier this week on this<a href=\"http://sofiqm.wordpress.com/2012/06/12/shock-awe/\" target=\"_blank\"> food blog being written by an American in Sofia</a>. Based solely on the pictures, I decided that I must go and that I must go sooner rather than later.\n<a title=\"Boom burger the restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372484324/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8014/7372484324_24776396bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger the restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nYep I read about the hamburger joint on the 12th of June and one day later I was there. Eating a hamburger.\n\nActually, to be more precise I started out ooo-ing and ahh-ing over how cute the restaurant interior is. Then I moved on to drooling over the menu. Next I ogled some Heinz ketchup and French\'s yellow mustard before nibbling at the some french fries and then I shoved a really delicious hamburger in my face.\n\nIt was an amazing experience.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7187236653/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5469/7187236653_f0f26c4920_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI spent the whole time thinking to myself: it\'s like I\'m in America, reading a Bulgarian menu, in America. Then I ordered my hamburger in Bulgarian. It was an odd wonderful moment.\n\nSo wonderful that I didn\'t even care when my hamburger came a little rarer then I\'d have liked it. Well maybe a lot rarer than I\'d have liked--mine was more than just a little pink but A\'s hamburger had only a hint of pink. Then again I am kind of picky about these things. After all I\'m more or less a vegetarian at home when left to my own devices. Note to self: next time get it cooked longer.\n<a title=\"Tastes like America by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372479596/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8148/7372479596_a03d10b63a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tastes like America\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI know that I just wrote a pretty <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/12/hamburgers-in-mladost/\" target=\"_blank\">glowing review of the hamburger at Brown\'s Bakery</a> in September/October but these hamburgers blow the Brown burger out of the water. Also, Brown\'s Bakery in Mladost is no more. It\'s been replaced by a Don Domat.\n\nNow here is what\'s great about Boom Burger. They aren\'t trying to do too much. Their menu fits onto one page. They have five burgers on the menu. A classic hamburger, a cheese burger, a Boom burger with bacon, a chicken burger and a veggie burger. They serve fries and onion rings. There are even salads on the menu--not that I am going to a hamburger restaurant to have a salad but it\'s a nice nod to health. Oh and they serve beef steaks as well.\n<a title=\"hamburgers in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7187253603/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7083/7187253603_0eb48a8948_z.jpg\" alt=\"hamburgers in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThey make a thick juicy hamburger patty. The buns are light and airy with a little bite. The hamburgers are served with pickles on the side as well as real American condiments. They even have Cholula hot sauce. That\'s crazy. I\'ve never seen this stuff in Bulgaria before.\n\nI am not really sure what the deal is with this restaurant or who owns it but they\'ve got the American hamburger down. They also have good service and a clean bright interior with full ceiling to floor glass doors that can slide open in good weather.\n<a title=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7372475844/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5117/7372475844_df6f81f7b3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside Boom burger Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe had two hamburgers, french fries and beer and the total was less than 30 leva. So it\'s not cheap but it\'s good. Really good. In fact I\'m already plotting a return visit.\n\nWhat if you want to go too? Well, you should. Boom is off of Vitosha Street at #15 on Kurnigradska. Hint, hint, that\'s the same street Murphy\'s the Irish pub is on as well as <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> one of my all time favorite shops in Sofia.','Boom Burger in Sofia ','','inherit','open','open','','6804-autosave','','','2012-06-14 21:26:13','2012-06-14 19:26:13','',6804,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/14/6804-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6810,1,'2012-06-17 09:46:44','2012-06-17 07:46:44','Today is Father\'s Day in the States. Lots of people are buy their Dad\'s ties, golf gear or coffee mugs that say things like: #1 Dad or World\'s Greatest Dad. I didn\'t buy my dAd anything for Father\'s Day this year but that doesn\'t mean that I am not thinking about him.\r\n\r\nI think it\'s important for me to tell you a little bit about my dAd. I could just make you a list he\'s: funny, incredibly handsome, hard working and the like but it would be a long list and not nearly as funny or illustrative as a story.\r\n\r\nHere\'s the important thing to know about this story. My dAd has a sense of humor. I\'m not talking he just likes to tell jokes (which he does). No he loves laughter, he loves telling funny stories, he likes poking fun at people, he likes doing ridiculous things.\r\n<a title=\"Taking photos with dAd by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/6096079166/\"><img src=\"http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6188/6096079166_59060fa09e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Taking photos with dAd\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThis said, he\'s not much of a technology guy not that you\'d necessarily know this seeing as he writes a <a href=\"http://wallawallalocal.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">lifestyle blog about life in the Walla Walla Valley called: Work, Eat, Play, Live Local</a> and he always has his serious digital camera with him. Anyhow,  rather than a smart phone, he\'s got a flip phone. One that he often likes to use to tease people. He\'ll flip open his phone and tap on the screen, pinch his fingers together, and then let out a big sigh and say with a big grin in his face: my phones\'s not working right now.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nIf he\'s having computer problems, he calls my mom to solve them and on skype he often sits so that I can only see half or a quarter of his body because he doesn\'t know where the camera is. Heck he owns an antique store and is much more comfortable around antiques than using the credit card machine required to sell them.\r\n\r\nBut you know what, I love him for all of these quirks and more.\r\n\r\nRecently my sister and I bought my MoM a smart phone (after <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/13/three-cheers-for-my-mom/\" target=\"_blank\">my mother\'s day post specifically point #1 </a>it seemed like the only thing two grown daughters could do for their MoM. A mom who over time has spent a lot more on her daughters than she spends on herself) but in buying a smart phone everyone on my parent\'s account was automatically bumped up to a plan with data. For my MoM this was clearly a necessity but not so much for my dAd.\r\n\r\nTurns out, he was thrilled to learn how to text message and overjoyed with the kinds of laughter, groans and responses he received now that he\'s able to text message. My sister C. put it best in an email she sent me after buying our MoM a smart phone:\r\n<blockquote>The other side effect of buying MoM a smart phone  is that we all have unlimited data, so everyone can text, which before, only I could. dAd spent the weekend texting me to bring him beer. I\'ve unleashed a monster.</blockquote>\r\nOf course, I couldn\'t stop laughing when I read the email.\r\n\r\nI know, I just know, that my dAd was chortling every time he messaged my MoM and my sister to bring him beer. Why? Well because he\'s not that kind of guy in real life. If he wants a beer, he stands up and gets one. So, he\'s texting about beer to tease my sister, to make fun of the text-message culture, to show everyone that he knows how to do it (although I imagine that he\'ll continue to just call people) and because he likes to poke fun at stereotypical gender roles. He probably also wanted to see if anyone would bring him a beer. I am guessing that there\'s a 50/50 chance that he got a beer out of the whole thing but not after a lot of moaning on my sister\'s end upon receiving the text.\r\n\r\nMy childhood is full of similar kinds of stories, memories and laughter. So as a child I figured that everyone had parents like mine. How was I know life was different for other kids? I feel incredibly lucky that my dAd has taught me to be quick to laugh and not to take myself or my life too seriously.\r\n\r\nAs great as it sounds my childhood wasn\'t all laughter and games, although a big part of it was. I also spent a lot of time playing sports--not crazy competitive soccer-mom sports but sports nonetheless. My dAd when I was growing up was the head crew coach at Oregon State University and he recognized the importance of practice, commitment, teamwork and competition for not only boys but also for girls.\r\n\r\nSo starting in 3rd grade I learned how to play basketball and softball and by middle school I\'d picked up volleyball as well. These are sports that I love. I wasn\'t necessarily great at them but I played well into high school. Today, I\'m a better person for it. In a practical sense, I know the rules and I can play even today but playing sports has also changed me in  more non-material ways that I can count.\r\n\r\nI\'ll end with this. When I was little I liked the things my dAd liked. He collected baseball cards and so did I. He would send me post cards when he traveled and I liked getting them. He like rowing and I liked rowing. He took me out plenty of times in the coach\'s motorboat for crew practice when I was small but that wasn\'t enough. I wanted to row.\r\n\r\nNot until 3rd grade (wow, a lot of good things happened to me in 3rd grade--playing basketball, meeting my first best friend M. and being able to ride my bike around the neighborhood by myself), did he decided he\'d take me out on the water in a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_scull\" target=\"_blank\">double</a>. I knew the day before that we\'d be going and I had a hard time falling asleep I was so excited (for the record, I still have this problem). He woke me up really early on a Saturday morning. Maybe at 6am and I crawled out of my top buck bed carefully trying not wake up my sister. I put on my sweatpants (the kind with elastic around the ankle), sweatshirt and tennis shoes. We drove to the crew docks in the early morning light.\r\n\r\nSome of his college rowers were already there. I am not sure why because that morning my dAd wasn\'t coaching. He was rowing with me but maybe they were there training for a seat in the PanAm Games and later the Olympics. Anyhow it\'s a good thing they were there because I was too little to help my dAd carry the racing shell down to the water and carrying a double is a two person job. In fact, I\'m pretty sure that I helped carry <em>an</em> oar down. That\'s not much considering in a double each person has two oars. Anyhow, one oar was a enough responsibility for me and at that point in my life I\'d guess it was nearly twice as long as I was tall.\r\n\r\nNow the thing about racing shells is that they are light but expensive. So if you put your foot on the bottom of the boat, you will go through it. You also can\'t wear a life vest to row, so you\'ve got to be a competent swimmer in case something happens and you find yourself no longer in the boat. These things happen given the fact that the very long oar you row with can double as a lever.\r\n\r\nThe first time my dAd put me in a racing shell I was excited and nervous. In the shell you realize that you are basically sitting in the water with a thin layer of wood separating you from the river and while the boat is long, it\'s no wider than a grown man\'s hips. I knew the basics of rowing. I\'d spent some time on my dAd\'s rowing machine but in practice it\'s much, much different.\r\n\r\nThen my dAd got in the shell behind me and we pushed off from the docks. He taught me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sculling\" target=\"_blank\">scull </a>(row with two oars at the same time) versus teaching me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweep_(rowing)\" target=\"_blank\">sweep</a> (or row with one oar). Sculling is more difficult to learn because the oars have to overlap in front of you as part of your stroke but once you can do this sweeping is easy-peasy.\r\n\r\nHe taught me patiently and slowly while sitting behind me. Basically, he talked me through the whole thing, corrected my form, encouraged me to do it again, corrected my form, gave me more directions, encouraged me and so on. It was just the two of us, the river and a racing shell. In hindsight this was clearly not an easy thing for him to do but before long I was rowing and moving the the boat.\r\n\r\nWhen my dAd started rowing with me it was like magic. We slid through the water. We glided under not one but two bridges and we rowed back to the docks. I was ecstatic--soon to be blisters and all. My dAd had taken me out rowing and I did it.\r\n\r\nJust so you know, these early morning rows feature heavily among my favorite childhood memories. dAd, thank-you for this and more. I love you more than any old blog post could ever put into words.','Happy Father\'s Day','','publish','open','open','','happy-fathers-day-2','','','2012-06-17 09:46:44','2012-06-17 07:46:44','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6810',0,'post','',1),(6811,1,'2012-06-17 08:00:27','2012-06-17 06:00:27','Today is Father\'s Day in the States. Lots of people are buy their Dad\'s ties, golf gear or coffee mugs that say things like: #1 Dad or World\'s Greatest Dad. I didn\'t buy my dAd anything for Father\'s Day this year but that doesn\'t mean that I am not thinking about him.\n\nNow I think it\'s important for me to tell you a little bit about my dAd. I could just make you a list: funny, incredibly handsome, hard working and the like but it would be a long list and not nearly as funny or illustrative as a story.\n\nHere\'s the important thing to know about this story. My dAd has a sense of humor. I\'m not talking he just likes to tell jokes (which he does). No he loves laughter, he loves telling funny stories, he likes poking fun at people, he likes doing ridiculous things.\n\nThis said, he\'s not much of a technology guy not that you\'d necessarily know this seeing as he writes a <a href=\"http://wallawallalocal.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">lifestyle blog about life in the Walla Walla Valley called: Work, Eat, Play, Live Local</a>. Anyhow, he\'s got a flip phone (one that he often likes to use to tease people. He\'ll flip open his phone and tap on the screen, pinch his fingers together, and then let out a big sigh and say with a big grin in his face: my phones\'s not working right now) rather than a smart phone. If he\'s having computer problems, he calls my mom to solve them and on skype he often sits so that I can only see half or a quarter of his body because he doesn\'t know where the camera is. Heck he owns an antique store and is much more comfortable around antiques than using the credit card machine required to sell them.\n\nBut you know what, I love him for all of these things and more.\n\nRecently my sister and I bought my MoM a smart phone (after <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/13/three-cheers-for-my-mom/\" target=\"_blank\">my mother\'s day post specifically point #1 </a>it seemed like the only thing two daughters should do for their MoM. A mom who over time has spent a lot more on her daughters than she spends on herself) but in buying a smart phone everyone on my parent\'s account was automatically bumped up to a plan with data. For my MoM this was clearly a necessity but not so much for my dAd.\n\nTurns out he was thrilled to learn how to text messaged and overjoyed with the kinds of laughter, groans and service he received now that he\'s able to text message. My sister C. put it best in a post phone purchase email:\n<blockquote>The other side effect of buying MoM a smart phone  is that we all have unlimited data, so everyone could text, which before, only I could do. dAd spent the weekend texting me to bring him beer. I\'ve unleashed a monster.</blockquote>\nOf course, I couldn\'t stop laughing when I read the email and I know, I just know, that my dAd was chortling every time he messaged my MoM and my sister to bring him beer. Why? Well because he\'s not that kind of guy in real life. If he wants a beer, he stands up and gets one. So, he\'s texting about beer to tease my sister, to make fun of the text-message culture, to show everyone that he knows how to do it (although I imagine that he\'ll continue to just call people) and because he likes to poke fun at stereotypical gender roles. He probably also wanted to see if anyone would bring him a beer. I am guessing that there\'s a 50/50 chance that he got a beer out of the whole thing but not after a lot of moaning on my sister\'s end upon receiving the text.\n\nMy childhood is full of similar kinds of stories, memories and laughter. So as a child I figured that everyone had parents like mine. How was I know life was different for other kids? I feel in\n\nMy dAd has taught me to be quick to laugh and not to take myself or my life too seriously.','Happy Father\'s Day','','inherit','open','open','','6810-revision','','','2012-06-17 08:00:27','2012-06-17 06:00:27','',6810,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/17/6810-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6812,1,'2012-06-17 09:45:08','2012-06-17 07:45:08','Today is Father\'s Day in the States. Lots of people are buy their Dad\'s ties, golf gear or coffee mugs that say things like: #1 Dad or World\'s Greatest Dad. I didn\'t buy my dAd anything for Father\'s Day this year but that doesn\'t mean that I am not thinking about him.\n\nI think it\'s important for me to tell you a little bit about my dAd. I could just make you a list he\'s: funny, incredibly handsome, hard working and the like but it would be a long list and not nearly as funny or illustrative as a story.\n\nHere\'s the important thing to know about this story. My dAd has a sense of humor. I\'m not talking he just likes to tell jokes (which he does). No he loves laughter, he loves telling funny stories, he likes poking fun at people, he likes doing ridiculous things.\n<a title=\"Taking photos with dAd by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/6096079166/\"><img src=\"http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6188/6096079166_59060fa09e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Taking photos with dAd\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThis said, he\'s not much of a technology guy not that you\'d necessarily know this seeing as he writes a <a href=\"http://wallawallalocal.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">lifestyle blog about life in the Walla Walla Valley called: Work, Eat, Play, Live Local</a> and he always has his serious digital camera with him. Anyhow,  rather than a smart phone, he\'s got a flip phone. One that he often likes to use to tease people. He\'ll flip open his phone and tap on the screen, pinch his fingers together, and then let out a big sigh and say with a big grin in his face: my phones\'s not working right now.<!--more-->\n\nIf he\'s having computer problems, he calls my mom to solve them and on skype he often sits so that I can only see half or a quarter of his body because he doesn\'t know where the camera is. Heck he owns an antique store and is much more comfortable around antiques than using the credit card machine required to sell them.\n\nBut you know what, I love him for all of these quirks and more.\n\nRecently my sister and I bought my MoM a smart phone (after <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/13/three-cheers-for-my-mom/\" target=\"_blank\">my mother\'s day post specifically point #1 </a>it seemed like the only thing two grown daughters could do for their MoM. A mom who over time has spent a lot more on her daughters than she spends on herself) but in buying a smart phone everyone on my parent\'s account was automatically bumped up to a plan with data. For my MoM this was clearly a necessity but not so much for my dAd.\n\nTurns out, he was thrilled to learn how to text message and overjoyed with the kinds of laughter, groans and responses he received now that he\'s able to text message. My sister C. put it best in an email she sent me after buying our MoM a smart phone:\n<blockquote>The other side effect of buying MoM a smart phone  is that we all have unlimited data, so everyone can text, which before, only I could. dAd spent the weekend texting me to bring him beer. I\'ve unleashed a monster.</blockquote>\nOf course, I couldn\'t stop laughing when I read the email.\n\nI know, I just know, that my dAd was chortling every time he messaged my MoM and my sister to bring him beer. Why? Well because he\'s not that kind of guy in real life. If he wants a beer, he stands up and gets one. So, he\'s texting about beer to tease my sister, to make fun of the text-message culture, to show everyone that he knows how to do it (although I imagine that he\'ll continue to just call people) and because he likes to poke fun at stereotypical gender roles. He probably also wanted to see if anyone would bring him a beer. I am guessing that there\'s a 50/50 chance that he got a beer out of the whole thing but not after a lot of moaning on my sister\'s end upon receiving the text.\n\nMy childhood is full of similar kinds of stories, memories and laughter. So as a child I figured that everyone had parents like mine. How was I know life was different for other kids? I feel incredibly lucky that my dAd has taught me to be quick to laugh and not to take myself or my life too seriously.\n\nAs great as it sounds my childhood wasn\'t all laughter and games, although a big part of it was. I also spent a lot of time playing sports--not crazy competitive soccer-mom sports but sports nonetheless. My dAd when I was growing up was the head crew coach at Oregon State University and he recognized the importance of practice, commitment, teamwork and competition for not only boys but also for girls.\n\nSo starting in 3rd grade I learned how to play basketball and softball and by middle school I\'d picked up volleyball as well. These are sports that I love. I wasn\'t necessarily great at them but I played well into high school. Today, I\'m a better person for it. In a practical sense, I know the rules and I can play even today but playing sports has also changed me in  more non-material ways that I can count.\n\nI\'ll end with this. When I was little I liked the things my dAd liked. He collected baseball cards and so did I. He would send me post cards when he traveled and I liked getting them. He like rowing and I liked rowing. He took me out plenty of times in the coach\'s motorboat for crew practice when I was small but that wasn\'t enough. I wanted to row.\n\nNot until 3rd grade (wow, a lot of good things happened to me in 3rd grade--playing basketball, meeting my first best friend M. and being able to ride my bike around the neighborhood by myself), did he decided he\'d take me out on the water in a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_scull\" target=\"_blank\">double</a>. I knew the day before that we\'d be going and I had a hard time falling asleep I was so excited (for the record, I still have this problem). He woke me up really early on a Saturday morning. Maybe at 6am and I crawled out of my top buck bed carefully trying not wake up my sister. I put on my sweatpants (the kind with elastic around the ankle), sweatshirt and tennis shoes. We drove to the crew docks in the early morning light.\n\nSome of his college rowers were already there. I am not sure why because that morning my dAd wasn\'t coaching. He was rowing with me but maybe they were there training for a seat in the PanAm Games and later the Olympics. Anyhow it\'s a good thing they were there because I was too little to help my dAd carry the racing shell down to the water and carrying a double is a two person job. In fact, I\'m pretty sure that I helped carry <em>an</em> oar down. That\'s not much considering in a double each person has two oars. Anyhow, one oar was a enough responsibility for me and at that point in my life I\'d guess it was nearly twice as long as I was tall.\n\nNow the thing about racing shells is that they are light but expensive. So if you put your foot on the bottom of the boat, you will go through it. You also can\'t wear a life vest to row, so you\'ve got to be a competent swimmer in case something happens and you find yourself no longer in the boat. These things happen given the fact that the very long oar you row with can double as a lever.\n\nThe first time my dAd put me in a racing shell I was excited and nervous. In the shell you realize that you are basically sitting in the water with a thin layer of wood separating you from the river and while the boat is long, it\'s no wider than a grown man\'s hips. I knew the basics of rowing. I\'d spent some time on my dAd\'s rowing machine but in practice it\'s much, much different.\n\nThen my dAd got in the shell behind me and we pushed off from the docks. He taught me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sculling\" target=\"_blank\">scull </a>(row with two oars at the same time) versus teaching me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweep_(rowing)\" target=\"_blank\">sweep</a> (or row with one oar). Sculling is more difficult to learn because the oars have to overlap in front of you as part of your stroke but once you can do this sweeping is easy-peasy.\n\nHe taught me patiently and slowly while sitting behind me. Basically, he talked me through the whole thing, corrected my form, encouraged me to do it again, corrected my form, gave me more directions, encouraged me and so on. It was just the two of us, the river and a racing shell. In hindsight this was clearly not an easy thing for him to do but before long I was rowing and moving the the boat.\n\nWhen my dAd started rowing with me it was like magic. We slid through the water. We glided under not one but two bridges and we rowed back to the docks. I was ecstatic--soon to be blisters and all. My dAd had taken me out rowing and I did it.\n\nJust so you know, these early morning rows feature heavily among my favorite childhood memories. dAd, thank-you for this and more. I love you more than any old blog post could ever put into words.','Happy Father\'s Day','','inherit','open','open','','6810-revision-2','','','2012-06-17 09:45:08','2012-06-17 07:45:08','',6810,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/17/6810-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6813,1,'2012-06-17 09:45:36','2012-06-17 07:45:36','Today is Father\'s Day in the States. Lots of people are buy their Dad\'s ties, golf gear or coffee mugs that say things like: #1 Dad or World\'s Greatest Dad. I didn\'t buy my dAd anything for Father\'s Day this year but that doesn\'t mean that I am not thinking about him.\r\n\r\nI think it\'s important for me to tell you a little bit about my dAd. I could just make you a list he\'s: funny, incredibly handsome, hard working and the like but it would be a long list and not nearly as funny or illustrative as a story.\r\n\r\nHere\'s the important thing to know about this story. My dAd has a sense of humor. I\'m not talking he just likes to tell jokes (which he does). No he loves laughter, he loves telling funny stories, he likes poking fun at people, he likes doing ridiculous things.\r\n<a title=\"Taking photos with dAd by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/6096079166/\"><img src=\"http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6188/6096079166_59060fa09e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Taking photos with dAd\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThis said, he\'s not much of a technology guy not that you\'d necessarily know this seeing as he writes a <a href=\"http://wallawallalocal.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">lifestyle blog about life in the Walla Walla Valley called: Work, Eat, Play, Live Local</a> and he always has his serious digital camera with him. Anyhow,  rather than a smart phone, he\'s got a flip phone. One that he often likes to use to tease people. He\'ll flip open his phone and tap on the screen, pinch his fingers together, and then let out a big sigh and say with a big grin in his face: my phones\'s not working right now.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nIf he\'s having computer problems, he calls my mom to solve them and on skype he often sits so that I can only see half or a quarter of his body because he doesn\'t know where the camera is. Heck he owns an antique store and is much more comfortable around antiques than using the credit card machine required to sell them.\r\n\r\nBut you know what, I love him for all of these quirks and more.\r\n\r\nRecently my sister and I bought my MoM a smart phone (after <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/13/three-cheers-for-my-mom/\" target=\"_blank\">my mother\'s day post specifically point #1 </a>it seemed like the only thing two grown daughters could do for their MoM. A mom who over time has spent a lot more on her daughters than she spends on herself) but in buying a smart phone everyone on my parent\'s account was automatically bumped up to a plan with data. For my MoM this was clearly a necessity but not so much for my dAd.\r\n\r\nTurns out, he was thrilled to learn how to text message and overjoyed with the kinds of laughter, groans and responses he received now that he\'s able to text message. My sister C. put it best in an email she sent me after buying our MoM a smart phone:\r\n<blockquote>The other side effect of buying MoM a smart phone  is that we all have unlimited data, so everyone can text, which before, only I could. dAd spent the weekend texting me to bring him beer. I\'ve unleashed a monster.</blockquote>\r\nOf course, I couldn\'t stop laughing when I read the email.\r\n\r\nI know, I just know, that my dAd was chortling every time he messaged my MoM and my sister to bring him beer. Why? Well because he\'s not that kind of guy in real life. If he wants a beer, he stands up and gets one. So, he\'s texting about beer to tease my sister, to make fun of the text-message culture, to show everyone that he knows how to do it (although I imagine that he\'ll continue to just call people) and because he likes to poke fun at stereotypical gender roles. He probably also wanted to see if anyone would bring him a beer. I am guessing that there\'s a 50/50 chance that he got a beer out of the whole thing but not after a lot of moaning on my sister\'s end upon receiving the text.\r\n\r\nMy childhood is full of similar kinds of stories, memories and laughter. So as a child I figured that everyone had parents like mine. How was I know life was different for other kids? I feel incredibly lucky that my dAd has taught me to be quick to laugh and not to take myself or my life too seriously.\r\n\r\nAs great as it sounds my childhood wasn\'t all laughter and games, although a big part of it was. I also spent a lot of time playing sports--not crazy competitive soccer-mom sports but sports nonetheless. My dAd when I was growing up was the head crew coach at Oregon State University and he recognized the importance of practice, commitment, teamwork and competition for not only boys but also for girls.\r\n\r\nSo starting in 3rd grade I learned how to play basketball and softball and by middle school I\'d picked up volleyball as well. These are sports that I love. I wasn\'t necessarily great at them but I played well into high school. Today, I\'m a better person for it. In a practical sense, I know the rules and I can play even today but playing sports has also changed me in  more non-material ways that I can count.\r\n\r\nI\'ll end with this. When I was little I liked the things my dAd liked. He collected baseball cards and so did I. He would send me post cards when he traveled and I liked getting them. He like rowing and I liked rowing. He took me out plenty of times in the coach\'s motorboat for crew practice when I was small but that wasn\'t enough. I wanted to row.\r\n\r\nNot until 3rd grade (wow, a lot of good things happened to me in 3rd grade--playing basketball, meeting my first best friend M. and being able to ride my bike around the neighborhood by myself), did he decided he\'d take me out on the water in a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_scull\" target=\"_blank\">double</a>. I knew the day before that we\'d be going and I had a hard time falling asleep I was so excited (for the record, I still have this problem). He woke me up really early on a Saturday morning. Maybe at 6am and I crawled out of my top buck bed carefully trying not wake up my sister. I put on my sweatpants (the kind with elastic around the ankle), sweatshirt and tennis shoes. We drove to the crew docks in the early morning light.\r\n\r\nSome of his college rowers were already there. I am not sure why because that morning my dAd wasn\'t coaching. He was rowing with me but maybe they were there training for a seat in the PanAm Games and later the Olympics. Anyhow it\'s a good thing they were there because I was too little to help my dAd carry the racing shell down to the water and carrying a double is a two person job. In fact, I\'m pretty sure that I helped carry <em>an</em> oar down. That\'s not much considering in a double each person has two oars. Anyhow, one oar was a enough responsibility for me and at that point in my life I\'d guess it was nearly twice as long as I was tall.\r\n\r\nNow the thing about racing shells is that they are light but expensive. So if you put your foot on the bottom of the boat, you will go through it. You also can\'t wear a life vest to row, so you\'ve got to be a competent swimmer in case something happens and you find yourself no longer in the boat. These things happen given the fact that the very long oar you row with can double as a lever.\r\n\r\nThe first time my dAd put me in a racing shell I was excited and nervous. In the shell you realize that you are basically sitting in the water with a thin layer of wood separating you from the river and while the boat is long, it\'s no wider than a grown man\'s hips. I knew the basics of rowing. I\'d spent some time on my dAd\'s rowing machine but in practice it\'s much, much different.\r\n\r\nThen my dAd got in the shell behind me and we pushed off from the docks. He taught me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sculling\" target=\"_blank\">scull </a>(row with two oars at the same time) versus teaching me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweep_(rowing)\" target=\"_blank\">sweep</a> (or row with one oar). Sculling is more difficult to learn because the oars have to overlap in front of you as part of your stroke but once you can do this sweeping is easy-peasy.\r\n\r\nHe taught me patiently and slowly while sitting behind me. Basically, he talked me through the whole thing, corrected my form, encouraged me to do it again, corrected my form, gave me more directions, encouraged me and so on. It was just the two of us, the river and a racing shell. In hindsight this was clearly not an easy thing for him to do but before long I was rowing and moving the the boat.\r\n\r\nWhen my dAd started rowing with me it was like magic. We slid through the water. We glided under not one but two bridges and we rowed back to the docks. I was ecstatic--soon to be blisters and all. My dAd had taken me out rowing and I did it.\r\n\r\nJust so you know, these early morning rows feature heavily among my favorite childhood memories. dAd, thank-you for this and more. I love you more than any old blog post could ever put into words. In fact I love you and mom this much:','Happy Father\'s Day','','inherit','open','open','','6810-revision-3','','','2012-06-17 09:45:36','2012-06-17 07:45:36','',6810,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/17/6810-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(6814,1,'2012-06-17 09:46:14','2012-06-17 07:46:14','Today is Father\'s Day in the States. Lots of people are buy their Dad\'s ties, golf gear or coffee mugs that say things like: #1 Dad or World\'s Greatest Dad. I didn\'t buy my dAd anything for Father\'s Day this year but that doesn\'t mean that I am not thinking about him.\r\n\r\nI think it\'s important for me to tell you a little bit about my dAd. I could just make you a list he\'s: funny, incredibly handsome, hard working and the like but it would be a long list and not nearly as funny or illustrative as a story.\r\n\r\nHere\'s the important thing to know about this story. My dAd has a sense of humor. I\'m not talking he just likes to tell jokes (which he does). No he loves laughter, he loves telling funny stories, he likes poking fun at people, he likes doing ridiculous things.\r\n<a title=\"Taking photos with dAd by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/6096079166/\"><img src=\"http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6188/6096079166_59060fa09e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Taking photos with dAd\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThis said, he\'s not much of a technology guy not that you\'d necessarily know this seeing as he writes a <a href=\"http://wallawallalocal.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">lifestyle blog about life in the Walla Walla Valley called: Work, Eat, Play, Live Local</a> and he always has his serious digital camera with him. Anyhow,  rather than a smart phone, he\'s got a flip phone. One that he often likes to use to tease people. He\'ll flip open his phone and tap on the screen, pinch his fingers together, and then let out a big sigh and say with a big grin in his face: my phones\'s not working right now.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nIf he\'s having computer problems, he calls my mom to solve them and on skype he often sits so that I can only see half or a quarter of his body because he doesn\'t know where the camera is. Heck he owns an antique store and is much more comfortable around antiques than using the credit card machine required to sell them.\r\n\r\nBut you know what, I love him for all of these quirks and more.\r\n\r\nRecently my sister and I bought my MoM a smart phone (after <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/13/three-cheers-for-my-mom/\" target=\"_blank\">my mother\'s day post specifically point #1 </a>it seemed like the only thing two grown daughters could do for their MoM. A mom who over time has spent a lot more on her daughters than she spends on herself) but in buying a smart phone everyone on my parent\'s account was automatically bumped up to a plan with data. For my MoM this was clearly a necessity but not so much for my dAd.\r\n\r\nTurns out, he was thrilled to learn how to text message and overjoyed with the kinds of laughter, groans and responses he received now that he\'s able to text message. My sister C. put it best in an email she sent me after buying our MoM a smart phone:\r\n<blockquote>The other side effect of buying MoM a smart phone  is that we all have unlimited data, so everyone can text, which before, only I could. dAd spent the weekend texting me to bring him beer. I\'ve unleashed a monster.</blockquote>\r\nOf course, I couldn\'t stop laughing when I read the email.\r\n\r\nI know, I just know, that my dAd was chortling every time he messaged my MoM and my sister to bring him beer. Why? Well because he\'s not that kind of guy in real life. If he wants a beer, he stands up and gets one. So, he\'s texting about beer to tease my sister, to make fun of the text-message culture, to show everyone that he knows how to do it (although I imagine that he\'ll continue to just call people) and because he likes to poke fun at stereotypical gender roles. He probably also wanted to see if anyone would bring him a beer. I am guessing that there\'s a 50/50 chance that he got a beer out of the whole thing but not after a lot of moaning on my sister\'s end upon receiving the text.\r\n\r\nMy childhood is full of similar kinds of stories, memories and laughter. So as a child I figured that everyone had parents like mine. How was I know life was different for other kids? I feel incredibly lucky that my dAd has taught me to be quick to laugh and not to take myself or my life too seriously.\r\n\r\nAs great as it sounds my childhood wasn\'t all laughter and games, although a big part of it was. I also spent a lot of time playing sports--not crazy competitive soccer-mom sports but sports nonetheless. My dAd when I was growing up was the head crew coach at Oregon State University and he recognized the importance of practice, commitment, teamwork and competition for not only boys but also for girls.\r\n\r\nSo starting in 3rd grade I learned how to play basketball and softball and by middle school I\'d picked up volleyball as well. These are sports that I love. I wasn\'t necessarily great at them but I played well into high school. Today, I\'m a better person for it. In a practical sense, I know the rules and I can play even today but playing sports has also changed me in  more non-material ways that I can count.\r\n\r\nI\'ll end with this. When I was little I liked the things my dAd liked. He collected baseball cards and so did I. He would send me post cards when he traveled and I liked getting them. He like rowing and I liked rowing. He took me out plenty of times in the coach\'s motorboat for crew practice when I was small but that wasn\'t enough. I wanted to row.\r\n\r\nNot until 3rd grade (wow, a lot of good things happened to me in 3rd grade--playing basketball, meeting my first best friend M. and being able to ride my bike around the neighborhood by myself), did he decided he\'d take me out on the water in a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_scull\" target=\"_blank\">double</a>. I knew the day before that we\'d be going and I had a hard time falling asleep I was so excited (for the record, I still have this problem). He woke me up really early on a Saturday morning. Maybe at 6am and I crawled out of my top buck bed carefully trying not wake up my sister. I put on my sweatpants (the kind with elastic around the ankle), sweatshirt and tennis shoes. We drove to the crew docks in the early morning light.\r\n\r\nSome of his college rowers were already there. I am not sure why because that morning my dAd wasn\'t coaching. He was rowing with me but maybe they were there training for a seat in the PanAm Games and later the Olympics. Anyhow it\'s a good thing they were there because I was too little to help my dAd carry the racing shell down to the water and carrying a double is a two person job. In fact, I\'m pretty sure that I helped carry <em>an</em> oar down. That\'s not much considering in a double each person has two oars. Anyhow, one oar was a enough responsibility for me and at that point in my life I\'d guess it was nearly twice as long as I was tall.\r\n\r\nNow the thing about racing shells is that they are light but expensive. So if you put your foot on the bottom of the boat, you will go through it. You also can\'t wear a life vest to row, so you\'ve got to be a competent swimmer in case something happens and you find yourself no longer in the boat. These things happen given the fact that the very long oar you row with can double as a lever.\r\n\r\nThe first time my dAd put me in a racing shell I was excited and nervous. In the shell you realize that you are basically sitting in the water with a thin layer of wood separating you from the river and while the boat is long, it\'s no wider than a grown man\'s hips. I knew the basics of rowing. I\'d spent some time on my dAd\'s rowing machine but in practice it\'s much, much different.\r\n\r\nThen my dAd got in the shell behind me and we pushed off from the docks. He taught me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sculling\" target=\"_blank\">scull </a>(row with two oars at the same time) versus teaching me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweep_(rowing)\" target=\"_blank\">sweep</a> (or row with one oar). Sculling is more difficult to learn because the oars have to overlap in front of you as part of your stroke but once you can do this sweeping is easy-peasy.\r\n\r\nHe taught me patiently and slowly while sitting behind me. Basically, he talked me through the whole thing, corrected my form, encouraged me to do it again, corrected my form, gave me more directions, encouraged me and so on. It was just the two of us, the river and a racing shell. In hindsight this was clearly not an easy thing for him to do but before long I was rowing and moving the the boat.\r\n\r\nWhen my dAd started rowing with me it was like magic. We slid through the water. We glided under not one but two bridges and we rowed back to the docks. I was ecstatic--soon to be blisters and all. My dAd had taken me out rowing and I did it.\r\n\r\nJust so you know, these early morning rows feature heavily among my favorite childhood memories. dAd, thank-you for this and more. I love you more than any old blog post could ever put into words.','Happy Father\'s Day','','inherit','open','open','','6810-revision-4','','','2012-06-17 09:46:14','2012-06-17 07:46:14','',6810,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/17/6810-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(6815,1,'2012-06-17 09:47:49','2012-06-17 07:47:49','Today is Father\'s Day in the States. Lots of people are buy their Dad\'s ties, golf gear or coffee mugs that say things like: #1 Dad or World\'s Greatest Dad. I didn\'t buy my dAd anything for Father\'s Day this year but that doesn\'t mean that I am not thinking about him.\n\nI think it\'s important for me to tell you a little bit about my dAd. I could just make you a list he\'s: funny, incredibly handsome, hard working and the like but it would be a long list and not nearly as funny or illustrative as a story.\n\nHere\'s the important thing to know about this story. My dAd has a sense of humor. I\'m not talking he just likes to tell jokes (which he does). No he loves laughter, he loves telling funny stories, he likes poking fun at people, he likes doing ridiculous things.\n<a title=\"Taking photos with dAd by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/6096079166/\"><img src=\"http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6188/6096079166_59060fa09e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Taking photos with dAd\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThis said, he\'s not much of a technology guy not that you\'d necessarily know this seeing as he writes a <a href=\"http://wallawallalocal.wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">lifestyle blog about life in the Walla Walla Valley called: Work, Eat, Play, Live Local</a> and he always has his serious digital camera with him. Anyhow,  rather than a smart phone, he\'s got a flip phone. One that he often likes to use to tease people. He\'ll flip open his phone and tap on the screen, pinch his fingers together, and then let out a big sigh and say with a big grin in his face: my phones\'s not working right now.<!--more-->\n\nIf he\'s having computer problems, he calls my mom to solve them and on skype he often sits so that I can only see half or a quarter of his body because he doesn\'t know where the camera is. Heck he owns an antique store and is much more comfortable around antiques than using the credit card machine required to sell them.\n\nBut you know what, I love him for all of these quirks and more.\n\nRecently my sister and I bought my MoM a smart phone (after <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/13/three-cheers-for-my-mom/\" target=\"_blank\">my mother\'s day post specifically point #1 </a>it seemed like the only thing two grown daughters could do for their MoM. A mom who over time has spent a lot more on her daughters than she spends on herself) but in buying a smart phone everyone on my parent\'s account was automatically bumped up to a plan with data. For my MoM this was clearly a necessity but not so much for my dAd.\n\nTurns out, he was thrilled to learn how to text message and overjoyed with the kinds of laughter, groans and responses he received now that he\'s able to text message. My sister C. put it best in an email she sent me after buying our MoM a smart phone:\n<blockquote>The other side effect of buying MoM a smart phone  is that we all have unlimited data, so everyone can text, which before, only I could. dAd spent the weekend texting me to bring him beer. I\'ve unleashed a monster.</blockquote>\nOf course, I couldn\'t stop laughing when I read the email.\n\nI know, I just know, that my dAd was chortling every time he messaged my MoM and my sister to bring him beer. Why? Well because he\'s not that kind of guy in real life. If he wants a beer, he stands up and gets one. So, he\'s texting about beer to tease my sister, to make fun of the text-message culture, to show everyone that he knows how to do it (although I imagine that he\'ll continue to just call people) and because he likes to poke fun at stereotypical gender roles. He probably also wanted to see if anyone would bring him a beer. I am guessing that there\'s a 50/50 chance that he got a beer out of the whole thing but not after a lot of moaning on my sister\'s end upon receiving the text.\n\nMy childhood is full of similar kinds of stories, memories and laughter. So as a child I figured that everyone had parents like mine. How was I know life was different for other kids? I feel incredibly lucky that my dAd has taught me to be quick to laugh and not to take myself or my life too seriously.\n\nAs great as it sounds my childhood wasn\'t all laughter and games, although a big part of it was. I also spent a lot of time playing sports--not crazy competitive soccer-mom sports but sports nonetheless. My dAd when I was growing up was the head crew coach at Oregon State University and he recognized the importance of practice, commitment, teamwork and competition for not only boys but also for girls.\n\nSo starting in 3rd grade I learned how to play basketball and softball and by middle school I\'d picked up volleyball as well. These are sports that I love. I wasn\'t necessarily great at them but I played well into high school. Today, I\'m a better person for it. In a practical sense, I know the rules and I can play even today but playing sports has also changed me in  more non-material ways that I can count.\n\nI\'ll end with this. When I was little I liked the things my dAd liked. He collected baseball cards and so did I. He would send me post cards when he traveled and I liked getting them. He like rowing and I liked rowing. He took me out plenty of times in the coach\'s motorboat for crew practice when I was small but that wasn\'t enough. I wanted to row.\n\nNot until 3rd grade (wow, a lot of good things happened to me in 3rd grade--playing basketball, meeting my first best friend M. and being able to ride my bike around the neighborhood by myself), did he decided he\'d take me out on the water in a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_scull\" target=\"_blank\">double</a>. I knew the day before that we\'d be going and I had a hard time falling asleep I was so excited (for the record, I still have this problem). He woke me up really early on a Saturday morning. Maybe at 6am and I crawled out of my top buck bed carefully trying not wake up my sister. I put on my sweatpants (the kind with elastic around the ankle), sweatshirt and tennis shoes. We drove to the crew docks in the early morning light.\n\nSome of his college rowers were already there. I am not sure why because that morning my dAd wasn\'t coaching. He was rowing with me but maybe they were there training for a seat in the PanAm Games and later the Olympics. Anyhow it\'s a good thing they were there because I was too little to help my dAd carry the racing shell down to the water and carrying a double is a two person job. In fact, I\'m pretty sure that I helped carry <em>an</em> oar down. That\'s not much considering in a double each person has two oars. Anyhow, one oar was a enough responsibility for me and at that point in my life I\'d guess it was nearly twice as long as I was tall.\n\nNow the thing about racing shells is that they are light but expensive. So if you put your foot on the bottom of the boat, you will go through it. You also can\'t wear a life vest to row, so you\'ve got to be a competent swimmer in case something happens and you find yourself no longer in the boat. These things happen given the fact that the very long oar you row with can double as a lever.\n\nThe first time my dAd put me in a racing shell I was excited and nervous. In the shell you realize that you are basically sitting in the water with a thin layer of wood separating you from the river and while the boat is long, it\'s no wider than a grown man\'s hips. I knew the basics of rowing. I\'d spent some time on my dAd\'s rowing machine but in practice it\'s much, much different.\n\nThen my dAd got in the shell behind me and we pushed off from the docks. He taught me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sculling\" target=\"_blank\">scull </a>(row with two oars at the same time) versus teaching me how to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweep_(rowing)\" target=\"_blank\">sweep</a> (or row with one oar). Sculling is more difficult to learn because the oars have to overlap in front of you as part of your stroke but once you can do this sweeping is easy-peasy.\n\nHe taught me patiently and slowly while sitting behind me. Basically, he talked me through the whole thing, corrected my form, encouraged me to do it again, corrected my form, gave me more directions, encouraged me and so on. It was just the two of us, the river and a racing shell. In hindsight this was clearly not an easy thing for him to do but before long I was rowing and moving the the boat.\n\nWhen my dAd started rowing with me it was like magic. We slid through the water. We glided under not one but two bridges and we rowed back to the docks. I was ecstatic--soon to be blisters and all. My dAd had taken me out rowing and I did it.\n\nJust so you know, these early morning rows feature heavily among my favorite childhood memories. dAd, thank-you for this and more. I love you more than any old blog post could ever put into words.','Happy Father\'s Day','','inherit','open','open','','6810-autosave','','','2012-06-17 09:47:49','2012-06-17 07:47:49','',6810,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/17/6810-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6837,1,'2012-06-26 06:30:54','2012-06-26 04:30:54','I am exactly four days away from summer vacation and frankly, it\'s about time. I\'ve got grades to finish, reports to write (both electronically and in hard copy in a book--thanks Bulgaria), some letters of recommendation to get started on and a classroom to clean up. The good news is while I\'ll be busy, I am totally not worried about it. This year, year three, everything is going so much smoother than my first two years at ACS.\r\n\r\nThe thing is, I\'d much rather be reading. My desire to buckle down and finish my grades is about zero. My desire to curl up with a book on my couch and read, to head to Starbucks to drink a iced latte and read, to stretch out by a pool and read, or even to sit on the subway and read is much greater than my desire to finish up my school work. Funny how that works.\r\n\r\nInstead, I\'ve been creating my summer reading list. I\'ve been reading books reviews, asking for recommendations and I even started updating my <a href=\"http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/157178-carolyn\" target=\"_blank\">goodreads profile</a>  (because, yes, I am that kind of nerdy). Anyhow, I\'d love to hear what you\'re reading, what books you\'re planning to this summer, or what books have caught your attention recently.\r\n\r\nMe? I basically read <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Gone-Girl-Novel-Gillian-Flynn/dp/030758836X\" target=\"_blank\">Gone Girl</a> in a single day after listing to an author interview on NPR. It\'s not great literature but it\'s crazy good. I couldn\'t put it down because I kept wondering: did he do it? Followed by: what?!, what!?, what?!.','Summer vacation & Summer reading ','','publish','open','open','','summer-vacation-summer-reading','','','2012-06-26 06:30:54','2012-06-26 04:30:54','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6837',0,'post','',4),(6817,1,'2012-06-18 21:07:18','2012-06-18 19:07:18','Friday was our last day of classes at ACS. Today I gave two exams. One in 10th grade and one in 11th grade. These are serious exams. They started at 9am and many students were still working on them at 11:15 am when the test period ends.\r\n\r\nThis afternoon I had lunch and then procrastinated a little bit by lingering over my lunch and eating my dessert really, really slowly. Then I graded 35+ Macbeth final projects. After that I graded 40% of the 11th grade essays. At 3:30pm I checked my email for the first time all day.\r\n\r\nI thought about starting the vocab section of the 10th grade essays but decided that was just <em>crazy</em>.\r\n\r\nNow I am supposed to be grading 10th grade research projects. I am on the five-a-day plan. It\'s kind of like the five-a-day for fruits and vegetables.  It\'s good for you, it makes you feel better when you do it but some days it\'s harder than other days to eat your veggies.\r\n\r\nI am happy to report the five-a-day plan for the fruits and veggies was no problem. However the five-a-day research paper goal doesn\'t look like it\'s going to happen today. I can\'t stop yawning and my bed seems to be calling my name.\r\n\r\nOh well. These things happen sometimes. Luckily, I\'ve got the better part of a week and a half to finish up my grading, finalize my semester and year end grades, write my comments, clean up my classroom and get ready for my summer adventure in Scandinavia.','A Busy Day ','','publish','open','open','','a-busy-day','','','2012-06-18 21:07:18','2012-06-18 19:07:18','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6817',0,'post','',0),(6818,1,'2012-06-18 21:07:12','2012-06-18 19:07:12','Friday was our last day of classes at ACS. Today I gave two exams. One in 10th grade and one in 11th grade. These are serious exams. They started at 9am and many students were still working on them at 11:15 am when the test period ends.\n\nThis afternoon I had lunch and then procrastinated a little bit by lingering over my lunch and eating my dessert really, really slowly. Then I graded 35+ Macbeth final projects. After that I graded 40% of the 11th grade essays. At 3:30pm I checked my email for the first time all day.\n\nI thought about starting the vocab section of the 10th grade essays but decided that was just <em>crazy</em>.\n\nNow I am supposed to be grading 10th grade research projects. I am on the five-a-day plan. It\'s kind of like the five-a-day for fruits and vegetables.  It\'s good for you, it makes you feel better when you do it but some days it\'s harder than other days to eat your veggies.\n\nI am happy to report the five-a-day plan for the fruits and veggies was no problem. However the five-a-day research paper goal doesn\'t look like it\'s going to happen today. I can\'t stop yawning and my bed seems to be calling my name.\n\nOh well. These things happen sometimes. Luckily, I\'ve got the better part of a week and a half to finish up my grading, finalize my semester and year end grades, write my comments, clean up my classroom and get ready for my summer adventure in Scandinavia.','A Busy Day ','','inherit','open','open','','6817-revision','','','2012-06-18 21:07:12','2012-06-18 19:07:12','',6817,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/18/6817-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6819,1,'2012-06-18 21:08:22','2012-06-18 19:08:22','Friday was our last day of classes at ACS. Today I gave two exams. One in 10th grade and one in 11th grade. These are serious exams. They started at 9am and many students were still working on them at 11:15 am when the test period ends.\n\nThis afternoon I had lunch and then procrastinated a little bit by lingering over my lunch and eating my dessert really, really slowly. Then I graded 35+ Macbeth final projects. After that I graded 40% of the 11th grade essays. At 3:30pm I checked my email for the first time all day.\n\nI thought about starting the vocab section of the 10th grade essays but decided that was just <em>crazy</em>.\n\nNow I am supposed to be grading 10th grade research projects. I am on the five-a-day plan. It\'s kind of like the five-a-day for fruits and vegetables.  It\'s good for you, it makes you feel better when you do it but some days it\'s harder than other days to eat your veggies.\n\nI am happy to report the five-a-day plan for the fruits and veggies was no problem. However the five-a-day research paper goal doesn\'t look like it\'s going to happen today. I can\'t stop yawning and my bed seems to be calling my name.\n\nOh well. These things happen sometimes. Luckily, I\'ve got the better part of a week and a half to finish up my grading, finalize my semester and year end grades, write my comments, clean up my classroom and get ready for my summer adventure in Scandinavia.','A Busy Day ','','inherit','open','open','','6817-autosave','','','2012-06-18 21:08:22','2012-06-18 19:08:22','',6817,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/18/6817-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6820,1,'2012-06-19 07:37:51','2012-06-19 05:37:51','Teachers and administration were abuzz at school yesterday.\r\n\r\nEach year our seniors take a few state exams at the end of their school year and the results just came out.\r\n\r\nThese are exams--the matura exams--created by and administered by the state. For the students taking the exam and successfully completing it has something to do with their Bulgarian diploma. I am a big foggy on the finer details of this point. And for schools in the country it serves as a ranking.\r\n\r\nWe learned yesterday that our students did very well on the exams and ACS placed first for both English and Bulgarian on the state matura exam. Want to<a href=\" http://www.dnevnik.bg/detski_dnevnik/2012/06/18/1848847_amerikanskiiat_kolej_pokaza_nai-dobri_rezultati_na/?ref=miniurl\" target=\"_blank\"> read about it in Bulgarian</a>? Well you\'re in luck. If you want to read about it in English I am sorry to tell you that I can\'t help you there.Well but I guess that I am seeing as you are currently reading this in English. It\'s just admittedly not very in depth.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, I think that the whole thing is very interesting. I am very proud of our students and their hard work over the last five years here at the American College of Sofia. Great job seniors!\r\n\r\nAt the same time there are still<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/09/education-politics-and-an-american-teaching-in-bulgaria/\" target=\"_blank\"> potentially huge changes coming regarding the education system in Bulgaria</a>. Proposed changes that would drastically alter the landscape of foreign language instruction throughout the country by making it impossible for Bulgarian schools like ACS but also state schools to hire non-EU citizens to teach in Bulgarian schools.\r\n\r\nOf course, results like our suggest that we are doing something right and are probably just one more sign that the proposed changes are foolhearted.','ACS in the news: First place matura results ','','publish','open','open','','acs-in-the-news-first-place-matura-results','','','2012-06-19 07:37:51','2012-06-19 05:37:51','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6820',0,'post','',0),(6821,1,'2012-06-18 21:10:57','2012-06-18 19:10:57','I am not really sure what to make of this but we learned yesterday that ACS just placed first for both English and Bulgarian on the State Matura exam.','','','inherit','open','open','','6820-revision','','','2012-06-18 21:10:57','2012-06-18 19:10:57','',6820,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/18/6820-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6822,1,'2012-06-19 07:37:16','2012-06-19 05:37:16','Teachers and administration were abuzz at school yesterday.\n\nEach year our seniors take a few state exams at the end of their school year and the results just came out.\n\nThese are exams--the matura exams--created by and administered by the state. For the students taking the exam and successfully completing it has something to do with their Bulgarian diploma. I am a big foggy on the finer details of this point. And for schools in the country it serves as a ranking.\n\nWe learned yesterday that our students did very well on the exams and ACS placed first for both English and Bulgarian on the state matura exam. Want to<a href=\" http://www.dnevnik.bg/detski_dnevnik/2012/06/18/1848847_amerikanskiiat_kolej_pokaza_nai-dobri_rezultati_na/?ref=miniurl\" target=\"_blank\"> read about it in Bulgarian</a>? Well you\'re in luck. If you want to read about it in English I am sorry to tell you that I can\'t help you there.Well but I guess that I am seeing as you are currently reading this in English. It\'s just admittedly not very in depth.\n\nAnyhow, I think that the whole thing is very interesting. I am very proud of our students and their hard work over the last five years here at the American College of Sofia. Great job seniors!\n\nAt the same time there are still<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/09/education-politics-and-an-american-teaching-in-bulgaria/\" target=\"_blank\"> potentially huge changes coming regarding the education system in Bulgaria</a>. Proposed changes that would drastically alter the landscape of foreign language instruction throughout the country by making it impossible for Bulgarian schools like ACS but also statto hire non-EU citizens to teach in Bulgarian schools.\n\nOf course, results like our suggest that we are doing something right and are probably just one more sign that the proposed changes are foolhearted.','ACS in the news: First place matura results ','','inherit','open','open','','6820-revision-2','','','2012-06-19 07:37:16','2012-06-19 05:37:16','',6820,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/19/6820-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6823,1,'2012-06-20 06:35:02','2012-06-20 04:35:02','Last week I went to Boom Burger. Then I <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">wrote about it</a>. My school-friends all had questions about Boom Burger. I did my best to answer them.\r\n\r\nNow I am writing about Boom Burger again.\r\n\r\n<em>Why?</em>\r\n<a title=\"dinner at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405691720/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405691720_e105aa524e_z.jpg\" alt=\"dinner at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nBecause three days later I went to Boom Burger again this time with a big group of friends. We basically ordered everything off the menu. It was delicious. I\'ve got the pictures to prove it. <!--more-->Check out the veggie burger option it is a couple of slices of egg plant and a round of breaded goat cheese.\r\n<a title=\"eggplant and goat cheese burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405681254/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7090/7405681254_c227244192_z.jpg\" alt=\"eggplant and goat cheese burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe second time around I went for the cheddar cheese burger and onion rings. I had the burger cooked medium well and I was much, much happier with this burger than the medium burger that I had the previous visit. Then I shared desserts with friends--the apricot cheese cake and the chocolate lava cake. Oh and I had a sip of a really tasty milkshake.\r\n<a title=\"cheese burger at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405677926/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5321/7405677926_b3476afded_z.jpg\" alt=\"cheese burger at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"onion rings at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405674786/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7083/7405674786_582703deb3_z.jpg\" alt=\"onion rings at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nNow I might be on a little bit of a hamburger diet. Two hamburgers in a week is twice as many hamburgers as I normally eat. But the buzz at school hasn\'t died and it sounds like there are plans being made for a Thursday night hamburger adventure.\r\n<a title=\"cheese cake at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405684000/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5347/7405684000_0cecb93df6_z.jpg\" alt=\"cheese cake at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"chocolate lava cake and ice cream at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405688354/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7076/7405688354_07f97f6d15_z.jpg\" alt=\"chocolate lava cake and ice cream at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI think my friend H. summed it up best. When she was asked by the waitress, how was it? H. said: I am the happiest American in the world right now. Then H. went on to look at everyone at the table in a very serious way she said: I\'ll be back next week. We cannot let this place die like the  Taqueria did.\r\n\r\nOn this note, get yourself to Boom Burger. You won\'t regret it. Not for a minute.','Hamburgers and Friends ','','publish','open','open','','hamburgers-and-friends','','','2012-06-20 06:35:02','2012-06-20 04:35:02','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6823',0,'post','',4),(6824,1,'2012-06-20 06:32:54','2012-06-20 04:32:54','Last week I went to Boom Burger. Then I <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">wrote about it</a>. My school-friends all had questions about Boom Burger. I did my best to answer them.\n\nNow I am writing about Boom Burger again.\n\n<em>Why?</em>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405691720/\" title=\"dinner at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405691720_e105aa524e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"dinner at boom burger\"></a>\nBecause three days later I went to Boom Burger again this time with a big group of friends. We basically ordered everything off the menu. It was delicious. I\'ve got the pictures to prove it. Check out the veggie burger option it is a couple of slices of egg plant and a round of breaded goat cheese.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405681254/\" title=\"eggplant and goat cheese burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7090/7405681254_c227244192_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"eggplant and goat cheese burger\"></a>\nThe second time around I went for the cheddar cheese burger and onion rings. I had the burger cooked medium well and I was much, much happier with this burger than the medium burger that I had the previous visit. Then I shared desserts with friends--the apricot cheese cake and the chocolate lava cake. Oh and I had a sip of a really tasty milkshake.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405677926/\" title=\"cheese burger at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5321/7405677926_b3476afded_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"cheese burger at boom burger\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405674786/\" title=\"onion rings at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7083/7405674786_582703deb3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"onion rings at boom burger\"></a>\nNow I might be on a little bit of a hamburger diet. Two hamburgers in a week is twice as many hamburgers as I normally eat. But the buzz at school hasn\'t died and it sounds like there are plans being made for a Thursday night hamburger adventure.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405684000/\" title=\"cheese cake at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5347/7405684000_0cecb93df6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"cheese cake at boom burger\"></a>\nI think my friend H. summed it up best. When she was asked by the waitress, how was it? H. said: I am the happiest American in the world right now. Then H. went on to look at everyone at the table in a very serious way she said: I\'ll be back next week. We cannot let this place die like the  Taqueria did.','Hamburgers and Friends ','','inherit','open','open','','6823-revision','','','2012-06-20 06:32:54','2012-06-20 04:32:54','',6823,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/20/6823-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6825,1,'2012-06-20 06:33:54','2012-06-20 04:33:54','Last week I went to Boom Burger. Then I <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">wrote about it</a>. My school-friends all had questions about Boom Burger. I did my best to answer them.\n\nNow I am writing about Boom Burger again.\n\n<em>Why?</em>\n<a title=\"dinner at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405691720/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405691720_e105aa524e_z.jpg\" alt=\"dinner at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nBecause three days later I went to Boom Burger again this time with a big group of friends. We basically ordered everything off the menu. It was delicious. I\'ve got the pictures to prove it. Check out the veggie burger option it is a couple of slices of egg plant and a round of breaded goat cheese.\n<a title=\"eggplant and goat cheese burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405681254/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7090/7405681254_c227244192_z.jpg\" alt=\"eggplant and goat cheese burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe second time around I went for the cheddar cheese burger and onion rings. I had the burger cooked medium well and I was much, much happier with this burger than the medium burger that I had the previous visit. Then I shared desserts with friends--the apricot cheese cake and the chocolate lava cake. Oh and I had a sip of a really tasty milkshake.\n<a title=\"cheese burger at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405677926/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5321/7405677926_b3476afded_z.jpg\" alt=\"cheese burger at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"onion rings at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405674786/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7083/7405674786_582703deb3_z.jpg\" alt=\"onion rings at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nNow I might be on a little bit of a hamburger diet. Two hamburgers in a week is twice as many hamburgers as I normally eat. But the buzz at school hasn\'t died and it sounds like there are plans being made for a Thursday night hamburger adventure.\n<a title=\"cheese cake at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405684000/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5347/7405684000_0cecb93df6_z.jpg\" alt=\"cheese cake at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"chocolate lava cake and ice cream at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405688354/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7076/7405688354_07f97f6d15_z.jpg\" alt=\"chocolate lava cake and ice cream at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI think my friend H. summed it up best. When she was asked by the waitress, how was it? H. said: I am the happiest American in the world right now. Then H. went on to look at everyone at the table in a very serious way she said: I\'ll be back next week. We cannot let this place die like the  Taqueria did.\n\nOn this note, get yourself to Boom Burger. You won\'t regret it. Not for a minute.','Hamburgers and Friends ','','inherit','open','open','','6823-revision-2','','','2012-06-20 06:33:54','2012-06-20 04:33:54','',6823,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/20/6823-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6826,1,'2012-06-20 06:36:06','2012-06-20 04:36:06','Last week I went to Boom Burger. Then I <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">wrote about it</a>. My school-friends all had questions about Boom Burger. I did my best to answer them.\n\nNow I am writing about Boom Burger again.\n\n<em>Why?</em>\n<a title=\"dinner at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405691720/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405691720_e105aa524e_z.jpg\" alt=\"dinner at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nBecause three days later I went to Boom Burger again this time with a big group of friends. We basically ordered everything off the menu. It was delicious. I\'ve got the pictures to prove it. <!--more-->Check out the veggie burger option it is a couple of slices of egg plant and a round of breaded goat cheese.\n<a title=\"eggplant and goat cheese burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405681254/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7090/7405681254_c227244192_z.jpg\" alt=\"eggplant and goat cheese burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe second time around I went for the cheddar cheese burger and onion rings. I had the burger cooked medium well and I was much, much happier with this burger than the medium burger that I had the previous visit. Then I shared desserts with friends--the apricot cheese cake and the chocolate lava cake. Oh and I had a sip of a really tasty milkshake.\n<a title=\"cheese burger at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405677926/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5321/7405677926_b3476afded_z.jpg\" alt=\"cheese burger at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"onion rings at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405674786/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7083/7405674786_582703deb3_z.jpg\" alt=\"onion rings at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nNow I might be on a little bit of a hamburger diet. Two hamburgers in a week is twice as many hamburgers as I normally eat. But the buzz at school hasn\'t died and it sounds like there are plans being made for a Thursday night hamburger adventure.\n<a title=\"cheese cake at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405684000/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5347/7405684000_0cecb93df6_z.jpg\" alt=\"cheese cake at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"chocolate lava cake and ice cream at boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405688354/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7076/7405688354_07f97f6d15_z.jpg\" alt=\"chocolate lava cake and ice cream at boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI think my friend H. summed it up best. When she was asked by the waitress, how was it? H. said: I am the happiest American in the world right now. Then H. went on to look at everyone at the table in a very serious way she said: I\'ll be back next week. We cannot let this place die like the  Taqueria did.\n\nOn this note, get yourself to Boom Burger. You won\'t regret it. Not for a minute.','Hamburgers and Friends ','','inherit','open','open','','6823-autosave','','','2012-06-20 06:36:06','2012-06-20 04:36:06','',6823,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/20/6823-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6828,1,'2012-06-23 08:56:25','2012-06-23 06:56:25','On Thursday afternoon I had the chance to meet up with Rebecca and Merlin who write the <a href=\"http://merlinandrebecca.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">blog merlinandrebecca</a> which I\'ve been obsessed with ever since <a href=\"http://dailynibbles.com\" target=\"_blank\">my college friend S. who writes this blog</a> introduced me to their blog. She told me: I read their blog and I think you\'d like it. <em>No kidding</em>. They write detailed thoughtful posts about the traveling they are doing (2 weeks in each of the 50 European countries) and take unbelievably beautiful photos wherever the go.\n\nI took this single photo the day that we met up.\n<a title=\"the baths in downtown Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7417988644/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7116/7417988644_79b6a3aebe_z.jpg\" alt=\"the baths in downtown Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow, I would absolutely recommend their blog as the perfect place to start reading before your plan a trip in Europe.  While you wont get here\'s where to stay information they do a wonderful job capturing the spirit of the country, places to go, things to do, food to taste and they make a point of connecting with locals. Moreover the blog is incredibly positive which makes it a pleasure to read whether or not you\'re actively planning travel.\n\nHow it did happen that I met up with Merlin and Rebecca?\n\nWell, here\'s the back story: at the end of April <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/02/spring-time-in-skopje/\" target=\"_blank\">I went to Macedonia with friends</a>. We traipsed around the country on our way from Skopje to Lake Ohrid. After spending a whole day wandering through Ohrid and taking 100s of photos, we headed back to our rooms before dinner. It was then I thought I\'d check my google reader and see what was going on on the internets.\n\nThe very first post was one from Merlin and Rebecca. They were <a href=\"http://merlinandrebecca.blogspot.com/2012/04/castle-hunting-zamokot-samuil.html\" target=\"_blank\">in Ohrid too</a>. They had exactly the <a href=\"http://merlinandrebecca.blogspot.com/2012/04/oldest-place-youve-never-heard-of.html\" target=\"_blank\">same photos posted to their blog</a> that I had just taken. It was a surreal small world moment. So I posted a comment on their blog about it and suggested that if they wanted to meet up in Sofia I\'d be up for it.\n\nI was still up for it when they emailed me last week.<!--more-->\n\nThen they asked me if I could point them to local bookstores that might carry English language guide books for Kosovo. Um, okay. I directed them to two different ones and then I asked my twitter friends the same question. Interestingly we both came up with the same two: Booktrading and Helicon. My ACS friends added the bookstore next to the grocery store in the Serdika Mall to the list. Luckily I decided to also copy pages from my Lonely Planet Western Balkans guide book for them just in case. It\'s a good thing I did because Kosovo guidebooks don\'t seem to be very popular in Sofia and maybe in general.\n\nSo I met Rebecca and Merlin Thursday early evening and we went on a impromptu stroll through the city. I gave some abbreviated history lessons, pointed out some landmarks and talked generally about life in Sofia. Truthfully I gave a shorter and significantly less good <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/freesofiatour\" target=\"_blank\">Free Sofia Tour</a> tour. Somehow I only managed to take a single over the course of the whole evening. I guess these things happen when you\'re having fun.\n\nI was reminded while strolling through the city what an interesting mix of old and new there is in Sofia. I also had a chance to reflect on the fact that part of what makes Sofia special are the surprises. You can be walking down a residential street and all of a sudden there\'s the women\'s market. Or you can take a underpass to cross a street and ta-da Roman ruins. And in the summertime, you can pop down one of many little alleys that open into gardens and find yourself enjoying beer and a salad in the night air tucked away in a little corner of the city.\n\nThe major difference between my meandering through Sofia and the Free Sofia Tour is that at the end of our tour we settled in for a beer in the park in front of the Sveti Sedmochislenitsi Church on Graf Ignatiev and then we had dinner in the courtyard garden of Ugo on Rilski a block from my old apartment.\n\nHere\'s the part where I have to say, Rebecca and Merlin are such nice people. They were friendly and outgoing but not in the shallow-friendly way. More specifically, they had thoughtful and interesting things to say about their time in Bulgaria but also their travels through the Balkans as a whole. I was really impressed. They were also funny.\n\nWe spent the second part of the night telling stories, asking each other questions talking about life and generally getting to know each other. It was lovely and I am really glad that we had a chance to meet up. At the end of the night I was convinced that I must visit Georgia soon rather than later and that Americans would have a better reputation abroad if everyone were more like Rebecca and Merlin.\n\nAnyhow, a big thanks to Merlin and Rebecca for meeting me in Sofia and letting me see the city through your eyes for an evening. After four years, Sofia is at times both familiar and frustrating so it was wonderful to feel like it was new again. Good luck on the remainder of your travels!!','Meeting up and blogging Europe ','','inherit','open','open','','6827-revision','','','2012-06-23 08:56:25','2012-06-23 06:56:25','',6827,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/23/6827-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6829,1,'2012-06-23 08:58:08','2012-06-23 06:58:08','On Thursday afternoon I had the chance to meet up with Rebecca and Merlin who write the <a href=\"http://merlinandrebecca.blogspot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">blog merlinandrebecca</a> which I\'ve been obsessed with ever since <a href=\"http://dailynibbles.com\" target=\"_blank\">my college friend S. who writes this blog</a> introduced me to their blog. She told me: I read their blog and I think you\'d like it. <em>No kidding</em>. They write detailed thoughtful posts about the traveling they are doing (2 weeks in each of the 50 European countries) and take unbelievably beautiful photos wherever the go.\n\nI took this single photo the day that we met up.\n<a title=\"the baths in downtown Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7417988644/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7116/7417988644_79b6a3aebe_z.jpg\" alt=\"the baths in downtown Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow, I would absolutely recommend their blog as the perfect place to start reading before your plan a trip in Europe.  While you wont get here\'s where to stay information they do a wonderful job capturing the spirit of the country, places to go, things to do, food to taste and they make a point of connecting with locals. Moreover the blog is incredibly positive which makes it a pleasure to read whether or not you\'re actively planning travel.\n\nHow it did happen that I met up with Merlin and Rebecca?\n\nWell, here\'s the back story: at the end of April <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/02/spring-time-in-skopje/\" target=\"_blank\">I went to Macedonia with friends</a>. We traipsed around the country on our way from Skopje to Lake Ohrid. After spending a whole day wandering through Ohrid and taking 100s of photos, we headed back to our rooms before dinner. It was then I thought I\'d check my google reader and see what was going on on the internets.\n\nThe very first post was one from Merlin and Rebecca. They were <a href=\"http://merlinandrebecca.blogspot.com/2012/04/castle-hunting-zamokot-samuil.html\" target=\"_blank\">in Ohrid too</a>. They had exactly the <a href=\"http://merlinandrebecca.blogspot.com/2012/04/oldest-place-youve-never-heard-of.html\" target=\"_blank\">same photos posted to their blog</a> that I had just taken. It was a surreal small world moment. So I posted a comment on their blog about it and suggested that if they wanted to meet up in Sofia I\'d be up for it.\n\nI was still up for it when they emailed me last week.<!--more-->\n\nThen they asked me if I could point them to local bookstores that might carry English language guide books for Kosovo. Um, okay. I directed them to two different ones and then I asked my twitter friends the same question. Interestingly we both came up with the same two: Booktrading and Helicon. My ACS friends added the bookstore next to the grocery store in the Serdika Mall to the list. Luckily I decided to also copy pages from my Lonely Planet Western Balkans guide book for them just in case. It\'s a good thing I did because Kosovo guidebooks don\'t seem to be very popular in Sofia and maybe in general.\n\nSo I met Rebecca and Merlin Thursday early evening and we went on a impromptu stroll through the city. I gave some abbreviated history lessons, pointed out some landmarks and talked generally about life in Sofia. Truthfully I gave a shorter and significantly less good <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/freesofiatour\" target=\"_blank\">Free Sofia Tour</a> tour. Somehow I only managed to take a single over the course of the whole evening. I guess these things happen when you\'re having fun.\n\nI was reminded while strolling through the city what an interesting mix of old and new there is in Sofia. I also had a chance to reflect on the fact that part of what makes Sofia special are the surprises. You can be walking down a residential street and all of a sudden there\'s the women\'s market. Or you can take a underpass to cross a street and ta-da Roman ruins. And in the summertime, you can pop down one of many little alleys that open into gardens and find yourself enjoying beer and a salad in the night air tucked away in a little corner of the city.\n\nThe major difference between my meandering through Sofia and the Free Sofia Tour is that at the end of our tour we settled in for a beer in the park in front of the Sveti Sedmochislenitsi Church on Graf Ignatiev and then we had dinner in the courtyard garden of Ugo on Rilski a block from my old apartment.\n\nHere\'s the part where I have to say, Rebecca and Merlin are such nice people. They were friendly and outgoing but not in the shallow-friendly way. More specifically, they had thoughtful and interesting things to say about their time in Bulgaria but also their travels through the Balkans as a whole. I was really impressed. They were also funny.\n\nWe spent the second part of the night telling stories, asking each other questions talking about life and generally getting to know each other. It was lovely and I am really glad that we had a chance to meet up. At the end of the night I was convinced that I must visit Georgia soon rather than later and that Americans would have a better reputation abroad if everyone were more like Rebecca and Merlin.\n\nAnyhow, a big thanks to Merlin and Rebecca for meeting me in Sofia and letting me see the city through your eyes for an evening. After four years here, Sofia is at times both familiar and frustrating so it was wonderful to feel like it was new again. Good luck on the remainder of your travels. I am looking forward to reading all about them.','Meeting up and blogging Europe ','','inherit','open','open','','6827-autosave','','','2012-06-23 08:58:08','2012-06-23 06:58:08','',6827,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/23/6827-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6850,1,'2012-07-01 22:08:03','2012-07-01 20:08:03','On Friday night I went to watch two different volleyball matches: Germany vs Argentina and Bulgaria vs Portugal. I know, you might be thinking to yourself: What?! Carolyn went to a sporting event?! Is she feeling okay?!\r\n\r\nSure almost never write about sports but that doesn\'t mean that I don\'t like watching people play a game now and then.\r\n<a title=\"Arena stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480916300/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7123/7480916300_5783e32e02_z.jpg\" alt=\"Arena stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"BG flags at Arena by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480924426/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7133/7480924426_25225c1e87_z.jpg\" alt=\"BG flags at Arena\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n\r\nYep, on Thursday I made a special trip to the Arena to buy tickets. I have preferred to buy them online but even if you do this you still have to pick the tickets up in person. This begs the question: does this save anyone time and why buy the online if you then have to physically pick them up at a separate ticket office in person?\r\n\r\nAnyhow, I got tickets. Pretty good ones even though it wasn\'t until I was at the ticket office that I realized I didn\'t know how to ask for seats on the sidelines. Luckily I drew a picture of what I was looking for and the ticket lady was willing to smile at me as I told the basics in the Bulgarain.\r\n\r\nI thought the whole evening was great fun. I haven\'t been to many, if any, sporting events in Bulgaria. I am not sure why I\'d never been before now because I guess I could have. Maybe now there\'s a football game in my future. Then again, maybe not. I don\'t know which Sofia team I\'d cheer for. And a girl can\'t (or maybe shouldn\'t) pick a team just because she likes their colors.\r\n<a title=\"Volleyball tickets world league by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480941558/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8022/7480941558_b2323ce73c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Volleyball tickets world league\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nBack to the game at hand, I didn\'t really know what to expect from a volleyball game in Sofia. I\'ve been to a lot of college sporting events from American football to gymnastics to basketball to rugby and even to regattas.  Thanks, dAd! And as an adult, I went to plenty of baseball games in Washington DC and was perfectly happy to drink beer, eat peanuts and watch the Washington National lose. However, I wasn\'t able to determine how official things would be at this game.\r\n\r\nFor example, I asked A. if the games would start on time. This of course seems like a reasonable question in Bulgaria. No really seems to be concerned with time in this country and given the number of drama and musical productions that I\'ve been to that start late it seemed like a fair enough question. He looked at me and knowingly said, they\'ll start on time. And they did. <!--more-->\r\n\r\nSo the first game started at 5:30pm and the second at 8:45pm. A. and I showed up early enough to have a coffee before the game started. Coffee out of small plastic cups. I had a long coffee and A. a normal coffee. The funny part was the A. had to ask which one was which. The girl pointed to the coffee that was slightly more fully and said: this is the long coffee. Oh, of course.\r\n\r\nI\'ll spare you the play by play details of both games as I figure if you really care you already know and if you don\'t know you probably don\'t care. I am also not really sure that you want to read my play by play of the games since I don\'t think I\'d make a great sports writer. Mostly because during the second game I kept getting distracted. I couldn\'t stop thinking about the fact that the Bulgarian national team was actually wearing kind of short shorts. Shorts that were shorter than any of the other teams.\r\n<a title=\"Germany v Argentina by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480928788/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8013/7480928788_bdc2c49b10_z.jpg\" alt=\"Germany v Argentina\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow Germany beat Argentina. It wasn\'t even close. I went back and forth between wanting to cheer for Germany because they were playing really well and rooting for the underdog Argentina. In the end it didn\'t matter. Germany won.\r\n\r\nAfter the game we went to find some food. The selection was pretty limited and even writing that makes it sound like there were more options than there were. The option was this hot dog stand.\r\n<a title=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480934456/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480934456_8b447ba775_z.jpg\" alt=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe hot dogs claimed to be New York style but I\'d say they were anything but. The bun was okay but the condiments left a lot to be desired and the hot dog was clearly a Bulgarian style hot dog. Oh well, it\'s not like I was actually expecting a New York Hot Dog in Sofia, Bulgaria. I know better than that. Still the Stadium could use a few more food options.\r\n<a title=\"Outside the stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480946428/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7265/7480946428_9b34b669ee_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside the stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe big disappointment was that the stadium wasn\'t serving beer because really, what is a sporting event without a beer?! The interesting part is that actually they were serving beer. It was just nonalcoholic. Who knew such a thing even existed in Bulgaria? I mean this is a country where while the drinking age is 18 but  no one actually seems to care enough to enforce it.\r\n\r\nApparently a lot of sporting events in Bulgaria are dry. I think that\'s really funny. Still I could have used a cold beer. It would have gone perfectly with sitting around outside on the steps of the Arena killing time after eating my hot dog and before the start of the Bulgaria/Portugal game.\r\n<a title=\"Bulgaria at play by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480954090/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8145/7480954090_32589d12fc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bulgaria at play\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe second game Bulgaria vs Portugal was much, much more lively. First of all, there were many more people there to watch and second, Bulgaria and Portugal were actually playing a game. While in the Germany and Argentina match, Germany was just trouncing Argentina.  And I am talking trouncing to the point that it was painful to watch.\r\n<a title=\"Before the game by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480958762/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8157/7480958762_5366d255ac_z.jpg\" alt=\"Before the game\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe Bulgaria-Portugal match up was good one and it was great fun to watch Bulgarians actually enjoying themselves and cheering on their country. I mean Bulgarians went all out. I am talking flags painted on their faces, green, red and white shirts, scarfs, flags and even drums. Way to go! That\'s some serious pride.\r\n<a title=\"fans by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480965288/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480965288_4608f71e94_z.jpg\" alt=\"fans\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI will say that nearly 5 hours of watching volleyball in a plastic chair was a little uncomfortable but two days later these things don\'t matter any more and now I am kind of bummed that I won\'t be around next week to watch more volleyball.\r\n\r\nSorry for the pretty sad, volleyball action shots. I didn\'t have my good camera with me and my phone battery was on it\'s way out or I\'d have tried for a few less blurry shots.\r\n<a title=\"action shot by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480971440/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8165/7480971440_22acbf3b53_z.jpg\" alt=\"action shot\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Bulgaria, Volleyball and New York Style Hot Dogs ','','publish','open','open','','bulgaria-volleyball-and-new-york-style-hot-dogs','','','2012-07-01 22:08:03','2012-07-01 20:08:03','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6850',0,'post','',8),(6831,1,'2012-06-24 10:15:36','2012-06-24 08:15:36','A. and I went to<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Pancharevo\" target=\"_blank\"> Pancharevo Lake </a>this past weekend. It\'s a man-made lake right outside of Sofia. And I mean right outside of Sofia. It\'s maybe a 15 minute drive from Mladost where I live but once you are there it seems like a world apart. Look at how green everything is and how wonderful the late afternoon light it. It has been really hot this past week so we went in the late afternoon when it was a little cooler.\r\n<a title=\"pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405749276/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8141/7405749276_6b97cd3c7e_z.jpg\" alt=\"pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nIt was still sunny and hot but maybe not <em>as</em> hot as it had been. As a side note: the heat seems to be inescapable these days. It\'s hot when you wake up, it\'s hot when you go to bed and a fan does very little to help mitigate the situation.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, we grabbed beers and then walked along the side of the lake for a little bit and found a place to sit. Now when I say this you may be imagining sitting along side the bank of the like on the grass but you\'d be wrong. Someone has built a series of tables and benches so we found a free bench to sit on and watch the lake. There were still plenty of people at the lake and I imagine it was even busier during the day.\r\n\r\nOur spot had two attractions. We could watch men fish and we could watch a little group of ducks. <!--more-->When it game to fishing, nothing seemed to be biting in the late afternoon. There was lots of casting, waiting and casting again. We took some bets on who was going to catch a fish but after 30 or more minutes nobody had. It was interesting to learn that to fish on this part of the lake, you pay for the right to fish and then you pay for the fish you catch based on weight.\r\n<a title=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405742766/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7085/7405742766_1c2af307e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI am not really up on my fish. I am pretty familiar with red snapper, salmon, trout and tuna but the finer points escape me.  And of course fish in Bulgarian and English don\'t have the same names so I am always kind of at a loss when reading menus or looking at fish at the store.\r\n\r\nI found myself surprised to see men walk by with baskets of fish that they had caught earlier in the day. One man walked by with a basket that a fish in it that was probably 24 inches long and fat and it was joined the basket by a lot of smaller fish maybe 6-8 inches long. A. said the big one was a bottom feeder and told me the name in Bulgarian but I now I can\'t remember it. I just didn\'t expect to see such a big fish in the lake. <a title=\"ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405737962/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405737962_bf8ab7aa20_z.jpg\" alt=\"ducks at pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n\r\nI\'m not sure why I was surprised that there was such a big fish in the lake but  said so and A. shrugged it off saying that\'s the difference between a lake and a river. Fair enough, that\'s when it struck me that I\'ve never really fished in a lake. I\'m used to the 6-10\" trout that I grew up catching in the Blue Mountains at our family cabin along Mill Creek in Oregon.\r\n<a title=\"bold ducks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405740382/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7405740382_b83f163a40_z.jpg\" alt=\"bold ducks\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWhile nothing was really happening in terms of fishing, there was some excitement with some ducks. They got really close to us. I wished that I\'d had some bread to feed them and they clearly wished the same thing. Once again, I said so but A. told me that there are signs up that say don\'t feed the animals. <em>Oh</em>. I guess neither the ducks nor I speak Bulgarian (or bothered to read the signs). Just for the record, I didn\'t feed them. Though every bone in my body wanted to.\r\n<a title=\"part of pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405745250/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7405745250_18da15ed4e_z.jpg\" alt=\"part of pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nMy experience from childhood is that ducks really like the day-old homemade pancakes that my dAd makes (you know, American pancakes) or day-old crusty French bread. But I didn\'t know that there were going to be ducks at Pancharevo Lake or maybe I would have put some whole wheat bread slices in my purse--not that I had French bread or pancakes--and I could have illegally feed the ducks. <em>Too bad, </em>I was breadless<em>.</em> Instead I had to settle for taking some photos.\r\n<a title=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405747252/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7100/7405747252_5ff5bfa1a1_z.jpg\" alt=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAfter a beer, we walked around the lake a more. I took some photos. Surprise, surprise. Then we had some dinner at a restaurant outside by the lake. The place wasn\'t fancy but the food was good. I am talking plastic tables, plastic chairs and a tablecloth that has cigarette holes burned into it and the kind of recycled paper napkins that as soon as you touch them begin to disintegrate in your hands. Luckily the <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kebapche\" target=\"_blank\">kebapcheta</a> were hot and tasty and my shopska salad was delicious--what a difference a few weeks makes in terms of the quality and ripeness of the tomatoes and cucumbers. And by the time we got back to Sofia, it was in fact a little cooler. <em>Phew</em>. <a title=\"pancharevo lake is so green by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405751716/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5333/7405751716_39acc08892_z.jpg\" alt=\"pancharevo lake is so green\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Pancharevo Lake','','publish','open','open','','pancharevo-lake','','','2012-06-24 10:15:36','2012-06-24 08:15:36','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6831',0,'post','',7),(6832,1,'2012-06-24 09:52:50','2012-06-24 07:52:50','A. and I went to<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Pancharevo\" target=\"_blank\"> Pancharevo Lake </a>this past weekend. It\'s a man-made lake right outside of Sofia. It\'s been really hot this past week so we went in the late afternoon when it was a little cooler.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405749276/\" title=\"pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8141/7405749276_6b97cd3c7e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pancharevo lake\"></a>\nIt was still sunny and hot but maybe not <em>as</em> hot as it had been. We grabbed beers and then walked along the side of the lake for a little bit and found a place to sit and watch men fish (A.) and the ducks (me). Nothing seemed to be biting in the late afternoon. There was lots of casting, waiting and casting again. We took some bets on who was going to catch a fish but after 30 or more minutes nobody had.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405742766/\" title=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7085/7405742766_1c2af307e9_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake\"></a>\nI am not really up on my fish and of course fish in Bulgarian and English don\'t have the same names but I was surprised to see men walk by with baskets of fish that they had caught earlier in the day. One fish was probably 24 inches long and fat and it was joined the basket by a lot of smaller fish maybe 6-8 inches long. A. said the big one was a bottom feeder and told me the name in Bulgarian but I now I can\'t remember it.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405737962/\" title=\"ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405737962_bf8ab7aa20_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"ducks at pancharevo lake\"></a>\n\nI was surprised that there was such a big fish in the lake and said so. A. shrugged it off and said that\'s the difference between a lake and a river. Fair enough, I\'ve never really fished in a lake I\'m used to the 6-10\" trout that I grew up catching in the Blue Mountains at our family cabin along Mill Creek in Oregon.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405740382/\" title=\"bold ducks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7405740382_b83f163a40_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"bold ducks\"></a>\nWhile nothing was really happening in terms of fishing, there was some excitement with some ducks. They got really close to us. I wished that I\'d had some bread to feed them and they clearly wished the same thing. I said so but A. told me that there are signs up that say don\'t feed the animals. <em>Oh</em>. I guess neither the ducks nor I speak Bulgarian (or bothered to read the signs).\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405745250/\" title=\"part of pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7405745250_18da15ed4e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"part of pancharevo lake\"></a>\nMy experience from childhood is that ducks really like day old homemade pancakes (you know, American pancakes) or day old crusty French bread but I didn\'t know that there were going to be ducks at Pancharevo Lake or maybe I would have put some bread slices in my purse--not that I had French bread or pancakes. <em>Too bad</em>. Instead I had to settle for taking some photos.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405747252/\" title=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7100/7405747252_5ff5bfa1a1_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon\"></a>\nAfter a beer, we walked around some more. I took some photos. Surprise, surprise. Then we had some dinner at a restaurant outside by the lake. The place wasn\'t fancy but the food was good. I am talking plastic tables, plastic chairs and a tablecloth that has cigarette holes burned into it and the kind of recycled paper napkins that as soon as you touch them begin to disintegrate in your hands. <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kebapche\" target=\"_blank\">The kebapcheta</a> were hot and tasty and my shopska salad was delicious--what a difference a few weeks makes in terms of the quality and ripeness of the tomatoes and cucumbers.','Pancharevo Lake','','inherit','open','open','','6831-revision','','','2012-06-24 09:52:50','2012-06-24 07:52:50','',6831,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/24/6831-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6833,1,'2012-06-24 09:53:21','2012-06-24 07:53:21','A. and I went to<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Pancharevo\" target=\"_blank\"> Pancharevo Lake </a>this past weekend. It\'s a man-made lake right outside of Sofia. It\'s been really hot this past week so we went in the late afternoon when it was a little cooler.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405749276/\" title=\"pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8141/7405749276_6b97cd3c7e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pancharevo lake\"></a>\r\nIt was still sunny and hot but maybe not <em>as</em> hot as it had been. We grabbed beers and then walked along the side of the lake for a little bit and found a place to sit and watch men fish (A.) and the ducks (me). Nothing seemed to be biting in the late afternoon. There was lots of casting, waiting and casting again. We took some bets on who was going to catch a fish but after 30 or more minutes nobody had.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405742766/\" title=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7085/7405742766_1c2af307e9_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake\"></a>\r\nI am not really up on my fish and of course fish in Bulgarian and English don\'t have the same names but I was surprised to see men walk by with baskets of fish that they had caught earlier in the day. One fish was probably 24 inches long and fat and it was joined the basket by a lot of smaller fish maybe 6-8 inches long. A. said the big one was a bottom feeder and told me the name in Bulgarian but I now I can\'t remember it.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405737962/\" title=\"ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405737962_bf8ab7aa20_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"ducks at pancharevo lake\"></a>\r\n\r\nI was surprised that there was such a big fish in the lake and said so. A. shrugged it off and said that\'s the difference between a lake and a river. Fair enough, I\'ve never really fished in a lake I\'m used to the 6-10\" trout that I grew up catching in the Blue Mountains at our family cabin along Mill Creek in Oregon.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405740382/\" title=\"bold ducks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7405740382_b83f163a40_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"bold ducks\"></a>\r\nWhile nothing was really happening in terms of fishing, there was some excitement with some ducks. They got really close to us. I wished that I\'d had some bread to feed them and they clearly wished the same thing. I said so but A. told me that there are signs up that say don\'t feed the animals. <em>Oh</em>. I guess neither the ducks nor I speak Bulgarian (or bothered to read the signs).\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405745250/\" title=\"part of pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7405745250_18da15ed4e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"part of pancharevo lake\"></a>\r\nMy experience from childhood is that ducks really like day old homemade pancakes (you know, American pancakes) or day old crusty French bread but I didn\'t know that there were going to be ducks at Pancharevo Lake or maybe I would have put some bread slices in my purse--not that I had French bread or pancakes. <em>Too bad</em>. Instead I had to settle for taking some photos.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405747252/\" title=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7100/7405747252_5ff5bfa1a1_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon\"></a>\r\nAfter a beer, we walked around some more. I took some photos. Surprise, surprise. Then we had some dinner at a restaurant outside by the lake. The place wasn\'t fancy but the food was good. I am talking plastic tables, plastic chairs and a tablecloth that has cigarette holes burned into it and the kind of recycled paper napkins that as soon as you touch them begin to disintegrate in your hands. <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kebapche\" target=\"_blank\">The kebapcheta</a> were hot and tasty and my shopska salad was delicious--what a difference a few weeks makes in terms of the quality and ripeness of the tomatoes and cucumbers.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405751716/\" title=\"pancharevo lake is so green by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5333/7405751716_39acc08892_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pancharevo lake is so green\"></a>','Pancharevo Lake','','inherit','open','open','','6831-revision-2','','','2012-06-24 09:53:21','2012-06-24 07:53:21','',6831,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/24/6831-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6834,1,'2012-06-24 09:53:50','2012-06-24 07:53:50','A. and I went to<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Pancharevo\" target=\"_blank\"> Pancharevo Lake </a>this past weekend. It\'s a man-made lake right outside of Sofia. It\'s been really hot this past week so we went in the late afternoon when it was a little cooler.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405749276/\" title=\"pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8141/7405749276_6b97cd3c7e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pancharevo lake\"></a>\r\nIt was still sunny and hot but maybe not <em>as</em> hot as it had been. We grabbed beers and then walked along the side of the lake for a little bit and found a place to sit and watch men fish (A.) and the ducks (me). Nothing seemed to be biting in the late afternoon. There was lots of casting, waiting and casting again. We took some bets on who was going to catch a fish but after 30 or more minutes nobody had.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405742766/\" title=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7085/7405742766_1c2af307e9_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake\"></a>\r\nI am not really up on my fish and of course fish in Bulgarian and English don\'t have the same names but I was surprised to see men walk by with baskets of fish that they had caught earlier in the day. One fish was probably 24 inches long and fat and it was joined the basket by a lot of smaller fish maybe 6-8 inches long. A. said the big one was a bottom feeder and told me the name in Bulgarian but I now I can\'t remember it.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405737962/\" title=\"ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405737962_bf8ab7aa20_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"ducks at pancharevo lake\"></a>\r\n\r\nI was surprised that there was such a big fish in the lake and said so. A. shrugged it off and said that\'s the difference between a lake and a river. Fair enough, I\'ve never really fished in a lake I\'m used to the 6-10\" trout that I grew up catching in the Blue Mountains at our family cabin along Mill Creek in Oregon.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405740382/\" title=\"bold ducks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7405740382_b83f163a40_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"bold ducks\"></a>\r\nWhile nothing was really happening in terms of fishing, there was some excitement with some ducks. They got really close to us. I wished that I\'d had some bread to feed them and they clearly wished the same thing. I said so but A. told me that there are signs up that say don\'t feed the animals. <em>Oh</em>. I guess neither the ducks nor I speak Bulgarian (or bothered to read the signs).\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405745250/\" title=\"part of pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7405745250_18da15ed4e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"part of pancharevo lake\"></a>\r\nMy experience from childhood is that ducks really like day old homemade pancakes (you know, American pancakes) or day old crusty French bread but I didn\'t know that there were going to be ducks at Pancharevo Lake or maybe I would have put some bread slices in my purse--not that I had French bread or pancakes. <em>Too bad</em>. Instead I had to settle for taking some photos.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405747252/\" title=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7100/7405747252_5ff5bfa1a1_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon\"></a>\r\nAfter a beer, we walked around some more. I took some photos. Surprise, surprise. Then we had some dinner at a restaurant outside by the lake. The place wasn\'t fancy but the food was good. I am talking plastic tables, plastic chairs and a tablecloth that has cigarette holes burned into it and the kind of recycled paper napkins that as soon as you touch them begin to disintegrate in your hands. <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kebapche\" target=\"_blank\">The kebapcheta</a> were hot and tasty and my shopska salad was delicious--what a difference a few weeks makes in terms of the quality and ripeness of the tomatoes and cucumbers.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405751716/\" title=\"pancharevo lake is so green by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5333/7405751716_39acc08892_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pancharevo lake is so green\"></a>','Pancharevo Lake','','inherit','open','open','','6831-revision-3','','','2012-06-24 09:53:50','2012-06-24 07:53:50','',6831,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/24/6831-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(6835,1,'2012-06-24 10:15:27','2012-06-24 08:15:27','A. and I went to<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Pancharevo\" target=\"_blank\"> Pancharevo Lake </a>this past weekend. It\'s a man-made lake right outside of Sofia. And I mean right outside of Sofia. It\'s maybe a 15 minute drive from Mladost where I live but once you are there it seems like a world apart. Look at how green everything is and how wonderful the later aIt has been really hot this past week so we went in the late afternoon when it was a little cooler.\n<a title=\"pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405749276/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8141/7405749276_6b97cd3c7e_z.jpg\" alt=\"pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nIt was still sunny and hot but maybe not <em>as</em> hot as it had been. As a side note: the heat seems to be inescapable these days. It\'s hot when you wake up, it\'s hot when you go to bed and a fan does very little to help mitigate the situation.\n\nAnyhow, we grabbed beers and then walked along the side of the lake for a little bit and found a place to sit. Now when I say this you may be imagining sitting along side the bank of the like on the grass but you\'d be wrong. Someone has built a series of tables and benches so we found a free bench to sit on and watch the lake. There were still plenty of people at the lake and I imagine it was even busier during the day.\n\nOur spot had two attractions. We could watch men fish and we could watch a little group of ducks. <!--more-->When it game to fishing, nothing seemed to be biting in the late afternoon. There was lots of casting, waiting and casting again. We took some bets on who was going to catch a fish but after 30 or more minutes nobody had. It was interesting to learn that to fish on this part of the lake, you pay for the right to fish and then you pay for the fish you catch based on weight.\n<a title=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405742766/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7085/7405742766_1c2af307e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI am not really up on my fish. I am pretty familiar with red snapper, salmon, trout and tuna but the finer points escape me.  And of course fish in Bulgarian and English don\'t have the same names so I am always kind of at a loss when reading menus or looking at fish at the store.\n\nI found myself surprised to see men walk by with baskets of fish that they had caught earlier in the day. One man walked by with a basket that a fish in it that was probably 24 inches long and fat and it was joined the basket by a lot of smaller fish maybe 6-8 inches long. A. said the big one was a bottom feeder and told me the name in Bulgarian but I now I can\'t remember it. I just didn\'t expect to see such a big fish in the lake. <a title=\"ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405737962/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405737962_bf8ab7aa20_z.jpg\" alt=\"ducks at pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nI\'m not sure why I was surprised that there was such a big fish in the lake but  said so and A. shrugged it off saying that\'s the difference between a lake and a river. Fair enough, that\'s when it struck me that I\'ve never really fished in a lake. I\'m used to the 6-10\" trout that I grew up catching in the Blue Mountains at our family cabin along Mill Creek in Oregon.\n<a title=\"bold ducks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405740382/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7405740382_b83f163a40_z.jpg\" alt=\"bold ducks\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWhile nothing was really happening in terms of fishing, there was some excitement with some ducks. They got really close to us. I wished that I\'d had some bread to feed them and they clearly wished the same thing. Once again, I said so but A. told me that there are signs up that say don\'t feed the animals. <em>Oh</em>. I guess neither the ducks nor I speak Bulgarian (or bothered to read the signs). Just for the record, I didn\'t feed them. Though every bone in my body wanted to.\n<a title=\"part of pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405745250/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7405745250_18da15ed4e_z.jpg\" alt=\"part of pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nMy experience from childhood is that ducks really like the day-old homemade pancakes that my dAd makes (you know, American pancakes) or day-old crusty French bread. But I didn\'t know that there were going to be ducks at Pancharevo Lake or maybe I would have put some whole wheat bread slices in my purse--not that I had French bread or pancakes--and I could have illegally feed the ducks. <em>Too bad, </em>I was breadless<em>.</em> Instead I had to settle for taking some photos.\n<a title=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405747252/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7100/7405747252_5ff5bfa1a1_z.jpg\" alt=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAfter a beer, we walked around the lake a more. I took some photos. Surprise, surprise. Then we had some dinner at a restaurant outside by the lake. The place wasn\'t fancy but the food was good. I am talking plastic tables, plastic chairs and a tablecloth that has cigarette holes burned into it and the kind of recycled paper napkins that as soon as you touch them begin to disintegrate in your hands. Luckily the <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kebapche\" target=\"_blank\">kebapcheta</a> were hot and tasty and my shopska salad was delicious--what a difference a few weeks makes in terms of the quality and ripeness of the tomatoes and cucumbers. And by the time we got back to Sofia, it was in fact a little cooler. <em>Phew</em>. <a title=\"pancharevo lake is so green by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405751716/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5333/7405751716_39acc08892_z.jpg\" alt=\"pancharevo lake is so green\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Pancharevo Lake','','inherit','open','open','','6831-revision-4','','','2012-06-24 10:15:27','2012-06-24 08:15:27','',6831,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/24/6831-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(6836,1,'2012-06-24 10:16:44','2012-06-24 08:16:44','A. and I went to<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Pancharevo\" target=\"_blank\"> Pancharevo Lake </a>this past weekend. It\'s a man-made lake right outside of Sofia. And I mean right outside of Sofia. It\'s maybe a 15 minute drive from Mladost where I live but once you are there it seems like a world apart. Look at how green everything is and how wonderful the late afternoon light it. It has been really hot this past week so we went in the late afternoon when it was a little cooler.\n<a title=\"pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405749276/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8141/7405749276_6b97cd3c7e_z.jpg\" alt=\"pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nIt was still sunny and hot but maybe not <em>as</em> hot as it had been. As a side note: the heat seems to be inescapable these days. It\'s hot when you wake up, it\'s hot when you go to bed and a fan does very little to help mitigate the situation.\n\nAnyhow, we grabbed beers and then walked along the side of the lake for a little bit and found a place to sit. Now when I say this you may be imagining sitting along side the bank of the like on the grass but you\'d be wrong. Someone has built a series of tables and benches so we found a free bench to sit on and watch the lake. There were still plenty of people at the lake and I imagine it was even busier during the day.\n\nOur spot had two attractions. We could watch men fish and we could watch a little group of ducks. <!--more-->When it game to fishing, nothing seemed to be biting in the late afternoon. There was lots of casting, waiting and casting again. We took some bets on who was going to catch a fish but after 30 or more minutes nobody had. It was interesting to learn that to fish on this part of the lake, you pay for the right to fish and then you pay for the fish you catch based on weight.\n<a title=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405742766/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7085/7405742766_1c2af307e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"fishing and ducks at pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI am not really up on my fish. I am pretty familiar with red snapper, salmon, trout and tuna but the finer points escape me.  And of course fish in Bulgarian and English don\'t have the same names so I am always kind of at a loss when reading menus or looking at fish at the store.\n\nI found myself surprised to see men walk by with baskets of fish that they had caught earlier in the day. One man walked by with a basket that a fish in it that was probably 24 inches long and fat and it was joined the basket by a lot of smaller fish maybe 6-8 inches long. A. said the big one was a bottom feeder and told me the name in Bulgarian but I now I can\'t remember it. I just didn\'t expect to see such a big fish in the lake. <a title=\"ducks at pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405737962/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7104/7405737962_bf8ab7aa20_z.jpg\" alt=\"ducks at pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nI\'m not sure why I was surprised that there was such a big fish in the lake but  said so and A. shrugged it off saying that\'s the difference between a lake and a river. Fair enough, that\'s when it struck me that I\'ve never really fished in a lake. I\'m used to the 6-10\" trout that I grew up catching in the Blue Mountains at our family cabin along Mill Creek in Oregon.\n<a title=\"bold ducks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405740382/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7405740382_b83f163a40_z.jpg\" alt=\"bold ducks\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWhile nothing was really happening in terms of fishing, there was some excitement with some ducks. They got really close to us. I wished that I\'d had some bread to feed them and they clearly wished the same thing. Once again, I said so but A. told me that there are signs up that say don\'t feed the animals. <em>Oh</em>. I guess neither the ducks nor I speak Bulgarian (or bothered to read the signs). Just for the record, I didn\'t feed them. Though every bone in my body wanted to.\n<a title=\"part of pancharevo lake by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405745250/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7405745250_18da15ed4e_z.jpg\" alt=\"part of pancharevo lake\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nMy experience from childhood is that ducks really like the day-old homemade pancakes that my dAd makes (you know, American pancakes) or day-old crusty French bread. But I didn\'t know that there were going to be ducks at Pancharevo Lake or maybe I would have put some whole wheat bread slices in my purse--not that I had French bread or pancakes--and I could have illegally feed the ducks. <em>Too bad, </em>I was breadless<em>.</em> Instead I had to settle for taking some photos.\n<a title=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405747252/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7100/7405747252_5ff5bfa1a1_z.jpg\" alt=\"pancharevo lake in the late afternoon\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAfter a beer, we walked around the lake a more. I took some photos. Surprise, surprise. Then we had some dinner at a restaurant outside by the lake. The place wasn\'t fancy but the food was good. I am talking plastic tables, plastic chairs and a tablecloth that has cigarette holes burned into it and the kind of recycled paper napkins that as soon as you touch them begin to disintegrate in your hands. Luckily the <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kebapche\" target=\"_blank\">kebapcheta</a> were hot and tasty and my shopska salad was delicious--what a difference a few weeks makes in terms of the quality and ripeness of the tomatoes and cucumbers. And by the time we got back to Sofia, it was in fact a little cooler. <em>Phew</em>. <a title=\"pancharevo lake is so green by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7405751716/\"><img src=\"http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5333/7405751716_39acc08892_z.jpg\" alt=\"pancharevo lake is so green\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Pancharevo Lake','','inherit','open','open','','6831-autosave','','','2012-06-24 10:16:44','2012-06-24 08:16:44','',6831,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/24/6831-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6838,1,'2012-06-26 06:30:33','2012-06-26 04:30:33','I am exactly four days away from summer vacation and frankly, it\'s about time. I\'ve got grades to finish, reports to write (both electronically and in hard copy in a book--thanks Bulgaria), some letters of recommendation to get started on and a classroom to clean up. The good news is while I\'ll be busy, I am totally not worried about it. This year, year three, everything is going so much smoother than my first two years at ACS.\n\nThe thing is, I\'d much rather be reading. My desire to buckle down and finish my grades is about zero. My desire to curl up with a book on my couch and read, to head to Starbucks to drink a iced latte and read, to stretch out by a pool and read, or even to sit on the subway and read is much greater than my desire to finish up my school work. Funny how that works.\n\nInstead, I\'ve been creating my summer reading list. I\'ve been reading books reviews, asking for recommendations and I even started updating my <a href=\"http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/157178-carolyn\" target=\"_blank\">goodreads profile</a>  (because, yes, I am that kind of nerdy). Anyhow, I\'d love to hear what you\'re reading, what books you\'re planning to this summer, or what books have caught your attention recently.\n\nMe? I basically read Gone Girl in a single day after listing to an author interview on NPR. It\'s not great literature but it\'s crazy good. I couldn\'t put it down because I kept wondering: did he do it? Followed by: what?!, what!?, what?!.','Summer vacation & Summer reading ','','inherit','open','open','','6837-revision','','','2012-06-26 06:30:33','2012-06-26 04:30:33','',6837,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/26/6837-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6839,1,'2012-06-26 06:32:00','2012-06-26 04:32:00','I am exactly four days away from summer vacation and frankly, it\'s about time. I\'ve got grades to finish, reports to write (both electronically and in hard copy in a book--thanks Bulgaria), some letters of recommendation to get started on and a classroom to clean up. The good news is while I\'ll be busy, I am totally not worried about it. This year, year three, everything is going so much smoother than my first two years at ACS.\n\nThe thing is, I\'d much rather be reading. My desire to buckle down and finish my grades is about zero. My desire to curl up with a book on my couch and read, to head to Starbucks to drink a iced latte and read, to stretch out by a pool and read, or even to sit on the subway and read is much greater than my desire to finish up my school work. Funny how that works.\n\nInstead, I\'ve been creating my summer reading list. I\'ve been reading books reviews, asking for recommendations and I even started updating my <a href=\"http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/157178-carolyn\" target=\"_blank\">goodreads profile</a>  (because, yes, I am that kind of nerdy). Anyhow, I\'d love to hear what you\'re reading, what books you\'re planning to this summer, or what books have caught your attention recently.\n\nMe? I basically read <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Gone-Girl-Novel-Gillian-Flynn/dp/030758836X\" target=\"_blank\">Gone Girl</a> in a single day after listing to an author interview on NPR. It\'s not great literature but it\'s crazy good. I couldn\'t put it down because I kept wondering: did he do it? Followed by: what?!, what!?, what?!.','Summer vacation & Summer reading ','','inherit','open','open','','6837-autosave','','','2012-06-26 06:32:00','2012-06-26 04:32:00','',6837,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/26/6837-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6840,1,'2012-06-28 09:31:12','2012-06-28 07:31:12','This morning I tweeted about a fire in our building and the fact that I spent the night in a hotel last night and I know if I don\'t write a little bit more about the fire my MoM and dAd are going to go crazy worrying. First thing first, I am okay and everyone in our building is okay.\r\n\r\nThe whole thing was scary though.\r\n\r\nAbout 7pm my door bell rang and some upstairs neighbors were asking if there was anything burning (or on fire) in my apartment. Nope. Although I was in the middle of making nachos. These guys lived on the 5th floor and could smell smoke. It was about this point that my next door neighbor and colleague G. realized that it was the apartment directly above his that had smoke pouring out the window.\r\n\r\nI decided that I\'d better pack up somethings. I threw my computer, camera, passport and credit cards into a bag and grabbed my purse and G. packed up his cats. Meanwhile the guys upstairs called the fire department and we tracked down the international who\'s apartment was on fire. Interestingly, they were on their way downtown for dinner and made it back to the apartment before the (very old) fire trucks arrived.\r\n\r\nAt this point, black smoke was pouring out of the open windows and glass was cracking and breaking. Once the firemen showed up they had the fire out in not more 10 minutes but I\'d venture to guess that from the time they were called to the time they showed up 20-plus minutes passed. It felt like ages as everyone in the  building and much of the neighborhood stood outside looking at the burning apartment.\r\n\r\nThe general sense was please don\'t let mine catch on fire next. Once the fire trucks arrived and you realized that they were going use a lot of water to put the fire out those of us with apartments  below the fire, started thinking: please, please don\'t let this flood my apartment. I guess the concrete construction of our building was an especially good thing in this case.\r\n\r\nThe fire was put out quickly and after a bit we were allowed to go back into the apartment building. The apartment that was actually on fire is in horrible shape but for the rest of us the damage seems to have been minimal. One of the neighboring apartment has a wall that bubbled from the heat but frankly I was expecting something much, much worse given the state of the burnt apartment (it\'s now unlivable).\r\n\r\nMy physical apartment is fine but smoky. And not campfire smoky but burning old garbage and tires smokey. Needless to say, I\'ve got some serious loads of laundry ahead of me but I am not complaining. No I feel very lucky. Things could have been much worse.','A Fire in Mladost','','publish','open','open','','a-fire-in-mladost','','','2012-06-28 09:31:12','2012-06-28 07:31:12','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6840',0,'post','',3),(6841,1,'2012-06-28 09:29:51','2012-06-28 07:29:51','This morning I tweeted about a fire in our building and the fact that I spent the night in a hotel last night and I know if I don\'t write a little bit more about the fire my MoM and dAd are going to go crazy worrying. First thing first, I am okay and everyone in our building is okay.\n\nThe whole thing was scary though.\n\nAbout 7pm my door bell rang and some upstairs neighbors were asking if there was anything burning (or on fire) in my apartment. Nope. Although I was in the middle of making nachos. These guys lived on the 5th floor and could smell smoke. It was about this point that my next door neighbor and colleague G. realized that it was the apartment directly above his that had smoke pouring out the window.\n\nI decided that I\'d better pack up somethings. I threw my computer, camera, passport and credit cards into a bag and grabbed my purse and G. packed up his cats. Meanwhile the guys upstairs called the fire department and we tracked down the international who\'s apartment was on fire. Interestingly, they were on their way downtown for dinner and made it back to the apartment before the (very old) fire trucks arrived.\n\nAt this point, black smoke was pouring out of the open windows and glass was cracking and breaking. Once the firemen showed up they had the fire out in not more 10 minutes but I\'d venture to guess that from the time they were called to the time they showed up 20-plus minutes passed. It felt like ages as everyone in the  building and much of the neighborhood stood outside looking at the burning apartment.\n\nThe general sense was please don\'t let mine catch on fire next. Once the fire trucks arrived and you realized that they were going use a lot of water to put the fire out those of us with apartments  below the fire, started thinking: please, please don\'t let this flood my apartment. I guess the concrete construction of our building was an especially good thing in this case.\n\nThe fire was put out quickly and after a bit we were allowed to go back into the apartment building. The apartment that was actually on fire is in horrible shape but for the rest of us the damage seems to have been minimal. One of the neighboring apartment has a wall that bubbled from the heat but frankly I was expecting something much, much worse given the state of the burnt apartment (it\'s now unlivable).\n\nMy physical apartment is fine but smoky. And not campfire smoky but burning old garbage and tires smokey. Needless to say, I\'ve got some serious loads of laundry ahead of me but I am not complaining. No I feel very lucky. Things could have been much worse.','A Fire in Mladost','','inherit','open','open','','6840-revision','','','2012-06-28 09:29:51','2012-06-28 07:29:51','',6840,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/28/6840-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6842,1,'2012-06-28 09:29:54','2012-06-28 07:29:54','This morning I tweeted about a fire in our building and the fact that I spent the night in a hotel last night and I know if I don\'t write a little bit more about the fire my MoM and dAd are going to go crazy worrying. First thing first, I am okay and everyone in our building is okay.\r\n\r\nThe whole thing was scary though.\r\n\r\nAbout 7pm my door bell rang and some upstairs neighbors were asking if there was anything burning (or on fire) in my apartment. Nope. Although I was in the middle of making nachos. These guys lived on the 5th floor and could smell smoke. It was about this point that my next door neighbor and colleague G. realized that it was the apartment directly above his that had smoke pouring out the window.\r\n\r\nI decided that I\'d better pack up somethings. I threw my computer, camera, passport and credit cards into a bag and grabbed my purse and G. packed up his cats. Meanwhile the guys upstairs called the fire department and we tracked down the international who\'s apartment was on fire. Interestingly, they were on their way downtown for dinner and made it back to the apartment before the (very old) fire trucks arrived.\r\n\r\nAt this point, black smoke was pouring out of the open windows and glass was cracking and breaking. Once the firemen showed up they had the fire out in not more 10 minutes but I\'d venture to guess that from the time they were called to the time they showed up 20-plus minutes passed. It felt like ages as everyone in the  building and much of the neighborhood stood outside looking at the burning apartment.\r\n\r\nThe general sense was please don\'t let mine catch on fire next. Once the fire trucks arrived and you realized that they were going use a lot of water to put the fire out those of us with apartments  below the fire, started thinking: please, please don\'t let this flood my apartment. I guess the concrete construction of our building was an especially good thing in this case.\r\n\r\nThe fire was put out quickly and after a bit we were allowed to go back into the apartment building. The apartment that was actually on fire is in horrible shape but for the rest of us the damage seems to have been minimal. One of the neighboring apartment has a wall that bubbled from the heat but frankly I was expecting something much, much worse given the state of the burnt apartment (it\'s now unlivable).\r\n\r\nMy physical apartment is fine but smoky. And not campfire smoky but burning old garbage and tires smokey. Needless to say, I\'ve got some serious loads of laundry ahead of me but I am not complaining. No I feel very lucky. Things could have been much worse.','A Fire in Mladost','','inherit','open','open','','6840-revision-2','','','2012-06-28 09:29:54','2012-06-28 07:29:54','',6840,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/28/6840-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6843,1,'2012-06-28 09:32:16','2012-06-28 07:32:16','This morning I tweeted about a fire in our building and the fact that I spent the night in a hotel last night and I know if I don\'t write a little bit more about the fire my MoM and dAd are going to go crazy worrying. First thing first, I am okay and everyone in our building is okay.\n\nThe whole thing was scary though.\n\nAbout 7pm my door bell rang and some upstairs neighbors were asking if there was anything burning (or on fire) in my apartment. Nope. Although I was in the middle of making nachos. These guys lived on the 5th floor and could smell smoke. It was about this point that my next door neighbor and colleague G. realized that it was the apartment directly above his that had smoke pouring out the window.\n\nI decided that I\'d better pack up somethings. I threw my computer, camera, passport and credit cards into a bag and grabbed my purse and G. packed up his cats. Meanwhile the guys upstairs called the fire department and we tracked down the international who\'s apartment was on fire. Interestingly, they were on their way downtown for dinner and made it back to the apartment before the (very old) fire trucks arrived.\n\nAt this point, black smoke was pouring out of the open windows and glass was cracking and breaking. Once the firemen showed up they had the fire out in not more 10 minutes but I\'d venture to guess that from the time they were called to the time they showed up 20-plus minutes passed. It felt like ages as everyone in the  building and much of the neighborhood stood outside looking at the burning apartment.\n\nThe general sense was please don\'t let mine catch on fire next. Once the fire trucks arrived and you realized that they were going use a lot of water to put the fire out those of us with apartments  below the fire, started thinking: please, please don\'t let this flood my apartment. I guess the concrete construction of our building was an especially good thing in this case.\n\nThe fire was put out quickly and after a bit we were allowed to go back into the apartment building. The apartment that was actually on fire is in horrible shape but for the rest of us the damage seems to have been minimal. One of the neighboring apartment has a wall that bubbled from the heat but frankly I was expecting something much, much worse given the state of the burnt apartment (it\'s now unlivable).\n\nMy physical apartment is fine but smoky. And not campfire smoky but burning old garbage and tires smokey. Needless to say, I\'ve got some serious loads of laundry ahead of me but I am not complaining. No I feel very lucky. Things could have been much worse.','A Fire in Mladost','','inherit','open','open','','6840-autosave','','','2012-06-28 09:32:16','2012-06-28 07:32:16','',6840,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/28/6840-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6844,1,'2012-06-29 12:02:02','2012-06-29 10:02:02','This Saturday is Sofia\'s 5th annual Pride Parade. That\'s June 30th at 4pm. The parade will start at the Soviet Monument (by the university metro stop).\r\n\r\nI\'ll be going because this is an important event. One that celebrates the diversity and the complexity of the world that we live in. I\'ve written in the past about <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/06/21/notes-from-sofia-pride-parade/\" target=\"_blank\">why I march in the Pride Parade</a> and this year I\'ll be marching for all of these reasons and more.\r\n\r\nUltimately, I\'m marching because I believe it\'s the right thing to do.\r\n\r\nMore specifically, this year I\'ll be marching because it\'s important to stand up to bullies.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nEspecially bullies like <a href=\"http://www.advocate.com/politics/religion/2012/06/27/bulgarian-priest-urges-violence-pride-parade\" target=\"_blank\">Father Evgenii the Bulgarian Orthodox priest</a> who is calling on protesters to throw stones at marchers and more generally the <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=140300\" target=\"_blank\">Orthodox church is which is condemning the event</a>. It is never okay to stand by while others are being threatened either verbally or physically because they do not fit into someone\'s idea of what normal is.\r\n\r\nI am marching on Saturday because there are people who need my support. There many individuals in our community, and in the larger world, do not feel free to comfortably express all the traits that make them who they are on a daily basis, because they feel they will be bullied, harassed, excluded, or even physically injured for fully expressing their individuality and I\'m marching for them.\r\n\r\nI am marching because it\'s the right thing to do and the least that I can do.\r\n\r\nWant to know more?\r\n\r\nHere\'s a link to <a href=\"http://www.sofiapride.info/en\" target=\"_blank\">the Sofia Pride event</a>.\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/G6BwUD1Dozo\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\nAnd here\'s a very powerful video put together by Amnesty International to coincide with our march on Saturday urging Bulgarian authorities to amend its legislation to define attacks against people on the basis of their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity as hate crimes.\r\n\r\nOr maybe you\'d just like to sign a petition urging the Sofia mayor to<a href=\"http://www.allout.org/en/actions/bulgaria/taf\" target=\"_blank\"> Stop the Hate at Sofia Pride</a>.','Hope to see you there','','publish','open','open','','hope-to-see-you-there','','','2012-06-29 12:02:02','2012-06-29 10:02:02','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6844',0,'post','',0),(6845,1,'2012-06-29 10:22:35','2012-06-29 08:22:35','This Saturday is Sofia\'s 5th annual Gay Pride Parade. That\'s June 30th at 4pm. The parade will start at the Soviet Monument (by the university metro stop).\n\nI\'ll be going because this is an important event. One that celebrates the diversity and the complexity of the world that we live in. I\'ve written in the past about <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/06/21/notes-from-sofia-pride-parade/\" target=\"_blank\">why I march in the Pride Parade</a> and this year I\'ll be marching for all of these reasons and more.','Hope to see you there','','inherit','open','open','','6844-revision','','','2012-06-29 10:22:35','2012-06-29 08:22:35','',6844,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/29/6844-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6846,1,'2012-06-29 11:49:57','2012-06-29 09:49:57','This Saturday is Sofia\'s 5th annual Gay Pride Parade. That\'s June 30th at 4pm. The parade will start at the Soviet Monument (by the university metro stop).\n\nI\'ll be going because this is an important event. One that celebrates the diversity and the complexity of the world that we live in. I\'ve written in the past about <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/06/21/notes-from-sofia-pride-parade/\" target=\"_blank\">why I march in the Pride Parade</a> and this year I\'ll be marching for all of these reasons and more.\n\nI\'m marching because it\'s the right thing to do.\n\nMore specifically, this year I\'ll be marching because it\'s important to stand up to bullies.\n\nEspecially bullies like <a href=\"http://www.advocate.com/politics/religion/2012/06/27/bulgarian-priest-urges-violence-pride-parade\" target=\"_blank\">Father Evgenii the Bulgarian Orthodox priest</a> who is calling on protesters to throw stones at marchers and more generally the <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=140300\" target=\"_blank\">Orthodox church is which is condemning the event</a>. It is never okay to stand by while others are being threatened either verbally or physically because they do not fit into someone\'s idea of what normal is.\n\nI am marching on Saturday because there are people who need my support. There many individuals in our community, and in the larger world, do not feel free to comfortably express all the traits that make them who they are on a daily basis, because they feel they will be bullied, harassed, excluded, or even physically injured for fully expressing their individuality and I\'m marching for them.\n\nI am marching because it\'s the right thing to do and the least that I can do.\n\nWant to know more?\n\nHere\'s a link to Sofia Pride event.\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/G6BwUD1Dozo\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\nAnd here\'s a very powerful video put together by Amnesty International to coincide with our march on Saturday uur\n\n&nbsp;','Hope to see you there','','inherit','open','open','','6844-revision-2','','','2012-06-29 11:49:57','2012-06-29 09:49:57','',6844,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/29/6844-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6847,1,'2012-06-29 11:50:57','2012-06-29 09:50:57','This Saturday is Sofia\'s 5th annual Gay Pride Parade. That\'s June 30th at 4pm. The parade will start at the Soviet Monument (by the university metro stop).\n\nI\'ll be going because this is an important event. One that celebrates the diversity and the complexity of the world that we live in. I\'ve written in the past about <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/06/21/notes-from-sofia-pride-parade/\" target=\"_blank\">why I march in the Pride Parade</a> and this year I\'ll be marching for all of these reasons and more.\n\nI\'m marching because it\'s the right thing to do.\n\nMore specifically, this year I\'ll be marching because it\'s important to stand up to bullies.\n\nEspecially bullies like <a href=\"http://www.advocate.com/politics/religion/2012/06/27/bulgarian-priest-urges-violence-pride-parade\" target=\"_blank\">Father Evgenii the Bulgarian Orthodox priest</a> who is calling on protesters to throw stones at marchers and more generally the <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=140300\" target=\"_blank\">Orthodox church is which is condemning the event</a>. It is never okay to stand by while others are being threatened either verbally or physically because they do not fit into someone\'s idea of what normal is.\n\nI am marching on Saturday because there are people who need my support. There many individuals in our community, and in the larger world, do not feel free to comfortably express all the traits that make them who they are on a daily basis, because they feel they will be bullied, harassed, excluded, or even physically injured for fully expressing their individuality and I\'m marching for them.\n\nI am marching because it\'s the right thing to do and the least that I can do.\n\nWant to know more?\n\nHere\'s a link to Sofia Pride event.\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/G6BwUD1Dozo\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\nAnd here\'s a very powerful video put together by Amnesty International to coincide with our march on Saturday urging Bulgarian authorities to amend its legislation to define attacks against people on the basis of their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity as hate crimes.\n\n&nbsp;','Hope to see you there','','inherit','open','open','','6844-revision-3','','','2012-06-29 11:50:57','2012-06-29 09:50:57','',6844,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/29/6844-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(6848,1,'2012-06-29 11:55:45','2012-06-29 09:55:45','This Saturday is Sofia\'s 5th annual Pride Parade. That\'s June 30th at 4pm. The parade will start at the Soviet Monument (by the university metro stop).\r\n\r\nI\'ll be going because this is an important event. One that celebrates the diversity and the complexity of the world that we live in. I\'ve written in the past about <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/06/21/notes-from-sofia-pride-parade/\" target=\"_blank\">why I march in the Pride Parade</a> and this year I\'ll be marching for all of these reasons and more.\r\n\r\nI\'m marching because it\'s the right thing to do.\r\n\r\nMore specifically, this year I\'ll be marching because it\'s important to stand up to bullies.\r\n\r\nEspecially bullies like <a href=\"http://www.advocate.com/politics/religion/2012/06/27/bulgarian-priest-urges-violence-pride-parade\" target=\"_blank\">Father Evgenii the Bulgarian Orthodox priest</a> who is calling on protesters to throw stones at marchers and more generally the <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=140300\" target=\"_blank\">Orthodox church is which is condemning the event</a>. It is never okay to stand by while others are being threatened either verbally or physically because they do not fit into someone\'s idea of what normal is.\r\n\r\nI am marching on Saturday because there are people who need my support. There many individuals in our community, and in the larger world, do not feel free to comfortably express all the traits that make them who they are on a daily basis, because they feel they will be bullied, harassed, excluded, or even physically injured for fully expressing their individuality and I\'m marching for them.\r\n\r\nI am marching because it\'s the right thing to do and the least that I can do.\r\n\r\nWant to know more?\r\n\r\nHere\'s a link to <a href=\"http://www.sofiapride.info/en\" target=\"_blank\">the Sofia Pride event</a>.\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/G6BwUD1Dozo\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\nAnd here\'s a very powerful video put together by Amnesty International to coincide with our march on Saturday urging Bulgarian authorities to amend its legislation to define attacks against people on the basis of their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity as hate crimes.\r\n\r\nOr maybe you\'d just like to sign a petition urging the Sofia mayor to<a href=\"http://www.allout.org/en/actions/bulgaria/taf\" target=\"_blank\"> Stop the Hate at Sofia Pride</a>.','Hope to see you there','','inherit','open','open','','6844-revision-4','','','2012-06-29 11:55:45','2012-06-29 09:55:45','',6844,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/29/6844-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(6849,1,'2012-06-29 12:03:06','2012-06-29 10:03:06','This Saturday is Sofia\'s 5th annual Pride Parade. That\'s June 30th at 4pm. The parade will start at the Soviet Monument (by the university metro stop).\n\nI\'ll be going because this is an important event. One that celebrates the diversity and the complexity of the world that we live in. I\'ve written in the past about <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/06/21/notes-from-sofia-pride-parade/\" target=\"_blank\">why I march in the Pride Parade</a> and this year I\'ll be marching for all of these reasons and more.\n\nUltimately, I\'m marching because I believe it\'s the right thing to do.\n\nMore specifically, this year I\'ll be marching because it\'s important to stand up to bullies.<!--more-->\n\nEspecially bullies like <a href=\"http://www.advocate.com/politics/religion/2012/06/27/bulgarian-priest-urges-violence-pride-parade\" target=\"_blank\">Father Evgenii the Bulgarian Orthodox priest</a> who is calling on protesters to throw stones at marchers and more generally the <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=140300\" target=\"_blank\">Orthodox church is which is condemning the event</a>. It is never okay to stand by while others are being threatened either verbally or physically because they do not fit into someone\'s idea of what normal is.\n\nI am marching on Saturday because there are people who need my support. There many individuals in our community, and in the larger world, do not feel free to comfortably express all the traits that make them who they are on a daily basis, because they feel they will be bullied, harassed, excluded, or even physically injured for fully expressing their individuality and I\'m marching for them.\n\nI am marching because it\'s the right thing to do and the least that I can do.\n\nWant to know more?\n\nHere\'s a link to <a href=\"http://www.sofiapride.info/en\" target=\"_blank\">the Sofia Pride event</a>.\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/G6BwUD1Dozo\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\nAnd here\'s a very powerful video put together by Amnesty International to coincide with our march on Saturday urging Bulgarian authorities to amend its legislation to define attacks against people on the basis of their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity as hate crimes.\n\nOr maybe you\'d just like to sign a petition urging the Sofia mayor to<a href=\"http://www.allout.org/en/actions/bulgaria/taf\" target=\"_blank\"> Stop the Hate at Sofia Pride</a>.','Hope to see you there','','inherit','open','open','','6844-autosave','','','2012-06-29 12:03:06','2012-06-29 10:03:06','',6844,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/29/6844-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6851,1,'2012-07-01 21:54:59','2012-07-01 19:54:59','On Friday night I went to watch two different volleyball matches: Germany vs Argentina and Bulgaria vs Portugal.\n<a title=\"Arena stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480916300/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7123/7480916300_5783e32e02_z.jpg\" alt=\"Arena stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"BG flags at Arena by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480924426/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7133/7480924426_25225c1e87_z.jpg\" alt=\"BG flags at Arena\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nI thought the whole thing was great fun. I haven\'t been to many, if any, sporting events in Bulgaria. I guess I could have but until Friday I\'d never really sought out the experience.\n<a title=\"Volleyball tickets world league by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480941558/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8022/7480941558_b2323ce73c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Volleyball tickets world league\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI didn\'t really know what to expect. I\'ve been to a lot of college sporting events from American football to gymnastics to basketball to rugby and even to regattas.  Thanks, dAd! And as an adult, I went to plenty of baseball games in Washington DC and was perfectly happy to drink beer, eat peanuts and watch the Washington National lose.<!--more-->\n\nSo the first game started at 5:30pm and the second at 8:45pm. A. and I showed up early enough to have a coffee before the game started. Coffee out of small plastic cups. I had a long coffee and A. a normal coffee. The funny part was the A. had to ask which one was which. The girl pointed to the coffee that was slightly more fully and said: this is the long coffee. Oh, of course.\n\nI\'ll spare you the play by play details of both games as I figure if you really care you already know and if you don\'t know you probably don\'t care. I am also not really sure that you want to read my play by play of the games since I don\'t think I\'d make a great sports writer. Mostly because during the second game I kept getting distracted. I couldn\'t stop thinking about the fact that the Bulgarian national team was actually wearing kind of short shorts. Shorts that were shorter than any of the other teams.\n<a title=\"Germany v Argentina by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480928788/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8013/7480928788_bdc2c49b10_z.jpg\" alt=\"Germany v Argentina\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow Germany beat Argentina. It wasn\'t even close. I went back and forth between wanting to cheer for Germany because they were playing really well and rooting for the underdog Argentina. In the end it didn\'t matter. Germany won.\n\nAfter the game we went to find some food. The selection was pretty limited and even writing that makes it sound like there were more options than there were. The option was this hot dog stand.\n<a title=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480934456/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480934456_8b447ba775_z.jpg\" alt=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe hot dogs claimed to be New York style but I\'d say they were anything but. The bun was okay but the condiments left a lot to be desired and the hot dog was clearly a Bulgarian style hot dog. Oh well, it\'s not like I was actually expecting a New York Hot Dog in Sofia, Bulgaria. I know better than that. Still the Stadium could use a few more food options.\n<a title=\"Outside the stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480946428/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7265/7480946428_9b34b669ee_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside the stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe big disappointment was that the stadium wasn\'t serving beer because really, what is a sporting event without a beer?! The interesting part is that actually they were serving beer. It was just nonalcoholic. Who knew such a thing even existed in Bulgaria? I mean this is a country where while the drinking age is 18 but  no one actually seems to care enough to enforce it.\n\nApparently a lot of sporting events in Bulgaria are dry. I think that\'s really funny. Still I could have used a cold beer. It would have gone perfectly with sitting around outside on the steps of the Arena killing time after eating my hot dog and before the start of the Bulgaria/Portugal game.\n<a title=\"Bulgaria at play by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480954090/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8145/7480954090_32589d12fc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bulgaria at play\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe second game Bulgaria vs Portugal was much, much more lively. First of all, there were many more people there to watch and second, Bulgaria and Portugal were actually playing a game. While in the Germany and Argentina match, Germany was just trouncing Argentina.  And I am talking trouncing to the point that it was painful to watch.\n<a title=\"Before the game by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480958762/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8157/7480958762_5366d255ac_z.jpg\" alt=\"Before the game\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe Bulgaria-Portugal match up was good one and it was great fun to watch Bulgarians actually enjoying themselves and cheering on their country. I mean Bulgarians went all out. I am talking flags painted on their faces, green, red and white shirts, scarfs, flags and even drums. Way to go! That\'s some serious pride.\n<a title=\"fans by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480965288/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480965288_4608f71e94_z.jpg\" alt=\"fans\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI will say that nearly 5 hours of watching volleyball in a plastic chair was a little uncomfortable but two days later these things don\'t matter any more and now I am kind of bummed that I won\'t be around next week to watch more volleyball.\n\nSorry for the pretty sad, volleyball action shots. I didn\'t have my good camera with me and my phone battery was on it\'s way out or I\'d have\n<a title=\"action shot by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480971440/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8165/7480971440_22acbf3b53_z.jpg\" alt=\"action shot\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Bulgaria, Volleyball and New York Style Hot Dogs ','','inherit','open','open','','6850-revision','','','2012-07-01 21:54:59','2012-07-01 19:54:59','',6850,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/01/6850-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6852,1,'2012-07-01 21:55:26','2012-07-01 19:55:26','On Friday night I went to watch two different volleyball matches: Germany vs Argentina and Bulgaria vs Portugal.\r\n<a title=\"Arena stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480916300/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7123/7480916300_5783e32e02_z.jpg\" alt=\"Arena stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"BG flags at Arena by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480924426/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7133/7480924426_25225c1e87_z.jpg\" alt=\"BG flags at Arena\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n\r\nI thought the whole thing was great fun. I haven\'t been to many, if any, sporting events in Bulgaria. I guess I could have but until Friday I\'d never really sought out the experience.\r\n<a title=\"Volleyball tickets world league by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480941558/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8022/7480941558_b2323ce73c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Volleyball tickets world league\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI didn\'t really know what to expect. I\'ve been to a lot of college sporting events from American football to gymnastics to basketball to rugby and even to regattas.  Thanks, dAd! And as an adult, I went to plenty of baseball games in Washington DC and was perfectly happy to drink beer, eat peanuts and watch the Washington National lose.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nSo the first game started at 5:30pm and the second at 8:45pm. A. and I showed up early enough to have a coffee before the game started. Coffee out of small plastic cups. I had a long coffee and A. a normal coffee. The funny part was the A. had to ask which one was which. The girl pointed to the coffee that was slightly more fully and said: this is the long coffee. Oh, of course.\r\n\r\nI\'ll spare you the play by play details of both games as I figure if you really care you already know and if you don\'t know you probably don\'t care. I am also not really sure that you want to read my play by play of the games since I don\'t think I\'d make a great sports writer. Mostly because during the second game I kept getting distracted. I couldn\'t stop thinking about the fact that the Bulgarian national team was actually wearing kind of short shorts. Shorts that were shorter than any of the other teams.\r\n<a title=\"Germany v Argentina by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480928788/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8013/7480928788_bdc2c49b10_z.jpg\" alt=\"Germany v Argentina\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow Germany beat Argentina. It wasn\'t even close. I went back and forth between wanting to cheer for Germany because they were playing really well and rooting for the underdog Argentina. In the end it didn\'t matter. Germany won.\r\n\r\nAfter the game we went to find some food. The selection was pretty limited and even writing that makes it sound like there were more options than there were. The option was this hot dog stand.\r\n<a title=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480934456/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480934456_8b447ba775_z.jpg\" alt=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe hot dogs claimed to be New York style but I\'d say they were anything but. The bun was okay but the condiments left a lot to be desired and the hot dog was clearly a Bulgarian style hot dog. Oh well, it\'s not like I was actually expecting a New York Hot Dog in Sofia, Bulgaria. I know better than that. Still the Stadium could use a few more food options.\r\n<a title=\"Outside the stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480946428/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7265/7480946428_9b34b669ee_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside the stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe big disappointment was that the stadium wasn\'t serving beer because really, what is a sporting event without a beer?! The interesting part is that actually they were serving beer. It was just nonalcoholic. Who knew such a thing even existed in Bulgaria? I mean this is a country where while the drinking age is 18 but  no one actually seems to care enough to enforce it.\r\n\r\nApparently a lot of sporting events in Bulgaria are dry. I think that\'s really funny. Still I could have used a cold beer. It would have gone perfectly with sitting around outside on the steps of the Arena killing time after eating my hot dog and before the start of the Bulgaria/Portugal game.\r\n<a title=\"Bulgaria at play by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480954090/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8145/7480954090_32589d12fc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bulgaria at play\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe second game Bulgaria vs Portugal was much, much more lively. First of all, there were many more people there to watch and second, Bulgaria and Portugal were actually playing a game. While in the Germany and Argentina match, Germany was just trouncing Argentina.  And I am talking trouncing to the point that it was painful to watch.\r\n<a title=\"Before the game by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480958762/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8157/7480958762_5366d255ac_z.jpg\" alt=\"Before the game\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe Bulgaria-Portugal match up was good one and it was great fun to watch Bulgarians actually enjoying themselves and cheering on their country. I mean Bulgarians went all out. I am talking flags painted on their faces, green, red and white shirts, scarfs, flags and even drums. Way to go! That\'s some serious pride.\r\n<a title=\"fans by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480965288/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480965288_4608f71e94_z.jpg\" alt=\"fans\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI will say that nearly 5 hours of watching volleyball in a plastic chair was a little uncomfortable but two days later these things don\'t matter any more and now I am kind of bummed that I won\'t be around next week to watch more volleyball.\r\n\r\nSorry for the pretty sad, volleyball action shots. I didn\'t have my good camera with me and my phone battery was on it\'s way out or I\'d have tried for a few less blurry shots.\r\n<a title=\"action shot by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480971440/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8165/7480971440_22acbf3b53_z.jpg\" alt=\"action shot\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Bulgaria, Volleyball and New York Style Hot Dogs ','','inherit','open','open','','6850-revision-2','','','2012-07-01 21:55:26','2012-07-01 19:55:26','',6850,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/01/6850-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6853,1,'2012-07-01 22:07:28','2012-07-01 20:07:28','On Friday night I went to watch two different volleyball matches: Germany vs Argentina and Bulgaria vs Portugal. I know, you might be thinking to yourself: What?! Carolyn went to a sporting event?! Is she feeling okay?!\n\nSure almost never write about sports but that doesn\'t mean that I don\'t like watching people play a game now and then.\n<a title=\"Arena stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480916300/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7123/7480916300_5783e32e02_z.jpg\" alt=\"Arena stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"BG flags at Arena by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480924426/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7133/7480924426_25225c1e87_z.jpg\" alt=\"BG flags at Arena\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nYep, on Thursday I made a special trip to the Arena to buy tickets. I have preferred to buy them online but even if you do this you still have to pick the tickets up in person. This begs the question: does this save anyone time and why buy the online if you then have to physically pick them up at a separate ticket office in person?\n\nAnyhow, I got tickets. Pretty good ones even though it wasn\'t until I was at the ticket office that I realized I didn\'t know how to ask for seats on the sidelines. Luckily I drew a picture of what I was looking for and the ticket lady was willing to smile at me as I told the basics in the Bulgarain.\n\nI thought the whole evening was great fun. I haven\'t been to many, if any, sporting events in Bulgaria. I am not sure why I\'d never been before now because I guess I could have. Maybe now there\'s a football game in my future. Then again, maybe not. I don\'t know which Sofia team I\'d cheer for. And a girl can\'t (or maybe shouldn\'t) pick a team just because she likes their colors.\n<a title=\"Volleyball tickets world league by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480941558/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8022/7480941558_b2323ce73c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Volleyball tickets world league\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nBack to the game at hand, I didn\'t really know what to expect from a volleyball game in Sofia. I\'ve been to a lot of college sporting events from American football to gymnastics to basketball to rugby and even to regattas.  Thanks, dAd! And as an adult, I went to plenty of baseball games in Washington DC and was perfectly happy to drink beer, eat peanuts and watch the Washington National lose. However, I wasn\'t able to determine how official things would be at this game.\n\nFor example, I asked A. if the games would start on time. This of course seems like a reasonable question in Bulgaria. No really seems to be concerned with time in this country and given the number of drama and musical productions that I\'ve been to that start late. He looked at me and said, they\'ll start on time. And they did. <!--more-->\n\nSo the first game started at 5:30pm and the second at 8:45pm. A. and I showed up early enough to have a coffee before the game started. Coffee out of small plastic cups. I had a long coffee and A. a normal coffee. The funny part was the A. had to ask which one was which. The girl pointed to the coffee that was slightly more fully and said: this is the long coffee. Oh, of course.\n\nI\'ll spare you the play by play details of both games as I figure if you really care you already know and if you don\'t know you probably don\'t care. I am also not really sure that you want to read my play by play of the games since I don\'t think I\'d make a great sports writer. Mostly because during the second game I kept getting distracted. I couldn\'t stop thinking about the fact that the Bulgarian national team was actually wearing kind of short shorts. Shorts that were shorter than any of the other teams.\n<a title=\"Germany v Argentina by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480928788/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8013/7480928788_bdc2c49b10_z.jpg\" alt=\"Germany v Argentina\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow Germany beat Argentina. It wasn\'t even close. I went back and forth between wanting to cheer for Germany because they were playing really well and rooting for the underdog Argentina. In the end it didn\'t matter. Germany won.\n\nAfter the game we went to find some food. The selection was pretty limited and even writing that makes it sound like there were more options than there were. The option was this hot dog stand.\n<a title=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480934456/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480934456_8b447ba775_z.jpg\" alt=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe hot dogs claimed to be New York style but I\'d say they were anything but. The bun was okay but the condiments left a lot to be desired and the hot dog was clearly a Bulgarian style hot dog. Oh well, it\'s not like I was actually expecting a New York Hot Dog in Sofia, Bulgaria. I know better than that. Still the Stadium could use a few more food options.\n<a title=\"Outside the stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480946428/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7265/7480946428_9b34b669ee_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside the stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe big disappointment was that the stadium wasn\'t serving beer because really, what is a sporting event without a beer?! The interesting part is that actually they were serving beer. It was just nonalcoholic. Who knew such a thing even existed in Bulgaria? I mean this is a country where while the drinking age is 18 but  no one actually seems to care enough to enforce it.\n\nApparently a lot of sporting events in Bulgaria are dry. I think that\'s really funny. Still I could have used a cold beer. It would have gone perfectly with sitting around outside on the steps of the Arena killing time after eating my hot dog and before the start of the Bulgaria/Portugal game.\n<a title=\"Bulgaria at play by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480954090/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8145/7480954090_32589d12fc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bulgaria at play\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe second game Bulgaria vs Portugal was much, much more lively. First of all, there were many more people there to watch and second, Bulgaria and Portugal were actually playing a game. While in the Germany and Argentina match, Germany was just trouncing Argentina.  And I am talking trouncing to the point that it was painful to watch.\n<a title=\"Before the game by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480958762/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8157/7480958762_5366d255ac_z.jpg\" alt=\"Before the game\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe Bulgaria-Portugal match up was good one and it was great fun to watch Bulgarians actually enjoying themselves and cheering on their country. I mean Bulgarians went all out. I am talking flags painted on their faces, green, red and white shirts, scarfs, flags and even drums. Way to go! That\'s some serious pride.\n<a title=\"fans by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480965288/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480965288_4608f71e94_z.jpg\" alt=\"fans\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI will say that nearly 5 hours of watching volleyball in a plastic chair was a little uncomfortable but two days later these things don\'t matter any more and now I am kind of bummed that I won\'t be around next week to watch more volleyball.\n\nSorry for the pretty sad, volleyball action shots. I didn\'t have my good camera with me and my phone battery was on it\'s way out or I\'d have tried for a few less blurry shots.\n<a title=\"action shot by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480971440/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8165/7480971440_22acbf3b53_z.jpg\" alt=\"action shot\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Bulgaria, Volleyball and New York Style Hot Dogs ','','inherit','open','open','','6850-revision-3','','','2012-07-01 22:07:28','2012-07-01 20:07:28','',6850,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/01/6850-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(6854,1,'2012-07-01 22:09:08','2012-07-01 20:09:08','On Friday night I went to watch two different volleyball matches: Germany vs Argentina and Bulgaria vs Portugal. I know, you might be thinking to yourself: What?! Carolyn went to a sporting event?! Is she feeling okay?!\n\nSure almost never write about sports but that doesn\'t mean that I don\'t like watching people play a game now and then.\n<a title=\"Arena stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480916300/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7123/7480916300_5783e32e02_z.jpg\" alt=\"Arena stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"BG flags at Arena by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480924426/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7133/7480924426_25225c1e87_z.jpg\" alt=\"BG flags at Arena\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nYep, on Thursday I made a special trip to the Arena to buy tickets. I have preferred to buy them online but even if you do this you still have to pick the tickets up in person. This begs the question: does this save anyone time and why buy the online if you then have to physically pick them up at a separate ticket office in person?\n\nAnyhow, I got tickets. Pretty good ones even though it wasn\'t until I was at the ticket office that I realized I didn\'t know how to ask for seats on the sidelines. Luckily I drew a picture of what I was looking for and the ticket lady was willing to smile at me as I told the basics in the Bulgarain.\n\nI thought the whole evening was great fun. I haven\'t been to many, if any, sporting events in Bulgaria. I am not sure why I\'d never been before now because I guess I could have. Maybe now there\'s a football game in my future. Then again, maybe not. I don\'t know which Sofia team I\'d cheer for. And a girl can\'t (or maybe shouldn\'t) pick a team just because she likes their colors.\n<a title=\"Volleyball tickets world league by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480941558/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8022/7480941558_b2323ce73c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Volleyball tickets world league\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nBack to the game at hand, I didn\'t really know what to expect from a volleyball game in Sofia. I\'ve been to a lot of college sporting events from American football to gymnastics to basketball to rugby and even to regattas.  Thanks, dAd! And as an adult, I went to plenty of baseball games in Washington DC and was perfectly happy to drink beer, eat peanuts and watch the Washington National lose. However, I wasn\'t able to determine how official things would be at this game.\n\nFor example, I asked A. if the games would start on time. This of course seems like a reasonable question in Bulgaria. No really seems to be concerned with time in this country and given the number of drama and musical productions that I\'ve been to that start late it seemed like a fair enough question. He looked at me and knowingly said, they\'ll start on time. And they did. <!--more-->\n\nSo the first game started at 5:30pm and the second at 8:45pm. A. and I showed up early enough to have a coffee before the game started. Coffee out of small plastic cups. I had a long coffee and A. a normal coffee. The funny part was the A. had to ask which one was which. The girl pointed to the coffee that was slightly more fully and said: this is the long coffee. Oh, of course.\n\nI\'ll spare you the play by play details of both games as I figure if you really care you already know and if you don\'t know you probably don\'t care. I am also not really sure that you want to read my play by play of the games since I don\'t think I\'d make a great sports writer. Mostly because during the second game I kept getting distracted. I couldn\'t stop thinking about the fact that the Bulgarian national team was actually wearing kind of short shorts. Shorts that were shorter than any of the other teams.\n<a title=\"Germany v Argentina by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480928788/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8013/7480928788_bdc2c49b10_z.jpg\" alt=\"Germany v Argentina\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow Germany beat Argentina. It wasn\'t even close. I went back and forth between wanting to cheer for Germany because they were playing really well and rooting for the underdog Argentina. In the end it didn\'t matter. Germany won.\n\nAfter the game we went to find some food. The selection was pretty limited and even writing that makes it sound like there were more options than there were. The option was this hot dog stand.\n<a title=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480934456/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480934456_8b447ba775_z.jpg\" alt=\"New York style hot dogs in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe hot dogs claimed to be New York style but I\'d say they were anything but. The bun was okay but the condiments left a lot to be desired and the hot dog was clearly a Bulgarian style hot dog. Oh well, it\'s not like I was actually expecting a New York Hot Dog in Sofia, Bulgaria. I know better than that. Still the Stadium could use a few more food options.\n<a title=\"Outside the stadium by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480946428/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7265/7480946428_9b34b669ee_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside the stadium\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe big disappointment was that the stadium wasn\'t serving beer because really, what is a sporting event without a beer?! The interesting part is that actually they were serving beer. It was just nonalcoholic. Who knew such a thing even existed in Bulgaria? I mean this is a country where while the drinking age is 18 but  no one actually seems to care enough to enforce it.\n\nApparently a lot of sporting events in Bulgaria are dry. I think that\'s really funny. Still I could have used a cold beer. It would have gone perfectly with sitting around outside on the steps of the Arena killing time after eating my hot dog and before the start of the Bulgaria/Portugal game.\n<a title=\"Bulgaria at play by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480954090/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8145/7480954090_32589d12fc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bulgaria at play\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe second game Bulgaria vs Portugal was much, much more lively. First of all, there were many more people there to watch and second, Bulgaria and Portugal were actually playing a game. While in the Germany and Argentina match, Germany was just trouncing Argentina.  And I am talking trouncing to the point that it was painful to watch.\n<a title=\"Before the game by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480958762/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8157/7480958762_5366d255ac_z.jpg\" alt=\"Before the game\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe Bulgaria-Portugal match up was good one and it was great fun to watch Bulgarians actually enjoying themselves and cheering on their country. I mean Bulgarians went all out. I am talking flags painted on their faces, green, red and white shirts, scarfs, flags and even drums. Way to go! That\'s some serious pride.\n<a title=\"fans by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480965288/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7108/7480965288_4608f71e94_z.jpg\" alt=\"fans\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI will say that nearly 5 hours of watching volleyball in a plastic chair was a little uncomfortable but two days later these things don\'t matter any more and now I am kind of bummed that I won\'t be around next week to watch more volleyball.\n\nSorry for the pretty sad, volleyball action shots. I didn\'t have my good camera with me and my phone battery was on it\'s way out or I\'d have tried for a few less blurry shots.\n<a title=\"action shot by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480971440/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8165/7480971440_22acbf3b53_z.jpg\" alt=\"action shot\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Bulgaria, Volleyball and New York Style Hot Dogs ','','inherit','open','open','','6850-autosave','','','2012-07-01 22:09:08','2012-07-01 20:09:08','',6850,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/01/6850-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6874,1,'2012-07-12 11:33:24','2012-07-12 09:33:24','','Auto Draft','','inherit','open','open','','6873-revision','','','2012-07-12 11:33:24','2012-07-12 09:33:24','',6873,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/12/6873-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6873,1,'2012-07-12 11:33:24','2012-07-12 09:33:24','I\'m on my second week of traveling. So far so good. \nDenmark was everything that I could hope for and more. Castles and bikes and everything nice.\n\n<img title=\"20120705_165400.jpg\" class=\"alignnone\" alt=\"image\" src=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/wpid-20120705_165400.jpg\" />\n\n\n\nSweeden was a whirlwind of sight seeing but the weather was good and the city was easy to get around. Then we hopped on a ferry to Finland. \nThis country has been a riot. Everyone thinks that I\'m Finnish and keeps talking to me in Finnish only to realize their mistake and apologise saying: I thought you were Finnish. Nope.\nWe took a boat to Tallinn for a day and wandered the old town. Oh and we climbed to the top of the old city hall. Now my left leg is more tired than my right. I guess that\'s what happens in a spiral staircase. What a great city. \n\n<img title=\"20120710_155536.jpg\" class=\"alignnone\" alt=\"image\" src=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/wpid-20120710_155536.jpg\" />\n\n\n\nFrom Helsinki we took a night train to Rovaniemi--a town at the Arctic Circle which also happens to be where Santa lives. Santa was good, there were hardly any mosquitos\n(we\'d been warned about swarms), the sun never really seemed to set and in pursuit of a midnight beer, we got hit on by two different older Finnish men. One couldn\'t believe we were American and on holiday in Rovaniemi. \n\nGo figure. \n\n<img title=\"20120712_003428.jpg\" class=\"alignnone\" alt=\"image\" src=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/wpid-20120712_003428.jpg\" />\n\n\n\nWe\'re on to Norway tomorrow.','Update from the Road','','publish','open','open','','update-from-the-road','','','2012-07-12 11:33:24','2012-07-12 09:33:24','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6873',0,'post','',3),(6857,1,'2012-07-03 15:10:14','2012-07-03 13:10:14','This past Saturday I went to Sofia Pride with a number of colleagues and teacher friends. The event was a very positive and uplifting one. My first year, two years ago, there were lots of people with hateful signs but this year along the actual parade route there was none of this.\r\n\r\n<em>Progress?</em> I hope so.\r\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481018382/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7280/7481018382_5ca1a7a239_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nSecurity around the even is still pretty serious though. So we showed up early to be screened and given an arm band. The day was incredibly hot even at 5pm when the parade started but luckily these things are fleeting. Nevertheless everyone was in a good mood and there was lots of great energy in the staging area.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481011098/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7266/7481011098_57b9150e82_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThere were paper flags for everyone but lots of people brought bigger flags, signs and there were even some costume-like outfits. We marched in a loop ending where we started. The police seemed pretty attentive walking along side the parade.  Here are couple of pictures from the event. There\'s also a <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151883003530174.876226.673580173&amp;type=1\" target=\"_blank\">beautiful collection on facebook </a>too.\r\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481006716/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7481006716_73e1844d84_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480989726/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8150/7480989726_bdac8c5e45_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Sofia Pride ','','publish','open','open','','sofia-pride','','','2012-07-03 15:10:14','2012-07-03 13:10:14','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6857',0,'post','',0),(6858,1,'2012-07-03 15:03:05','2012-07-03 13:03:05','This past Saturday I went to Sofia Pride with a number of colleagues and teacher friends. The event was a very positive and uplifting one. My first year, two years ago, there were lots of people with hateful signs but this year along the actual parade route there was none of this.\n\nProgress? I hope so.\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481018382/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7280/7481018382_5ca1a7a239_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nSecurity around the even is still pretty serious though. So we showed up early to be screened and given an arm band. The day was incredibly hot even at 5pm when the parade started but luckily these things are fleeting. Nevertheless everyone was in a good mood and there was lots of great energy in the staging area.\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481011098/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7266/7481011098_57b9150e82_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe marched in a loop ending where we started. The police seemed pretty attentive Here are some pictures from the event.\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481006716/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7481006716_73e1844d84_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481006716/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7481006716_73e1844d84_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Sofia Pride ','','inherit','open','open','','6857-revision','','','2012-07-03 15:03:05','2012-07-03 13:03:05','',6857,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/03/6857-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6859,1,'2012-07-03 15:04:04','2012-07-03 13:04:04','This past Saturday I went to Sofia Pride with a number of colleagues and teacher friends. The event was a very positive and uplifting one. My first year, two years ago, there were lots of people with hateful signs but this year along the actual parade route there was none of this.\n\nProgress? I hope so.\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481018382/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7280/7481018382_5ca1a7a239_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nSecurity around the even is still pretty serious though. So we showed up early to be screened and given an arm band. The day was incredibly hot even at 5pm when the parade started but luckily these things are fleeting. Nevertheless everyone was in a good mood and there was lots of great energy in the staging area.\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481011098/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7266/7481011098_57b9150e82_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe marched in a loop ending where we started. The police seemed pretty attentive walking along side the parade.  Here are some pictures from the event.\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481006716/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7481006716_73e1844d84_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Sofia Pride by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7480989726/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8150/7480989726_bdac8c5e45_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sofia Pride\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Sofia Pride ','','inherit','open','open','','6857-revision-2','','','2012-07-03 15:04:04','2012-07-03 13:04:04','',6857,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/03/6857-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6860,1,'2012-07-06 07:10:20','2012-07-06 05:10:20','Last week after trying to go to Vino and Tapas for dinner and finding the restaurant closed, I ended up with friends at <a href=\"http://www.joya.bg/\" target=\"_blank\">Joya Cafe</a> on Dondunkov (#19 to be exact). It was a great find. (But I still must ask, does anyone know what the story with Vino and Tapas is? Is it closed forever?)\r\n<a title=\"Cafe Joya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481032680/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7278/7481032680_2fdbc24948_z.jpg\" alt=\"Cafe Joya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI\'d seen the restaurant a number of times but it never surfaced as an option when my friends and I were making dinner plans. I\'d always thought the restaurant looked cute, that the menu was interesting and that the space was hip without trying too hard.\r\n\r\nThe menu isn\'t too big but still there\'s something for everyone on it. Sure I think it might be more of a salad place if you are a vegetarian but I do think there was a vegetarian pasta, salad and even baked egg plant on the menu if that\'s your thing. <!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Joya Cafe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481045158/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7481045158_4d3fc22670_z.jpg\" alt=\"Joya Cafe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe sat outside. It was a beautiful evening and the thought of sitting inside was too depressing after learning that Vino and Tapas was closed. I am happy to report that we great service outside. Sometimes outside seating seems like an afterthought but not in this case. Our waitress was very attentive and she spoke really good English too.\r\n\r\nWe started out with beers and water and read through the menu.\r\n<a title=\"outside seating Joya Cafe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481038938/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7126/7481038938_0de14cdb49_z.jpg\" alt=\"outside seating Joya Cafe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWhile a far cry from tapas, the food was really good the night we went. There\'s a wide range of salads from classics like Shopska to less traditional ones like the Joya Salad with lettuce, citrus fruit and blue cheese. There\'s pasta, pizza and even a number of baked dishes. But it\'s the kind of menu where it\'s hard to tell if the food will actually be good and if it will come as described.  Luckily it was both of these things!!\r\n<a title=\"Joya Cafe salad by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481051980/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7135/7481051980_a0d03a0658_z.jpg\" alt=\"Joya Cafe salad\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI had the goat cheese salad, a beer and a homemade roll. The goat cheese salad was perfect--not too much dressing, a small round of goat cheese and pine nuts. In fact, I\'d forgotten how much I like pine nuts until I had this salad. On a hot summer night, this salad really hit the spot was just just enough but I also suffered from some food envy.\r\n\r\nMy friends ordered really great things. The salmon salad was a hit as were the mussels. One of my friends P. paired up a salad and the mussels which are billed as a hot appetizer for what looked a very satisfying meal. The homemade pasta with chicken was raved about. I was curious to see what the chicken wings were going to look like and when they came out they were beautiful. I think they must have been good because A. ate every single one.  S. ordered her standard Shopska salad and french fries and by the end of the night she was already discussing coming back to the restaurant.\r\n<a title=\"Joya Cafe napkins by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481056866/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7258/7481056866_04c65db18c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Joya Cafe napkins\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAt the end of the night we had a good laugh about these napkins. Then we called it a night.','Joya Cafe on Dondunkov','','publish','open','open','','joya-cafe-on-dondunkov','','','2012-07-03 15:39:44','2012-07-03 13:39:44','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6860',0,'post','',1),(6861,1,'2012-07-03 15:31:22','2012-07-03 13:31:22','Last week after trying to go to Vino and Tapas for dinner and finding the restaurant closed, I ended up with friends at <a href=\"http://www.joya.bg/\" target=\"_blank\">Joya Cafe</a> on Dondunkov (#19 to be exact).\n\nI\'d seen the restaurant a number of times but it never surfaced as an option when my friends and I were making dinner plans. I\'d always thought the restaurant looked cute, that the menu was interesting and that the space was hip without trying too hard.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481045158/\" title=\"Joya Cafe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7481045158_4d3fc22670_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Joya Cafe\"></a>\nWe sat outside. It was a beautiful evening and the thought of sitting inside was too depressing after learning that Vino and Tapas was closed. I am happy to report that we great service outside. Sometimes outside seating seems like an afterthought but not in this case.\n\nWhile a far cry from tapas, the food was really good the night we went. There\'s a wide range of salads from classics like Shopska to less traditional ones like the Joya Salad with lettuce, citrus fruit and blue cheese. There\'s pasta, pizza and even a number of baked dishes.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481051980/\" title=\"Joya Cafe salad by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7135/7481051980_a0d03a0658_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Joya Cafe salad\"></a>\nI had the goat cheese salad, a beer and a homemade roll. The goat cheese salad was perfect--not too much dressing, a small round of goat cheese and pine nuts. In fact, I\'d forgotten how much I like pine nuts until I had this salad. On a hot summer night, this salad really hit the spot was just just enough but I also suffered from some food envy.\n\nMy friends ordered really great things. The salmon salad was a hit as were the mussels. One of my friends P. paired up a salad and the mussels which are billed as a hot appetizer for what looked a very satisfying meal. The homemade pasta with chicken was raved about. I was curious to see what the chicken wings were going to look like and when they came out they were beautiful. I think they must have been good because A. ate every single one.  S. ordered her standard Shopska salad and french fries and by the end of the night she was already discussing coming back to the restaurant.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481056866/\" title=\"Joya Cafe napkins by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7258/7481056866_04c65db18c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Joya Cafe napkins\"></a>\nAt the end of the night we had a good laugh about these napkins. Then we called it a night.','Joya Cafe on Dondunkov','','inherit','open','open','','6860-revision','','','2012-07-03 15:31:22','2012-07-03 13:31:22','',6860,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/03/6860-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6862,1,'2012-07-03 15:32:22','2012-07-03 13:32:22','Last week after trying to go to Vino and Tapas for dinner and finding the restaurant closed, I ended up with friends at <a href=\"http://www.joya.bg/\" target=\"_blank\">Joya Cafe</a> on Dondunkov (#19 to be exact).\n<a title=\"Cafe Joya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481032680/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7278/7481032680_2fdbc24948_z.jpg\" alt=\"Cafe Joya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI\'d seen the restaurant a number of times but it never surfaced as an option when my friends and I were making dinner plans. I\'d always thought the restaurant looked cute, that the menu was interesting and that the space was hip without trying too hard.\n<a title=\"Joya Cafe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481045158/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7481045158_4d3fc22670_z.jpg\" alt=\"Joya Cafe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe sat outside. It was a beautiful evening and the thought of sitting inside was too depressing after learning that Vino and Tapas was closed. I am happy to report that we great service outside. Sometimes outside seating seems like an afterthought but not in this case.\n<a title=\"outside seating Joya Cafe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481038938/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7126/7481038938_0de14cdb49_z.jpg\" alt=\"outside seating Joya Cafe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWhile a far cry from tapas, the food was really good the night we went. There\'s a wide range of salads from classics like Shopska to less traditional ones like the Joya Salad with lettuce, citrus fruit and blue cheese. There\'s pasta, pizza and even a number of baked dishes.\n<a title=\"Joya Cafe salad by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481051980/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7135/7481051980_a0d03a0658_z.jpg\" alt=\"Joya Cafe salad\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI had the goat cheese salad, a beer and a homemade roll. The goat cheese salad was perfect--not too much dressing, a small round of goat cheese and pine nuts. In fact, I\'d forgotten how much I like pine nuts until I had this salad. On a hot summer night, this salad really hit the spot was just just enough but I also suffered from some food envy.\n\nMy friends ordered really great things. The salmon salad was a hit as were the mussels. One of my friends P. paired up a salad and the mussels which are billed as a hot appetizer for what looked a very satisfying meal. The homemade pasta with chicken was raved about. I was curious to see what the chicken wings were going to look like and when they came out they were beautiful. I think they must have been good because A. ate every single one.  S. ordered her standard Shopska salad and french fries and by the end of the night she was already discussing coming back to the restaurant.\n<a title=\"Joya Cafe napkins by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481056866/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7258/7481056866_04c65db18c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Joya Cafe napkins\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAt the end of the night we had a good laugh about these napkins. Then we called it a night.','Joya Cafe on Dondunkov','','inherit','open','open','','6860-revision-2','','','2012-07-03 15:32:22','2012-07-03 13:32:22','',6860,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/03/6860-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6863,1,'2012-07-03 15:38:19','2012-07-03 13:38:19','Last week after trying to go to Vino and Tapas for dinner and finding the restaurant closed, I ended up with friends at <a href=\"http://www.joya.bg/\" target=\"_blank\">Joya Cafe</a> on Dondunkov (#19 to be exact). It was a great find. (But I still must ask, does anyone know what the story with Vino and Tapas is? Is it closed forever?)\r\n<a title=\"Cafe Joya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481032680/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7278/7481032680_2fdbc24948_z.jpg\" alt=\"Cafe Joya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI\'d seen the restaurant a number of times but it never surfaced as an option when my friends and I were making dinner plans. I\'d always thought the restaurant looked cute, that the menu was interesting and that the space was hip without trying too hard.\r\n\r\nThe menu isn\'t too big but luckily there\'s something for everyone on it. Sure I think it might be more of a salad place if your vegetarian but I do think there was a vegetarian pasta, salad and baked egg plant on the menu if that\'s your thing.\r\n<a title=\"Joya Cafe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481045158/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7481045158_4d3fc22670_z.jpg\" alt=\"Joya Cafe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe sat outside. It was a beautiful evening and the thought of sitting inside was too depressing after learning that Vino and Tapas was closed. I am happy to report that we great service outside. Sometimes outside seating seems like an afterthought but not in this case. Our waitress was very attentive and she spoke really good English too.\r\n\r\nWe started out with beers and water and read through the menu.\r\n<a title=\"outside seating Joya Cafe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481038938/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7126/7481038938_0de14cdb49_z.jpg\" alt=\"outside seating Joya Cafe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWhile a far cry from tapas, the food was really good the night we went. There\'s a wide range of salads from classics like Shopska to less traditional ones like the Joya Salad with lettuce, citrus fruit and blue cheese. There\'s pasta, pizza and even a number of baked dishes. But it\'s the kind of menu where it\'s hard to tell if the food will actually be good and if it will come as described.  Luckily it was both of these things!!\r\n<a title=\"Joya Cafe salad by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481051980/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7135/7481051980_a0d03a0658_z.jpg\" alt=\"Joya Cafe salad\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI had the goat cheese salad, a beer and a homemade roll. The goat cheese salad was perfect--not too much dressing, a small round of goat cheese and pine nuts. In fact, I\'d forgotten how much I like pine nuts until I had this salad. On a hot summer night, this salad really hit the spot was just just enough but I also suffered from some food envy.\r\n\r\nMy friends ordered really great things. The salmon salad was a hit as were the mussels. One of my friends P. paired up a salad and the mussels which are billed as a hot appetizer for what looked a very satisfying meal. The homemade pasta with chicken was raved about. I was curious to see what the chicken wings were going to look like and when they came out they were beautiful. I think they must have been good because A. ate every single one.  S. ordered her standard Shopska salad and french fries and by the end of the night she was already discussing coming back to the restaurant.\r\n<a title=\"Joya Cafe napkins by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7481056866/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7258/7481056866_04c65db18c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Joya Cafe napkins\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAt the end of the night we had a good laugh about these napkins. Then we called it a night.','Joya Cafe on Dondunkov','','inherit','open','open','','6860-revision-3','','','2012-07-03 15:38:19','2012-07-03 13:38:19','',6860,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/03/6860-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(6864,1,'2012-07-04 07:39:53','2012-07-04 05:39:53','It\'s been a whirlwind of a few weeks. The end of the school year is always insanely busy. I had lots of do and lots more that I wanted to do. Now school is out and I\'ve got two months of vacation ahead of me.\r\n\r\nSee, there are some perks to being a teacher.\r\n\r\nSo, I hopped on a plane and now I am exploring Scandinavia with my friend and fellow teacher P. We\'re starting the adventure in Denmark, then heading to Sweden, Finland, Estonia and finishing things off in Norway. It\'s going to be a busy two weeks.\r\n\r\nThis means that I\'ll be around much less on this blog between July 4 and the 17th. I am looking forward to having a chance to relax, unplug (a little bit anyway, I\'ll still tweet and upload pictures to flickr) and to explore a new part of the world. I don\'t really know what to expect from Scandinavia so this going to be an exciting (and expensive) trip.\r\n\r\nI\'ll be back in Sofia from the 17th to the 31st and then on the 1st of August I am going to fly home and spend the month in Walla Walla.','Traveling: Scandinavia ','','publish','open','open','','traveling-scandinavia','','','2012-07-03 16:09:37','2012-07-03 14:09:37','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6864',0,'post','',1),(6865,1,'2012-07-03 15:47:55','2012-07-03 13:47:55','It\'s been a whirlwind of a few weeks. The end of the school year is always insanely busy. I had lots of do and lots more that I wanted to do. Now school is out and I\'ve got two months of vacation ahead of me.\n\nSee, there are some perks to being a teacher.\n\nSo, I hopped on a plane and now I am exploring Scandinavia with my friend and fellow teacher P. We\'re starting the adventure in Denmark, then heading to Sweden, Finland, Estonia and finishing things off in Norway. It\'s going to be a busy two weeks.\n\nThis means that I\'ll be around much less on this blog between July 4 and the 17th. I am looking forward to having a chance to relax, unplug (a little bit anyway, I\'ll still tweet and upload pictures to flickr) and to explore a new part of the world. I don\'t really know what to expect from Scandinavia so this going to be an exciting (and expensive) trip.\n\nI\'ll be back in Sofia from the 17th to the 31st and then on the 1st of August I am going to fly home and spend the month in Walla Walla.','Traveling: Scandinavia ','','inherit','open','open','','6864-revision','','','2012-07-03 15:47:55','2012-07-03 13:47:55','',6864,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/03/6864-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6866,1,'2012-07-03 15:58:03','2012-07-03 13:58:03','It\'s been a whirlwind of a few weeks. The end of the school year is always insanely busy. I had lots of do and lots more that I wanted to do. Now school is out and I\'ve got two months of vacation ahead of me.\n\nSee, there are some perks to being a teacher.\n\nSo, I hopped on a plane and now I am exploring Scandinavia with my friend and fellow teacher P. We\'re starting the adventure in Denmark, then heading to Sweden, Finland, Estonia and finishing things off in Norway. It\'s going to be a busy two weeks.\n\nThis means that I\'ll be around much less on this blog between July 4 and the 17th. I am looking forward to having a chance to relax, unplug (a little bit anyway, I\'ll still tweet and upload pictures to flickr) and to explore a new part of the world. I don\'t really know what to expect from Scandinavia so this going to be an exciting (and expensive) trip.\n\nI\'ll be back in Sofia from the 17th to the 31st and then on the 1st of August I am going to fly home and spend the month in Walla Walla.','Traveling: Scandinavia ','','inherit','open','open','','6864-autosave','','','2012-07-03 15:58:03','2012-07-03 13:58:03','',6864,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/03/6864-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6867,1,'2012-07-03 15:57:00','2012-07-03 13:57:00','It\'s been a whirlwind of a few weeks. The end of the school year is always insanely busy. I had lots of do and lots more that I wanted to do. Now school is out and I\'ve got two months of vacation ahead of me.\r\n\r\nSee, there are some perks to being a teacher.\r\n\r\nSo, I hopped on a plane and now I am exploring Scandinavia with my friend and fellow teacher P. We\'re starting the adventure in Denmark, then heading to Sweden, Finland, Estonia and finishing things off in Norway. It\'s going to be a busy two weeks.\r\n\r\nThis means that I\'ll be around much less on this blog between July 4 and the 17th. I am looking forward to having a chance to relax, unplug (a little bit anyway, I\'ll still tweet and upload pictures to flickr) and to explore a new part of the world. I don\'t really know what to expect from Scandinavia so this going to be an exciting (and expensive) trip.\r\n\r\nI\'ll be back in Sofia from the 17th to the 31st and then on the 1st of August I am going to fly home and spend the month in Walla Walla.','Traveling: Scandinavia ','','inherit','open','open','','6864-revision-2','','','2012-07-03 15:57:00','2012-07-03 13:57:00','',6864,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/03/6864-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6868,1,'2012-07-03 16:37:29','0000-00-00 00:00:00','I went with A. to see <em><a href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1645170/\" target=\"_blank\">the Dictator</a></em> before my Scandinavian adventure began.  I wasn\'t sure that I was going to like it but I ended up laughing and laughing. The thing about seeing a film like this in Bulgaria is that it has subtitles and a ton of cultural references so I regularly find myself laughing alone during films like this.\r\n\r\nThe problem of course is that the jokes are never as funny in translation and the timing is off when you read them. Moreover, Sacha Baron Cohen\'s character was funny because of how much fun he could make of America.','The Dictator ','','draft','open','open','','','','','2012-07-03 16:37:29','2012-07-03 14:37:29','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6868',0,'post','',0),(6869,1,'2012-07-03 16:37:02','2012-07-03 14:37:02','I went with A. to see <em><a href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1645170/\" target=\"_blank\">the Dictator</a></em> before my Scandinavian adventure began.  I wasn\'t sure that I was going to like it but I ended up laughing and laughing. The thing about seeing a film like this in Bulgaria is that it has subtitles and a ton of cultural references so I regularly find myself laughing alone during films like this.\n\nThe problem of course is that the jokes are never as funny in translation and the timing is off when you read them. Moreover, Sacha Baron Cohen\'s character was funny','The Dictator ','','inherit','open','open','','6868-revision','','','2012-07-03 16:37:02','2012-07-03 14:37:02','',6868,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/03/6868-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6870,1,'2012-07-12 11:32:52','2012-07-12 09:32:52','','wpid-20120705_165400.jpg','','inherit','open','open','','wpid-20120705_165400-jpg','','','2012-07-12 11:32:52','2012-07-12 09:32:52','',6873,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/wpid-20120705_165400.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(6871,1,'2012-07-12 11:32:58','2012-07-12 09:32:58','','wpid-20120710_155536.jpg','','inherit','open','open','','wpid-20120710_155536-jpg','','','2012-07-12 11:32:58','2012-07-12 09:32:58','',6873,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/wpid-20120710_155536.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(6872,1,'2012-07-12 11:33:22','2012-07-12 09:33:22','','wpid-20120712_003428.jpg','','inherit','open','open','','wpid-20120712_003428-jpg','','','2012-07-12 11:33:22','2012-07-12 09:33:22','',6873,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/wpid-20120712_003428.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(6880,1,'2012-07-20 22:25:47','2012-07-20 20:25:47','Our first stop on the Scandinavia adventure was Copenhagen.  We flew into Malmo in Sweden and took a bus from the Malmo airport to the Malmo train station and then the train into Copenhagen. The bus took 40 minutes but the train only took 25 minutes.\r\n\r\nAt the train station we bought a 24 hour Copenhagen card which gets you into a lot of sights for free as well as allows you to take public transportation for free. This includes a number of local trains as well so depending on what you want to do while you\'re in Copenhagen it can be a great deal. It was for us.\r\n<a title=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611099306/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8431/7611099306_60f809bf3e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI didn\'t really know what to expect from Copenhagen in early July. I was prepared for cold weather and rain but more or less the weather was good. I wore jeans and ballerina flats one rainy-ish day and a skirt and leggings another day. As a preventative measure I lugged my umbrella and rain jacket around with me too. My rain jacket is from LLBean and the kind that folds up into it\'s own pocket. The umbrella is a smallish folding umbrella but more than once I found myself wishing that I still had my mini-umbrella from my Washington DC days. Only problem is that years ago I left that umbrella on the DC metro one rainy afternoon and as soon as the train doors closed I realized that I didn\'t have my umbrella any more. Needless to say, I never saw it again but I longed for it throughout stretches of Scandinavia.\r\n<a title=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611071500/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8159/7611071500_7f575289c9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nMy impression of Copenhagen is that it is a beautiful city and an accessible city. It was easy to find our way around. People were friendly and helpful. The food was good but not to die for. Then again, I didn\'t really go to Copenhagen for the food and I probably wasn\'t prepared to spend enough money to eat really, really good food anyway.\r\n\r\nI love how everyone rides bikes around the city and that the city takes care of bike riders.  Bikes have their own dedicated lanes with a curb and everything. It\'s easy to tell were cars, people and bikes belong and by in large everyone goes where they are supposed to do.  Everyone that is but the motorbikes/motorcycles--these guys used the car lane when it was convenient and the bike lane too.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Bikes on the sidewalk by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611080382/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611080382_ffa74268ec_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes on the sidewalk\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nAs a pedestrian, it\'s very clear which lane is for bikes and it never really merges with the sidewalk which I really liked. In Amsterdam, I spent a lot of time walking and getting dinged at by people on bicycles when I was in their way. I don\'t like being dinged at nor the sense that someone might hit me with their bike. In Copenhagen, there was very little bicycle bell use. Maybe pedestrians are better behaved in Copenhagen. But I think the reality is that more people ride bikes in Amsterdam making bike lanes and roads in general more crowded with bikes but that\'s just my general sense after visiting the two cities.\r\n<a title=\"Bikes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611207094/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8012/7611207094_684ecb222c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Bikes for sale by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611189928/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611189928_2e04f5af21_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes for sale\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere\'s a really great bike program in Copenhagen. Basically it\'s this, there are city bike racks where you can checkout bikes. You but a 20 kroner coin in (well I think that\'s the coin) and the bike is unlocked. You can then ride it around as much or as little as you want. When you park the bicycle at a designated stand you lock it back up and then you get your  20 kroner coin back. So it\'s free to ride the bike.\r\n<a title=\"Bike rack by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611202502/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8166/7611202502_8b788b7b23_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bike rack\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThis is a great system but of course, the free nature of it makes it hard to nearly impossible to find a free bike. P. and I had read about the system and wanted to ride bikes but on our day in Copenhagen we decided against actually paying to rent bikes because it raining steadily in the morning and who wants to ride bikes in the rain?! After giving up our team of spinning around the city on bikes, we never imagined that we\'d actually find two free city bikes to ride.\r\n<a title=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323172/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8156/7611323172_5df9f49a93_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323538/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7611323538_b8494c6884_z.jpg\" alt=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nIt happened late afternoon, maybe 4pm, when I convinced P. that we should walk outside of the city center a bit to look for a brewery that makes their own local beer. She agreed and we set off. Now Lonely Planet mentions the brewery but it doesn\'t show up on the Copenhagen map because it\'s about 1 kilometer outside of the center. We figure it\'s not big deal and that we\'ll find it. Well after a little walking, we don\'t find it but we do find not one but three free city bikes. We check the tires and steering, pay for the bikes and abandon the brewery to ride the bikes around.\r\n<a title=\"Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611320890/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8006/7611320890_fbf65376d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Copenhagen free bike map by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611322160/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8289/7611322160_6f35fc3de6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike map\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nGood thing too because riding bikes around Copenhagen is dreamy. We rode across the bridge and visited the commune  Freetown Christiania, we listened to live jazz, we cycled past churches, palaces and parliament, and when it came time to return our bikes so that we could go to dinner, we had a heck of a time. Now the bikes have maps on them which are marked with the location of bike racks but the maps are little and there aren\'t very many street names listed on them. So as a tourist this was the most complicated part. We had to stop, pull our bikes over and really squint at the maps and then reference our tourist maps as well in an attempt to return our bikes when we were done with them. In fact, it took us about four different tries to find a bike rack because unless there\'s another city bike already parked there the racks look basically the same as any other rack.\r\n<a title=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611228830/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7250/7611228830_f9b94278fc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe went to a really great vegetarian restaurant for dinner. Well a vegetarian restaurant that also happens to serve steak which I guess makes it not a vegetarian restaurant. Anyhow, guess what?! They had the beer from the brewery we\'d been looking for right before we discovered the city bikes. So I ended up with a delicious summer micro-brew beer after all. That  was a preaty great end to my day. <a title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227842/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7611227842_78cde421ef_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227128/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/7611227128_913e6d2292_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','Copenhagen and our Bike Adventure ','','publish','open','open','','copenhagen-and-our-bike-adventure','','','2012-07-20 22:25:48','2012-07-20 20:25:48','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6880',0,'post','',1),(6876,1,'2012-07-19 12:44:01','2012-07-19 10:44:01','Sometimes it\'s hard to get back into the swing of things after a holiday--especially a busy, busy holiday. I have so many things to say and to talk about after my Scandinavian adventure but it\'s hard to know where to start.\r\n\r\nSo I\'ll start with the mundane. I got back yesterday and did all of things that one does after a trip. This included unpacking, a couple of loads of laundry, grocery shopping, thinking about downloading my photos, calling my mom, reading the internet, thinking about writing a blog post, reading some more of <em>The Help</em> and going to dinner with A.\r\n\r\nToday I went to the dentist. This was pretty uneventful. Thank goodness but on my way home I got into an OK taxi and had quite a conversation in Bulgarian with the taxi driver. And by conversation, I really mean lecture about life.\r\n\r\nFirst he thought I was Russian. Once we got that straightened out, he started asking me questions about how I like Sofia, how long I\'ve lived in Bulgaria, where I work, how long I will live here and if my husband and children are here or in the States and the like. Pretty standard questions.\r\n\r\nExcept, um, I don\'t have a husband or kids yet. This answer was particularly troubling for my late-twenty-something taxi driver.\r\n\r\nAt this point, he started telling me that it\'s better to get married and have kids when you are younger. That way you\'ll have more time and energy for them and as he pontificates, I found myself nodding along and a couple of times I laughed uncomfortably. He told me: it\'s no laughing matter--it\'s really important. Then at a stop light he showed me pictures of his family.\r\n\r\nFrom here he started asking me if I live by myself or with friends. I told him alone but that I have plenty of friends in my building and at work. This is apparently not good enough and he then proceeded to tell me how important is to have someone in your life that you can talk to and share your problems with. To make sure that I was following along he kept asking me in Bulgarian: do you understand? I answered: yes, I understand. This didn\'t seem to make things much better but the taxi driver seemed more or less satisfied with my answers but as I climbed out of the taxi I caught him shaking his head at me. Me the poor American girl living alone without either a husband or children.\r\n\r\nThe thing is that I don\'t feel too bad about my life. I just got back from two weeks in Scandinavia and I\'ll be heading home to the States at the beginning of August. I\'ve got a great circle of friends and I relish having my own space, my own apartment. It\'s good to be back in Sofia.\r\n\r\nNow I\'ve got to get back to reading <em>The Help</em>. I know I shouldn\'t like it as much as a do but I can\'t put it down.','I\'m back in Sofia ','','publish','open','open','','im-back-in-sofia','','','2012-07-19 12:44:01','2012-07-19 10:44:01','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6876',0,'post','',2),(6877,1,'2012-07-19 12:41:29','2012-07-19 10:41:29','Sometimes it\'s hard to get back into the swing of things after a holiday--especially a busy, busy holiday. I have so many things to say and to talk about after my Scandinavian adventure but it\'s hard to know where to start.\n\nSo I\'ll start with the mundane. I got back yesterday and did all of things that one does after a trip. This included unpacking, a couple of loads of laundry, grocery shopping, thinking about downloading my photos, calling my mom, reading the internet, thinking about writing a blog post, reading some more of <em>The Help</em> and going to dinner with A.\n\nToday I went to the dentist. This was pretty uneventful. Thank goodness. But on my way home I got into an OK taxi and had quite a conversation in Bulgarian with the taxi driver. And by conversation, I really mean lecture about life.\n\nFirst he thought I was Russian. Once we got that straightened out, he started asking me questions about how I like Sofia, how long I\'ve lived in Bulgaria, where I work, how long I will live here and if my husband and children are here or in the States and the like. Pretty standard questions.\n\nExcept, um, I don\'t have a husband or kids yet. This answer was particularly troubling for my late-twenty-something taxi driver.\n\nAt this point, he started telling me that it\'s better to get married and have kids when you are younger. That way you\'ll have more time and energy for them and as he pontificates, I found myself nodding along and a couple of times I laughed uncomfortably. He told me: it\'s no laughing matter--it\'s really important. Then at a stop light he showed me pictures of his family.\n\nFrom here he started asking me if I live by myself or with friends. I told him alone but that I have plenty of friends in my building and at work. This is apparently not good enough and he then proceeded to tell me how important is to have someone in your life that you can talk to and share your problems with. To make sure that I was following along he kept asking me in Bulgarian: do you understand? I answered: yes, I understand. This didn\'t seem to make things much better but the taxi driver seemed more or less satisfied with my answers but as I climbed out of the taxi I caught him shaking his head at me. Me the poor American girl living alone without either a husband or children.\n\nThe thing is that I don\'t feel too bad about my life. I just got back from two weeks in Scandinavia and I\'ll be heading home to the States at the beginning of August. I\'ve got a great circle of friends','I\'m back in Sofia ','','inherit','open','open','','6876-revision','','','2012-07-19 12:41:29','2012-07-19 10:41:29','',6876,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/19/6876-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6878,1,'2012-07-19 12:42:28','2012-07-19 10:42:28','Sometimes it\'s hard to get back into the swing of things after a holiday--especially a busy, busy holiday. I have so many things to say and to talk about after my Scandinavian adventure but it\'s hard to know where to start.\n\nSo I\'ll start with the mundane. I got back yesterday and did all of things that one does after a trip. This included unpacking, a couple of loads of laundry, grocery shopping, thinking about downloading my photos, calling my mom, reading the internet, thinking about writing a blog post, reading some more of <em>The Help</em> and going to dinner with A.\n\nToday I went to the dentist. This was pretty uneventful. Thank goodness. But on my way home I got into an OK taxi and had quite a conversation in Bulgarian with the taxi driver. And by conversation, I really mean lecture about life.\n\nFirst he thought I was Russian. Once we got that straightened out, he started asking me questions about how I like Sofia, how long I\'ve lived in Bulgaria, where I work, how long I will live here and if my husband and children are here or in the States and the like. Pretty standard questions.\n\nExcept, um, I don\'t have a husband or kids yet. This answer was particularly troubling for my late-twenty-something taxi driver.\n\nAt this point, he started telling me that it\'s better to get married and have kids when you are younger. That way you\'ll have more time and energy for them and as he pontificates, I found myself nodding along and a couple of times I laughed uncomfortably. He told me: it\'s no laughing matter--it\'s really important. Then at a stop light he showed me pictures of his family.\n\nFrom here he started asking me if I live by myself or with friends. I told him alone but that I have plenty of friends in my building and at work. This is apparently not good enough and he then proceeded to tell me how important is to have someone in your life that you can talk to and share your problems with. To make sure that I was following along he kept asking me in Bulgarian: do you understand? I answered: yes, I understand. This didn\'t seem to make things much better but the taxi driver seemed more or less satisfied with my answers but as I climbed out of the taxi I caught him shaking his head at me. Me the poor American girl living alone without either a husband or children.\n\nThe thing is that I don\'t feel too bad about my life. I just got back from two weeks in Scandinavia and I\'ll be heading home to the States at the beginning of August. I\'ve got a great circle of friends and I relish having my own space, my own apartment. It\'s good to be back in Sofia.','I\'m back in Sofia ','','inherit','open','open','','6876-revision-2','','','2012-07-19 12:42:28','2012-07-19 10:42:28','',6876,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/19/6876-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6879,1,'2012-07-19 12:45:05','2012-07-19 10:45:05','Sometimes it\'s hard to get back into the swing of things after a holiday--especially a busy, busy holiday. I have so many things to say and to talk about after my Scandinavian adventure but it\'s hard to know where to start.\n\nSo I\'ll start with the mundane. I got back yesterday and did all of things that one does after a trip. This included unpacking, a couple of loads of laundry, grocery shopping, thinking about downloading my photos, calling my mom, reading the internet, thinking about writing a blog post, reading some more of <em>The Help</em> and going to dinner with A.\n\nToday I went to the dentist. This was pretty uneventful. Thank goodness but on my way home I got into an OK taxi and had quite a conversation in Bulgarian with the taxi driver. And by conversation, I really mean lecture about life.\n\nFirst he thought I was Russian. Once we got that straightened out, he started asking me questions about how I like Sofia, how long I\'ve lived in Bulgaria, where I work, how long I will live here and if my husband and children are here or in the States and the like. Pretty standard questions.\n\nExcept, um, I don\'t have a husband or kids yet. This answer was particularly troubling for my late-twenty-something taxi driver.\n\nAt this point, he started telling me that it\'s better to get married and have kids when you are younger. That way you\'ll have more time and energy for them and as he pontificates, I found myself nodding along and a couple of times I laughed uncomfortably. He told me: it\'s no laughing matter--it\'s really important. Then at a stop light he showed me pictures of his family.\n\nFrom here he started asking me if I live by myself or with friends. I told him alone but that I have plenty of friends in my building and at work. This is apparently not good enough and he then proceeded to tell me how important is to have someone in your life that you can talk to and share your problems with. To make sure that I was following along he kept asking me in Bulgarian: do you understand? I answered: yes, I understand. This didn\'t seem to make things much better but the taxi driver seemed more or less satisfied with my answers but as I climbed out of the taxi I caught him shaking his head at me. Me the poor American girl living alone without either a husband or children.\n\nThe thing is that I don\'t feel too bad about my life. I just got back from two weeks in Scandinavia and I\'ll be heading home to the States at the beginning of August. I\'ve got a great circle of friends and I relish having my own space, my own apartment. It\'s good to be back in Sofia.\n\nNow I\'ve got to get back to reading <em>The Help</em>. I know I shouldn\'t like it as much as a do but I can\'t put it down.','I\'m back in Sofia ','','inherit','open','open','','6876-autosave','','','2012-07-19 12:45:05','2012-07-19 10:45:05','',6876,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/19/6876-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6881,1,'2012-07-20 21:07:37','2012-07-20 19:07:37','Our first stop on the Scandinavia adventure was Copenhagen.  We flew into Malmo in Sweden and took a bus from the Malmo airport to the Malmo train station and then the train into Copenhagen. The bus took 40 minutes but the train only took 25 minutes.\n\nAt the train station we bought a 24 hour Copenhagen card which gets you into a lot of sights for free as well as allows you to take public transportation for free. This includes a number of local trains as well so depending on what you want to do while you\'re in Copenhagen it can be a great deal. It was for us.\n\nI didn\'t really know what to expect from Copenhagen in early July. I was prepared for cold weather and rain but more or less the weather was good. I wore jeans and ballerina flats one rainy-ish day and a skirt and leggings another day. As a preventative measure I lugged my umbrella and rain jacket around with me too. My rain jacket is from LLBean and the kind that folds up into it\'s own pocket. The umbrella is a smallish folding umbrella but more than once I found myself wishing that I still had my mini-umbrella from my Washington DC days. Only problem is that years ago I left that umbrella on the DC metro one rainy afternoon and as soon as the train doors closed I realized that I didn\'t have my umbrella any more. Needless to say, I never saw it again but I longed for it throughout stretches of Scandinavia.\n\nMy impression of Copenhagen is that it is an accessible city. It was easy to find our way around. People were friendly and helpful. The food was good but not to die for. Then again, I didn\'t really go to Copenhagen for the food and I probably wasn\'t prepared to spend enough money to eat really, really good food anyway.\n\nI love how everyone rides bikes around the city and that the city takes care of bike riders.  Bikes have their own dedicated lanes with a curb and everything. It\'s easy to tell were cars, people and bikes belong and by in large everyone goes where they are supposed to do.  Everyone that is but the motorbikes/motorcycles--these guys used the car lane when it was convenient and the bike lane too.\n\nAs a pedestrian, it\'s very clear which lane is for bikes and it never really merges with the sidewalk which I really liked. In Amsterdam, I spent a lot of time walking and getting dinged at by people on bicycles when I was in their way. I don\'t like being dinged at nor the sense that someone might hit me with their bike. In Copenhagen, there was very little bicycle bell use. Maybe pedestrians are better behaved in Copenhagen. But I think the reality is that more people ride bikes in Amsterdam making bike lanes and roads in general more crowded with bikes but that\'s just my general sense after visiting the two cities.\n\nThere\'s a really great bike program in Copenhagen. Basically it\'s this, there are city bike racks where you can checkout bikes. You but a 20 kroner coin in (well I think that\'s the coin) and the bike is unlocked. You can then ride it around as much or as little as you want. When you park the bicycle at a designated stand you lock it back up and then you get your  20 kroner coin back. So it\'s free to ride the bike.\n\nThis is a great system but of course, the free nature of it makes it hard to nearly impossible to find a free bike. P. and I had read about the system and wanted to ride bikes but on our day in Copenhagen we decided against actually paying to rent bikes because it raining steadily in the morning and who wants to ride bikes in the rain?! After giving up our team of spinning around the city on bikes, we never imagined that we\'d actually find two free city bikes to ride.\n\nIt happened late afternoon, maybe 4pm, when I convinced P. that we should walk outside of the city center a bit to look for a brewery that makes their own local beer. She agreed and we set off. Now Lonely Planet mentions the brewery but it doesn\'t show up on the Copenhagen map because it\'s about 1 kilometer outside of the center. We figure it\'s not big deal and that we\'ll find it. Well after a little walking, we don\'t find it but we do find not one but three free city bikes. We check the tires and steering, pay for the bikes and abandon the brewery to ride the bikes around.\n\nGood thing too because riding bikes around Copenhagen is dreamy. We rode across the bridge and visited the commune  Freetown Christiania, we listened to live jazz, we cycled past churches, palaces and parliament, and when it came time to return our bikes so that we could go to dinner, we had a heck of a time. Now the bikes have maps on them which are marked with the location of bike racks but the maps are little and there aren\'t very many street names listed on them. So as a tourist this was the most complicated part. We had to stop, pull our bikes over and really squint at the maps and then reference our tourist maps as well in an attempt to return our bikes when we were done with them. In fact, it took us about four different tries to find a bike rack because unless there\'s another city bike already parked there the racks look basically the same as any other rack.\n\nWe went to a really great vegetarian restaurant for dinner. And guess what?! They had the beer from the brewery we\'d been looking for right before we discovered the city bikes. So I ended up with a delicious summer microbrew','Copenhagen ','','inherit','open','open','','6880-revision','','','2012-07-20 21:07:37','2012-07-20 19:07:37','',6880,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/20/6880-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6882,1,'2012-07-20 21:09:24','2012-07-20 19:09:24','Our first stop on the Scandinavia adventure was Copenhagen.  We flew into Malmo in Sweden and took a bus from the Malmo airport to the Malmo train station and then the train into Copenhagen. The bus took 40 minutes but the train only took 25 minutes.\n\nAt the train station we bought a 24 hour Copenhagen card which gets you into a lot of sights for free as well as allows you to take public transportation for free. This includes a number of local trains as well so depending on what you want to do while you\'re in Copenhagen it can be a great deal. It was for us.\n\nI didn\'t really know what to expect from Copenhagen in early July. I was prepared for cold weather and rain but more or less the weather was good. I wore jeans and ballerina flats one rainy-ish day and a skirt and leggings another day. As a preventative measure I lugged my umbrella and rain jacket around with me too. My rain jacket is from LLBean and the kind that folds up into it\'s own pocket. The umbrella is a smallish folding umbrella but more than once I found myself wishing that I still had my mini-umbrella from my Washington DC days. Only problem is that years ago I left that umbrella on the DC metro one rainy afternoon and as soon as the train doors closed I realized that I didn\'t have my umbrella any more. Needless to say, I never saw it again but I longed for it throughout stretches of Scandinavia.\n\nMy impression of Copenhagen is that it is an accessible city. It was easy to find our way around. People were friendly and helpful. The food was good but not to die for. Then again, I didn\'t really go to Copenhagen for the food and I probably wasn\'t prepared to spend enough money to eat really, really good food anyway.\n\nI love how everyone rides bikes around the city and that the city takes care of bike riders.  Bikes have their own dedicated lanes with a curb and everything. It\'s easy to tell were cars, people and bikes belong and by in large everyone goes where they are supposed to do.  Everyone that is but the motorbikes/motorcycles--these guys used the car lane when it was convenient and the bike lane too.\n\nAs a pedestrian, it\'s very clear which lane is for bikes and it never really merges with the sidewalk which I really liked. In Amsterdam, I spent a lot of time walking and getting dinged at by people on bicycles when I was in their way. I don\'t like being dinged at nor the sense that someone might hit me with their bike. In Copenhagen, there was very little bicycle bell use. Maybe pedestrians are better behaved in Copenhagen. But I think the reality is that more people ride bikes in Amsterdam making bike lanes and roads in general more crowded with bikes but that\'s just my general sense after visiting the two cities.\n\nThere\'s a really great bike program in Copenhagen. Basically it\'s this, there are city bike racks where you can checkout bikes. You but a 20 kroner coin in (well I think that\'s the coin) and the bike is unlocked. You can then ride it around as much or as little as you want. When you park the bicycle at a designated stand you lock it back up and then you get your  20 kroner coin back. So it\'s free to ride the bike.\n\nThis is a great system but of course, the free nature of it makes it hard to nearly impossible to find a free bike. P. and I had read about the system and wanted to ride bikes but on our day in Copenhagen we decided against actually paying to rent bikes because it raining steadily in the morning and who wants to ride bikes in the rain?! After giving up our team of spinning around the city on bikes, we never imagined that we\'d actually find two free city bikes to ride.\n\nIt happened late afternoon, maybe 4pm, when I convinced P. that we should walk outside of the city center a bit to look for a brewery that makes their own local beer. She agreed and we set off. Now Lonely Planet mentions the brewery but it doesn\'t show up on the Copenhagen map because it\'s about 1 kilometer outside of the center. We figure it\'s not big deal and that we\'ll find it. Well after a little walking, we don\'t find it but we do find not one but three free city bikes. We check the tires and steering, pay for the bikes and abandon the brewery to ride the bikes around.\n\nGood thing too because riding bikes around Copenhagen is dreamy. We rode across the bridge and visited the commune  Freetown Christiania, we listened to live jazz, we cycled past churches, palaces and parliament, and when it came time to return our bikes so that we could go to dinner, we had a heck of a time. Now the bikes have maps on them which are marked with the location of bike racks but the maps are little and there aren\'t very many street names listed on them. So as a tourist this was the most complicated part. We had to stop, pull our bikes over and really squint at the maps and then reference our tourist maps as well in an attempt to return our bikes when we were done with them. In fact, it took us about four different tries to find a bike rack because unless there\'s another city bike already parked there the racks look basically the same as any other rack.\n\nWe went to a really great vegetarian restaurant for dinner. And guess what?! They had the beer from the brewery we\'d been looking for right before we discovered the city bikes. So I ended up with a delicious summer micro-brew beer after all.','Copenhagen ','','inherit','open','open','','6880-revision-2','','','2012-07-20 21:09:24','2012-07-20 19:09:24','',6880,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/20/6880-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6883,1,'2012-07-20 21:20:01','2012-07-20 19:20:01','Our first stop on the Scandinavia adventure was Copenhagen.  We flew into Malmo in Sweden and took a bus from the Malmo airport to the Malmo train station and then the train into Copenhagen. The bus took 40 minutes but the train only took 25 minutes.\n\nAt the train station we bought a 24 hour Copenhagen card which gets you into a lot of sights for free as well as allows you to take public transportation for free. This includes a number of local trains as well so depending on what you want to do while you\'re in Copenhagen it can be a great deal. It was for us.\n\nI didn\'t really know what to expect from Copenhagen in early July. I was prepared for cold weather and rain but more or less the weather was good. I wore jeans and ballerina flats one rainy-ish day and a skirt and leggings another day. As a preventative measure I lugged my umbrella and rain jacket around with me too. My rain jacket is from LLBean and the kind that folds up into it\'s own pocket. The umbrella is a smallish folding umbrella but more than once I found myself wishing that I still had my mini-umbrella from my Washington DC days. Only problem is that years ago I left that umbrella on the DC metro one rainy afternoon and as soon as the train doors closed I realized that I didn\'t have my umbrella any more. Needless to say, I never saw it again but I longed for it throughout stretches of Scandinavia.\n\nMy impression of Copenhagen is that it is an accessible city. It was easy to find our way around. People were friendly and helpful. The food was good but not to die for. Then again, I didn\'t really go to Copenhagen for the food and I probably wasn\'t prepared to spend enough money to eat really, really good food anyway.\n\nI love how everyone rides bikes around the city and that the city takes care of bike riders.  Bikes have their own dedicated lanes with a curb and everything. It\'s easy to tell were cars, people and bikes belong and by in large everyone goes where they are supposed to do.  Everyone that is but the motorbikes/motorcycles--these guys used the car lane when it was convenient and the bike lane too.\n\nAs a pedestrian, it\'s very clear which lane is for bikes and it never really merges with the sidewalk which I really liked. In Amsterdam, I spent a lot of time walking and getting dinged at by people on bicycles when I was in their way. I don\'t like being dinged at nor the sense that someone might hit me with their bike. In Copenhagen, there was very little bicycle bell use. Maybe pedestrians are better behaved in Copenhagen. But I think the reality is that more people ride bikes in Amsterdam making bike lanes and roads in general more crowded with bikes but that\'s just my general sense after visiting the two cities.\n\nThere\'s a really great bike program in Copenhagen. Basically it\'s this, there are city bike racks where you can checkout bikes. You but a 20 kroner coin in (well I think that\'s the coin) and the bike is unlocked. You can then ride it around as much or as little as you want. When you park the bicycle at a designated stand you lock it back up and then you get your  20 kroner coin back. So it\'s free to ride the bike.\n\nThis is a great system but of course, the free nature of it makes it hard to nearly impossible to find a free bike. P. and I had read about the system and wanted to ride bikes but on our day in Copenhagen we decided against actually paying to rent bikes because it raining steadily in the morning and who wants to ride bikes in the rain?! After giving up our team of spinning around the city on bikes, we never imagined that we\'d actually find two free city bikes to ride.\n\nIt happened late afternoon, maybe 4pm, when I convinced P. that we should walk outside of the city center a bit to look for a brewery that makes their own local beer. She agreed and we set off. Now Lonely Planet mentions the brewery but it doesn\'t show up on the Copenhagen map because it\'s about 1 kilometer outside of the center. We figure it\'s not big deal and that we\'ll find it. Well after a little walking, we don\'t find it but we do find not one but three free city bikes. We check the tires and steering, pay for the bikes and abandon the brewery to ride the bikes around.\n\nGood thing too because riding bikes around Copenhagen is dreamy. We rode across the bridge and visited the commune  Freetown Christiania, we listened to live jazz, we cycled past churches, palaces and parliament, and when it came time to return our bikes so that we could go to dinner, we had a heck of a time. Now the bikes have maps on them which are marked with the location of bike racks but the maps are little and there aren\'t very many street names listed on them. So as a tourist this was the most complicated part. We had to stop, pull our bikes over and really squint at the maps and then reference our tourist maps as well in an attempt to return our bikes when we were done with them. In fact, it took us about four different tries to find a bike rack because unless there\'s another city bike already parked there the racks look basically the same as any other rack.\n\nWe went to a really great vegetarian restaurant for dinner. And guess what?! They had the beer from the brewery we\'d been looking for right before we discovered the city bikes. So I ended up with a delicious summer micro-brew beer after all.','Copenhagen ','','inherit','open','open','','6880-revision-3','','','2012-07-20 21:20:01','2012-07-20 19:20:01','',6880,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/20/6880-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(6884,1,'2012-07-20 22:22:38','2012-07-20 20:22:38','Our first stop on the Scandinavia adventure was Copenhagen.  We flew into Malmo in Sweden and took a bus from the Malmo airport to the Malmo train station and then the train into Copenhagen. The bus took 40 minutes but the train only took 25 minutes.\n\nAt the train station we bought a 24 hour Copenhagen card which gets you into a lot of sights for free as well as allows you to take public transportation for free. This includes a number of local trains as well so depending on what you want to do while you\'re in Copenhagen it can be a great deal. It was for us.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611099306/\" title=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8431/7611099306_60f809bf3e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\nI didn\'t really know what to expect from Copenhagen in early July. I was prepared for cold weather and rain but more or less the weather was good. I wore jeans and ballerina flats one rainy-ish day and a skirt and leggings another day. As a preventative measure I lugged my umbrella and rain jacket around with me too. My rain jacket is from LLBean and the kind that folds up into it\'s own pocket. The umbrella is a smallish folding umbrella but more than once I found myself wishing that I still had my mini-umbrella from my Washington DC days. Only problem is that years ago I left that umbrella on the DC metro one rainy afternoon and as soon as the train doors closed I realized that I didn\'t have my umbrella any more. Needless to say, I never saw it again but I longed for it throughout stretches of Scandinavia.\n\nMy impression of Copenhagen is that it is a beautiful city and an accessible city. It was easy to find our way around. People were friendly and helpful. The food was good but not to die for. Then again, I didn\'t really go to Copenhagen for the food and I probably wasn\'t prepared to spend enough money to eat really, really good food anyway.\n\nI love how everyone rides bikes around the city and that the city takes care of bike riders.  Bikes have their own dedicated lanes with a curb and everything. It\'s easy to tell were cars, people and bikes belong and by in large everyone goes where they are supposed to do.  Everyone that is but the motorbikes/motorcycles--these guys used the car lane when it was convenient and the bike lane too.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611080382/\" title=\"Bikes on the sidewalk by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611080382_ffa74268ec_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bikes on the sidewalk\"></a>\nAs a pedestrian, it\'s very clear which lane is for bikes and it never really merges with the sidewalk which I really liked. In Amsterdam, I spent a lot of time walking and getting dinged at by people on bicycles when I was in their way. I don\'t like being dinged at nor the sense that someone might hit me with their bike. In Copenhagen, there was very little bicycle bell use. Maybe pedestrians are better behaved in Copenhagen. But I think the reality is that more people ride bikes in Amsterdam making bike lanes and roads in general more crowded with bikes but that\'s just my general sense after visiting the two cities.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611207094/\" title=\"Bikes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8012/7611207094_684ecb222c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bikes\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611189928/\" title=\"Bikes for sale by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611189928_2e04f5af21_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bikes for sale\"></a>\nThere\'s a really great bike program in Copenhagen. Basically it\'s this, there are city bike racks where you can checkout bikes. You but a 20 kroner coin in (well I think that\'s the coin) and the bike is unlocked. You can then ride it around as much or as little as you want. When you park the bicycle at a designated stand you lock it back up and then you get your  20 kroner coin back. So it\'s free to ride the bike.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611202502/\" title=\"Bike rack by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8166/7611202502_8b788b7b23_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bike rack\"></a>\nThis is a great system but of course, the free nature of it makes it hard to nearly impossible to find a free bike. P. and I had read about the system and wanted to ride bikes but on our day in Copenhagen we decided against actually paying to rent bikes because it raining steadily in the morning and who wants to ride bikes in the rain?! After giving up our team of spinning around the city on bikes, we never imagined that we\'d actually find two free city bikes to ride.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323172/\" title=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8156/7611323172_5df9f49a93_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323538/\" title=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7611323538_b8494c6884_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike\"></a>\nIt happened late afternoon, maybe 4pm, when I convinced P. that we should walk outside of the city center a bit to look for a brewery that makes their own local beer. She agreed and we set off. Now Lonely Planet mentions the brewery but it doesn\'t show up on the Copenhagen map because it\'s about 1 kilometer outside of the center. We figure it\'s not big deal and that we\'ll find it. Well after a little walking, we don\'t find it but we do find not one but three free city bikes. We check the tires and steering, pay for the bikes and abandon the brewery to ride the bikes around.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611320890/\" title=\"Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8006/7611320890_fbf65376d5_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611322160/\" title=\"Copenhagen free bike map by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8289/7611322160_6f35fc3de6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike map\"></a>\nGood thing too because riding bikes around Copenhagen is dreamy. We rode across the bridge and visited the commune  Freetown Christiania, we listened to live jazz, we cycled past churches, palaces and parliament, and when it came time to return our bikes so that we could go to dinner, we had a heck of a time. Now the bikes have maps on them which are marked with the location of bike racks but the maps are little and there aren\'t very many street names listed on them. So as a tourist this was the most complicated part. We had to stop, pull our bikes over and really squint at the maps and then reference our tourist maps as well in an attempt to return our bikes when we were done with them. In fact, it took us about four different tries to find a bike rack because unless there\'s another city bike already parked there the racks look basically the same as any other rack.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611228830/\" title=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7250/7611228830_f9b94278fc_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\"></a>\nWe went to a really great vegetarian restaurant for dinner. And guess what?! They had the beer from the brewery we\'d been looking for right before we discovered the city bikes. So I ended up with a delicious summer micro-brew beer after all.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227842/\" title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7611227842_78cde421ef_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227128/\" title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/7611227128_913e6d2292_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\"></a>','Copenhagen and our Bike Adventure ','','inherit','open','open','','6880-revision-4','','','2012-07-20 22:22:38','2012-07-20 20:22:38','',6880,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/20/6880-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(6885,1,'2012-07-20 22:22:53','2012-07-20 20:22:53','Our first stop on the Scandinavia adventure was Copenhagen.  We flew into Malmo in Sweden and took a bus from the Malmo airport to the Malmo train station and then the train into Copenhagen. The bus took 40 minutes but the train only took 25 minutes.\r\n\r\nAt the train station we bought a 24 hour Copenhagen card which gets you into a lot of sights for free as well as allows you to take public transportation for free. This includes a number of local trains as well so depending on what you want to do while you\'re in Copenhagen it can be a great deal. It was for us.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611099306/\" title=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8431/7611099306_60f809bf3e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\r\nI didn\'t really know what to expect from Copenhagen in early July. I was prepared for cold weather and rain but more or less the weather was good. I wore jeans and ballerina flats one rainy-ish day and a skirt and leggings another day. As a preventative measure I lugged my umbrella and rain jacket around with me too. My rain jacket is from LLBean and the kind that folds up into it\'s own pocket. The umbrella is a smallish folding umbrella but more than once I found myself wishing that I still had my mini-umbrella from my Washington DC days. Only problem is that years ago I left that umbrella on the DC metro one rainy afternoon and as soon as the train doors closed I realized that I didn\'t have my umbrella any more. Needless to say, I never saw it again but I longed for it throughout stretches of Scandinavia.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611071500/\" title=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8159/7611071500_7f575289c9_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\r\nMy impression of Copenhagen is that it is a beautiful city and an accessible city. It was easy to find our way around. People were friendly and helpful. The food was good but not to die for. Then again, I didn\'t really go to Copenhagen for the food and I probably wasn\'t prepared to spend enough money to eat really, really good food anyway.\r\n\r\nI love how everyone rides bikes around the city and that the city takes care of bike riders.  Bikes have their own dedicated lanes with a curb and everything. It\'s easy to tell were cars, people and bikes belong and by in large everyone goes where they are supposed to do.  Everyone that is but the motorbikes/motorcycles--these guys used the car lane when it was convenient and the bike lane too.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611080382/\" title=\"Bikes on the sidewalk by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611080382_ffa74268ec_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bikes on the sidewalk\"></a>\r\nAs a pedestrian, it\'s very clear which lane is for bikes and it never really merges with the sidewalk which I really liked. In Amsterdam, I spent a lot of time walking and getting dinged at by people on bicycles when I was in their way. I don\'t like being dinged at nor the sense that someone might hit me with their bike. In Copenhagen, there was very little bicycle bell use. Maybe pedestrians are better behaved in Copenhagen. But I think the reality is that more people ride bikes in Amsterdam making bike lanes and roads in general more crowded with bikes but that\'s just my general sense after visiting the two cities.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611207094/\" title=\"Bikes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8012/7611207094_684ecb222c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bikes\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611189928/\" title=\"Bikes for sale by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611189928_2e04f5af21_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bikes for sale\"></a>\r\nThere\'s a really great bike program in Copenhagen. Basically it\'s this, there are city bike racks where you can checkout bikes. You but a 20 kroner coin in (well I think that\'s the coin) and the bike is unlocked. You can then ride it around as much or as little as you want. When you park the bicycle at a designated stand you lock it back up and then you get your  20 kroner coin back. So it\'s free to ride the bike.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611202502/\" title=\"Bike rack by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8166/7611202502_8b788b7b23_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bike rack\"></a>\r\nThis is a great system but of course, the free nature of it makes it hard to nearly impossible to find a free bike. P. and I had read about the system and wanted to ride bikes but on our day in Copenhagen we decided against actually paying to rent bikes because it raining steadily in the morning and who wants to ride bikes in the rain?! After giving up our team of spinning around the city on bikes, we never imagined that we\'d actually find two free city bikes to ride.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323172/\" title=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8156/7611323172_5df9f49a93_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323538/\" title=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7611323538_b8494c6884_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike\"></a>\r\nIt happened late afternoon, maybe 4pm, when I convinced P. that we should walk outside of the city center a bit to look for a brewery that makes their own local beer. She agreed and we set off. Now Lonely Planet mentions the brewery but it doesn\'t show up on the Copenhagen map because it\'s about 1 kilometer outside of the center. We figure it\'s not big deal and that we\'ll find it. Well after a little walking, we don\'t find it but we do find not one but three free city bikes. We check the tires and steering, pay for the bikes and abandon the brewery to ride the bikes around.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611320890/\" title=\"Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8006/7611320890_fbf65376d5_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611322160/\" title=\"Copenhagen free bike map by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8289/7611322160_6f35fc3de6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike map\"></a>\r\nGood thing too because riding bikes around Copenhagen is dreamy. We rode across the bridge and visited the commune  Freetown Christiania, we listened to live jazz, we cycled past churches, palaces and parliament, and when it came time to return our bikes so that we could go to dinner, we had a heck of a time. Now the bikes have maps on them which are marked with the location of bike racks but the maps are little and there aren\'t very many street names listed on them. So as a tourist this was the most complicated part. We had to stop, pull our bikes over and really squint at the maps and then reference our tourist maps as well in an attempt to return our bikes when we were done with them. In fact, it took us about four different tries to find a bike rack because unless there\'s another city bike already parked there the racks look basically the same as any other rack.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611228830/\" title=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7250/7611228830_f9b94278fc_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\"></a>\r\nWe went to a really great vegetarian restaurant for dinner. And guess what?! They had the beer from the brewery we\'d been looking for right before we discovered the city bikes. So I ended up with a delicious summer micro-brew beer after all.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227842/\" title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7611227842_78cde421ef_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227128/\" title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/7611227128_913e6d2292_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\"></a>','Copenhagen and our Bike Adventure ','','inherit','open','open','','6880-revision-5','','','2012-07-20 22:22:53','2012-07-20 20:22:53','',6880,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/20/6880-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(6886,1,'2012-07-20 22:24:56','2012-07-20 20:24:56','Our first stop on the Scandinavia adventure was Copenhagen.  We flew into Malmo in Sweden and took a bus from the Malmo airport to the Malmo train station and then the train into Copenhagen. The bus took 40 minutes but the train only took 25 minutes.\n\nAt the train station we bought a 24 hour Copenhagen card which gets you into a lot of sights for free as well as allows you to take public transportation for free. This includes a number of local trains as well so depending on what you want to do while you\'re in Copenhagen it can be a great deal. It was for us.\n<a title=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611099306/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8431/7611099306_60f809bf3e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI didn\'t really know what to expect from Copenhagen in early July. I was prepared for cold weather and rain but more or less the weather was good. I wore jeans and ballerina flats one rainy-ish day and a skirt and leggings another day. As a preventative measure I lugged my umbrella and rain jacket around with me too. My rain jacket is from LLBean and the kind that folds up into it\'s own pocket. The umbrella is a smallish folding umbrella but more than once I found myself wishing that I still had my mini-umbrella from my Washington DC days. Only problem is that years ago I left that umbrella on the DC metro one rainy afternoon and as soon as the train doors closed I realized that I didn\'t have my umbrella any more. Needless to say, I never saw it again but I longed for it throughout stretches of Scandinavia.\n<a title=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611071500/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8159/7611071500_7f575289c9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nMy impression of Copenhagen is that it is a beautiful city and an accessible city. It was easy to find our way around. People were friendly and helpful. The food was good but not to die for. Then again, I didn\'t really go to Copenhagen for the food and I probably wasn\'t prepared to spend enough money to eat really, really good food anyway.\n\nI love how everyone rides bikes around the city and that the city takes care of bike riders.  Bikes have their own dedicated lanes with a curb and everything. It\'s easy to tell were cars, people and bikes belong and by in large everyone goes where they are supposed to do.  Everyone that is but the motorbikes/motorcycles--these guys used the car lane when it was convenient and the bike lane too.\n<a title=\"Bikes on the sidewalk by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611080382/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611080382_ffa74268ec_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes on the sidewalk\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nAs a pedestrian, it\'s very clear which lane is for bikes and it never really merges with the sidewalk which I really liked. In Amsterdam, I spent a lot of time walking and getting dinged at by people on bicycles when I was in their way. I don\'t like being dinged at nor the sense that someone might hit me with their bike. In Copenhagen, there was very little bicycle bell use. Maybe pedestrians are better behaved in Copenhagen. But I think the reality is that more people ride bikes in Amsterdam making bike lanes and roads in general more crowded with bikes but that\'s just my general sense after visiting the two cities.\n<a title=\"Bikes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611207094/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8012/7611207094_684ecb222c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Bikes for sale by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611189928/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611189928_2e04f5af21_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes for sale\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere\'s a really great bike program in Copenhagen. Basically it\'s this, there are city bike racks where you can checkout bikes. You but a 20 kroner coin in (well I think that\'s the coin) and the bike is unlocked. You can then ride it around as much or as little as you want. When you park the bicycle at a designated stand you lock it back up and then you get your  20 kroner coin back. So it\'s free to ride the bike.\n<a title=\"Bike rack by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611202502/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8166/7611202502_8b788b7b23_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bike rack\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThis is a great system but of course, the free nature of it makes it hard to nearly impossible to find a free bike. P. and I had read about the system and wanted to ride bikes but on our day in Copenhagen we decided against actually paying to rent bikes because it raining steadily in the morning and who wants to ride bikes in the rain?! After giving up our team of spinning around the city on bikes, we never imagined that we\'d actually find two free city bikes to ride.\n<a title=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323172/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8156/7611323172_5df9f49a93_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323538/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7611323538_b8494c6884_z.jpg\" alt=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nIt happened late afternoon, maybe 4pm, when I convinced P. that we should walk outside of the city center a bit to look for a brewery that makes their own local beer. She agreed and we set off. Now Lonely Planet mentions the brewery but it doesn\'t show up on the Copenhagen map because it\'s about 1 kilometer outside of the center. We figure it\'s not big deal and that we\'ll find it. Well after a little walking, we don\'t find it but we do find not one but three free city bikes. We check the tires and steering, pay for the bikes and abandon the brewery to ride the bikes around.\n<a title=\"Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611320890/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8006/7611320890_fbf65376d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Copenhagen free bike map by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611322160/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8289/7611322160_6f35fc3de6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike map\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nGood thing too because riding bikes around Copenhagen is dreamy. We rode across the bridge and visited the commune  Freetown Christiania, we listened to live jazz, we cycled past churches, palaces and parliament, and when it came time to return our bikes so that we could go to dinner, we had a heck of a time. Now the bikes have maps on them which are marked with the location of bike racks but the maps are little and there aren\'t very many street names listed on them. So as a tourist this was the most complicated part. We had to stop, pull our bikes over and really squint at the maps and then reference our tourist maps as well in an attempt to return our bikes when we were done with them. In fact, it took us about four different tries to find a bike rack because unless there\'s another city bike already parked there the racks look basically the same as any other rack.\n<a title=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611228830/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7250/7611228830_f9b94278fc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe went to a really great vegetarian restaurant for dinner. Well a vegetarian restaurant that also happens to serve steak which I guess makes it not a vegetarian restaurant. Anyhow, guess what?! They had the beer from the brewery we\'d been looking for right before we discovered the city bikes. So I ended up with a delicious summer micro-brew beer after all. That \'s a preatty great end to <a title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227842/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7611227842_78cde421ef_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227128/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/7611227128_913e6d2292_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','Copenhagen and our Bike Adventure ','','inherit','open','open','','6880-revision-6','','','2012-07-20 22:24:56','2012-07-20 20:24:56','',6880,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/20/6880-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(6887,1,'2012-07-20 22:25:47','2012-07-20 20:25:47','Our first stop on the Scandinavia adventure was Copenhagen.  We flew into Malmo in Sweden and took a bus from the Malmo airport to the Malmo train station and then the train into Copenhagen. The bus took 40 minutes but the train only took 25 minutes.\r\n\r\nAt the train station we bought a 24 hour Copenhagen card which gets you into a lot of sights for free as well as allows you to take public transportation for free. This includes a number of local trains as well so depending on what you want to do while you\'re in Copenhagen it can be a great deal. It was for us.\r\n<a title=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611099306/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8431/7611099306_60f809bf3e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI didn\'t really know what to expect from Copenhagen in early July. I was prepared for cold weather and rain but more or less the weather was good. I wore jeans and ballerina flats one rainy-ish day and a skirt and leggings another day. As a preventative measure I lugged my umbrella and rain jacket around with me too. My rain jacket is from LLBean and the kind that folds up into it\'s own pocket. The umbrella is a smallish folding umbrella but more than once I found myself wishing that I still had my mini-umbrella from my Washington DC days. Only problem is that years ago I left that umbrella on the DC metro one rainy afternoon and as soon as the train doors closed I realized that I didn\'t have my umbrella any more. Needless to say, I never saw it again but I longed for it throughout stretches of Scandinavia.\r\n<a title=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611071500/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8159/7611071500_7f575289c9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nMy impression of Copenhagen is that it is a beautiful city and an accessible city. It was easy to find our way around. People were friendly and helpful. The food was good but not to die for. Then again, I didn\'t really go to Copenhagen for the food and I probably wasn\'t prepared to spend enough money to eat really, really good food anyway.\r\n\r\nI love how everyone rides bikes around the city and that the city takes care of bike riders.  Bikes have their own dedicated lanes with a curb and everything. It\'s easy to tell were cars, people and bikes belong and by in large everyone goes where they are supposed to do.  Everyone that is but the motorbikes/motorcycles--these guys used the car lane when it was convenient and the bike lane too.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Bikes on the sidewalk by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611080382/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611080382_ffa74268ec_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes on the sidewalk\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nAs a pedestrian, it\'s very clear which lane is for bikes and it never really merges with the sidewalk which I really liked. In Amsterdam, I spent a lot of time walking and getting dinged at by people on bicycles when I was in their way. I don\'t like being dinged at nor the sense that someone might hit me with their bike. In Copenhagen, there was very little bicycle bell use. Maybe pedestrians are better behaved in Copenhagen. But I think the reality is that more people ride bikes in Amsterdam making bike lanes and roads in general more crowded with bikes but that\'s just my general sense after visiting the two cities.\r\n<a title=\"Bikes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611207094/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8012/7611207094_684ecb222c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Bikes for sale by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611189928/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611189928_2e04f5af21_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes for sale\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere\'s a really great bike program in Copenhagen. Basically it\'s this, there are city bike racks where you can checkout bikes. You but a 20 kroner coin in (well I think that\'s the coin) and the bike is unlocked. You can then ride it around as much or as little as you want. When you park the bicycle at a designated stand you lock it back up and then you get your  20 kroner coin back. So it\'s free to ride the bike.\r\n<a title=\"Bike rack by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611202502/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8166/7611202502_8b788b7b23_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bike rack\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThis is a great system but of course, the free nature of it makes it hard to nearly impossible to find a free bike. P. and I had read about the system and wanted to ride bikes but on our day in Copenhagen we decided against actually paying to rent bikes because it raining steadily in the morning and who wants to ride bikes in the rain?! After giving up our team of spinning around the city on bikes, we never imagined that we\'d actually find two free city bikes to ride.\r\n<a title=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323172/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8156/7611323172_5df9f49a93_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323538/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7611323538_b8494c6884_z.jpg\" alt=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nIt happened late afternoon, maybe 4pm, when I convinced P. that we should walk outside of the city center a bit to look for a brewery that makes their own local beer. She agreed and we set off. Now Lonely Planet mentions the brewery but it doesn\'t show up on the Copenhagen map because it\'s about 1 kilometer outside of the center. We figure it\'s not big deal and that we\'ll find it. Well after a little walking, we don\'t find it but we do find not one but three free city bikes. We check the tires and steering, pay for the bikes and abandon the brewery to ride the bikes around.\r\n<a title=\"Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611320890/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8006/7611320890_fbf65376d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Copenhagen free bike map by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611322160/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8289/7611322160_6f35fc3de6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike map\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nGood thing too because riding bikes around Copenhagen is dreamy. We rode across the bridge and visited the commune  Freetown Christiania, we listened to live jazz, we cycled past churches, palaces and parliament, and when it came time to return our bikes so that we could go to dinner, we had a heck of a time. Now the bikes have maps on them which are marked with the location of bike racks but the maps are little and there aren\'t very many street names listed on them. So as a tourist this was the most complicated part. We had to stop, pull our bikes over and really squint at the maps and then reference our tourist maps as well in an attempt to return our bikes when we were done with them. In fact, it took us about four different tries to find a bike rack because unless there\'s another city bike already parked there the racks look basically the same as any other rack.\r\n<a title=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611228830/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7250/7611228830_f9b94278fc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe went to a really great vegetarian restaurant for dinner. Well a vegetarian restaurant that also happens to serve steak which I guess makes it not a vegetarian restaurant. Anyhow, guess what?! They had the beer from the brewery we\'d been looking for right before we discovered the city bikes. So I ended up with a delicious summer micro-brew beer after all. That  was a preaty great end to my day. <a title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227842/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7611227842_78cde421ef_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227128/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/7611227128_913e6d2292_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','Copenhagen and our Bike Adventure ','','inherit','open','open','','6880-revision-7','','','2012-07-20 22:25:47','2012-07-20 20:25:47','',6880,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/20/6880-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(6888,1,'2012-07-20 22:26:54','2012-07-20 20:26:54','Our first stop on the Scandinavia adventure was Copenhagen.  We flew into Malmo in Sweden and took a bus from the Malmo airport to the Malmo train station and then the train into Copenhagen. The bus took 40 minutes but the train only took 25 minutes.\n\nAt the train station we bought a 24 hour Copenhagen card which gets you into a lot of sights for free as well as allows you to take public transportation for free. This includes a number of local trains as well so depending on what you want to do while you\'re in Copenhagen it can be a great deal. It was for us.\n<a title=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611099306/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8431/7611099306_60f809bf3e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen from Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI didn\'t really know what to expect from Copenhagen in early July. I was prepared for cold weather and rain but more or less the weather was good. I wore jeans and ballerina flats one rainy-ish day and a skirt and leggings another day. As a preventative measure I lugged my umbrella and rain jacket around with me too. My rain jacket is from LLBean and the kind that folds up into it\'s own pocket. The umbrella is a smallish folding umbrella but more than once I found myself wishing that I still had my mini-umbrella from my Washington DC days. Only problem is that years ago I left that umbrella on the DC metro one rainy afternoon and as soon as the train doors closed I realized that I didn\'t have my umbrella any more. Needless to say, I never saw it again but I longed for it throughout stretches of Scandinavia.\n<a title=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611071500/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8159/7611071500_7f575289c9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nMy impression of Copenhagen is that it is a beautiful city and an accessible city. It was easy to find our way around. People were friendly and helpful. The food was good but not to die for. Then again, I didn\'t really go to Copenhagen for the food and I probably wasn\'t prepared to spend enough money to eat really, really good food anyway.\n\nI love how everyone rides bikes around the city and that the city takes care of bike riders.  Bikes have their own dedicated lanes with a curb and everything. It\'s easy to tell were cars, people and bikes belong and by in large everyone goes where they are supposed to do.  Everyone that is but the motorbikes/motorcycles--these guys used the car lane when it was convenient and the bike lane too.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"Bikes on the sidewalk by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611080382/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611080382_ffa74268ec_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes on the sidewalk\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nAs a pedestrian, it\'s very clear which lane is for bikes and it never really merges with the sidewalk which I really liked. In Amsterdam, I spent a lot of time walking and getting dinged at by people on bicycles when I was in their way. I don\'t like being dinged at nor the sense that someone might hit me with their bike. In Copenhagen, there was very little bicycle bell use. Maybe pedestrians are better behaved in Copenhagen. But I think the reality is that more people ride bikes in Amsterdam making bike lanes and roads in general more crowded with bikes but that\'s just my general sense after visiting the two cities.\n<a title=\"Bikes by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611207094/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8012/7611207094_684ecb222c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Bikes for sale by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611189928/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611189928_2e04f5af21_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bikes for sale\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere\'s a really great bike program in Copenhagen. Basically it\'s this, there are city bike racks where you can checkout bikes. You but a 20 kroner coin in (well I think that\'s the coin) and the bike is unlocked. You can then ride it around as much or as little as you want. When you park the bicycle at a designated stand you lock it back up and then you get your  20 kroner coin back. So it\'s free to ride the bike.\n<a title=\"Bike rack by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611202502/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8166/7611202502_8b788b7b23_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bike rack\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThis is a great system but of course, the free nature of it makes it hard to nearly impossible to find a free bike. P. and I had read about the system and wanted to ride bikes but on our day in Copenhagen we decided against actually paying to rent bikes because it raining steadily in the morning and who wants to ride bikes in the rain?! After giving up our team of spinning around the city on bikes, we never imagined that we\'d actually find two free city bikes to ride.\n<a title=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323172/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8156/7611323172_5df9f49a93_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and my Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611323538/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8017/7611323538_b8494c6884_z.jpg\" alt=\"P. and her Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nIt happened late afternoon, maybe 4pm, when I convinced P. that we should walk outside of the city center a bit to look for a brewery that makes their own local beer. She agreed and we set off. Now Lonely Planet mentions the brewery but it doesn\'t show up on the Copenhagen map because it\'s about 1 kilometer outside of the center. We figure it\'s not big deal and that we\'ll find it. Well after a little walking, we don\'t find it but we do find not one but three free city bikes. We check the tires and steering, pay for the bikes and abandon the brewery to ride the bikes around.\n<a title=\"Copenhagen free bike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611320890/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8006/7611320890_fbf65376d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Copenhagen free bike map by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611322160/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8289/7611322160_6f35fc3de6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Copenhagen free bike map\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nGood thing too because riding bikes around Copenhagen is dreamy. We rode across the bridge and visited the commune  Freetown Christiania, we listened to live jazz, we cycled past churches, palaces and parliament, and when it came time to return our bikes so that we could go to dinner, we had a heck of a time. Now the bikes have maps on them which are marked with the location of bike racks but the maps are little and there aren\'t very many street names listed on them. So as a tourist this was the most complicated part. We had to stop, pull our bikes over and really squint at the maps and then reference our tourist maps as well in an attempt to return our bikes when we were done with them. In fact, it took us about four different tries to find a bike rack because unless there\'s another city bike already parked there the racks look basically the same as any other rack.\n<a title=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611228830/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7250/7611228830_f9b94278fc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Micro-brew beer at Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe went to a really great vegetarian restaurant for dinner. Well a vegetarian restaurant that also happens to serve steak which I guess makes it not a vegetarian restaurant. Anyhow, guess what?! They had the beer from the brewery we\'d been looking for right before we discovered the city bikes. So I ended up with a delicious summer micro-brew beer after all. That  was a preaty great end to my day. <a title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227842/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7611227842_78cde421ef_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611227128/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/7611227128_913e6d2292_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rizraz the Vegetarian restaurant\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','Copenhagen and our Bike Adventure ','','inherit','open','open','','6880-autosave','','','2012-07-20 22:26:54','2012-07-20 20:26:54','',6880,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/20/6880-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6922,1,'2012-07-28 20:45:15','2012-07-28 18:45:15','Vacation is the best.\r\n\r\nBut I probably don\'t need to tell you this. I\'ve been on summer vacation since the first week of July and I don\'t have to go back to work until September. Seriously. I can\'t believe that I am so lucky.\r\n\r\nThe thing about having this much holiday is that you begin to sleep in later. You lounge around in your pjs longer. You watch more tv. You read more stupid things on the internet (and some smart things too). You worry about the upcoming presidential elections in the States and you consider buying a new Obama t-shirt. You find yourself rummaging through your fridge more and wondering what\'s for lunch. You catch yourself thinking: how can I be responsible for feeding myself lunch every day?! Yes, this is true. It happened to me. It happens because for the last 9 months I\'ve eaten lunch at school five days a week.\r\n<a title=\"Coffee at Memento by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7661119068/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7136/7661119068_368346384d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Coffee at Memento\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nAt some point in all of this you realize that you could drink coffee at a cafe rather than in your kitchen. You realize that you should schedule a haircut for your bother\'s upcoming wedding and buy a wedding shower gift for his soon to be bride. Most important, you remember that there were bars that once-upon-a-time before you were a full time teacher and you were living in Sofia on a Fulbright that you liked to go to in afternoons.\r\n\r\nYep. All of this came together recently for a splendid lazy (but very hot) afternoon in Sofia. A. and I took the metro downtown.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nWe walked down Vitosha to have a coffee at Memento. I told him: I think they make a great cappuccino and serve some of the best coffee in Sofia. He sipped his espresso with milk and said: not bad. I\'d translate that into Carolyn-speak as good. But maybe that\'s unfair. My cappuccino was delicious. The milk was thick and foamy and the espresso was smooth with no bitter flavor. Oh and it came with a pretty-pretty leaf in the milk-foam.\r\n\r\nWe did some people watching. There were plenty of older women out drinking cocktails at 1:30pm and lots of people riding bikes around. I swear, I see more and more people riding their bikes around the city each time I go out. I am beginning to suspect that this is going to be a biking city before I know it. I\'m just holding out for some more dedicated bike lanes before I get a bike.\r\n\r\nThen I went on a hunt for a wedding shower gift for my bother\'s fiancee. We popped into lots of shops around Sofia. The shower theme is kitchen. The thing is that she and my bother bought a house together last year and lived together before that and as such I suspect that they have all of the basics necessary for cooking in the kitchen already. Thus the challenge is finding her something that she will like and find useful but I don\'t want to buy her a gift that she\'ll never use or worse yet something that she already has. The problem for me is that I\'ve been in their house in Walla Walla exactly one time and in their apartment in San Francisco once as well. So I have a general sense of her taste and style and I went out hoping that something would scream: Buy me! I\'m perfect for N. &amp; K!\r\n\r\nWe stumbled upon this lovely shop on Shishman called <a href=\"http://gourmethouse.bg/catalog/shop\" target=\"_blank\">the Gourmet House</a> that were the wedding say in (or around) Sofia and the bride and groom lived in (or around) Sofia I would definitely consider buying something from. They have some seriously beautiful things from wine glasses to photo albums and frames to sterling silver cake knives and decorative art-glass serving dishes. I would have loved to buy my brother and his soon to be wife a gift from this shop but there was no way I could risk buying something glass and carrying it with me back to the States on not one but three different airplanes.\r\n<a title=\"beer at bilkova by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7663105708/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8431/7663105708_dbe8df968b_z.jpg\" alt=\"beer at bilkova\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nFinally I found a little something for the shower (but I can\'t say what because I know that K. regularly reads my blog). It\'s nice to be able to check things off your to-do list. Then A. and I celebrated with a late afternoon beer at Bilkova on their terrace. Terrace sounds a little fancy for what it is but garden does too. So I guess I\'ll say this. We had a beer on the cement pad shaded by trees set back from the sidewalk right outside the basement level bar and it was perfect.\r\n\r\nBilkova can be crowded at times and it used to be awfully smokey but the thing I like best is that they aren\'t pretentious about things. You want a beer? Here\'s a beer and the check. No one is smiling too much or wearing too short of skirts like many bars outfit their girls in. No one is hovering around. It\'s just a bar that serves beer (well, and other things too) and does this well.\r\n<a title=\"IMG_7960Street Art by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7661118272/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7257/7661118272_8e475b2f14_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_7960Street Art\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Street Art by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7661119882/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7129/7661119882_214e91e96c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Street Art\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nOh and on the way from Memento to Bilkova we took a circuitious route that took us past a number of different pieces of street art. It was a lovely afternoon.\r\n<a title=\"Street Art by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7661117418/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8004/7661117418_a8fcd21c95_z.jpg\" alt=\"Street Art\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Street Art by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7661120638/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7661120638_20b93e33b2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Street Art\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Street Art by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7661119404/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8153/7661119404_ac4d747841_z.jpg\" alt=\"Street Art\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','A Seriously Lazy Afternoon ','','publish','open','open','','a-seriously-lazy-afternoon','','','2012-07-28 20:45:15','2012-07-28 18:45:15','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6922',0,'post','',2),(6890,1,'2012-07-21 09:13:27','2012-07-21 07:13:27','<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens exit by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611086870/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8290/7611086870_7cbaa28fed.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens exit\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" /></a>Our first night in Copenhagen, we went to visit Tivoli Gardens. It\'s an amusement park and garden that was built around 1850 in the heart of the city there\'s a<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tivoli_Gardens\" target=\"_blank\"> long interesting history on wikipedia</a> so check it out if you want to know more. One legend that floats round the park is that the purpose of the park was to keep people having fun and thus to distract them from politics.  I don\'t know if I buy that but I did have a lot of fun at Tivoli.\r\n\r\nOnce inside Tivoli gardens it\'s like an oasis in the middle of the city. Soft music plays, everyone and everything seems to slow down, people walk around but never crowd each other, and everything looks better in low lighting.\r\n\r\nIt\'s as if the park is from another time and I guess it kind of is. There\'s something elegant about the place and the space. It\'s refined and well thought through. Each side walk leads to another and the park seems to flow out from the main gates. Tivoli Gardens isn\'t actually that big. It covers about the same amount of ground space as the railway station next almost next door but you won\'t know this walking around.\r\n<a title=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611059566/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/7611059566_1f649d0ec4_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe went after dinner as the sun was setting. The main entrance is grand and well lit and once inside, in fact the whole park, is lit up in the evenings making the space seem extra magical as everything glows and lights flicker and twinkle. Here I am standing inside the park in front of a beautiful fountain and one of the main buildings in Tivoli.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611060706/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7138/7611060706_091b412330_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611055258/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611055258_9582571455_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611052704/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611052704_23b523a0dc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere are paths to walk along, fountains to admire, restaurants to eat at and  bars to have a drink in. Likewise, there are often concerts to listen to or performances to watch as there are a couple of outdoor stages and of course there are the rides in the amusement park.\r\n\r\nIn Tivoli at dusk, things seem grand and things that I might otherwise gawk at I carefully took pictures of.  It wasn\'t until I got home and was trying to name and label the photos I\'d taken that I realized how the park exoticized both China and the Orient.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611044446/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7611044446_30c72edd3a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere\'s a Chinese pagoda that has been trimmed in lights. It\'s striking and impressive both from afar and from close-up and when the park was built people must have really marveled at it.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611093918/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611093918_c4c99076ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nThen there is the nondescript clearly Oriental building. It\'s large and white with a dome and rounded windows and a walkway with pillars along the front of the building. This building has also been trimmed in lights.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611064184/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7611064184_301c03c89c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611063162/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7611063162_7784335a1f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI really enjoyed walking around the park. The energy in the space was amazing. There are children tugging at their parents, young couples strolling clearly on dates, middle aged men and women taking photos and admiring the gardens, teenagers full of energy bounding around and new parents pushing strollers with sleeping (or sleepy) babies.\r\n<a title=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611050318/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611050318_10f56fa43a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611046624/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8023/7611046624_cd0cdfe112_z.jpg\" alt=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere a light show at the main lake in the garden which we stumbled upon having read about it but then having promptly forgotten about it until it was starting. The show relies on music, lights, fog machines and an elaborate system of water jets in the lake. At dark the effects from the lasers, the fog, the water and well timed music and lights was enchanting. People ooo-ed and ahhh-ed and when the show was over everyone lingered hoping that there might be more when they knew there wouldn\'t be. I was among them.\r\n<a title=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611092838/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611092838_0a7ba34290_z.jpg\" alt=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe rides were also well lit and this <em>almost</em> made me want to take a spin on one of them but rides are really not my thing.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611042568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611042568_804da39767_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nYes, if you know me, you know that I don\'t like roller coasters or really most amusement park rides. My stomach doesn\'t agree with them and rather than being scared because of some outlandish turn or a steep, quick drop, I spend my whole time scared that I am going to throw-up on myself and the person in front of me because I nearly have. Then this fear turns into worry. I worry that I won\'t have anything else to wear so I\'ll either have to go home ruining the day for everyone else or spend the whole time walking around with traces of throw-up on myself. Needless to say, I avoid most rides.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611098448/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611098448_23c29dbb78_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611048100/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611048100_256e16e539_z.jpg\" alt=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nMaybe had the carousel been running or I\'d felt like waiting in line for the ferris wheel, I\'d have taken a whirl but I had a great time without it. We headed home when the park was closing at 11pm.','Tivoli Gardens after Dinner ','','publish','open','open','','tivoli-gardens-after-dinner','','','2012-07-21 09:13:27','2012-07-21 07:13:27','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6890',0,'post','',0),(6891,1,'2012-07-21 09:01:22','2012-07-21 07:01:22','Our first night in Copenhagen, we went to visit Tivoli Gardens. It\'s an amusement park and garden that was built around 1850 in the heart of the city there\'s a<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tivoli_Gardens\" target=\"_blank\"> long interesting history on wikipedia</a> so check it out if you want to know more. One legend that floats round the park is that the purpose of the park was to keep people having fun and thus to distract them from politics.  I don\'t know if I buy that but I did have a lot of fun at Tivoli.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611059566/\" title=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/7611059566_1f649d0ec4_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\nWe went after dinner as the sun was setting. The main entrance is grand and well lit. In fact the whole park, is lit up in the evenings making the space seem extra magical as everything glows and lights flicker and twinkle.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611060706/\" title=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7138/7611060706_091b412330_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611055258/\" title=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611055258_9582571455_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611052704/\" title=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611052704_23b523a0dc_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\nThere are paths to walk along, fountains to admire, restaurants to eat at and  bars to have a drink in. Likewise, there are often concerts to listen to or performances to watch as there are a couple of outdoor stages and of course there are the rides in the amusement park.\n\nIn Tivoli at dusk, things seem grand and things that I might otherwise gawk at I carefully took pictures of.  It wasn\'t until I got home and was trying to name and label the photos I\'d taken that I realized how the park exoticized both China and the Orient. \n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611044446/\" title=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7611044446_30c72edd3a_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House\"></a>\nThere\'s a Chinese pagoda that has been trimmed in lights. It\'s striking and impressive both from afar and from close-up and when the park was built people must have really marveled at it. \n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611093918/\" title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611093918_c4c99076ca_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611064184/\" title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7611064184_301c03c89c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\nThen there is the nondescript clearly Oriental building. It\'s large and white with a dome and rounded windows and a walkway with pillars along the front of the building. This building has also been trimmed in lights.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611063162/\" title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7611063162_7784335a1f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east\"></a>\nI really enjoyed walking around the park. The energy in the space was amazing. There are children tugging at their parents, young couples strolling clearly on dates, middle aged men and women taking photos and admiring the gardens, teenagers full of energy bounding around and new parents pushing strollers with sleeping (or sleepy) babies.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611050318/\" title=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611050318_10f56fa43a_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611046624/\" title=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8023/7611046624_cd0cdfe112_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\nThere a light show at the main lake in the garden which we stumbled upon having read about it but then having promptly forgotten about it until it was starting. The show relies on music, lights, fog machines and an elaborate system of water jets in the lake. At dark the effects from the lasers, the fog, the water and well timed music and lights was enchanting. People ooo-ed and ahhh-ed and when the show was over everyone lingered hoping that there might be more when they knew there wouldn\'t be. I was among them.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611092838/\" title=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611092838_0a7ba34290_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\nThe rides were also well lit and almost made me want to take a spin on one of them but rides are really not my thing.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611042568/\" title=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611042568_804da39767_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster\"></a>\nYes, if you know me, you know that I don\'t like roller coasters or really most amusement park rides. My stomach doesn\'t agree with them and rather than being scared because of some outlandish turn or a steep, quick drop, I spend my whole time scared that I am going to throw-up on myself and the person in front of me because I nearly have. Then this fear turns into worry. I worry that I won\'t have anything else to wear so I\'ll either have to go home ruining the day for everyone else or spend the whole time walking around with traces of throw-up on myself. Needless to say, I avoid most rides.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611098448/\" title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611098448_23c29dbb78_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611048100/\" title=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611048100_256e16e539_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens\"></a>\nMaybe had the carousel been running or I\'d felt like waiting in line for the ferris wheel, I\'d have taken a whirl but I had a great time without it. We headed home when the park was closing at 11pm.','Tivoli Gardens after Dinner ','','inherit','open','open','','6890-revision','','','2012-07-21 09:01:22','2012-07-21 07:01:22','',6890,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/21/6890-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6892,1,'2012-07-21 09:03:22','2012-07-21 07:03:22','<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens exit by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611086870/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8290/7611086870_7cbaa28fed.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens exit\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" /></a>Our first night in Copenhagen, we went to visit Tivoli Gardens. It\'s an amusement park and garden that was built around 1850 in the heart of the city there\'s a<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tivoli_Gardens\" target=\"_blank\"> long interesting history on wikipedia</a> so check it out if you want to know more. One legend that floats round the park is that the purpose of the park was to keep people having fun and thus to distract them from politics.  I don\'t know if I buy that but I did have a lot of fun at Tivoli.\n<a title=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611059566/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/7611059566_1f649d0ec4_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe went after dinner as the sun was setting. The main entrance is grand and well lit. In fact the whole park, is lit up in the evenings making the space seem extra magical as everything glows and lights flicker and twinkle.\n<a title=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611060706/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7138/7611060706_091b412330_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611055258/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611055258_9582571455_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611052704/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611052704_23b523a0dc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere are paths to walk along, fountains to admire, restaurants to eat at and  bars to have a drink in. Likewise, there are often concerts to listen to or performances to watch as there are a couple of outdoor stages and of course there are the rides in the amusement park.\n\nIn Tivoli at dusk, things seem grand and things that I might otherwise gawk at I carefully took pictures of.  It wasn\'t until I got home and was trying to name and label the photos I\'d taken that I realized how the park exoticized both China and the Orient.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611044446/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7611044446_30c72edd3a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere\'s a Chinese pagoda that has been trimmed in lights. It\'s striking and impressive both from afar and from close-up and when the park was built people must have really marveled at it.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611093918/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611093918_c4c99076ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611064184/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7611064184_301c03c89c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThen there is the nondescript clearly Oriental building. It\'s large and white with a dome and rounded windows and a walkway with pillars along the front of the building. This building has also been trimmed in lights.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611063162/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7611063162_7784335a1f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI really enjoyed walking around the park. The energy in the space was amazing. There are children tugging at their parents, young couples strolling clearly on dates, middle aged men and women taking photos and admiring the gardens, teenagers full of energy bounding around and new parents pushing strollers with sleeping (or sleepy) babies.\n<a title=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611050318/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611050318_10f56fa43a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611046624/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8023/7611046624_cd0cdfe112_z.jpg\" alt=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere a light show at the main lake in the garden which we stumbled upon having read about it but then having promptly forgotten about it until it was starting. The show relies on music, lights, fog machines and an elaborate system of water jets in the lake. At dark the effects from the lasers, the fog, the water and well timed music and lights was enchanting. People ooo-ed and ahhh-ed and when the show was over everyone lingered hoping that there might be more when they knew there wouldn\'t be. I was among them.\n<a title=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611092838/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611092838_0a7ba34290_z.jpg\" alt=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThe rides were also well lit and almost made me want to take a spin on one of them but rides are really not my thing.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611042568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611042568_804da39767_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nYes, if you know me, you know that I don\'t like roller coasters or really most amusement park rides. My stomach doesn\'t agree with them and rather than being scared because of some outlandish turn or a steep, quick drop, I spend my whole time scared that I am going to throw-up on myself and the person in front of me because I nearly have. Then this fear turns into worry. I worry that I won\'t have anything else to wear so I\'ll either have to go home ruining the day for everyone else or spend the whole time walking around with traces of throw-up on myself. Needless to say, I avoid most rides.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611098448/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611098448_23c29dbb78_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611048100/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611048100_256e16e539_z.jpg\" alt=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nMaybe had the carousel been running or I\'d felt like waiting in line for the ferris wheel, I\'d have taken a whirl but I had a great time without it. We headed home when the park was closing at 11pm.','Tivoli Gardens after Dinner ','','inherit','open','open','','6890-revision-2','','','2012-07-21 09:03:22','2012-07-21 07:03:22','',6890,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/21/6890-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6893,1,'2012-07-21 09:08:13','2012-07-21 07:08:13','<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens exit by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611086870/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8290/7611086870_7cbaa28fed.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens exit\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" /></a>Our first night in Copenhagen, we went to visit Tivoli Gardens. It\'s an amusement park and garden that was built around 1850 in the heart of the city there\'s a<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tivoli_Gardens\" target=\"_blank\"> long interesting history on wikipedia</a> so check it out if you want to know more. One legend that floats round the park is that the purpose of the park was to keep people having fun and thus to distract them from politics.  I don\'t know if I buy that but I did have a lot of fun at Tivoli.\r\n\r\nOnce inside Tivoli gardens it\'s like an oasis in the middle of the city. Soft music plays, everyone and everything seems to slow down, people walk around but never crowd each other, and everything looks better in low lighting.\r\n\r\nIt\'s as if the park is from another time and I guess it kind of is. There\'s something elegant about the place and the space. It\'s refined and well thought through. Each side walk leads to another and the park seems to flow out from the main gates. Tivoli Gardens isn\'t actually that big. It covers about the same amount of ground space as the railway station next almost next door but you won\'t know this walking around.\r\n<a title=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611059566/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/7611059566_1f649d0ec4_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe went after dinner as the sun was setting. The main entrance is grand and well lit. In fact the whole park, is lit up in the evenings making the space seem extra magical as everything glows and lights flicker and twinkle.\r\n<a title=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611060706/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7138/7611060706_091b412330_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611055258/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611055258_9582571455_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611052704/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611052704_23b523a0dc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere are paths to walk along, fountains to admire, restaurants to eat at and  bars to have a drink in. Likewise, there are often concerts to listen to or performances to watch as there are a couple of outdoor stages and of course there are the rides in the amusement park.\r\n\r\nIn Tivoli at dusk, things seem grand and things that I might otherwise gawk at I carefully took pictures of.  It wasn\'t until I got home and was trying to name and label the photos I\'d taken that I realized how the park exoticized both China and the Orient.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611044446/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7611044446_30c72edd3a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere\'s a Chinese pagoda that has been trimmed in lights. It\'s striking and impressive both from afar and from close-up and when the park was built people must have really marveled at it.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611093918/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611093918_c4c99076ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611064184/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7611064184_301c03c89c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThen there is the nondescript clearly Oriental building. It\'s large and white with a dome and rounded windows and a walkway with pillars along the front of the building. This building has also been trimmed in lights.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611063162/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7611063162_7784335a1f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI really enjoyed walking around the park. The energy in the space was amazing. There are children tugging at their parents, young couples strolling clearly on dates, middle aged men and women taking photos and admiring the gardens, teenagers full of energy bounding around and new parents pushing strollers with sleeping (or sleepy) babies.\r\n<a title=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611050318/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611050318_10f56fa43a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611046624/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8023/7611046624_cd0cdfe112_z.jpg\" alt=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere a light show at the main lake in the garden which we stumbled upon having read about it but then having promptly forgotten about it until it was starting. The show relies on music, lights, fog machines and an elaborate system of water jets in the lake. At dark the effects from the lasers, the fog, the water and well timed music and lights was enchanting. People ooo-ed and ahhh-ed and when the show was over everyone lingered hoping that there might be more when they knew there wouldn\'t be. I was among them.\r\n<a title=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611092838/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611092838_0a7ba34290_z.jpg\" alt=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe rides were also well lit and almost made me want to take a spin on one of them but rides are really not my thing.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611042568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611042568_804da39767_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nYes, if you know me, you know that I don\'t like roller coasters or really most amusement park rides. My stomach doesn\'t agree with them and rather than being scared because of some outlandish turn or a steep, quick drop, I spend my whole time scared that I am going to throw-up on myself and the person in front of me because I nearly have. Then this fear turns into worry. I worry that I won\'t have anything else to wear so I\'ll either have to go home ruining the day for everyone else or spend the whole time walking around with traces of throw-up on myself. Needless to say, I avoid most rides.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611098448/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611098448_23c29dbb78_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611048100/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611048100_256e16e539_z.jpg\" alt=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nMaybe had the carousel been running or I\'d felt like waiting in line for the ferris wheel, I\'d have taken a whirl but I had a great time without it. We headed home when the park was closing at 11pm.','Tivoli Gardens after Dinner ','','inherit','open','open','','6890-revision-3','','','2012-07-21 09:08:13','2012-07-21 07:08:13','',6890,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/21/6890-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(6894,1,'2012-07-21 09:09:17','2012-07-21 07:09:17','<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens exit by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611086870/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8290/7611086870_7cbaa28fed.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens exit\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" /></a>Our first night in Copenhagen, we went to visit Tivoli Gardens. It\'s an amusement park and garden that was built around 1850 in the heart of the city there\'s a<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tivoli_Gardens\" target=\"_blank\"> long interesting history on wikipedia</a> so check it out if you want to know more. One legend that floats round the park is that the purpose of the park was to keep people having fun and thus to distract them from politics.  I don\'t know if I buy that but I did have a lot of fun at Tivoli.\n\nOnce inside Tivoli gardens it\'s like an oasis in the middle of the city. Soft music plays, everyone and everything seems to slow down, people walk around but never crowd each other, and everything looks better in low lighting.\n\nIt\'s as if the park is from another time and I guess it kind of is. There\'s something elegant about the place and the space. It\'s refined and well thought through. Each side walk leads to another and the park seems to flow out from the main gates. Tivoli Gardens isn\'t actually that big. It covers about the same amount of ground space as the railway station next almost next door but you won\'t know this walking around.\n<a title=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611059566/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/7611059566_1f649d0ec4_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe went after dinner as the sun was setting. The main entrance is grand and well lit. In fact the whole park, is lit up in the evenings making the space seem extra magical as everything glows and lights flicker and twinkle.\n<a title=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611060706/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7138/7611060706_091b412330_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611055258/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611055258_9582571455_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611052704/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611052704_23b523a0dc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere are paths to walk along, fountains to admire, restaurants to eat at and  bars to have a drink in. Likewise, there are often concerts to listen to or performances to watch as there are a couple of outdoor stages and of course there are the rides in the amusement park.\n\nIn Tivoli at dusk, things seem grand and things that I might otherwise gawk at I carefully took pictures of.  It wasn\'t until I got home and was trying to name and label the photos I\'d taken that I realized how the park exoticized both China and the Orient.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611044446/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7611044446_30c72edd3a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere\'s a Chinese pagoda that has been trimmed in lights. It\'s striking and impressive both from afar and from close-up and when the park was built people must have really marveled at it.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611093918/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611093918_c4c99076ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611064184/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7611064184_301c03c89c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThen there is the nondescript clearly Oriental building. It\'s large and white with a dome and rounded windows and a walkway with pillars along the front of the building. This building has also been trimmed in lights.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611063162/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7611063162_7784335a1f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI really enjoyed walking around the park. The energy in the space was amazing. There are children tugging at their parents, young couples strolling clearly on dates, middle aged men and women taking photos and admiring the gardens, teenagers full of energy bounding around and new parents pushing strollers with sleeping (or sleepy) babies.\n<a title=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611050318/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611050318_10f56fa43a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611046624/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8023/7611046624_cd0cdfe112_z.jpg\" alt=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere a light show at the main lake in the garden which we stumbled upon having read about it but then having promptly forgotten about it until it was starting. The show relies on music, lights, fog machines and an elaborate system of water jets in the lake. At dark the effects from the lasers, the fog, the water and well timed music and lights was enchanting. People ooo-ed and ahhh-ed and when the show was over everyone lingered hoping that there might be more when they knew there wouldn\'t be. I was among them.\n<a title=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611092838/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611092838_0a7ba34290_z.jpg\" alt=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThe rides were also well lit and almost made me want to take a spin on one of them but rides are really not my thing.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611042568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611042568_804da39767_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nYes, if you know me, you know that I don\'t like roller coasters or really most amusement park rides. My stomach doesn\'t agree with them and rather than being scared because of some outlandish turn or a steep, quick drop, I spend my whole time scared that I am going to throw-up on myself and the person in front of me because I nearly have. Then this fear turns into worry. I worry that I won\'t have anything else to wear so I\'ll either have to go home ruining the day for everyone else or spend the whole time walking around with traces of throw-up on myself. Needless to say, I avoid most rides.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611098448/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611098448_23c29dbb78_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611048100/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611048100_256e16e539_z.jpg\" alt=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nMaybe had the carousel been running or I\'d felt like waiting in line for the ferris wheel, I\'d have taken a whirl but I had a great time without it. We headed home when the park was closing at 11pm.','Tivoli Gardens after Dinner ','','inherit','open','open','','6890-revision-4','','','2012-07-21 09:09:17','2012-07-21 07:09:17','',6890,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/21/6890-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(6895,1,'2012-07-21 09:09:52','2012-07-21 07:09:52','<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens exit by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611086870/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8290/7611086870_7cbaa28fed.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens exit\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" /></a>Our first night in Copenhagen, we went to visit Tivoli Gardens. It\'s an amusement park and garden that was built around 1850 in the heart of the city there\'s a<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tivoli_Gardens\" target=\"_blank\"> long interesting history on wikipedia</a> so check it out if you want to know more. One legend that floats round the park is that the purpose of the park was to keep people having fun and thus to distract them from politics.  I don\'t know if I buy that but I did have a lot of fun at Tivoli.\r\n\r\nOnce inside Tivoli gardens it\'s like an oasis in the middle of the city. Soft music plays, everyone and everything seems to slow down, people walk around but never crowd each other, and everything looks better in low lighting.\r\n\r\nIt\'s as if the park is from another time and I guess it kind of is. There\'s something elegant about the place and the space. It\'s refined and well thought through. Each side walk leads to another and the park seems to flow out from the main gates. Tivoli Gardens isn\'t actually that big. It covers about the same amount of ground space as the railway station next almost next door but you won\'t know this walking around.\r\n<a title=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611059566/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/7611059566_1f649d0ec4_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe went after dinner as the sun was setting. The main entrance is grand and well lit. In fact the whole park, is lit up in the evenings making the space seem extra magical as everything glows and lights flicker and twinkle.\r\n<a title=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611060706/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7138/7611060706_091b412330_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611055258/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611055258_9582571455_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611052704/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611052704_23b523a0dc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere are paths to walk along, fountains to admire, restaurants to eat at and  bars to have a drink in. Likewise, there are often concerts to listen to or performances to watch as there are a couple of outdoor stages and of course there are the rides in the amusement park.\r\n\r\nIn Tivoli at dusk, things seem grand and things that I might otherwise gawk at I carefully took pictures of.  It wasn\'t until I got home and was trying to name and label the photos I\'d taken that I realized how the park exoticized both China and the Orient.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611044446/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7611044446_30c72edd3a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere\'s a Chinese pagoda that has been trimmed in lights. It\'s striking and impressive both from afar and from close-up and when the park was built people must have really marveled at it.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611093918/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611093918_c4c99076ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nThen there is the nondescript clearly Oriental building. It\'s large and white with a dome and rounded windows and a walkway with pillars along the front of the building. This building has also been trimmed in lights.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611064184/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7611064184_301c03c89c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611063162/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7611063162_7784335a1f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI really enjoyed walking around the park. The energy in the space was amazing. There are children tugging at their parents, young couples strolling clearly on dates, middle aged men and women taking photos and admiring the gardens, teenagers full of energy bounding around and new parents pushing strollers with sleeping (or sleepy) babies.\r\n<a title=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611050318/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611050318_10f56fa43a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611046624/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8023/7611046624_cd0cdfe112_z.jpg\" alt=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere a light show at the main lake in the garden which we stumbled upon having read about it but then having promptly forgotten about it until it was starting. The show relies on music, lights, fog machines and an elaborate system of water jets in the lake. At dark the effects from the lasers, the fog, the water and well timed music and lights was enchanting. People ooo-ed and ahhh-ed and when the show was over everyone lingered hoping that there might be more when they knew there wouldn\'t be. I was among them.\r\n<a title=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611092838/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611092838_0a7ba34290_z.jpg\" alt=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe rides were also well lit and almost made me want to take a spin on one of them but rides are really not my thing.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611042568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611042568_804da39767_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nYes, if you know me, you know that I don\'t like roller coasters or really most amusement park rides. My stomach doesn\'t agree with them and rather than being scared because of some outlandish turn or a steep, quick drop, I spend my whole time scared that I am going to throw-up on myself and the person in front of me because I nearly have. Then this fear turns into worry. I worry that I won\'t have anything else to wear so I\'ll either have to go home ruining the day for everyone else or spend the whole time walking around with traces of throw-up on myself. Needless to say, I avoid most rides.\r\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611098448/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611098448_23c29dbb78_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611048100/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611048100_256e16e539_z.jpg\" alt=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nMaybe had the carousel been running or I\'d felt like waiting in line for the ferris wheel, I\'d have taken a whirl but I had a great time without it. We headed home when the park was closing at 11pm.','Tivoli Gardens after Dinner ','','inherit','open','open','','6890-revision-5','','','2012-07-21 09:09:52','2012-07-21 07:09:52','',6890,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/21/6890-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(6896,1,'2012-07-21 09:12:55','2012-07-21 07:12:55','<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens exit by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611086870/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8290/7611086870_7cbaa28fed.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens exit\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" /></a>Our first night in Copenhagen, we went to visit Tivoli Gardens. It\'s an amusement park and garden that was built around 1850 in the heart of the city there\'s a<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tivoli_Gardens\" target=\"_blank\"> long interesting history on wikipedia</a> so check it out if you want to know more. One legend that floats round the park is that the purpose of the park was to keep people having fun and thus to distract them from politics.  I don\'t know if I buy that but I did have a lot of fun at Tivoli.\n\nOnce inside Tivoli gardens it\'s like an oasis in the middle of the city. Soft music plays, everyone and everything seems to slow down, people walk around but never crowd each other, and everything looks better in low lighting.\n\nIt\'s as if the park is from another time and I guess it kind of is. There\'s something elegant about the place and the space. It\'s refined and well thought through. Each side walk leads to another and the park seems to flow out from the main gates. Tivoli Gardens isn\'t actually that big. It covers about the same amount of ground space as the railway station next almost next door but you won\'t know this walking around.\n<a title=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611059566/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/7611059566_1f649d0ec4_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe went after dinner as the sun was setting. The main entrance is grand and well lit and once inside, in fact the whole park, is lit up in the evenings making the space seem extra magical as everything glows and lights flicker and twinkle. Here I am standing inside the park in front of a beautiful fountain and one of the main buildings in Tivoli.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611060706/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7138/7611060706_091b412330_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611055258/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611055258_9582571455_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611052704/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611052704_23b523a0dc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere are paths to walk along, fountains to admire, restaurants to eat at and  bars to have a drink in. Likewise, there are often concerts to listen to or performances to watch as there are a couple of outdoor stages and of course there are the rides in the amusement park.\n\nIn Tivoli at dusk, things seem grand and things that I might otherwise gawk at I carefully took pictures of.  It wasn\'t until I got home and was trying to name and label the photos I\'d taken that I realized how the park exoticized both China and the Orient.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611044446/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7611044446_30c72edd3a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere\'s a Chinese pagoda that has been trimmed in lights. It\'s striking and impressive both from afar and from close-up and when the park was built people must have really marveled at it.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611093918/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611093918_c4c99076ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nThen there is the nondescript clearly Oriental building. It\'s large and white with a dome and rounded windows and a walkway with pillars along the front of the building. This building has also been trimmed in lights.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611064184/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7611064184_301c03c89c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611063162/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7611063162_7784335a1f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI really enjoyed walking around the park. The energy in the space was amazing. There are children tugging at their parents, young couples strolling clearly on dates, middle aged men and women taking photos and admiring the gardens, teenagers full of energy bounding around and new parents pushing strollers with sleeping (or sleepy) babies.\n<a title=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611050318/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611050318_10f56fa43a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611046624/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8023/7611046624_cd0cdfe112_z.jpg\" alt=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere a light show at the main lake in the garden which we stumbled upon having read about it but then having promptly forgotten about it until it was starting. The show relies on music, lights, fog machines and an elaborate system of water jets in the lake. At dark the effects from the lasers, the fog, the water and well timed music and lights was enchanting. People ooo-ed and ahhh-ed and when the show was over everyone lingered hoping that there might be more when they knew there wouldn\'t be. I was among them.\n<a title=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611092838/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611092838_0a7ba34290_z.jpg\" alt=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThe rides were also well lit and this <em>almost</em> made me want to take a spin on one of them but rides are really not my thing.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611042568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611042568_804da39767_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nYes, if you know me, you know that I don\'t like roller coasters or really most amusement park rides. My stomach doesn\'t agree with them and rather than being scared because of some outlandish turn or a steep, quick drop, I spend my whole time scared that I am going to throw-up on myself and the person in front of me because I nearly have. Then this fear turns into worry. I worry that I won\'t have anything else to wear so I\'ll either have to go home ruining the day for everyone else or spend the whole time walking around with traces of throw-up on myself. Needless to say, I avoid most rides.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611098448/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611098448_23c29dbb78_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611048100/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611048100_256e16e539_z.jpg\" alt=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nMaybe had the carousel been running or I\'d felt like waiting in line for the ferris wheel, I\'d have taken a whirl but I had a great time without it. We headed home when the park was closing at 11pm.','Tivoli Gardens after Dinner ','','inherit','open','open','','6890-revision-6','','','2012-07-21 09:12:55','2012-07-21 07:12:55','',6890,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/21/6890-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(6897,1,'2012-07-21 09:14:31','2012-07-21 07:14:31','<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens exit by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611086870/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8290/7611086870_7cbaa28fed.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens exit\" width=\"333\" height=\"500\" /></a>Our first night in Copenhagen, we went to visit Tivoli Gardens. It\'s an amusement park and garden that was built around 1850 in the heart of the city there\'s a<a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tivoli_Gardens\" target=\"_blank\"> long interesting history on wikipedia</a> so check it out if you want to know more. One legend that floats round the park is that the purpose of the park was to keep people having fun and thus to distract them from politics.  I don\'t know if I buy that but I did have a lot of fun at Tivoli.\n\nOnce inside Tivoli gardens it\'s like an oasis in the middle of the city. Soft music plays, everyone and everything seems to slow down, people walk around but never crowd each other, and everything looks better in low lighting.\n\nIt\'s as if the park is from another time and I guess it kind of is. There\'s something elegant about the place and the space. It\'s refined and well thought through. Each side walk leads to another and the park seems to flow out from the main gates. Tivoli Gardens isn\'t actually that big. It covers about the same amount of ground space as the railway station next almost next door but you won\'t know this walking around.\n<a title=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611059566/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/7611059566_1f649d0ec4_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me part two in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe went after dinner as the sun was setting. The main entrance is grand and well lit and once inside, in fact the whole park, is lit up in the evenings making the space seem extra magical as everything glows and lights flicker and twinkle. Here I am standing inside the park in front of a beautiful fountain and one of the main buildings in Tivoli.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611060706/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7138/7611060706_091b412330_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dusk in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611055258/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7611055258_9582571455_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fountain in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611052704/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611052704_23b523a0dc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers and lights in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere are paths to walk along, fountains to admire, restaurants to eat at and  bars to have a drink in. Likewise, there are often concerts to listen to or performances to watch as there are a couple of outdoor stages and of course there are the rides in the amusement park.\n\nIn Tivoli at dusk, things seem grand and things that I might otherwise gawk at I carefully took pictures of.  It wasn\'t until I got home and was trying to name and label the photos I\'d taken that I realized how the park exoticized both China and the Orient.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611044446/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7611044446_30c72edd3a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens Chinese House\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere\'s a Chinese pagoda that has been trimmed in lights. It\'s striking and impressive both from afar and from close-up and when the park was built people must have really marveled at it.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611093918/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7611093918_c4c99076ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the rides\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nThen there is the nondescript clearly Oriental building. It\'s large and white with a dome and rounded windows and a walkway with pillars along the front of the building. This building has also been trimmed in lights.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611064184/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7611064184_301c03c89c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611063162/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7611063162_7784335a1f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens and the exotic east\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI really enjoyed walking around the park. The energy in the space was amazing. There are children tugging at their parents, young couples strolling clearly on dates, middle aged men and women taking photos and admiring the gardens, teenagers full of energy bounding around and new parents pushing strollers with sleeping (or sleepy) babies.\n<a title=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611050318/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611050318_10f56fa43a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Balloon car in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611046624/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8023/7611046624_cd0cdfe112_z.jpg\" alt=\"Candy at Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere a light show at the main lake in the garden which we stumbled upon having read about it but then having promptly forgotten about it until it was starting. The show relies on music, lights, fog machines and an elaborate system of water jets in the lake. At dark the effects from the lasers, the fog, the water and well timed music and lights was enchanting. People ooo-ed and ahhh-ed and when the show was over everyone lingered hoping that there might be more when they knew there wouldn\'t be. I was among them.\n<a title=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611092838/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611092838_0a7ba34290_z.jpg\" alt=\"A light show in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThe rides were also well lit and this <em>almost</em> made me want to take a spin on one of them but rides are really not my thing.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611042568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611042568_804da39767_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens roller coaster\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nYes, if you know me, you know that I don\'t like roller coasters or really most amusement park rides. My stomach doesn\'t agree with them and rather than being scared because of some outlandish turn or a steep, quick drop, I spend my whole time scared that I am going to throw-up on myself and the person in front of me because I nearly have. Then this fear turns into worry. I worry that I won\'t have anything else to wear so I\'ll either have to go home ruining the day for everyone else or spend the whole time walking around with traces of throw-up on myself. Needless to say, I avoid most rides.\n<a title=\"Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611098448/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611098448_23c29dbb78_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611048100/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611048100_256e16e539_z.jpg\" alt=\"Ride in Tivoli Gardens\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nMaybe had the carousel been running or I\'d felt like waiting in line for the ferris wheel, I\'d have taken a whirl but I had a great time without it. We headed home when the park was closing at 11pm.','Tivoli Gardens after Dinner ','','inherit','open','open','','6890-autosave','','','2012-07-21 09:14:31','2012-07-21 07:14:31','',6890,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/21/6890-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6898,1,'2012-07-25 08:30:04','2012-07-25 06:30:04','I know that I am not breaking any news here. In fact, I wasn\'t sure if it was even something that I should write about here but this morning I decided that it was. Last Wednesday evening the Bulgarian Black Sea town of Burgas was rocked by a suicide bomber. A bomb went off killing five Israeli tourists and the Bulgarian bus driver. Scores of people where injured in the attack as well.\r\n\r\nThe bombing has been all over the news from CNN to the BBC and major newspapers like the New York Times as well as the Bulgarian media and English language media in Bulgaria. Aside from the initial report of the bombing I\'ve found it nearly impossible to keep up with the details.  Many reports contradict each other while others claim to have new information but in fact just rehash old details.\r\n\r\nThe NYT has been covering this story since Wednesday and over the course of the last few days has reported <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/19/world/europe/explosion-on-bulgaria-tour-bus-kills-at-least-four-israelis.html?src=recg\" target=\"_blank\">on the event</a>, the release of video tape from the airport with the suspected bomber and today they are <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/21/world/europe/inquiry-seeks-accomplices-of-bomber-in-bulgaria.html?_r=1&amp;smid=tw-nytimesglobal&amp;seid=auto\" target=\"_blank\">reporting that the official inquiry is interested in finding and identifying the bomber\'s accomplices</a>. The reporting here seems measured and serious while many of the other pieces I\'ve read seem rushed and sloppy.\r\n\r\nIt\'s an interesting problem. This is the first terror attack in Bulgaria so neither the Bulgarian police nor the Bulgarian media has a precedent for how to handle or investigate a bombing like this. Experts have been called in from around Europe and from the States to help investigate the actual bombing and plenty of people and new papers have been speculating about the identity of the dead suicide bomber, which groups he has links to and who helped him pull this off.\r\n\r\nSo what does all of this mean for those of us living in Bulgaria?<!--more-->\r\n\r\nWell, it means lots of questions. Questions that no one seems able to answer. The big question remains: who was the suicide bomber. Nearly a week later no one seems to know. This also means that there\'s been lots of blame shifted around and plenty of accusations have been passed out. All of this has been topped of with a large dose of political posturing.\r\n\r\nWhile the questions remain: who was the bomber and what group was he working with. There are no clear answers. As such it appears that the media is in the process of substituting answers with conjecture and supposition. It would be almost laughable the headlines that are emerging, if it wasn\'t for the fact that at its core the stories are about a terrorist attack.\r\n\r\nThere\'s this headline: <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=141611&amp;utm_source=twitterfeed&amp;utm_medium=twitter\" target=\"_blank\">Bulgarian Terrorist Attack Bomber May Have Been Deluded Drug Smuggler</a>. But my favorite right now is this one: <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=141609&amp;utm_source=twitterfeed&amp;utm_medium=twitter\" target=\"_blank\">Suicide Bomber May Have Arrived from Schengen</a>. Oh because that seems to seem to be one of the two ways he could arrive given the fact that on flights into Bulgaria you either arrive from a Schengen country or a non-Schengen country. I am also not sure what the exact point of this distinction is given the fact that Bulgaria while part of the EU is not a part of Schengen. So it\'s not as if the bomber just slipped across any boarders into Bulgaria. Well, I guess he could have but that might hurt our chances of joining Schengen.\r\n\r\nThen there\'s this completely and totally unhelpful headline: <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=141619&amp;utm_source=twitterfeed&amp;utm_medium=twitter\" target=\"_blank\">New Controversies Emerge in Bulgaria Suicide Bombing Leads</a>. Turns out if you read the article that the autopsy of the bomber\'s head may have revealed that he was mentally retarded (their words not mine). I had no idea that this was possible. Then again all of my forensic science knowledge comes from Law &amp; Order SVU, CSI, Bones and to a lesser extent NCIS.\r\n\r\nSo I\'ll end on a personal note. I feel very removed from this whole thing. It\'s summer time in Bulgaria. Most of my work friends are traveling and many of my Bulgarian friends are gearing up for holiday as well. So there\'s very little routine driving my days at this point. This attack while unsettling seems to have had a specific target group--Israeli  tourists--and while things like this could happen anywhere the Burgas airport seems much less secure than say the Sofia airport terminal 2 or so I tell myself.\r\n\r\nAll of this said, I\'ll continue to continue to follow this story as there\'s this intangible something that continues to pull me back to it. That and I\'m dying to know who the bomber was and his back story.','Last week\'s terrorist attack in Burgas ','','publish','open','open','','last-weeks-terrorist-attack-in-burgas','','','2012-07-25 08:30:04','2012-07-25 06:30:04','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6898',0,'post','',2),(6899,1,'2012-07-21 10:43:51','2012-07-21 08:43:51','I know that I am not breaking any news here. In fact, I wasn\'t sure if it was even something that I should write about here but this morning I decided that it was. Wednesday evening the Bulgarian Black Sea town of Burgas was rocked by a suicide bomber. A bomb went off killing five Israeli tourists and the Bulgarian bus driver. Scores of people where injured in the attack as well.\n\nThe bombing has been all over the news from CNN to the BBC and major newspapers like the New York Times as well as the Bulgarian media and English language media in Bulgaria. Aside from the initial report of the bombing I\'ve found it nearly impossible to keep up with the details.  Many reports contradict each other while others claim to have new information but in fact just rehash old details.\n\nThe NYT has been covering this story since Wednesday and over the course of the last few days has reported <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/19/world/europe/explosion-on-bulgaria-tour-bus-kills-at-least-four-israelis.html?src=recg\" target=\"_blank\">on the event</a>, the release of video tape from the airport with the suspected bomber and today they are <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/21/world/europe/inquiry-seeks-accomplices-of-bomber-in-bulgaria.html?_r=1&amp;smid=tw-nytimesglobal&amp;seid=auto\" target=\"_blank\">reporting that the official inquiry is interested in finding and identifying the bomber\'s accomplices</a>. The reporting here seems measured and serious while many of the other pieces I\'ve read seem rushed and sloppy.\n\nIt\'s an interesting problem. This is the first terror attack in Bulgaria so neither the Bulgarian police nor the Bulgarian media has a precedent for how to handle or investigate a bombing like this. Experts have been called in from around Europe and from the States to help investigate the actual bombing and plenty of people and new papers have been speculating about the identity of the dead suicide bomber, which groups he has links to and who helped him pull this off.\n\nSo what does all of this mean for those of us living in Bulgaria?','','','inherit','open','open','','6898-revision','','','2012-07-21 10:43:51','2012-07-21 08:43:51','',6898,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/21/6898-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6900,1,'2012-07-22 17:06:43','2012-07-22 15:06:43','I love fresh fruit in summer time. There\'s something so refreshing about it--from strawberries to peaches to watermelon and even blueberries.\r\n\r\nIn high school, I worked at a fruit and berry stand so I am very familiar with these fruits, when they come into season and how to select the best ones from thumping watermelons to knowing the different between cling and cling-free peaches. The cling-free peaches, I\'ll have you know, are easier to can because the flesh of the fruit separates more easily from the stone (or the pit).\r\n\r\nAnyhow, in Bulgaria there are lots of roadside stands selling melons. Usually there\'s watermelon and a melon that looks to me, an American, like a cantaloupe from the outside but when you cut into it the flesh is green like a honeydew.  This weekend I cut into a melon that I assumed would be green inside.\r\n<a title=\"cantaloupe in Bulgaria by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7622161620/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7121/7622161620_6ec871af0d_z.jpg\" alt=\"cantaloupe in Bulgaria\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nImagine my surprise when it was cantaloupe orange. I just about died. Then I took some pictures of it and after that I tried to eat half of it in one sitting. My eyes were bigger than my stomach. Since then I\'ve been eating the cantaloupe like melon steadily and every time I see it in my fridge I marvel at the fact that this is first time in four years that I\'ve ever seen a cantaloupe-like melon.\r\n<a title=\"Bowl of cantaloupe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7622168474/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7112/7622168474_5c6077b7fd_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bowl of cantaloupe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe funny thing is that since finding this orange melon I\'ve found myself that much more excited to head home to Walla Walla for the month of August--nine days and counting.\r\n\r\nOh and what\'s more, I can\'t get this really bad joke out of my head:\r\n\r\nWhat did the honeydew say when the watermelon proposed?\r\n\r\nI am sorry I can\'t elope tonight.\r\n\r\n<em>Ha, ha, ha.   Can\'t elope. Cantaloupe.</em>\r\n\r\nAnd yes, this joke made me laugh just as much when I was 5 years old as it does today.','Summer in Bulgaria & a Cantaloupe','','publish','open','open','','summer-in-bulgaria-a-cantaloupe','','','2012-07-22 17:06:43','2012-07-22 15:06:43','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6900',0,'post','',1),(6901,1,'2012-07-22 17:02:08','2012-07-22 15:02:08','I love fresh fruit in summer time. There\'s something so refreshing about it--from strawberries to peaches to watermelon and even blueberries.\n\nIn high school, I worked at a fruit and berry stand so I am very familiar with these fruits, when they come into season and how to select the best ones from thumping watermelons to knowing the different between cling and cling-free peaches. The cling-free peaches, I\'ll have you know, are easier to can because the flesh of the fruit separates more easily from the stone (or the pit).\n\nAnyhow, in Bulgaria there are lots of roadside stands selling melons. Usually there\'s watermelon and a melon that looks to me, an American, like a cantaloupe from the outside but when you cut into it the flesh is green like a honeydew.  This weekend I cut into a melon that I assumed would be green inside.\n<a title=\"cantaloupe in Bulgaria by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7622161620/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7121/7622161620_6ec871af0d_z.jpg\" alt=\"cantaloupe in Bulgaria\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nImagine my surprise when it was cantaloupe orange. I just about died. Then I took some pictures of it and after that I tried to eat half of it in one sitting. My eyes were bigger than my stomach. Since then I\'ve been eating the cantaloupe like melon steadily and every time I see it in my fridge I marvel at the fact that this is first time in four years that I\'ve ever seen a cantaloupe-like melon.\n<a title=\"Bowl of cantaloupe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7622168474/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7112/7622168474_5c6077b7fd_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bowl of cantaloupe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe funny thing is that since finding this orange melon I\'ve found myself that much more excited to head home to Walla Walla for the month of August.\n\nOh and I can\'t get this really bad joke out of my head:\n\nWhat did the honeydew sthe watermelon to marry him how did she respond?\n\nI am sorry I-can\'t-elope tonight.','','','inherit','open','open','','6900-revision','','','2012-07-22 17:02:08','2012-07-22 15:02:08','',6900,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/22/6900-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6902,1,'2012-07-22 17:05:26','2012-07-22 15:05:26','I love fresh fruit in summer time. There\'s something so refreshing about it--from strawberries to peaches to watermelon and even blueberries.\n\nIn high school, I worked at a fruit and berry stand so I am very familiar with these fruits, when they come into season and how to select the best ones from thumping watermelons to knowing the different between cling and cling-free peaches. The cling-free peaches, I\'ll have you know, are easier to can because the flesh of the fruit separates more easily from the stone (or the pit).\n\nAnyhow, in Bulgaria there are lots of roadside stands selling melons. Usually there\'s watermelon and a melon that looks to me, an American, like a cantaloupe from the outside but when you cut into it the flesh is green like a honeydew.  This weekend I cut into a melon that I assumed would be green inside.\n<a title=\"cantaloupe in Bulgaria by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7622161620/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7121/7622161620_6ec871af0d_z.jpg\" alt=\"cantaloupe in Bulgaria\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nImagine my surprise when it was cantaloupe orange. I just about died. Then I took some pictures of it and after that I tried to eat half of it in one sitting. My eyes were bigger than my stomach. Since then I\'ve been eating the cantaloupe like melon steadily and every time I see it in my fridge I marvel at the fact that this is first time in four years that I\'ve ever seen a cantaloupe-like melon.\n<a title=\"Bowl of cantaloupe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7622168474/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7112/7622168474_5c6077b7fd_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bowl of cantaloupe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe funny thing is that since finding this orange melon I\'ve found myself that much more excited to head home to Walla Walla for the month of August.\n\nOh and I can\'t get this really bad joke out of my head:\n\nWhat did the honeydew say when the watermelon proposed?\n\nI am sorry I can\'t elope.\n\n<em>Ha, ha, ha.   </em>','','','inherit','open','open','','6900-revision-2','','','2012-07-22 17:05:26','2012-07-22 15:05:26','',6900,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/22/6900-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6903,1,'2012-07-22 17:07:47','2012-07-22 15:07:47','I love fresh fruit in summer time. There\'s something so refreshing about it--from strawberries to peaches to watermelon and even blueberries.\n\nIn high school, I worked at a fruit and berry stand so I am very familiar with these fruits, when they come into season and how to select the best ones from thumping watermelons to knowing the different between cling and cling-free peaches. The cling-free peaches, I\'ll have you know, are easier to can because the flesh of the fruit separates more easily from the stone (or the pit).\n\nAnyhow, in Bulgaria there are lots of roadside stands selling melons. Usually there\'s watermelon and a melon that looks to me, an American, like a cantaloupe from the outside but when you cut into it the flesh is green like a honeydew.  This weekend I cut into a melon that I assumed would be green inside.\n<a title=\"cantaloupe in Bulgaria by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7622161620/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7121/7622161620_6ec871af0d_z.jpg\" alt=\"cantaloupe in Bulgaria\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nImagine my surprise when it was cantaloupe orange. I just about died. Then I took some pictures of it and after that I tried to eat half of it in one sitting. My eyes were bigger than my stomach. Since then I\'ve been eating the cantaloupe like melon steadily and every time I see it in my fridge I marvel at the fact that this is first time in four years that I\'ve ever seen a cantaloupe-like melon.\n<a title=\"Bowl of cantaloupe by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7622168474/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7112/7622168474_5c6077b7fd_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bowl of cantaloupe\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe funny thing is that since finding this orange melon I\'ve found myself that much more excited to head home to Walla Walla for the month of August--nine days and counting.\n\nOh and what\'s more, I can\'t get this really bad joke out of my head:\n\nWhat did the honeydew say when the watermelon proposed?\n\nI am sorry I can\'t elope tonight.\n\n<em>Ha, ha, ha.   Can\'t elope. Cantaloupe.</em>\n\nAnd yes, this joke made me laugh just as much when I was 5 years old as it does today.','Summer in Bulgaria & a Cantaloupe','','inherit','open','open','','6900-autosave','','','2012-07-22 17:07:47','2012-07-22 15:07:47','',6900,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/22/6900-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(6904,1,'2012-07-23 08:48:32','2012-07-23 06:48:32','I am not always that good at standing up for myself but last night when I hopped into an 9-something-something taxi rather than my regular OKTaxi and realized that the meter was already at 2 leva and we\'d only driven a block, I asked in Bulgarian to get out. The taxi driver said: but I thought you were going to Mladost. We were just outside of NDK and the Starbucks on the corner. I said: your meter isn\'t working right. I was running just way to fast. He pulled over and let me out. Interestingly, when I tried to pay, he wouldn\'t take my money.\r\n\r\nLuckily he let me out right down the block from a queue of taxis. I walked down to the OKTaxi and asked to go to Mladost. He agrees to take me and I climb in.\r\n<a title=\"OK taxi with a flat on Tsarigradsko by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7627968162/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8004/7627968162_59ac401d23_z.jpg\" alt=\"OK taxi with a flat on Tsarigradsko\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThings are going great until we flat tire on Tsarigradsko Shose. My taxi driver pulls over swearing. I think: hey, I\'ve always wondered what happens when a taxi driver gets a flat. He\'s clearly more upset than I am. I am thinking: at least it\'s a warm night and I\'m on my way home. I wonder if I should offer to help him change the tire but I don\'t.\r\n\r\nWhy? Because that\'s when I realize that I\'ve never been in a car with a flat before and I have no idea how to change a tire. I think for a minute about this short coming and wonder how I\'ve become this girl. The girl who\'s never changed a tire.\r\n\r\nI am also the girl who doesn\'t know how to drive a manual. And for one brief moment, I have visions of myself learning to drive stick-shift in a Lada. I wonder if I know anyone who\'d 1.) be willing to teaching me and 2.) has a Lada.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Me on Tsarigradsko by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7627962008/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7119/7627962008_4b7cea4c0e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me on Tsarigradsko\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe traffic on Tsarigradsko Shose brings me back to reality and I remember that I am also wearing new pink pants and standing on the shoulder of a really busy road.  This probably isn\'t the time to learn how to change a tire or as I suspect given gender roles in Bulgaria, watch a Bulgarian man change a tire.\r\n\r\nA few taxis pull over to see if my taxi driver needs help. He asks everyone where they are taking their passengers because we\'ve been waiting for the taxi that he called for a while. Or it seems like a while. Nobody is going to Mladost 1A.\r\n\r\nMy new taxi pulls over to get me and before he does this, my old taxi driver presents me with the taxi receipt. Turns out, even when your taxi gets a flat, pulls over to the side of the road and makes you wait next to a pile of cigarette butts you still have to pay for the 5 leva worth of driving you\'ve accomplished before the taxi relay began. The thing is, I was going to give him the money either way, but it was kind of inconvenient to get a flat and he could have apologized for this before shoving the receipt into my hands.\r\n\r\nThe third taxi of the night it turns out was just right. He drives me straight home and the whole thing costs something like 2.60 leva. I give him three. On my way up the stairs I realize that I could write my own modern fairy tale. <em>Goldielocks and the Three Bulgarian Taxis</em>.\r\n\r\nFinally, to taxi 729: I hope that once you changed your tire, your night looked up and to taxi 156: thanks for being my modern-day knight.','My Taxi Adventure (in Three Parts)','','publish','open','open','','my-taxi-adventure-in-three-parts','','','2012-07-23 08:48:32','2012-07-23 06:48:32','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6904',0,'post','',9),(6905,1,'2012-07-23 08:38:10','2012-07-23 06:38:10','I am not always that good at standing up for myself but last night when I hopped into an 9-something-something taxi rather than my regular OKTaxi and realized that the meter was already at 2 leva and we\'d only driven a block, I asked in Bulgarian to get out. The taxi driver said: but I thought you were going to Mladost. We were just outside of NDK and the Starbucks on the corner. I said: your meter isn\'t working right. I was running just way to fast. He pulled over and let me out. Interestingly, when I tried to pay, he wouldn\'t take my money.\n\nLuckily he let me out right down the block from a queue of taxis. I walked down to the OKTaxi and asked to go to Mladost. He agrees to take me and I climb in.\n\nThings are going great until we flat tire on Tsarigradsko Shose. My taxi driver pulls over swearing. I think: hey, I\'ve always wondered what happens when a taxi driver gets a flat. He\'s clearly more upset than I am. I am thinking: at least it\'s a warm night and I\'m on my way home. I wonder if I should offer to help him change the tire but I don\'t.\n\nWhy? Because that\'s when I realize that I\'ve never been in a car with a flat before and I have no idea how to change a tire. I think for a minute about this short coming and wonder how I\'ve become this girl. The girl who\'s never changed a tire.\n\nI am also the girl who doesn\'t know how to drive a manual. And for one brief moment, I have visions of myself learning to drive stick-shift in a Lada. I wonder if I know anyone who\'d 1.) be willing to teaching me and 2.) has a Lada.\n\nThe traffic on Tsarigradsko Shose brings me back to reality and I remember that I am also wearing new pink pants and standing on the shoulder of a really busy road.  This probably isn\'t the time to learn how to change a tire or as I suspect given gender roles in Bulgaria, watch a Bulgarian man change a tire.\n\nA few taxis pull over to see if my taxi driver needs help. He asks everyone where they are taking their passengers because we\'ve been waiting for the taxi that he called for a while. Or it seems like a while. Nobody is going to Mladost 1A.\n\nMy new taxi pulls over to get me and before he does this, my old taxi driver presents me with the taxi receipt. Turns out, even when your taxi gets a flat, pulls over to the side of the road and makes you wait next to a pile of cigarette butts you still have to pay for the 5 leva worth of driving you\'ve accomplished before the taxi relay began. The thing is, I was going to give him the money either way, but it was kind of inconvenient to get a flat and he could have apologized for this before shoving the receipt into my hands.\n\nThe third taxi of the night it turns out was just right. He drives me straight home and the whole thing costs something like 2.60 leva. I give him three. On my way up the stairs I realize that I could write my own modern fairy tale. <em>Goldie Locks and the Three Bulgarian Taxis</em>.\n\nOh and to taxi 729, I hope that once you changed your tire, your night looked up and to taxi 156, thanks for being my modern knight.','My Taxi Adventure (in Three Parts)','','inherit','open','open','','6904-revision','','','2012-07-23 08:38:10','2012-07-23 06:38:10','',6904,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/23/6904-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(6906,1,'2012-07-23 08:47:32','2012-07-23 06:47:32','I am not always that good at standing up for myself but last night when I hopped into an 9-something-something taxi rather than my regular OKTaxi and realized that the meter was already at 2 leva and we\'d only driven a block, I asked in Bulgarian to get out. The taxi driver said: but I thought you were going to Mladost. We were just outside of NDK and the Starbucks on the corner. I said: your meter isn\'t working right. I was running just way to fast. He pulled over and let me out. Interestingly, when I tried to pay, he wouldn\'t take my money.\n\nLuckily he let me out right down the block from a queue of taxis. I walked down to the OKTaxi and asked to go to Mladost. He agrees to take me and I climb in.\n<a title=\"OK taxi with a flat on Tsarigradsko by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7627968162/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8004/7627968162_59ac401d23_z.jpg\" alt=\"OK taxi with a flat on Tsarigradsko\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThings are going great until we flat tire on Tsarigradsko Shose. My taxi driver pulls over swearing. I think: hey, I\'ve always wondered what happens when a taxi driver gets a flat. He\'s clearly more upset than I am. I am thinking: at least it\'s a warm night and I\'m on my way home. I wonder if I should offer to help him change the tire but I don\'t.\n\nWhy? Because that\'s when I realize that I\'ve never been in a car with a flat before and I have no idea how to change a tire. I think for a minute about this short coming and wonder how I\'ve become this girl. The girl who\'s never changed a tire.\n\nI am also the girl who doesn\'t know how to drive a manual. And for one brief moment, I have visions of myself learning to drive stick-shift in a Lada. I wonder if I know anyone who\'d 1.) be willing to teaching me and 2.) has a Lada.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"Me on Tsarigradsko by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7627962008/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7119/7627962008_4b7cea4c0e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me on Tsarigradsko\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe traffic on Tsarigradsko Shose brings me back to reality and I remember that I am also wearing new pink pants and standing on the shoulder of a really busy road.  This probably isn\'t the time to learn how to change a tire or as I suspect given gender roles in Bulgaria, watch a Bulgarian man change a tire.\n\nA few taxis pull over to see if my taxi driver needs help. He asks everyone where they are taking their passengers because we\'ve been waiting for the taxi that he called for a while. Or it seems like a while. Nobody is going to Mladost 1A.\n\nMy new taxi pulls over to get me and before he does this, my old taxi driver presents me with the taxi receipt. Turns out, even when your taxi gets a flat, pulls over to the side of the road and makes you wait next to a pile of cigarette butts you still have to pay for the 5 leva worth of driving you\'ve accomplished before the taxi relay began. The thing is, I was going to give him the money either way, but it was kind of inconvenient to get a flat and he could have apologized for this before shoving the receipt into my hands.\n\nThe third taxi of the night it turns out was just right. He drives me straight home and the whole thing costs something like 2.60 leva. I give him three. On my way up the stairs I realize that I could write my own modern fairy tale. <em>Goldie Locks and the Three Bulgarian Taxis</em>.\n\nOh and to taxi 729, I hope that once you changed your tire, your night looked up and to taxi 156, thanks for being my modern-day knight.','My Taxi Adventure (in Three Parts)','','inherit','open','open','','6904-revision-2','','','2012-07-23 08:47:32','2012-07-23 06:47:32','',6904,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/23/6904-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(6907,1,'2012-07-24 16:58:24','2012-07-24 14:58:24','As I wrote earlier, I thought <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/20/copenhagen-and-our-bike-adventure/\" target=\"_blank\">Copenhagen was a wonderfully easy city to get around</a>. The buses were easy to take and the stops well labeled. At the individual bus stops there were digital clocks to let you know when to expect the next bus and what number it would be.\r\n<a title=\"Me and the Little Mermaid by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611312672/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7254/7611312672_7ea8f29622_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and the Little Mermaid\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe city was equally pedestrian friendly. In the city center there are a number of pedestrian only streets which were great to walk along and window shop. There are outdoor cafes on a number of different city squares and along a canal.<a title=\"Old town square by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611193896/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8028/7611193896_3fc6378fa5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Old town square\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"IMG_6160Restaurants along Frederiksholms Kanal by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611175234/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7112/7611175234_231bc46ed9_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_6160Restaurants along Frederiksholms Kanal\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Sailboats in Frederiksholms Kanal by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611176648/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7265/7611176648_44b122d8e0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sailboats in Frederiksholms Kanal\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nThe morning started out rainy and cold but we couldn\'t imagine letting a little rain deter us from exploring the city. So we started our day of with a walk which started at City Hall and ended with us on bikes. City hall doesn\'t look like much form the outside but once inside, the building is huge and covered in flags. It\'s impressive. <!--more-->What\'s more you can wander around city hall. I\'d recommending taking the stairs up to the higher levels. First because the view is pretty cool but also because the staircases are beautiful. One has a harbor scene from Copenhagen painted in it. <a title=\"Danish flags in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611221858/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7260/7611221858_1afdf5dd69_z.jpg\" alt=\"Danish flags in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Stain glass in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611210684/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8011/7611210684_b4ffb4b74d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Stain glass in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Stairway detail in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611211516/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7127/7611211516_b0543dbd06_z.jpg\" alt=\"Stairway detail in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Ceiling detail and painting in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611219244/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611219244_05a77d4e9c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Ceiling detail and painting in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Painting in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611218328/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8164/7611218328_db0be513c8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Painting in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"City Hall Stairwell detail by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611220330/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7247/7611220330_1df49a73c1_z.jpg\" alt=\"City Hall Stairwell detail\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWe ate yummy pasteries from a neighborhood shop that we happened to stumble upon. There were so many delicious looking choices and I didn\'t know how I was going to pick. I ended up ordering after a local man who seemed to be doing construction work in the neighborhood. I figured that he must know his pastries so I ordered what he did. Only he ordered to pastries and a sandwich and I just got a pastry.  <a title=\"Pastries by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611205392/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7611205392_a61f8f9b8e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Pastries\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Bakery by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611203518/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8288/7611203518_ea839ff231_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bakery\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Chocolate milk by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611206518/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8283/7611206518_888ce84c3f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Chocolate milk\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe popped into the university\'s main building which is in the Latin Quarter of Copenhagen. After four years of working at Georgetown, I was not prepared for the interior of the this building. The colors are bold and eye-catching.\r\n<a title=\"Inside the University by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611198880/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8013/7611198880_8e6ba604b7_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the University\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Inside the University by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611197854/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8289/7611197854_c14a435286_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the University\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"University buildings by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611199288/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8025/7611199288_61a0aa2315_z.jpg\" alt=\"University buildings\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe took pictures of Vor Frue Kirke but we didn\'t make it inside as there was a service taking place. We wandered to the Round Tower but didn\'t climb it. A girl doesn\'t need to climb every tower or church steeple she come along. So from here we went to check out parliament.\r\n<a title=\"Boats by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611183746/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611183746_03e513793d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boats\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Parliament by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611182626/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7249/7611182626_9fc10f2c12_z.jpg\" alt=\"Parliament\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe admired Christiansborg Palace the home of parliament. Look at how detailed the roof-line is and how long the building is.\r\n<a title=\"Opera House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611173654/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7251/7611173654_60192e2aa3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Opera House\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Sand castle compition by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611172572/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8158/7611172572_20c42865e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sand castle compition\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe ate take away Thai noodles across the harbor from the Opera House for lunch. These noodles were tasty and filling. The Opera House was impressive even from across the harbor and on our way to to check out Amalienborg Palace the home of the royal family we spotted a sandcastle competition. Then we headed up the street to see the Frederkskirken. A church otherwise know as the Marmorkirken or the marble church. You probably wont be surprised to learn the the church is marble.<a title=\"Amalienborg Palace square by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611166912/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8165/7611166912_2d795c9424_z.jpg\" alt=\"Amalienborg Palace square\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Horse on Amalienborg Palace square by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611167346/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8287/7611167346_2b82d2167d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Horse on Amalienborg Palace square\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"the Marmokirken--the marble church by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611165342/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8012/7611165342_68baff5ac2_z.jpg\" alt=\"the Marmokirken--the marble church\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe topped the afternoon off with a visit to the Frihedsmuseet which is a museum that covers the history of the Dutch Resistance movement against the Nazis during WWII. The museum was well laid out, it took about an hour to get through and I thought very informative. It\'s also free.<a title=\"the Little Mermaid by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611313708/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7257/7611313708_d4c3a98fc6_z.jpg\" alt=\"the Little Mermaid\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"The Gefion Fountain--representing the creation of Denmark by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611314468/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611314468_d9c2f06f59_z.jpg\" alt=\"The Gefion Fountain--representing the creation of Denmark\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nFrom the museum we wandered down to the water front past the Gefion Fountain and towards the Little Mermaid. In terms of scale and impressiveness, I thought that the Gefion Fountain was a lot more interesting than the Little Mermaid.  The Little Mermaid is just that a girl who may or may not have fish legs sitting on a rock but Gefion Fountain is a woman driving a cart with four large oxen. The woman is Gefion and she is apart of the creation myth of Denmark. She is given a day and a night to cut Zealand out of Sweden and so she turns in her sons into oxen to accomplish the task. Legend has it that the hole which was created is modern day Lake Vänern.\r\n<a title=\"Telephone booth detail by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611191196/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8149/7611191196_ab827592a5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Telephone booth detail\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI\'ll leave you with this picture. It\'s a close up of an old phone-booth. Now it\'s a coffee stand but is used to house a phone. If you look closely you can see two people talking to each other on the phone. Isn\'t that cute?!','Snapshots of Copenhagen ','','publish','open','open','','snapshots-of-copenhagen','','','2012-07-24 16:58:24','2012-07-24 14:58:24','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=6907',0,'post','',1),(6908,1,'2012-07-24 16:47:54','2012-07-24 14:47:54','As I wrote earlier, I thought Copenhagen was a wonderfully easy city to get around. The buses were easy to take and the stops well labeled. At the individual bus stops there were digital clocks to let you know when to expect the next bus and what number it would be.\n<a title=\"Me and the Little Mermaid by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611312672/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7254/7611312672_7ea8f29622_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and the Little Mermaid\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThe city was equally pedestrian friendly. In the city center there are a number of pedestrian only streets which were great to walk along and window shop. There are outdoor cafes on a number of different city squares and along a canal.<a title=\"Old town square by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611193896/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8028/7611193896_3fc6378fa5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Old town square\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"IMG_6160Restaurants along Frederiksholms Kanal by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611175234/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7112/7611175234_231bc46ed9_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_6160Restaurants along Frederiksholms Kanal\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Sailboats in Frederiksholms Kanal by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611176648/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7265/7611176648_44b122d8e0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sailboats in Frederiksholms Kanal\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nThe morning started out rainy and cold but we couldn\'t imagine letting a little rain deter us from exploring the city. So we started our day of with a walk which started at City Hall and ended with us on bikes. City hall doesn\'t look like much form the outside but once inside, the building is huge and covered in flags. It\'s impressive. What\'s more you can wander around city hall. I\'d recommending taking the stairs up to the higher levels. First because the view is pretty cool but also because the staircases are beautiful. One has a harbor scene from Copenhagen painted in it. <a title=\"Danish flags in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611221858/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7260/7611221858_1afdf5dd69_z.jpg\" alt=\"Danish flags in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Stain glass in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611210684/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8011/7611210684_b4ffb4b74d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Stain glass in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Stairway detail in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611211516/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7127/7611211516_b0543dbd06_z.jpg\" alt=\"Stairway detail in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Ceiling detail and painting in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611219244/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8005/7611219244_05a77d4e9c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Ceiling detail and painting in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Painting in City Hall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611218328/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8164/7611218328_db0be513c8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Painting in City Hall\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"City Hall Stairwell detail by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611220330/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7247/7611220330_1df49a73c1_z.jpg\" alt=\"City Hall Stairwell detail\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nWe ate yummy pasteries from a neighborhood shop that we happened to stumble upon. There were so many delicious looking choices and I didn\'t know how I was going to pick. I ended up ordering after a local man who seemed to be doing construction work in the neighborhood. I figured that he must know his pastries so I ordered what he did. Only he ordered to pastries and a sandwich and I just got a pastry.  <a title=\"Pastries by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611205392/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8142/7611205392_a61f8f9b8e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Pastries\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Bakery by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611203518/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8288/7611203518_ea839ff231_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bakery\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Chocolate milk by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611206518/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8283/7611206518_888ce84c3f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Chocolate milk\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe popped into the university\'s main building which is in the Latin Quarter of Copenhagen. After four years of working at Georgetown, I was not prepared for the interior of the this building. The colors are bold and eye-catching.\n<a title=\"Inside the University by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611198880/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8013/7611198880_8e6ba604b7_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the University\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Inside the University by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611197854/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8289/7611197854_c14a435286_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the University\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"University buildings by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611199288/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8025/7611199288_61a0aa2315_z.jpg\" alt=\"University buildings\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe took pictures of Vor Frue Kirke but we didn\'t make it inside as there was a service taking place. We wandered to the Round Tower but didn\'t climb it. A girl doesn\'t need to climb every tower or church steeple she come along. So from here we went to check out parliament.\n<a title=\"Boats by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611183746/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8428/7611183746_03e513793d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boats\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Parliament by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611182626/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7249/7611182626_9fc10f2c12_z.jpg\" alt=\"Parliament\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe admired Christiansborg Palace the home of parliament. Look at how detailed the roof-line is and how long the building is.\n<a title=\"Opera House by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611173654/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7251/7611173654_60192e2aa3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Opera House\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Sand castle compition by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611172572/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8158/7611172572_20c42865e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sand castle compition\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe ate take away Thai noodles across the harbor from the Opera House for lunch. These noodles were tasty and filling. The Opera House was impressive even from across the harbor and on our way to to check out Amalienborg Palace the home of the royal family we spotted a sandcastle competition. Then we headed up the street to see the Frederkskirken. A church otherwise know as the Marmorkirken or the marble church. You probably wont be surprised to learn the the church is marble.<a title=\"Amalienborg Palace square by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611166912/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8165/7611166912_2d795c9424_z.jpg\" alt=\"Amalienborg Palace square\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Horse on Amalienborg Palace square by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611167346/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8287/7611167346_2b82d2167d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Horse on Amalienborg Palace square\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"the Marmokirken--the marble church by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611165342/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8012/7611165342_68baff5ac2_z.jpg\" alt=\"the Marmokirken--the marble church\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe topped the afternoon off with a visit to the Frihedsmuseet which is a museum that covers the history of the Dutch Resistance movement against the Nazis during WWII. The museum was well laid out, it took about an hour to get through and I thought very informative. It\'s also free.<a title=\"the Little Mermaid by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611313708/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7257/7611313708_d4c3a98fc6_z.jpg\" alt=\"the Little Mermaid\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"The Gefion Fountain--representing the creation of Denmark by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611314468/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8001/7611314468_d9c2f06f59_z.jpg\" alt=\"The Gefion Fountain--representing the creation of Denmark\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nFrom the museum we wandered down to the water front past the Gefion Fountain and towards the Little Mermaid. In terms of scale and impressiveness, I thought that the Gefion Fountain was a lot more interesting than the Little Mermaid.  The Little Mermaid is just that a girl who may or may not have fish legs sitting on a rock but Gefion Fountain is a woman driving a cart with four large oxen. The woman is Gefion and she is apart of the creation myth of Denmark. She is given a day and a night to cut Zealand out of Sweden and so she turns in her sons into oxen to accomplish the task. Legend has it that the hole which was created is modern day Lake Vänern.\n<a title=\"Telephone booth detail by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/7611191196/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8149/7611191196_ab827592a5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Telephone booth detail\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI\'ll leave you with this picture. It\'s a close up of an old phone-booth. Now it\'s a coffee stand but is used to house a phone.','Snapshots of Copenhagen ','','inherit','open','open','','6907-revision','','','2012-07-24 16:47:54','2012-07-24 14:47:54','',6907,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/24/6907-revision/',0,'revision','',0),