(7216,1,'2012-10-02 06:04:10','2012-10-02 04:04:10','This past weekend I was a busy cook. I made nachos on Friday night.  Saturday morning I realized that I needed muffins to go with my coffee. On Sunday afternoon I made quinoa salad and on Sunday evening I made granola. I also did a lot of dishes this past weekend. Go figure.\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8045971849/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8452/8045971849_66ab814eec_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI\'ve had a lot of different people ask for the various recipes because of this cooking. Now, most of the time I am not a recipe person so I am generally not the best person to ask for a recipe. That and you don\'t really need a recipe to make a tomato and veggie sauce to pour over noodles nor do you need a recipe to stir fry veggies to eat with rice. These dishes just require fresh produce and a little chopping time.\n\nThis said, I can cook and bake and follow a recipe. These days I don\'t own a cookbook. I don\'t really see the point living abroad. Half of the time I just whip up whatever is fresh, the other have of the time I eat leftovers or go out to dinner. In whatever time that\'s left remaining, sometimes I\'ll decide to actually cook.\n\nWhen I decide to cook my go to blog is <a href=\"macheesmo.com\" target=\"_blank\">Macheesmo.com</a>. I read it religiously whether or not I am actually planning on cooking. I adore Macheesmo and Nick the brains behind this blog is one of my best friends from the years I lived in Washington DC.<!--more-->\n\nWe shared a kitchen in a group house for a number of years. For the most part, I ate what he cooked and teased him when he used more than his fair share of the burners on the stove. Cooking is never easy when you have four other roommates and one stove. So  sometimes you just make a salad rather than wait for your turn to cook.\n\nAnyhow, as a result of the years we lived together, I trust Nick implicitly and I assume that if Nick cooked it so can I.  These days I can basically find anything that I want to make on Nick\'s blog.\n\nThe nachos are a work in progresses--I\'m trying to make the perfect batch. So, those came from a combination of two (or maybe three different recipes). I went for ground beef with <a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2012/04/homemade-taco-seasoning/\" target=\"_blank\">this taco/nacho seasoning mix</a>. I made<a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2011/10/sunday-night-nachos/\" target=\"_blank\"> this cheese sauce</a> and I topped the whole thing off with <a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2012/05/the-homemade-trials-salsa/\" target=\"_blank\">homemade salsa</a>.\n\nThe muffins? Well I wanted to make a wild berry muffin but he didn\'t have a recipe exactly for this so I took <a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2011/01/lemon-yogurt-muffins/\" target=\"_blank\">the lemon yogurt recipe and adjusted it</a>. Basically, I left out the lemon and stirred in some frozen fruit. Luckily muffins are a pretty forgiving baked good.\n\nAnd the granola, I took <a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2011/03/kitchen-sink-granola/\" target=\"_blank\">the kitchen sink granola</a> and halved the recipe. It was a good thing I did too or I would have had to cook the granola in two different batches and then I\'d be eating granola on and with everything. As it is my half batch created a pretty significant amount.\n\nThe only thing I didn\'t use Nick\'s blog for was the quinoa salad and that\'s mostly just because a college friend sent me a different one which I read and then totally changed because I didn\'t have any of the ingredients. These things happen.\n\nI c','Recipes from my weekend','','inherit','open','open','','7214-revision-2','','','2012-10-02 06:04:10','2012-10-02 04:04:10','',7214,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/02/7214-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7217,1,'2012-10-02 06:05:56','2012-10-02 04:05:56','This past weekend I was a busy cook. I made nachos on Friday night.  Saturday morning I realized that I needed muffins to go with my coffee. On Sunday afternoon I made quinoa salad and on Sunday evening I made granola. I also did a lot of dishes this past weekend. Go figure.\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8045971849/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8452/8045971849_66ab814eec_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI\'ve had a lot of different people ask for the various recipes because of this cooking. Now, most of the time I am not a recipe person so I am generally not the best person to ask for a recipe. That and you don\'t really need a recipe to make a tomato and veggie sauce to pour over noodles nor do you need a recipe to stir fry veggies to eat with rice. These dishes just require fresh produce and a little chopping time.\n\nThis said, I can cook and bake and follow a recipe. These days I don\'t own a cookbook. I don\'t really see the point living abroad. Half of the time I just whip up whatever is fresh, the other have of the time I eat leftovers or go out to dinner. In whatever time that\'s left remaining, sometimes I\'ll decide to actually cook.\n\nWhen I decide to cook my go to blog is <a href=\"macheesmo.com\" target=\"_blank\">Macheesmo.com</a>. I read it religiously whether or not I am actually planning on cooking. I adore Macheesmo and Nick the brains behind this blog is one of my best friends from the years I lived in Washington DC.<!--more-->\n\nWe shared a kitchen in a group house for a number of years. For the most part, I ate what he cooked and teased him when he used more than his fair share of the burners on the stove. Cooking is never easy when you have four other roommates and one stove. So  sometimes you just make a salad rather than wait for your turn to cook.\n\nAnyhow, as a result of the years we lived together, I trust Nick implicitly and I assume that if Nick cooked it so can I.  These days I can basically find anything that I want to make on Nick\'s blog.\n\nThe nachos are a work in progresses--I\'m trying to make the perfect batch. So, those came from a combination of two (or maybe three different recipes). I went for ground beef with <a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2012/04/homemade-taco-seasoning/\" target=\"_blank\">this taco/nacho seasoning mix</a>. I made<a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2011/10/sunday-night-nachos/\" target=\"_blank\"> this cheese sauce</a> and I topped the whole thing off with <a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2012/05/the-homemade-trials-salsa/\" target=\"_blank\">homemade salsa</a>.\n\nThe muffins? Well I wanted to make a wild berry muffin but he didn\'t have a recipe exactly for this so I took <a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2011/01/lemon-yogurt-muffins/\" target=\"_blank\">the lemon yogurt recipe and adjusted it</a>. Basically, I left out the lemon and stirred in some frozen fruit. Luckily muffins are a pretty forgiving baked good.\n\nAnd the granola, I took <a href=\"http://www.macheesmo.com/2011/03/kitchen-sink-granola/\" target=\"_blank\">the kitchen sink granola</a> and halved the recipe. It was a good thing I did too or I would have had to cook the granola in two different batches and then I\'d be eating granola on and with everything. As it is my half batch created a pretty significant amount.\n\nThe only thing I didn\'t use Nick\'s blog for was the quinoa salad and that\'s mostly just because a college friend sent me a different one which I read and then totally changed because I didn\'t have any of the ingredients. These things happen.\n\nI can\'t help but wonder if I feel like cooking because fall is sneaking in. Others? Are you cooking more with the arrival of fall?','Recipes from my weekend','','inherit','open','open','','7214-autosave','','','2012-10-02 06:05:56','2012-10-02 04:05:56','',7214,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/02/7214-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7218,1,'2012-10-03 07:37:56','2012-10-03 05:37:56','Last night I had a really great dream. Here goes. I was working in a bar or maybe I owned the bar this part isn\'t really clear and I came up with the best rakiya cocktail recipe ever. People loved it. It was beautiful, tasty and modern. I served it out of beautiful glasses and it received lots of ohhs and ahhs.\r\n\r\nI woke up this morning unable to remember the recipe.\r\n\r\nThen in the shower still thinking about the dream, I realized that Bulgarians would hate this drink. A rakiya cocktail?! That seems about as close to blasphemy as you can get in these parts. People drink rakiya straight--maybe with ice, maybe not--and definitely with a salad.\r\n\r\nGood-bye dreams of rakiya cocktails.\r\n\r\nThoughts of rakiya lead me to thoughts of sirene cheese and from sirene the jump to banitsa is not so far at all.\r\n\r\nBanitsa.\r\n\r\nI got off the 111 bus this morning thinking about banitsa and wondering why there\'s no shop between the bus stop and school that sells banitsa. It\'s a crime really.\r\n\r\nThat\'s when I came up with this great idea.\r\n\r\nThe police men who guard the front gate of campus should also sell banitsa.\r\n\r\nHear me out. First of all it would be delicious. Second of all, they do a lot of standing around so this seems like a nice multitasking option. And finally they could set their shop up in such a way that it\'s like many airports. After you pass through security, you\'re funneled directly into duty free in the hopes that walking through the shop will inspire you to buy alcohol, cigarettes or perfume.\r\n\r\nThe only difference here would be that you get your gate passed checked and then you get funneled through a banitsa shop. Oh and there\'s no full body scan, pat down or limit on the size of liquids you can bring with you.\r\n\r\nThis new set-up would be good for everyone. Can we make this happen?','Two things: Rakiya and Banitsa ','','publish','open','open','','two-things-rakiya-and-banitsa','','','2012-10-03 07:37:56','2012-10-03 05:37:56','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7218',0,'post','',2),(7219,1,'2012-10-03 07:33:56','2012-10-03 05:33:56','Last night I had a really great dream. Here goes. I was working in a bar or maybe I owned the bar this part isn\'t really clear and I came up with the best rakiya cocktail recipe ever. People loved it. It was beautiful, tasty and modern. I served it out of beautiful glasses and it received lots of ohhs and ahhs.\n\nI woke up this morning unable to remember the recipe.\n\nThen in the shower still thinking about the dream, I realized that Bulgarians would hate this drink. A rakiya cocktail?! That seems about as close to blasphemy as you can get in these parts. People drink rakiya straight--maybe with ice, maybe not--and definitely with a salad.\n\nGood-bye dreams of rakiya cocktails.\n\nThoughts of rakiya lead me to thoughts of sirene cheese and from sirene cheese the jump to banitsa is not so far at all.\n\nBanitsa.\n\nI got off the 111 bus this morning thinking about banitsa and wondering why there\'s no shop between the bus stop and school that sells banitsa. It\'s a crime really.\n\nThat\'s when I came up with this great idea.\n\nThe police men who guard the front gate of campus should also sell banitsa. First of all it would be delicious. Second of all, they do a lot of standing around so this seems like a nice multitasking option. And finally they could set their shop up in such a way that it\'s like many airports. After you pass through security, you\'re funneled directly into duty free in the hopes that walking through the shop will inspire you to buy alcohol, cigarettes or perfume.\n\nThis new set-up would be good for both you and me. Can we make this happen?','Two things: Rakiya and Banitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7218-revision','','','2012-10-03 07:33:56','2012-10-03 05:33:56','',7218,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/03/7218-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7220,1,'2012-10-03 07:34:56','2012-10-03 05:34:56','Last night I had a really great dream. Here goes. I was working in a bar or maybe I owned the bar this part isn\'t really clear and I came up with the best rakiya cocktail recipe ever. People loved it. It was beautiful, tasty and modern. I served it out of beautiful glasses and it received lots of ohhs and ahhs.\n\nI woke up this morning unable to remember the recipe.\n\nThen in the shower still thinking about the dream, I realized that Bulgarians would hate this drink. A rakiya cocktail?! That seems about as close to blasphemy as you can get in these parts. People drink rakiya straight--maybe with ice, maybe not--and definitely with a salad.\n\nGood-bye dreams of rakiya cocktails.\n\nThoughts of rakiya lead me to thoughts of sirene cheese and from sirene  the jump to banitsa is not so far at all.\n\nBanitsa.\n\nI got off the 111 bus this morning thinking about banitsa and wondering why there\'s no shop between the bus stop and school that sells banitsa. It\'s a crime really.\n\nThat\'s when I came up with this great idea.\n\nThe police men who guard the front gate of campus should also sell banitsa. First of all it would be delicious. Second of all, they do a lot of standing around so this seems like a nice multitasking option. And finally they could set their shop up in such a way that it\'s like many airports. After you pass through security, you\'re funneled directly into duty free in the hopes that walking through the shop will inspire you to buy alcohol, cigarettes or perfume.\n\nThis new set-up would be good for both you and me. Can we make this happen?','Two things: Rakiya and Banitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7218-revision-2','','','2012-10-03 07:34:56','2012-10-03 05:34:56','',7218,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/03/7218-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7221,1,'2012-10-03 07:39:01','2012-10-03 05:39:01','Last night I had a really great dream. Here goes. I was working in a bar or maybe I owned the bar this part isn\'t really clear and I came up with the best rakiya cocktail recipe ever. People loved it. It was beautiful, tasty and modern. I served it out of beautiful glasses and it received lots of ohhs and ahhs.\n\nI woke up this morning unable to remember the recipe.\n\nThen in the shower still thinking about the dream, I realized that Bulgarians would hate this drink. A rakiya cocktail?! That seems about as close to blasphemy as you can get in these parts. People drink rakiya straight--maybe with ice, maybe not--and definitely with a salad.\n\nGood-bye dreams of rakiya cocktails.\n\nThoughts of rakiya lead me to thoughts of sirene cheese and from sirene the jump to banitsa is not so far at all.\n\nBanitsa.\n\nI got off the 111 bus this morning thinking about banitsa and wondering why there\'s no shop between the bus stop and school that sells banitsa. It\'s a crime really.\n\nThat\'s when I came up with this great idea.\n\nThe police men who guard the front gate of campus should also sell banitsa.\n\nHear me out. First of all it would be delicious. Second of all, they do a lot of standing around so this seems like a nice multitasking option. And finally they could set their shop up in such a way that it\'s like many airports. After you pass through security, you\'re funneled directly into duty free in the hopes that walking through the shop will inspire you to buy alcohol, cigarettes or perfume.\n\nThe only difference here would be that you get your gate passed checked and then you get funneled through a banitsa shop. Oh and there\'s no full body scan, pat down or limit on the size of liquids you can bring with you.\n\nThis new set-up would be good for everyone. Can we make this happen?','Two things: Rakiya and Banitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7218-autosave','','','2012-10-03 07:39:01','2012-10-03 05:39:01','',7218,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/03/7218-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7224,1,'2012-10-07 14:55:56','2012-10-07 12:55:56','I think that my cold is finally passing (and/or maybe it\'s passed). Here\'s what I know: the itchy throat is gone and the nagging tickle is gone.  I no longer feel the need to sneeze or sleep. My nose is drip free and my eyes are no longer watery.\n\nI couldn\'t be happier.\n\nI drank a lot of tea and orange juice trying to kick the cold. Just to clarify, I didn\'t drink them together.\n\nWhen the cold first reared it\'s head last weekend I was determined to beat it. I would not let it take hold. I tried to drown it.\n\nThis did not work.\n\nThere was no magic mixture of tea, tv, oj and a good book that was going to combat this cold. Nope, it just took time. I\'d rather have spent my last week doing something way more awesome than teaching and nursing a cold but these things happen sometimes.\n\nSo that\'s that. My first cold of the school year.','A little cold ','','inherit','open','open','','7223-revision','','','2012-10-07 14:55:56','2012-10-07 12:55:56','',7223,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/07/7223-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7225,1,'2012-10-07 14:57:59','2012-10-07 12:57:59','I think that my cold is finally passing (and/or maybe it\'s passed). Here\'s what I know: the itchy throat is gone and the nagging tickle is gone.  I no longer feel the need to sneeze or sleep. My nose is drip free and my eyes are no longer watery.\n\nI couldn\'t be happier.\n\nI drank a lot of tea and orange juice trying to kick the cold. Just to clarify, I didn\'t drink them together.\n\nWhen the cold first reared it\'s head last weekend I was determined to beat it. I would not let it take hold. I tried to drown it.\n\nThis did not work.\n\nThere was no magic mixture of tea, tv, oj and a good book that was going to combat this cold. Nope, it just took time.  I had to let it run it\'s course. I\'d rather have spent my last week doing something way more awesome than teaching and nursing a cold but these things happen sometimes.\n\nSo that\'s that. My first cold of the school year.','A little cold ','','inherit','open','open','','7223-autosave','','','2012-10-07 14:57:59','2012-10-07 12:57:59','',7223,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/07/7223-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7227,1,'2012-10-10 18:31:04','2012-10-10 16:31:04','And it was delicious.\n<a title=\"breakfast by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8072957118/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8462/8072957118_5afc623d8c_z.jpg\" alt=\"breakfast\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nA. brought over some homemade yogurt on Monday night. Tuesday morning I forgot that I had it until I grabbed my lunch out of the fridge. When I realized this I was really angry with myself.\n\nI love homemade yogurt.\n\nDon\'t worry, this morning I ate yogurt. It was thick and tangy and hit the spot.\n\nThe coffee was also pretty great. It was hard to wake up this morning. I think it\'s because I had to work on Saturday for Open House day at school. As such, I only had a one day weekend. Just for the record, one day weekends are lame.\n\nOh well, the good news is that it\'s almost the weekend again.\n\n&nbsp;','I had this for breakfast ','','inherit','open','open','','7226-revision','','','2012-10-10 18:31:04','2012-10-10 16:31:04','',7226,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/10/7226-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7228,1,'2012-10-10 18:32:31','2012-10-10 16:32:31','And it was delicious.\n<a title=\"breakfast by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8072957118/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8462/8072957118_5afc623d8c_z.jpg\" alt=\"breakfast\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nA. brought over some homemade yogurt on Monday night. Tuesday morning I forgot that I had it until I grabbed my lunch out of the fridge. When I realized this I was really angry with myself.\n\nI love homemade yogurt.\n\nDon\'t worry, this morning I ate yogurt. It was thick and tangy and hit the spot.\n\nThe coffee was also pretty great. It was hard to wake up this morning. I think it\'s because I had to work on Saturday for Open House day at school. As such, I only had a one day weekend. Just for the record, one day weekends are lame.\n\nOh well, the good news is that it\'s almost the weekend again.','I had this for breakfast ','','inherit','open','open','','7226-autosave','','','2012-10-10 18:32:31','2012-10-10 16:32:31','',7226,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/10/7226-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7229,1,'2012-10-10 19:02:03','0000-00-00 00:00:00','','A few favorites in Sofia: where to eat ','','draft','open','open','','','','','2012-10-10 19:02:03','2012-10-10 17:02:03','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7229',0,'post','',0),(7230,1,'2012-10-10 18:57:30','2012-10-10 16:57:30','','A few favorites in Sofia: where to eat ','','inherit','open','open','','7229-revision','','','2012-10-10 18:57:30','2012-10-10 16:57:30','',7229,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/10/7229-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7231,1,'2012-10-11 08:23:43','2012-10-11 06:23:43','I\'m having a little fight with the Imperative in Bulgarian and based on today\'s lesson I\'d say it\'s winning. The point of contention seems to be the negative imperative. Oh and some of the crazy irregulars.\r\n\r\nToday though, it was this exchange with my teacher that really hit home the fact that I\'m<em> never</em> going to learn Bulgarian.\r\n\r\nWait. I take that back. I <em>will</em> learn Bulgarian.  It\'s just that my knowledge is just a little scattered and haphazard currently.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Me: What is \"зает\"?</li>\r\n	<li>Teacher: You know that.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nI make a wild guess. <em>It\'s wrong</em>.\r\n\r\nWhy? Because I really don\'t know and there\'s not enough context for me to figure it out in the exercise we\'re doing.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Teacher, after a long sigh: Busy.</li>\r\n	<li>Me: <em>Um, </em>what\'s rabbit?</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nNow my notes from class read:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>зает = busy</li>\r\n	<li>заек = rabbit</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nIt seems like there\'s a great children\'s book in the making here.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Today\'s Bulgarian Lesson ','','publish','open','open','','todays-bulgarian-lesson','','','2012-10-10 19:30:02','2012-10-10 17:30:02','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7231',0,'post','',3),(7232,1,'2012-10-10 19:23:10','2012-10-10 17:23:10','I\'m having a little fight with the Imperative in Bulgarian and based on today\'s lesson I\'d say it\'s winning. The point of contention seems to be the negative imperative. Oh and some of the crazy irregulars. Today though, it was this exchange with my teacher that really hit home the fact that I\'m<em> never</em> going to learn Bulgarian.\n\nWait. I take that back. I <em>will</em> learn Bulgarian.  It\'s just that my knowledge is just a little scattered and haphazard currently.\n<ul>\n	<li>Me: What is \"зает\"?</li>\n	<li>Teacher: You know that.</li>\n</ul>\nI make a wild guess. <em>It\'s wrong</em>. Why? Because I really don\'t know and there\'s not currently enough context for me to figure it out.\n<ul>\n	<li>Teacher, after a long sigh: Busy.</li>\n	<li>Me: <em>Wait</em>. What\'s rabbit?</li>\n</ul>\nNow my notes from class read:\n<ul>\n	<li>зает = busy</li>\n	<li>заек = rabbit</li>\n</ul>\nIt seems like there\'s a great children\'s book in the making there.\n\n&nbsp;','Today\'s Bulgarian Lesson ','','inherit','open','open','','7231-revision','','','2012-10-10 19:23:10','2012-10-10 17:23:10','',7231,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/10/7231-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7233,1,'2012-10-10 19:23:42','2012-10-10 17:23:42','I\'m having a little fight with the Imperative in Bulgarian and based on today\'s lesson I\'d say it\'s winning. The point of contention seems to be the negative imperative. Oh and some of the crazy irregulars. Today though, it was this exchange with my teacher that really hit home the fact that I\'m<em> never</em> going to learn Bulgarian.\r\n\r\nWait. I take that back. I <em>will</em> learn Bulgarian.  It\'s just that my knowledge is just a little scattered and haphazard currently.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Me: What is \"зает\"?</li>\r\n	<li>Teacher: You know that.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nI make a wild guess. <em>It\'s wrong</em>. Why? Because I really don\'t know and there\'s not currently enough context for me to figure it out.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Teacher, after a long sigh: Busy.</li>\r\n	<li>Me: <em>Wait</em>. What\'s rabbit?</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nNow my notes from class read:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>зает = busy</li>\r\n	<li>заек = rabbit</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nIt seems like there\'s a great children\'s book in the making here.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Today\'s Bulgarian Lesson ','','inherit','open','open','','7231-revision-2','','','2012-10-10 19:23:42','2012-10-10 17:23:42','',7231,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/10/7231-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7234,1,'2012-10-10 19:29:47','2012-10-10 17:29:47','I\'m having a little fight with the Imperative in Bulgarian and based on today\'s lesson I\'d say it\'s winning. The point of contention seems to be the negative imperative. Oh and some of the crazy irregulars.\n\nToday though, it was this exchange with my teacher that really hit home the fact that I\'m<em> never</em> going to learn Bulgarian.\n\nWait. I take that back. I <em>will</em> learn Bulgarian.  It\'s just that my knowledge is just a little scattered and haphazard currently.\n<ul>\n	<li>Me: What is \"зает\"?</li>\n	<li>Teacher: You know that.</li>\n</ul>\nI make a wild guess. <em>It\'s wrong</em>.\n\nWhy? Because I really don\'t know and there\'s not enough context for me to figure it out in the exercise we\'re doing.\n<ul>\n	<li>Teacher, after a long sigh: Busy.</li>\n	<li>Me: <em>Um, </em>what\'s rabbit?</li>\n</ul>\nNow my notes from class read:\n<ul>\n	<li>зает = busy</li>\n	<li>заек = rabbit</li>\n</ul>\nIt seems like there\'s a great children\'s book in the making here.\n\n&nbsp;','Today\'s Bulgarian Lesson ','','inherit','open','open','','7231-revision-3','','','2012-10-10 19:29:47','2012-10-10 17:29:47','',7231,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/10/7231-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7235,1,'2012-10-10 19:31:05','2012-10-10 17:31:05','I\'m having a little fight with the Imperative in Bulgarian and based on today\'s lesson I\'d say it\'s winning. The point of contention seems to be the negative imperative. Oh and some of the crazy irregulars.\n\nToday though, it was this exchange with my teacher that really hit home the fact that I\'m<em> never</em> going to learn Bulgarian.\n\nWait. I take that back. I <em>will</em> learn Bulgarian.  It\'s just that my knowledge is just a little scattered and haphazard currently.\n<ul>\n	<li>Me: What is \"зает\"?</li>\n	<li>Teacher: You know that.</li>\n</ul>\nI make a wild guess. <em>It\'s wrong</em>.\n\nWhy? Because I really don\'t know and there\'s not enough context for me to figure it out in the exercise we\'re doing.\n<ul>\n	<li>Teacher, after a long sigh: Busy.</li>\n	<li>Me: <em>Um, </em>what\'s rabbit?</li>\n</ul>\nNow my notes from class read:\n<ul>\n	<li>зает = busy</li>\n	<li>заек = rabbit</li>\n</ul>\nIt seems like there\'s a great children\'s book in the making here.\n\n&nbsp;','Today\'s Bulgarian Lesson ','','inherit','open','open','','7231-autosave','','','2012-10-10 19:31:05','2012-10-10 17:31:05','',7231,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/10/7231-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7236,1,'2012-10-14 12:57:14','2012-10-14 10:57:14','For some reason, this school year I\'ve been having trouble fitting my blog into my life. I\'m not sure what exactly has changed. I just haven\'t found myself super inspired.\r\n\r\nI thought in the beginning it was because I was back to working full time after two months of summer vacation. Then I thought it was because of a cold. This past week though, I just didn\'t really feel like writing and I was busy. I didn\'t have a chance to write anything of substance.\r\n\r\nMonday night, A. and I made nachos and watched the <a href=\"http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-rumble-2012-stewart-oreilly-20121006,0,4571447.story\" target=\"_blank\">Stewart/O\'Reilly debate</a>. Tuesday night I went to yoga, watched an episode of Downton Abby with P. and H. and then went to Don Domat for dinner. Wednesday after school, I graded my heart out and then spent the night at finishing up the book: <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Partly-Cloudy-Patriot-Sarah-Vowell/dp/0743223527\" target=\"_blank\">Partly Cloudy Patriot</a> for book club. Thursday night was book club and by the end of the day on Friday, all I wanted to do was sit on my couch.\r\n\r\nYesterday, I tidied up my apartment, prepared for my Bulgarian lesson with I.  After my lesson, A. and I went to a new restaurant: Alegre and we stopped by the monthly Couch Surfing meet-up for a bit.\r\n\r\nAll in all it was a good week. I spent time with my friends, I went twice to yoga, I practiced my Bulgarian, and I ate a lot of good food. I just couldn\'t manage to find time to write about it.\r\n\r\nThis got me wondering if I couldn\'t manage to find the time or if I just didn\'t make the time to write. I\'m not sure.\r\n\r\nHere\'s what I am sure of: when I\'m in Sofia I\'ve been in the habit of writing regularly on this blog. In fact, I\'ve published posts nearly everyday for three years and this has become unsustainable. I can\'t continue to write at this rate.\r\n\r\nDon\'t worry, I\'m not giving the blogging thing up. I\'ve just got to scale back a little and I\'ve got to make sure that I am really excited about what I\'m writing here.\r\n\r\nHope this makes sense!\r\n\r\nOh, and I\'ll be writing with more frequency in Bulgarian on <a href=\"http://daybyeday.tumblr.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Аз Пиша</a>. The posts may not be very long but don\'t worry, they are taking me plenty of time to write.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Finding Balance','','publish','open','open','','finding-balance','','','2012-10-14 12:57:14','2012-10-14 10:57:14','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7236',0,'post','',2),(7237,1,'2012-10-14 12:54:12','2012-10-14 10:54:12','For some reason, this school year I\'ve been having trouble fitting my blog into my life. I\'m not sure what exactly has changed. I just haven\'t found myself super inspired.\n\nI thought in the beginning it was because I was back to working full time after two months of summer vacation. Then I thought it was because of a cold. This past week though, I just didn\'t really feel like writing and I was busy. I didn\'t have a chance to write anything of substance.\n\nMonday night, A. and I made nachos and watched the <a href=\"http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-rumble-2012-stewart-oreilly-20121006,0,4571447.story\" target=\"_blank\">Stewart/O\'Reilly debate</a>. Tuesday night I went to yoga, watched an episode of Downton Abby with P. and H. and then went to Don Domat for dinner. Wednesday after school, I graded my heart out and then spent the night at finishing up the book: <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Partly-Cloudy-Patriot-Sarah-Vowell/dp/0743223527\" target=\"_blank\">Partly Cloudy Patriot</a> for book club. Thursday night was book club and by the end of the day on Friday, all I wanted to do was sit on my couch.\n\nYesterday, I tidied up my apartment, prepared for my Bulgarian lesson with I.  After my lesson, A. and I went to a new restaurant: Alegre and we stopped by the monthly Couch Surfing meet-up for a bit.\n\nAll in all it was a good week. I spent time with my friends, I went twice to yoga, I practiced my Bulgarian, and I ate a lot of good food. I just couldn\'t manage to find time to write about it.\n\nThis got me wondering if I couldn\'t manage to find the time or if I just didn\'t make the time to write. I\'m not sure.\n\nHere\'s what I am sure of: when I\'m in Sofia I\'ve been in the habit of writing regularly on this blog. In fact, I\'ve published posts nearly everyday for three years and this has become unsustainable. I can\'t continue to write at this rate.\n\nDon\'t worry, I\'m not giving the blogging thing up. I\'ve just got to scale back a little and I\'ve got to make sure that I am really excited about what I\'m writing here. Hope this makes sense!','Finding Balance','','inherit','open','open','','7236-revision','','','2012-10-14 12:54:12','2012-10-14 10:54:12','',7236,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/14/7236-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7238,1,'2012-10-14 12:54:21','2012-10-14 10:54:21','For some reason, this school year I\'ve been having trouble fitting my blog into my life. I\'m not sure what exactly has changed. I just haven\'t found myself super inspired.\r\n\r\nI thought in the beginning it was because I was back to working full time after two months of summer vacation. Then I thought it was because of a cold. This past week though, I just didn\'t really feel like writing and I was busy. I didn\'t have a chance to write anything of substance.\r\n\r\nMonday night, A. and I made nachos and watched the <a href=\"http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-rumble-2012-stewart-oreilly-20121006,0,4571447.story\" target=\"_blank\">Stewart/O\'Reilly debate</a>. Tuesday night I went to yoga, watched an episode of Downton Abby with P. and H. and then went to Don Domat for dinner. Wednesday after school, I graded my heart out and then spent the night at finishing up the book: <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Partly-Cloudy-Patriot-Sarah-Vowell/dp/0743223527\" target=\"_blank\">Partly Cloudy Patriot</a> for book club. Thursday night was book club and by the end of the day on Friday, all I wanted to do was sit on my couch.\r\n\r\nYesterday, I tidied up my apartment, prepared for my Bulgarian lesson with I.  After my lesson, A. and I went to a new restaurant: Alegre and we stopped by the monthly Couch Surfing meet-up for a bit.\r\n\r\nAll in all it was a good week. I spent time with my friends, I went twice to yoga, I practiced my Bulgarian, and I ate a lot of good food. I just couldn\'t manage to find time to write about it.\r\n\r\nThis got me wondering if I couldn\'t manage to find the time or if I just didn\'t make the time to write. I\'m not sure.\r\n\r\nHere\'s what I am sure of: when I\'m in Sofia I\'ve been in the habit of writing regularly on this blog. In fact, I\'ve published posts nearly everyday for three years and this has become unsustainable. I can\'t continue to write at this rate.\r\n\r\nDon\'t worry, I\'m not giving the blogging thing up. I\'ve just got to scale back a little and I\'ve got to make sure that I am really excited about what I\'m writing here. Hope this makes sense!','Finding Balance','','inherit','open','open','','7236-revision-2','','','2012-10-14 12:54:21','2012-10-14 10:54:21','',7236,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/14/7236-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7240,1,'2012-10-14 21:05:14','2012-10-14 19:05:14','One of the reasons I like Sofia is because it\'s not an outwardly beautiful city. It\'s no Buda and Pest. There\'s no Eiffel Tower. We don\'t do past and wine or curry dogs and the Berlin wall. People don\'t come here to bike al-la Amsterdam and Copenhagen. In fact I think that bike riding in Sofa is down right scary.\n\nNope. We\'ve got Shopska salad and banitsa to keep us happy.  There\'s Nevsky Cathedral which looks pretty good when the sky is bright blue or lit up at night and we\'ve got a couple of museums in old historic buildings. We\'ve got a walk-able downtown and a metro with two lines!\n\nThis said, in my mind, what makes Sofia special are the little shops, the holes in the wall cafes and the unexpected treasures that line Sofia\'s side streets.\n\nSo if you\'re visiting Sofia, what\'s a girl to do? to see? to eat?\n\nHere\'s what I would do. I\'d start things off with a visit to <a href=\"http://www.freesofiatour.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Free Sofia Tours</a>. They do a really great walking tour.  I love the intersection of history, architecture and attitude on the tour. <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/04/23/sofia-and-easter-weekend/\" target=\"_blank\">I\'ve been on it twice</a> and I\'d go again. The tour is really the best of Sofia and it would give you a good sense of what you want to return to and visit further.\n\n<strong>Things to Eat</strong>\n\nFrom the tour, I\'d then decide what I wanted to eat. Some of my favorite options include<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/03/07/new-sofia-restaurant-tavite-or-%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B5/\" target=\"_blank\"> Tavite</a> a restaurant that makes traditional Bulgarian food with a modern twist. The food is well made and  the service is great.\n\nOr maybe you\'re looking for something easier and faster like soup and a sandwich. There are a number of new soup places but my favorite remains <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/04/18/new-find-supastar/\" target=\"_blank\">SupaStar on Shishman</a>. I\'ve never been disappointed by the soup or by a sandwich and that\'s saying something.\n\nThis said you can\'t really go wrong with Sofia-classics like Ugo, Divaka or Don Domat. I\'m not the biggest Happy fan but lots of people really like the food.\n\nRecently I also went to <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/25/made-in-home/\" target=\"_blank\">Make in Home</a> and loved it. Other restaurants that I like are Sun and Moon a vegetarian place and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">Boom Burger</a> a hamburger place but really if you\'re just visiting there are other places I\'d go first.\n\n<strong>Things to Do </strong>\n\nAfter some food, I\'d probably want to check out a museum or maybe two. There\'s a little bit something for everyone in downtown Sofia. In the city center depending on what you like I\'d recommend the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/29/the-national-art-gallery-and-vladimir-dimitrov-the-master/\" target=\"_blank\">National Art Gallery</a> in a beautiful old building, the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/22/sofia-city-art-gallery/\" target=\"_blank\">Sofia City Art Gallery</a> is free everyday but the exhibits are always rotating and/or <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/20/night-at-the-museums-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">the National Archaeological Museum</a> which is in a old mosque and has an interesting collection of things. Oh and there\'s the icon museum in the basement of Nevsky Cathedral  I\'ve never seen another collection like that before but you have to have some interest in icons to hit this one up.\n\nAfter a museum and an art gallery, I\'d consider some shopping.\n\nMy two favorite Bulgarian shops are <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/12/14/zona-urbana/\" target=\"_blank\">Zona Urbana</a>. Zona Urbana is the place to go if you\'re looking for a unique souvenir as they make all sorts of bags and purses out of old communist newspapers. You really have to see this shop to believe it. This shop is a go to for me when it comes to giving gifts.\n\n<strong>Where to Drink</strong>\n\nThis is the easiest and the hardest category. It\'s impossible to walk down the street and not pass a cafe or a bar in downtown Sofia so if you\'re not picky you can just go anywhere.\n\nFor coffee my favorites include <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/23/vitosha-street-memento/\" target=\"_blank\">Memento</a>, <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/31/lime-cafe-and-friends/\" target=\"_blank\">Lime</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/06/29/museum-kind-of-day/\" target=\"_blank\">Toba &amp; Co</a>. Sure there\'s also Starbucks, Onda and','My Sofia: What to do and see','','inherit','open','open','','7239-revision','','','2012-10-14 21:05:14','2012-10-14 19:05:14','',7239,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/14/7239-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7260,1,'2012-10-23 05:34:15','2012-10-23 03:34:15','Why visit and re-visit a town like Koprivshtitsa?\r\n<a title=\"Koprivshtitsa house in blue by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109703732/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8049/8109703732_bbb87773ce_z.jpg\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa house in blue\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWell I have to say that once you can pronounce the name of the town quickly and easily you\'ve got to back a few times or the effort to learn the name of the town is lost.\r\n<a title=\"Beautiful Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109701447/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8470/8109701447_f06af9a6a7_z.jpg\" alt=\"Beautiful Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nBut really, Koprivshtitsa is a beautiful little town not far from Sofia. From Mladost it took us about an hour and a half to make the drive and we were driving at a leisurely pace--no speeding for us. It\'s close but not too close--meaning that it makes for a nice trip and staying one night makes the trip feel that much more special.\r\n\r\nSure you could make a day trip of it but why not stay the night?!<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"The chruch and necrologues in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109704263/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8185/8109704263_d5f250d8b7_z.jpg\" alt=\"The chruch and necrologues in Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWhat makes Koprivshtitsa different is the fact that the town feels so different from the capitol Sofia without making you drive for hours to get there. Moreover, Koprivshtitsa is a museum town that has been well preserved. There are six house museums in this lovely revival-style town which tell the story of the Bulgarian uprising.\r\n<a title=\"Roof tops of Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109714842/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8323/8109714842_6aaca59f1b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roof tops of Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nIn the town as a whole, the houses are beautifully painted and the streets are cobble-stoned. In fall the leaves turn bright yellow and smoke floats out of chimneys. Everyone moves more slowly. At restaurants you wait and then you wait some more but that\'s okay because you\'re on holiday.\r\n<a title=\"Yellow house in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109745893/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8329/8109745893_2e44eaba2f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Yellow house in Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThis most recent trip was an excuse to get out of town, spend time with friends and relax. The trip was also short enough that I didn\'t feel an pressure to take school work with me. I tossed some things in a bag on Saturday morning and that was that. It was great and we set off on our mini-adventure.\r\n<a title=\"Fall in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109689375/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8323/8109689375_e8f5d55bb6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fall in Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nAll of this said, the real reason I love Koprivshtitsa is the jam. The homemade strawberry jam is delicious. It tastes like sunshine. Or how I imagine sunshine must taste if you could actually eat it. I always buy a jar (or three) when I go. This year I also bought a jar of honey and a jar of blueberry jam. Toast has never sounded so good before. <a title=\"Me in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109698885/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8189/8109698885_39f9cef0f0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me in Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','My love affair with Koprivshtitsa ','','publish','open','open','','my-love-affair-with-koprivshtitsa','','','2012-10-23 05:34:15','2012-10-23 03:34:15','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7260',0,'post','',4),(7242,1,'2012-10-15 06:13:54','2012-10-15 04:13:54','One of the reasons I like Sofia is because it\'s not an outwardly beautiful city. It\'s no Buda and Pest. There\'s no Eiffel Tower. We don\'t do past and wine or curry dogs and the Berlin wall. People don\'t come here to bike al-la Amsterdam and Copenhagen. In fact I think that bike riding in Sofa is down right scary.\n\nNope. We\'ve got Shopska salad and banitsa to keep us happy.  There\'s Nevsky Cathedral which looks pretty good when the sky is bright blue or lit up at night and we\'ve got a couple of museums in old historic buildings. We\'ve got a walk-able downtown and a metro with two lines!\n\nThis said, in my mind, what makes Sofia special are the little shops, the holes in the wall cafes and the unexpected treasures that line Sofia\'s side streets.\n\nSo if you\'re visiting Sofia, what\'s a girl to do? to see? to eat?\n\nHere\'s what I would do. I\'d start things off with a visit to <a href=\"http://www.freesofiatour.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Free Sofia Tours</a>. They do a really great walking tour.  I love the intersection of history, architecture and attitude on the tour. <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/04/23/sofia-and-easter-weekend/\" target=\"_blank\">I\'ve been on it twice</a> and I\'d go again. The tour is really the best of Sofia and it would give you a good sense of what you want to return to and visit further.\n\n<strong>Things to Eat</strong>\n\nFrom the tour, I\'d then decide what I wanted to eat. Some of my favorite options include<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/03/07/new-sofia-restaurant-tavite-or-%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B5/\" target=\"_blank\"> Tavite</a> a restaurant that makes traditional Bulgarian food with a modern twist. The food is well made and  the service is great.\n\nOr maybe you\'re looking for something easier and faster like soup and a sandwich. There are a number of new soup places but my favorite remains <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/04/18/new-find-supastar/\" target=\"_blank\">SupaStar on Shishman</a>. I\'ve never been disappointed by the soup or by a sandwich and that\'s saying something.\n\nThis said you can\'t really go wrong with Sofia-classics like Ugo, Divaka or Don Domat. I\'m not the biggest Happy fan but lots of people really like the food.\n\nRecently I also went to <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/25/made-in-home/\" target=\"_blank\">Make in Home</a> and loved it. Other restaurants that I like are Sun and Moon a vegetarian place and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">Boom Burger</a> a hamburger place but really if you\'re just visiting there are other places I\'d go first.\n\n<strong>Things to Do </strong>\n\nAfter some food, I\'d probably want to check out a museum or maybe two. There\'s a little bit something for everyone in downtown Sofia.\n\nYou <em>must</em> go to see Nevsky. After this feel free to do any or all of the following.\n\nIn the city center depending on what you like I\'d recommend the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/29/the-national-art-gallery-and-vladimir-dimitrov-the-master/\" target=\"_blank\">National Art Gallery</a> in a beautiful old building, the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/22/sofia-city-art-gallery/\" target=\"_blank\">Sofia City Art Gallery</a> is free everyday but the exhibits are always rotating and/or <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/20/night-at-the-museums-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">the National Archaeological Museum</a> which is in a old mosque and has an interesting collection of things. Oh and there\'s the icon museum in the basement of Nevsky Cathedral  I\'ve never seen another collection like that before but you have to have some interest in icons to hit this one up.\n\nIf you\'re up for a little adventure, I\'d also recommend Boyana Church and the National History Museum in Boyana. Take a taxi and you shouldn\'t have a problem getting to either of these places.\n\nAfter a museum and an art gallery, I\'d consider some shopping.\n\nMy two favorite Bulgarian shops are <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/12/14/zona-urbana/\" target=\"_blank\">Zona Urbana</a>. Zona Urbana is the place to go if you\'re looking for a unique souvenir as they make all sorts of bags and purses out of old communist newspapers. You really have to see this shop to believe it. This shop is a go to for me when it comes to giving gifts.\n\nThis said in the underpass by the National Archaeology Museum there are some cheesy-but-great Bulgarian souvenir shops. If you\'re looking fo<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/03/12/a-stroll-through-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">r art or old artifacts, there\'s a daily flea market</a> nearby Nevsky. I\'ve shied away from the flea market but mostly because much of the art is really great and the prices are relatively low.\n\n<strong>Where to Drink</strong>\n\nThis is the easiest and the hardest category. It\'s impossible to walk down the street and not pass a cafe or a bar in downtown Sofia so if you\'re not picky you can just go anywhere.\n\nFor coffee and cocktails my favorites include <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/23/vitosha-street-memento/\" target=\"_blank\">Memento</a>, <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/31/lime-cafe-and-friends/\" target=\"_blank\">Lime</a>, <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/03/30/one-more-bar-shishman/\" target=\"_blank\">One More Bar </a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/06/29/museum-kind-of-day/\" target=\"_blank\">Toba &amp; Co</a>. Sure there\'s also Starbucks, Onda and Costa but why buy from a chain if you can go local?\n\nIf you\'re nearby Shishman, you could stop by Bilkova for a cold beer (or something stronger)--often in the fall before it gets cold people sit outside and drink on the patio. Another crowd pleaser is <a href=\"http://www.spottedbylocals.com/sofia/hambara/\" target=\"_blank\">Hambara</a> a bar that is lit by candles but shows up in <em>every</em> guidebook. <a href=\"http://www.spottedbylocals.com/sofia/butchers-bar/\" target=\"_blank\">Butchers</a> is another unexpected but wonderfully fun bar not far from Sofia University.\n\nA place I cannot recommend enough is <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/16/tova-coffee-the-arts-and-a-decent-dose-of-cool/\" target=\"_blank\">+Tova</a>. It\'s a coffee shop/bar/art space. The space is open and airy and all of the art on the walls is for sale. It\'s just enough off the normal tourist paths that you\'ll feel like you\'ve found something really special. And really if you make it to +Tovva you\'d better stop by <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/08/cupcakes-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">Take a Cake</a> for a cupcake.\n\nIf this isn\'t enough a while ago, I wrote these two posts: <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/09/09/a-sight-seeing-scavenger-hunt-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">A Sofia savager hunt</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/04/26/sofia-for-a-day/\" target=\"_blank\">a day in Sofia</a>.','My Sofia: What to do and see','','inherit','open','open','','7239-revision-2','','','2012-10-15 06:13:54','2012-10-15 04:13:54','',7239,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/15/7239-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7243,1,'2012-10-15 06:16:53','2012-10-15 04:16:53','<a title=\"Alexander Nevski Cathedral by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/2902964946/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3184/2902964946_c7bae36e3c.jpg\" alt=\"Alexander Nevski Cathedral\" width=\"375\" height=\"500\" /></a>One of the reasons I like Sofia is because it\'s not an outwardly beautiful city. It\'s no Buda and Pest. There\'s no Eiffel Tower. We don\'t do past and wine or curry dogs and the Berlin wall. People don\'t come here to bike al-la Amsterdam and Copenhagen. In fact I think that bike riding in Sofa is down right scary.\n\nNope. We\'ve got Shopska salad and banitsa to keep us happy.  There\'s Nevsky Cathedral which looks pretty good when the sky is bright blue or lit up at night and we\'ve got a couple of museums in old historic buildings. We\'ve got a walk-able downtown and a metro with two lines!\n\nThis said, in my mind, what makes Sofia special are the little shops, the holes in the wall cafes and the unexpected treasures that line Sofia\'s side streets.\n\nSo if you\'re visiting Sofia, what\'s a girl to do? to see? to eat?\n\nHere\'s what I would do. I\'d start things off with a visit to <a href=\"http://www.freesofiatour.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Free Sofia Tours</a>. They do a really great walking tour.  I love the intersection of history, architecture and attitude on the tour. <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/04/23/sofia-and-easter-weekend/\" target=\"_blank\">I\'ve been on it twice</a> and I\'d go again. The tour is really the best of Sofia and it would give you a good sense of what you want to return to and visit further.\n\n<strong>Things to Eat</strong>\n\nFrom the tour, I\'d then decide what I wanted to eat. Some of my favorite options include<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/03/07/new-sofia-restaurant-tavite-or-%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B5/\" target=\"_blank\"> Tavite</a> a restaurant that makes traditional Bulgarian food with a modern twist. The food is well made and  the service is great.\n\nOr maybe you\'re looking for something easier and faster like soup and a sandwich. There are a number of new soup places but my favorite remains <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/04/18/new-find-supastar/\" target=\"_blank\">SupaStar on Shishman</a>. I\'ve never been disappointed by the soup or by a sandwich and that\'s saying something.\n\nThis said you can\'t really go wrong with Sofia-classics like Ugo, Divaka or Don Domat. I\'m not the biggest Happy fan but lots of people really like the food.\n\nRecently I also went to <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/25/made-in-home/\" target=\"_blank\">Make in Home</a> and loved it. Other restaurants that I like are Sun and Moon a vegetarian place and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">Boom Burger</a> a hamburger place but really if you\'re just visiting there are other places I\'d go first.\n\n<strong>Things to Do </strong>\n\nAfter some food, I\'d probably want to check out a museum or maybe two. There\'s a little bit something for everyone in downtown Sofia.\n\nYou <em>must</em> go to see Nevsky. After this feel free to do any or all of the following.\n\nIn the city center depending on what you like I\'d recommend the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/29/the-national-art-gallery-and-vladimir-dimitrov-the-master/\" target=\"_blank\">National Art Gallery</a> in a beautiful old building, the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/22/sofia-city-art-gallery/\" target=\"_blank\">Sofia City Art Gallery</a> is free everyday but the exhibits are always rotating and/or <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/20/night-at-the-museums-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">the National Archaeological Museum</a> which is in a old mosque and has an interesting collection of things. Oh and there\'s the icon museum in the basement of Nevsky Cathedral  I\'ve never seen another collection like that before but you have to have some interest in icons to hit this one up.\n\nIf you\'re up for a little adventure, I\'d also recommend Boyana Church and the National History Museum in Boyana. Take a taxi and you shouldn\'t have a problem getting to either of these places.\n\nAfter a museum and an art gallery, I\'d consider some shopping.\n\nMy two favorite Bulgarian shops are <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/12/14/zona-urbana/\" target=\"_blank\">Zona Urbana</a>. Zona Urbana is the place to go if you\'re looking for a unique souvenir as they make all sorts of bags and purses out of old communist newspapers. You really have to see this shop to believe it. This shop is a go to for me when it comes to giving gifts.\n\nThis said in the underpass by the National Archaeology Museum there are some cheesy-but-great Bulgarian souvenir shops. If you\'re looking fo<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/03/12/a-stroll-through-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">r art or old artifacts, there\'s a daily flea market</a> nearby Nevsky. I\'ve shied away from the flea market but mostly because much of the art is really great and the prices are relatively low.\n\n<strong>Where to Drink</strong>\n\nThis is the easiest and the hardest category. It\'s impossible to walk down the street and not pass a cafe or a bar in downtown Sofia so if you\'re not picky you can just go anywhere.\n\nFor coffee and cocktails my favorites include <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/23/vitosha-street-memento/\" target=\"_blank\">Memento</a>, <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/31/lime-cafe-and-friends/\" target=\"_blank\">Lime</a>, <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/03/30/one-more-bar-shishman/\" target=\"_blank\">One More Bar </a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/06/29/museum-kind-of-day/\" target=\"_blank\">Toba &amp; Co</a>. Sure there\'s also Starbucks, Onda and Costa but why buy from a chain if you can go local?\n\nIf you\'re nearby Shishman, you could stop by Bilkova for a cold beer (or something stronger)--often in the fall before it gets cold people sit outside and drink on the patio. Another crowd pleaser is <a href=\"http://www.spottedbylocals.com/sofia/hambara/\" target=\"_blank\">Hambara</a> a bar that is lit by candles but shows up in <em>every</em> guidebook. <a href=\"http://www.spottedbylocals.com/sofia/butchers-bar/\" target=\"_blank\">Butchers</a> is another unexpected but wonderfully fun bar not far from Sofia University.\n\nA place I cannot recommend enough is <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/16/tova-coffee-the-arts-and-a-decent-dose-of-cool/\" target=\"_blank\">+Tova</a>. It\'s a coffee shop/bar/art space. The space is open and airy and all of the art on the walls is for sale. It\'s just enough off the normal tourist paths that you\'ll feel like you\'ve found something really special. And really if you make it to +Tovva you\'d better stop by <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/08/cupcakes-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">Take a Cake</a> for a cupcake.\n\nIf this isn\'t enough a while ago, I wrote these two posts: <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/09/09/a-sight-seeing-scavenger-hunt-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">A Sofia savager hunt</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/04/26/sofia-for-a-day/\" target=\"_blank\">a day in Sofia</a>.','My Sofia: What to do and see','','inherit','open','open','','7239-revision-3','','','2012-10-15 06:16:53','2012-10-15 04:16:53','',7239,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/15/7239-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7244,1,'2012-10-15 06:17:09','2012-10-15 04:17:09','<a title=\"Alexander Nevski Cathedral by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/2902964946/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3184/2902964946_c7bae36e3c.jpg\" alt=\"Alexander Nevski Cathedral\" width=\"375\" height=\"500\" /></a>One of the reasons I like Sofia is because it\'s not an outwardly beautiful city. It\'s no Buda and Pest. There\'s no Eiffel Tower. We don\'t do past and wine or curry dogs and the Berlin wall. People don\'t come here to bike al-la Amsterdam and Copenhagen. In fact I think that bike riding in Sofa is down right scary.\r\n\r\nNope. We\'ve got Shopska salad and banitsa to keep us happy.  There\'s Nevsky Cathedral which looks pretty good when the sky is bright blue or lit up at night and we\'ve got a couple of museums in old historic buildings. We\'ve got a walk-able downtown and a metro with two lines!\r\n\r\nThis said, in my mind, what makes Sofia special are the little shops, the holes in the wall cafes and the unexpected treasures that line Sofia\'s side streets.\r\n\r\nSo if you\'re visiting Sofia, what\'s a girl to do? to see? to eat?\r\n\r\nHere\'s what I would do. I\'d start things off with a visit to <a href=\"http://www.freesofiatour.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Free Sofia Tours</a>. They do a really great walking tour.  I love the intersection of history, architecture and attitude on the tour. <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/04/23/sofia-and-easter-weekend/\" target=\"_blank\">I\'ve been on it twice</a> and I\'d go again. The tour is really the best of Sofia and it would give you a good sense of what you want to return to and visit further.\r\n\r\n<strong>Things to Eat</strong>\r\n\r\nFrom the tour, I\'d then decide what I wanted to eat. Some of my favorite options include<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/03/07/new-sofia-restaurant-tavite-or-%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B5/\" target=\"_blank\"> Tavite</a> a restaurant that makes traditional Bulgarian food with a modern twist. The food is well made and  the service is great.\r\n\r\nOr maybe you\'re looking for something easier and faster like soup and a sandwich. There are a number of new soup places but my favorite remains <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/04/18/new-find-supastar/\" target=\"_blank\">SupaStar on Shishman</a>. I\'ve never been disappointed by the soup or by a sandwich and that\'s saying something.\r\n\r\nThis said you can\'t really go wrong with Sofia-classics like Ugo, Divaka or Don Domat. I\'m not the biggest Happy fan but lots of people really like the food.\r\n\r\nRecently I also went to <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/25/made-in-home/\" target=\"_blank\">Make in Home</a> and loved it. Other restaurants that I like are Sun and Moon a vegetarian place and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">Boom Burger</a> a hamburger place but really if you\'re just visiting there are other places I\'d go first.\r\n\r\n<strong>Things to Do </strong>\r\n\r\nAfter some food, I\'d probably want to check out a museum or maybe two. There\'s a little bit something for everyone in downtown Sofia.\r\n\r\nYou <em>must</em> go to see Nevsky. After this feel free to do any or all of the following.\r\n\r\nIn the city center depending on what you like I\'d recommend the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/29/the-national-art-gallery-and-vladimir-dimitrov-the-master/\" target=\"_blank\">National Art Gallery</a> in a beautiful old building, the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/22/sofia-city-art-gallery/\" target=\"_blank\">Sofia City Art Gallery</a> is free everyday but the exhibits are always rotating and/or <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/20/night-at-the-museums-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">the National Archaeological Museum</a> which is in a old mosque and has an interesting collection of things. Oh and there\'s the icon museum in the basement of Nevsky Cathedral  I\'ve never seen another collection like that before but you have to have some interest in icons to hit this one up.\r\n\r\nIf you\'re up for a little adventure, I\'d also recommend Boyana Church and the National History Museum in Boyana. Take a taxi and you shouldn\'t have a problem getting to either of these places.\r\n\r\nAfter a museum and an art gallery, I\'d consider some shopping.\r\n\r\nMy two favorite Bulgarian shops are <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/12/14/zona-urbana/\" target=\"_blank\">Zona Urbana</a>. Zona Urbana is the place to go if you\'re looking for a unique souvenir as they make all sorts of bags and purses out of old communist newspapers. You really have to see this shop to believe it. This shop is a go to for me when it comes to giving gifts.\r\n\r\nThis said in the underpass by the National Archaeology Museum there are some cheesy-but-great Bulgarian souvenir shops. If you\'re looking fo<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/03/12/a-stroll-through-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">r art or old artifacts, there\'s a daily flea market</a> nearby Nevsky. I\'ve shied away from the flea market but mostly because much of the art is really great and the prices are relatively low.\r\n\r\n<strong>Where to Drink</strong>\r\n\r\nThis is the easiest and the hardest category. It\'s impossible to walk down the street and not pass a cafe or a bar in downtown Sofia so if you\'re not picky you can just go anywhere.\r\n\r\nFor coffee and cocktails my favorites include <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/23/vitosha-street-memento/\" target=\"_blank\">Memento</a>, <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/31/lime-cafe-and-friends/\" target=\"_blank\">Lime</a>, <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/03/30/one-more-bar-shishman/\" target=\"_blank\">One More Bar </a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/06/29/museum-kind-of-day/\" target=\"_blank\">Toba &amp; Co</a>. Sure there\'s also Starbucks, Onda and Costa but why buy from a chain if you can go local?\r\n\r\nIf you\'re nearby Shishman, you could stop by Bilkova for a cold beer (or something stronger)--often in the fall before it gets cold people sit outside and drink on the patio. Another crowd pleaser is <a href=\"http://www.spottedbylocals.com/sofia/hambara/\" target=\"_blank\">Hambara</a> a bar that is lit by candles but shows up in <em>every</em> guidebook. <a href=\"http://www.spottedbylocals.com/sofia/butchers-bar/\" target=\"_blank\">Butchers</a> is another unexpected but wonderfully fun bar not far from Sofia University.\r\n\r\nA place I cannot recommend enough is <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/16/tova-coffee-the-arts-and-a-decent-dose-of-cool/\" target=\"_blank\">+Tova</a>. It\'s a coffee shop/bar/art space. The space is open and airy and all of the art on the walls is for sale. It\'s just enough off the normal tourist paths that you\'ll feel like you\'ve found something really special. And really if you make it to +Tovva you\'d better stop by <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/08/cupcakes-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">Take a Cake</a> for a cupcake.\r\n\r\nIf this isn\'t enough a while ago, I wrote these two posts: <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/09/09/a-sight-seeing-scavenger-hunt-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">A Sofia savager hunt</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/04/26/sofia-for-a-day/\" target=\"_blank\">a day in Sofia</a>.','My Sofia: What to do and see','','inherit','open','open','','7239-revision-4','','','2012-10-15 06:17:09','2012-10-15 04:17:09','',7239,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/15/7239-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7245,1,'2012-10-15 18:29:14','2012-10-15 16:29:14','<a title=\"Alexander Nevski Cathedral by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/2902964946/\"><img class=\"alignleft\" src=\"http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3184/2902964946_c7bae36e3c.jpg\" alt=\"Alexander Nevski Cathedral\" width=\"375\" height=\"500\" /></a>One of the reasons I like Sofia is because it\'s not an outwardly beautiful city. It\'s no Buda and Pest. There\'s no Eiffel Tower. We don\'t do past and wine or curry dogs and the Berlin wall. People don\'t come here to bike al-la Amsterdam and Copenhagen. In fact I think that bike riding in Sofa is down right scary. Nope. We\'ve got Shopska salad and banitsa to keep us happy.  There\'s Nevsky Cathedral which looks pretty good when the sky is bright blue or lit up at night and we\'ve got a couple of museums in old historic buildings. We\'ve got a walk-able downtown and a metro with two lines! This said, in my mind, what makes Sofia special are the little shops, the holes in the wall cafes and the unexpected treasures that line Sofia\'s side streets. So if you\'re visiting Sofia, what\'s a girl to do? to see? to eat? Here\'s what I would do. I\'d start things off with a visit to <a href=\"http://www.freesofiatour.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Free Sofia Tours</a>. They do a really great walking tour.  I love the intersection of history, architecture and attitude on the tour. <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/04/23/sofia-and-easter-weekend/\" target=\"_blank\">I\'ve been on it twice</a> and I\'d go again. The tour is really the best of Sofia and it would give you a good sense of what you want to return to and visit further.<!--more--> <strong>Things to Eat</strong> From the tour, I\'d then decide what I wanted to eat. Some of my favorite options include<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/03/07/new-sofia-restaurant-tavite-or-%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B5/\" target=\"_blank\"> Tavite</a> a restaurant that makes traditional Bulgarian food with a modern twist. The food is well made and  the service is great. Or maybe you\'re looking for something easier and faster like soup and a sandwich. There are a number of new soup places but my favorite remains <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/04/18/new-find-supastar/\" target=\"_blank\">SupaStar on Shishman</a>. I\'ve never been disappointed by the soup or by a sandwich and that\'s saying something. This said you can\'t really go wrong with Sofia-classics like Ugo, Divaka or Don Domat. I\'m not the biggest Happy fan but lots of people really like the food. Recently I also went to <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/25/made-in-home/\" target=\"_blank\">Make in Home</a> and loved it. Other restaurants that I like are Sun and Moon a vegetarian place and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">Boom Burger</a> a hamburger place but really if you\'re just visiting there are other places I\'d go first. <strong>Things to Do </strong> After some food, I\'d probably want to check out a museum or maybe two. There\'s a little bit something for everyone in downtown Sofia. You <em>must</em> go to see Nevsky. After this feel free to do any or all of the following. In the city center depending on what you like I\'d recommend the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/29/the-national-art-gallery-and-vladimir-dimitrov-the-master/\" target=\"_blank\">National Art Gallery</a> in a beautiful old building, the <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/22/sofia-city-art-gallery/\" target=\"_blank\">Sofia City Art Gallery</a> is free everyday but the exhibits are always rotating and/or <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/05/20/night-at-the-museums-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">the National Archaeological Museum</a> which is in a old mosque and has an interesting collection of things. Oh and there\'s the icon museum in the basement of Nevsky Cathedral  I\'ve never seen another collection like that before but you have to have some interest in icons to hit this one up. If you\'re up for a little adventure, I\'d also recommend Boyana Church and the National History Museum in Boyana. Take a taxi and you shouldn\'t have a problem getting to either of these places. After a museum and an art gallery, I\'d consider some shopping. My two favorite Bulgarian shops are <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/04/17/friday-finds-paradise-garage/\" target=\"_blank\">Paradise Garage</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/12/14/zona-urbana/\" target=\"_blank\">Zona Urbana</a>. Zona Urbana is the place to go if you\'re looking for a unique souvenir as they make all sorts of bags and purses out of old communist newspapers. You really have to see this shop to believe it. This shop is a go to for me when it comes to giving gifts. This said in the underpass by the National Archaeology Museum there are some cheesy-but-great Bulgarian souvenir shops. If you\'re looking fo<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/03/12/a-stroll-through-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">r art or old artifacts, there\'s a daily flea market</a> nearby Nevsky. I\'ve shied away from the flea market but mostly because much of the art is really great and the prices are relatively low. <strong>Where to Drink</strong> This is the easiest and the hardest category. It\'s impossible to walk down the street and not pass a cafe or a bar in downtown Sofia so if you\'re not picky you can just go anywhere. For coffee and cocktails my favorites include <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/09/23/vitosha-street-memento/\" target=\"_blank\">Memento</a>, <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/07/31/lime-cafe-and-friends/\" target=\"_blank\">Lime</a>, <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/03/30/one-more-bar-shishman/\" target=\"_blank\">One More Bar </a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2009/06/29/museum-kind-of-day/\" target=\"_blank\">Toba &amp; Co</a>. Sure there\'s also Starbucks, Onda and Costa but why buy from a chain if you can go local? If you\'re nearby Shishman, you could stop by Bilkova for a cold beer (or something stronger)--often in the fall before it gets cold people sit outside and drink on the patio. Another crowd pleaser is <a href=\"http://www.spottedbylocals.com/sofia/hambara/\" target=\"_blank\">Hambara</a> a bar that is lit by candles but shows up in <em>every</em> guidebook. <a href=\"http://www.spottedbylocals.com/sofia/butchers-bar/\" target=\"_blank\">Butchers</a> is another unexpected but wonderfully fun bar not far from Sofia University. A place I cannot recommend enough is <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/16/tova-coffee-the-arts-and-a-decent-dose-of-cool/\" target=\"_blank\">+Tova</a>. It\'s a coffee shop/bar/art space. The space is open and airy and all of the art on the walls is for sale. It\'s just enough off the normal tourist paths that you\'ll feel like you\'ve found something really special. And really if you make it to +Tovva you\'d better stop by <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/10/08/cupcakes-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">Take a Cake</a> for a cupcake. If this isn\'t enough a while ago, I wrote these two posts: <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/09/09/a-sight-seeing-scavenger-hunt-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">A Sofia savager hunt</a> and <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2011/04/26/sofia-for-a-day/\" target=\"_blank\">a day in Sofia</a>.','My Sofia: What to do and see','','inherit','open','open','','7239-autosave','','','2012-10-15 18:29:14','2012-10-15 16:29:14','',7239,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/15/7239-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7246,1,'2012-10-17 06:12:01','2012-10-17 04:12:01','I\'ve walked by this shop a few times already on Vitosha. Why can\'t they go ahead and open already?!\r\n\r\n<a title=\"Wok to Walk in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085774017/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8472/8085774017_466dd03934_z.jpg\" alt=\"Wok to Walk in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nIt\'s beginning to feel like they are taunting me.\r\n\r\nLast week there were some guys in the shop standing around looking out the window. I gave them a thumbs up. I meant it as encouragement. A, sort of, hurry up and open already. They just smiled back at me. Less smiling, more getting the shop open.\r\n\r\nThe <a href=\"http://www.woktowalk.com/homepage/\" target=\"_blank\">Wok to Walk website</a> currently says they will open at the end of August. <em>Um</em>, it\'s nearly the end of October.\r\n\r\n<em>Okay</em>, really it\'s only the middle of October but I am ready to walk with my wok. I\'ve even spent a little time looking at the menu. It\'s the kind of shop where you get to mix and match your noodles, veggies, meat and flavors. This looks amazing and a little intimidating.\r\n\r\nI have a hard time picking out toppings at frozen yogurt shops. I already know I am going to struggle making a choice here. What if I pick wrong and I don\'t like the combination I selected? Then it\'s all my fault. What if I pick something amazing out and then I forget what I mixed-and-matched? Then I\'ll never be able to recreate it. Oh, <em>choice</em>.\r\n\r\nFinally dear readers, if/when you notice Wok to Walk has opened can you let me know? As a general rule, I don\'t usually make it to the city center during the week but in this case I\'d be willing to make an exception.','Wok to Walk joining us in Sofia','','publish','open','open','','wok-to-walk-joining-us-in-sofia','','','2012-10-17 06:12:01','2012-10-17 04:12:01','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7246',0,'post','',4),(7247,1,'2012-10-17 06:11:57','2012-10-17 04:11:57','I\'ve walked by this shop a few times already on Vitosha. Why can\'t they go ahead and open already?!\n\n<a title=\"Wok to Walk in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085774017/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8472/8085774017_466dd03934_z.jpg\" alt=\"Wok to Walk in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nIt\'s beginning to feel like they are taunting me.\n\nLast week there were some guys in the shop standing around looking out the window. I gave them a thumbs up. I meant it as encouragement. A, sort of, hurry up and open already. They just smiled back at me. Less smiling, more getting the shop open.\n\nThe <a href=\"http://www.woktowalk.com/homepage/\" target=\"_blank\">Wok to Walk website</a> currently says they will open at the end of August. <em>Um</em>, it\'s nearly the end of October.\n\n<em>Okay</em>, really it\'s only the middle of October but I am ready to walk with my wok. I\'ve even spent a little time looking at the menu. It\'s the kind of shop where you get to mix and match your noodles, veggies, meat and flavors. This looks amazing and a little intimidating.\n\nI have a hard time picking out toppings at frozen yogurt shops. I already know I am going to struggle making a choice here. What if I pick wrong and I don\'t like the combination I selected? Then it\'s all my fault. What if I pick something amazing out and then I forget what I mixed-and-matched? Then I\'ll never be able to recreate it. Oh, <em>choice</em>.\n\nFinally dear readers, if/when you notice Wok to Walk has opened can you let me know? As a general rule, I don\'t usually make it to the city center during the week but in this case I\'d be willing to make an exception.','Wok to Walk joining us in Sofia','','inherit','open','open','','7246-revision','','','2012-10-17 06:11:57','2012-10-17 04:11:57','',7246,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/17/7246-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7248,1,'2012-10-17 06:13:05','2012-10-17 04:13:05','I\'ve walked by this shop a few times already on Vitosha. Why can\'t they go ahead and open already?!\n\n<a title=\"Wok to Walk in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085774017/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8472/8085774017_466dd03934_z.jpg\" alt=\"Wok to Walk in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nIt\'s beginning to feel like they are taunting me.\n\nLast week there were some guys in the shop standing around looking out the window. I gave them a thumbs up. I meant it as encouragement. A, sort of, hurry up and open already. They just smiled back at me. Less smiling, more getting the shop open.\n\nThe <a href=\"http://www.woktowalk.com/homepage/\" target=\"_blank\">Wok to Walk website</a> currently says they will open at the end of August. <em>Um</em>, it\'s nearly the end of October.\n\n<em>Okay</em>, really it\'s only the middle of October but I am ready to walk with my wok. I\'ve even spent a little time looking at the menu. It\'s the kind of shop where you get to mix and match your noodles, veggies, meat and flavors. This looks amazing and a little intimidating.\n\nI have a hard time picking out toppings at frozen yogurt shops. I already know I am going to struggle making a choice here. What if I pick wrong and I don\'t like the combination I selected? Then it\'s all my fault. What if I pick something amazing out and then I forget what I mixed-and-matched? Then I\'ll never be able to recreate it. Oh, <em>choice</em>.\n\nFinally dear readers, if/when you notice Wok to Walk has opened can you let me know? As a general rule, I don\'t usually make it to the city center during the week but in this case I\'d be willing to make an exception.','Wok to Walk joining us in Sofia','','inherit','open','open','','7246-autosave','','','2012-10-17 06:13:05','2012-10-17 04:13:05','',7246,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/17/7246-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7249,1,'2012-10-20 07:46:19','2012-10-20 05:46:19','After my Bulgarian lesson last week, A. picked me up and we went to check out a new restaurant he\'d heard about called Alegre because they rumored to have Latin American food on the menu.\r\n\r\nOn the way, I asked A. how he heard about Alegre.\r\n\r\nHe told me: reading the internet.\r\n\r\n<em>Oh</em>.\r\n\r\nThanks, internet, for this find!\r\n<a title=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769458/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8193/8085769458_7e33233442_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nFrom the street  Alegre looks like a cute narrow restaurant but once inside you realize the restaurant make an \"L\" shape and turns the corner making it rather large. Even though it\'s large-ish, it still feels cozy. It\'s a couple of blocks off of Vitsosha and it was relatively easy to find.\r\n\r\nWe had to walk through a group of people smoking right outside the front door. <em>Thanks, smoking ban</em>. But, inside, the lighting is great and the decor is modern without feeling fussy. Oh and the restaurant is smoke free.  Black and dark browns are the predominate colors in the interior and it makes Alegre feel cozy and warm. It made the occasional pop of color in feel that much more powerful. It was perfect for early fall.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769847/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8335/8085769847_e750ebbbb8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWhen the hostess seated us, she explained that the photos lining the wall were all taken my customers and that we could bring in our own photos on a flash drive to add to the collection. The hostess was warm and friendly which I thought was a nice contrast to many restaurants in Sofia.\r\n<a title=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768640/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8324/8085768640_582d49b441_z.jpg\" alt=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe photo thing struck me as a little odd but A. told me that while the restaurant\'s name is Alegre. They\'re using this whole tag line: Alegre, a restaurant for travelers. I don\'t really know what this means but it does sound nice. Upon reading the menu and thinking about it, I think Alegre is suggesting that this a place for people who like to eat food from many different cultures and who are interesting in drinking wines from all over the world.\r\n\r\n<em>Hey, that\'s me!</em> I like all of those things.\r\n<a title=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085773167/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8464/8085773167_ea03f2a4bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085770230/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085770230_773a1da79e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe ended up with Bulgarian menus which is fine for A. but more of a challenge for me especially when the font on the menu is more cutesy than functional.  We went for the specials which this month are Latin American dishes. There were salads, appetizers  main dishes, a soup and dessert to choose from.\r\n\r\nWe decided to share some dishes and ended up ordering the guacamole and chips (described on the menu as guacamole nachos), empanadas and a dish with beef and veggies in a smoky yet not very spicy sauce served with rice.\r\n<a title=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767122/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8085767122_12a81653e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768283/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8471/8085768283_9edb4c223e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nA. and I both liked the food but agreed that it wasn\'t really Latin American. Thee food was missing the necessary heat and flavors to make it really Latin American but it was still good food. Everything was well made, the ingredients were fresh and while the flavors weren\'t exactly what we expected they were significantly different than anything we\'d eaten recently.\r\n<a title=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085767553_c0f38c56c8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAfter eating empanadas for the first time in ages, I couldn\'t stop thinking about them. I found myself dreaming up different empanada fillings--the first, spicy pork, garlic and pepper, tofu, followed by, eggplant with a spicy tomato sauce, oh and there was also, sweet potato and pulled chicken. So this past week, I gave making my own empanadas a go. I have to say it went pretty well but I forgot to take any pictures to prove it. I guess you\'ll just have to trust me.\r\n<a title=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085765078/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8184/8085765078_f5b166fbdc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow back to Alegre, I like any restaurant that inspires me to go home and cook. I also like any restaurant in Sofia with service as good as the service we had--the servers and hostess were attentive without hovering at the table. They were there when we needed them and scarce otherwise. <em>Perfect</em>.\r\n<a title=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085764348_ea9f2f3cf9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nIf you want to check out Alegre yourself, you can find it at  <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6871\" target=\"_blank\">29B Hristo Belchev Str.</a> I think it\'s well worth a visit.\r\n<a title=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764807/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085764807_8e4d905c5a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Last Saturday at Alegre','','publish','open','open','','last-saturday-at-alegre','','','2012-10-20 07:46:19','2012-10-20 05:46:19','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7249',0,'post','',0),(7250,1,'2012-10-20 07:34:49','2012-10-20 05:34:49','After my Bulgarian lesson last week, A. picked me up and we went to check out this new restaurant Alegre.\n\nOn the way, I asked A. how he heard about Alegre. He told me: reading the internet.  <em>Oh</em>.\n\nThanks, internet, for this find!\n<a title=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769458/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8193/8085769458_7e33233442_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nFrom the street  Alegre looks like a cute narrow restaurant but once inside you realize the restaurant make an \"L\" shape and turns the corner making it rather large. Even though it\'s large-ish, it still feels cozy.\n\nInside, the lighting is great and the decor is modern without feeling fussy.  Black is the predominate color in the interior and it makes Alegre feel cozy and warm. It was perfect for early fall.\n<a title=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769847/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8335/8085769847_e750ebbbb8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWhen the hostess seated us, she explained that the photos lining the wall were all taken my customers and that we could bring in our own photos on a flash drive to add to the collection. The hostess was warm and friendly which I thought was a nice contrast to many restaurants in Sofia.\n<a title=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768640/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8324/8085768640_582d49b441_z.jpg\" alt=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe photo thing struck me as a little odd but A. told me that while the restaurant\'s name is Alegre. They\'re using this whole tag line: Alegre, a restaurant for travelers. I don\'t really know what this means but it does sound nice.\n<a title=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085773167/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8464/8085773167_ea03f2a4bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085770230/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085770230_773a1da79e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe ended up with Bulgarian menus which is fine for A. but more of a challenge for me especially when the font on the menu is more cutesy than functional.  We went for the specials which this month are Latin American dishes. There were salads, appetizers  main dishes, a soup and dessert to choose from. We decided to share some dishes and ended up ordering the guacamole and chips (described on the menu as guacamole nachos), empanadas and a dish with beef and veggies in a smoky yet not very spicy sauce served with rice.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767122/\" title=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8085767122_12a81653e9_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\"></a><a title=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768283/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8471/8085768283_9edb4c223e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nA. and I both liked the food but agreed that it wasn\'t really Latin American. Thee food was missing the necessary heat and flavors to make it really Latin American but it was still good food. Everything was well made, the ingredients were fresh and while the flavors weren\'t exactly what we expected they were significantly different than anything we\'d eaten recently.\n<a title=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085767553_c0f38c56c8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAfter eating empanadas for the first time in ages, I couldn\'t stop thinking about them. I found myself dreaming up different empanada fillings--the first, spicy pork, garlic and pepper, tofu, followed by, eggplant with a spicy tomato sauce, oh and there was also, sweet potato and pulled chicken. So this past week, I gave making my own empanadas a go. I have to say it went pretty well but I forgot to take any pictures to prove it. I guess you\'ll just have to trust me.\n<a title=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085765078/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8184/8085765078_f5b166fbdc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow back to Alegre, I like any restaurant that inspires me to go home and cook. I also like any restaurant in Sofia with service as good as their\'s--the servers and hostess were attentive without hovering at the table. They were there when we needed them and scarce otherwise. <em>Perfect</em>.\n<a title=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085764348_ea9f2f3cf9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nIf you want to check out Alegre yourself, you can find it at  <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6871\" target=\"_blank\">29B Hristo Belchev Str.</a>\n<a title=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764807/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085764807_8e4d905c5a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Last Saturday at Alegre','','inherit','open','open','','7249-revision','','','2012-10-20 07:34:49','2012-10-20 05:34:49','',7249,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/20/7249-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7251,1,'2012-10-20 07:35:50','2012-10-20 05:35:50','After my Bulgarian lesson last week, A. picked me up and we went to check out this new restaurant Alegre.\n\nOn the way, I asked A. how he heard about Alegre. He told me: reading the internet.  <em>Oh</em>.\n\nThanks, internet, for this find!\n<a title=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769458/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8193/8085769458_7e33233442_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nFrom the street  Alegre looks like a cute narrow restaurant but once inside you realize the restaurant make an \"L\" shape and turns the corner making it rather large. Even though it\'s large-ish, it still feels cozy.\n\nInside, the lighting is great and the decor is modern without feeling fussy.  Black is the predominate color in the interior and it makes Alegre feel cozy and warm. It was perfect for early fall.\n<a title=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769847/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8335/8085769847_e750ebbbb8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWhen the hostess seated us, she explained that the photos lining the wall were all taken my customers and that we could bring in our own photos on a flash drive to add to the collection. The hostess was warm and friendly which I thought was a nice contrast to many restaurants in Sofia.\n<a title=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768640/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8324/8085768640_582d49b441_z.jpg\" alt=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe photo thing struck me as a little odd but A. told me that while the restaurant\'s name is Alegre. They\'re using this whole tag line: Alegre, a restaurant for travelers. I don\'t really know what this means but it does sound nice.\n<a title=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085773167/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8464/8085773167_ea03f2a4bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085770230/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085770230_773a1da79e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe ended up with Bulgarian menus which is fine for A. but more of a challenge for me especially when the font on the menu is more cutesy than functional.  We went for the specials which this month are Latin American dishes. There were salads, appetizers  main dishes, a soup and dessert to choose from. We decided to share some dishes and ended up ordering the guacamole and chips (described on the menu as guacamole nachos), empanadas and a dish with beef and veggies in a smoky yet not very spicy sauce served with rice.\n<a title=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767122/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8085767122_12a81653e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768283/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8471/8085768283_9edb4c223e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nA. and I both liked the food but agreed that it wasn\'t really Latin American. Thee food was missing the necessary heat and flavors to make it really Latin American but it was still good food. Everything was well made, the ingredients were fresh and while the flavors weren\'t exactly what we expected they were significantly different than anything we\'d eaten recently.\n<a title=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085767553_c0f38c56c8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAfter eating empanadas for the first time in ages, I couldn\'t stop thinking about them. I found myself dreaming up different empanada fillings--the first, spicy pork, garlic and pepper, tofu, followed by, eggplant with a spicy tomato sauce, oh and there was also, sweet potato and pulled chicken. So this past week, I gave making my own empanadas a go. I have to say it went pretty well but I forgot to take any pictures to prove it. I guess you\'ll just have to trust me.\n<a title=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085765078/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8184/8085765078_f5b166fbdc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow back to Alegre, I like any restaurant that inspires me to go home and cook. I also like any restaurant in Sofia with service as good as their\'s--the servers and hostess were attentive without hovering at the table. They were there when we needed them and scarce otherwise. <em>Perfect</em>.\n<a title=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085764348_ea9f2f3cf9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nIf you want to check out Alegre yourself, you can find it at  <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6871\" target=\"_blank\">29B Hristo Belchev Str.</a>\n<a title=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764807/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085764807_8e4d905c5a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Last Saturday at Alegre','','inherit','open','open','','7249-revision-2','','','2012-10-20 07:35:50','2012-10-20 05:35:50','',7249,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/20/7249-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7252,1,'2012-10-20 07:45:28','2012-10-20 05:45:28','After my Bulgarian lesson last week, A. picked me up and we went to check out a new restaurant he\'d heard about called Alegre because they rumored to have Latin American food on the menu.\r\n\r\nOn the way, I asked A. how he heard about Alegre.\r\n\r\nHe told me: reading the internet.\r\n\r\n<em>Oh</em>.\r\n\r\nThanks, internet, for this find!\r\n<a title=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769458/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8193/8085769458_7e33233442_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nFrom the street  Alegre looks like a cute narrow restaurant but once inside you realize the restaurant make an \"L\" shape and turns the corner making it rather large. Even though it\'s large-ish, it still feels cozy. It\'s a couple of blocks off of Vitsosha and it was relatively easy to find.\r\n\r\nWe had to walk through a group of people smoking right outside the front door. <em>Thanks, smoking ban</em>. But, inside, the lighting is great and the decor is modern without feeling fussy. Oh and the restaurant is smoke free.  Black and dark browns are the predominate colors in the interior and it makes Alegre feel cozy and warm. It made the occasional pop of color in feel that much more powerful. It was perfect for early fall.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769847/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8335/8085769847_e750ebbbb8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWhen the hostess seated us, she explained that the photos lining the wall were all taken my customers and that we could bring in our own photos on a flash drive to add to the collection. The hostess was warm and friendly which I thought was a nice contrast to many restaurants in Sofia.\r\n<a title=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768640/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8324/8085768640_582d49b441_z.jpg\" alt=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe photo thing struck me as a little odd but A. told me that while the restaurant\'s name is Alegre. They\'re using this whole tag line: Alegre, a restaurant for travelers. I don\'t really know what this means but it does sound nice. Upon reading the menu and thinking about it, I think Alegre is suggesting that this a place for people who like to eat food from many different cultures and who are interesting in drinking wines from all over the world.\r\n\r\n<em>Hey, that\'s me!</em> I like all of those things.\r\n<a title=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085773167/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8464/8085773167_ea03f2a4bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085770230/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085770230_773a1da79e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe ended up with Bulgarian menus which is fine for A. but more of a challenge for me especially when the font on the menu is more cutesy than functional.  We went for the specials which this month are Latin American dishes. There were salads, appetizers  main dishes, a soup and dessert to choose from.\r\n\r\nWe decided to share some dishes and ended up ordering the guacamole and chips (described on the menu as guacamole nachos), empanadas and a dish with beef and veggies in a smoky yet not very spicy sauce served with rice.\r\n<a title=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767122/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8085767122_12a81653e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768283/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8471/8085768283_9edb4c223e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nA. and I both liked the food but agreed that it wasn\'t really Latin American. Thee food was missing the necessary heat and flavors to make it really Latin American but it was still good food. Everything was well made, the ingredients were fresh and while the flavors weren\'t exactly what we expected they were significantly different than anything we\'d eaten recently.\r\n<a title=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085767553_c0f38c56c8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAfter eating empanadas for the first time in ages, I couldn\'t stop thinking about them. I found myself dreaming up different empanada fillings--the first, spicy pork, garlic and pepper, tofu, followed by, eggplant with a spicy tomato sauce, oh and there was also, sweet potato and pulled chicken. So this past week, I gave making my own empanadas a go. I have to say it went pretty well but I forgot to take any pictures to prove it. I guess you\'ll just have to trust me.\r\n<a title=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085765078/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8184/8085765078_f5b166fbdc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow back to Alegre, I like any restaurant that inspires me to go home and cook. I also like any restaurant in Sofia with service as good as the service we had--the servers and hostess were attentive without hovering at the table. They were there when we needed them and scarce otherwise. <em>Perfect</em>.\r\n<a title=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085764348_ea9f2f3cf9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nIf you want to check out Alegre yourself, you can find it at  <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6871\" target=\"_blank\">29B Hristo Belchev Str.</a> I think it\'s well worth a visit.\r\n<a title=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764807/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085764807_8e4d905c5a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Last Saturday at Alegre','','inherit','open','open','','7249-revision-3','','','2012-10-20 07:45:28','2012-10-20 05:45:28','',7249,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/20/7249-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7253,1,'2012-10-20 07:45:29','2012-10-20 05:45:29','After my Bulgarian lesson last week, A. picked me up and we went to check out a new restaurant he\'d heard about called Alegre because they rumored to have Latin American food on the menu.\r\n\r\nOn the way, I asked A. how he heard about Alegre.\r\n\r\nHe told me: reading the internet.\r\n\r\n<em>Oh</em>.\r\n\r\nThanks, internet, for this find!\r\n<a title=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769458/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8193/8085769458_7e33233442_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nFrom the street  Alegre looks like a cute narrow restaurant but once inside you realize the restaurant make an \"L\" shape and turns the corner making it rather large. Even though it\'s large-ish, it still feels cozy. It\'s a couple of blocks off of Vitsosha and it was relatively easy to find.\r\n\r\nWe had to walk through a group of people smoking right outside the front door. <em>Thanks, smoking ban</em>. But, inside, the lighting is great and the decor is modern without feeling fussy. Oh and the restaurant is smoke free.  Black and dark browns are the predominate colors in the interior and it makes Alegre feel cozy and warm. It made the occasional pop of color in feel that much more powerful. It was perfect for early fall.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769847/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8335/8085769847_e750ebbbb8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWhen the hostess seated us, she explained that the photos lining the wall were all taken my customers and that we could bring in our own photos on a flash drive to add to the collection. The hostess was warm and friendly which I thought was a nice contrast to many restaurants in Sofia.\r\n<a title=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768640/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8324/8085768640_582d49b441_z.jpg\" alt=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThe photo thing struck me as a little odd but A. told me that while the restaurant\'s name is Alegre. They\'re using this whole tag line: Alegre, a restaurant for travelers. I don\'t really know what this means but it does sound nice. Upon reading the menu and thinking about it, I think Alegre is suggesting that this a place for people who like to eat food from many different cultures and who are interesting in drinking wines from all over the world.\r\n\r\n<em>Hey, that\'s me!</em> I like all of those things.\r\n<a title=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085773167/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8464/8085773167_ea03f2a4bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085770230/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085770230_773a1da79e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe ended up with Bulgarian menus which is fine for A. but more of a challenge for me especially when the font on the menu is more cutesy than functional.  We went for the specials which this month are Latin American dishes. There were salads, appetizers  main dishes, a soup and dessert to choose from.\r\n\r\nWe decided to share some dishes and ended up ordering the guacamole and chips (described on the menu as guacamole nachos), empanadas and a dish with beef and veggies in a smoky yet not very spicy sauce served with rice.\r\n<a title=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767122/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8085767122_12a81653e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768283/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8471/8085768283_9edb4c223e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nA. and I both liked the food but agreed that it wasn\'t really Latin American. Thee food was missing the necessary heat and flavors to make it really Latin American but it was still good food. Everything was well made, the ingredients were fresh and while the flavors weren\'t exactly what we expected they were significantly different than anything we\'d eaten recently.\r\n<a title=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085767553_c0f38c56c8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAfter eating empanadas for the first time in ages, I couldn\'t stop thinking about them. I found myself dreaming up different empanada fillings--the first, spicy pork, garlic and pepper, tofu, followed by, eggplant with a spicy tomato sauce, oh and there was also, sweet potato and pulled chicken. So this past week, I gave making my own empanadas a go. I have to say it went pretty well but I forgot to take any pictures to prove it. I guess you\'ll just have to trust me.\r\n<a title=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085765078/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8184/8085765078_f5b166fbdc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow back to Alegre, I like any restaurant that inspires me to go home and cook. I also like any restaurant in Sofia with service as good as the service we had--the servers and hostess were attentive without hovering at the table. They were there when we needed them and scarce otherwise. <em>Perfect</em>.\r\n<a title=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085764348_ea9f2f3cf9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nIf you want to check out Alegre yourself, you can find it at  <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6871\" target=\"_blank\">29B Hristo Belchev Str.</a> I think it\'s well worth a visit.\r\n<a title=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764807/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085764807_8e4d905c5a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Last Saturday at Alegre','','inherit','open','open','','7249-revision-4','','','2012-10-20 07:45:29','2012-10-20 05:45:29','',7249,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/20/7249-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7254,1,'2012-10-20 07:47:24','2012-10-20 05:47:24','After my Bulgarian lesson last week, A. picked me up and we went to check out a new restaurant he\'d heard about called Alegre because they rumored to have Latin American food on the menu.\n\nOn the way, I asked A. how he heard about Alegre.\n\nHe told me: reading the internet.\n\n<em>Oh</em>.\n\nThanks, internet, for this find!\n<a title=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769458/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8193/8085769458_7e33233442_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menus at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nFrom the street  Alegre looks like a cute narrow restaurant but once inside you realize the restaurant make an \"L\" shape and turns the corner making it rather large. Even though it\'s large-ish, it still feels cozy. It\'s a couple of blocks off of Vitsosha and it was relatively easy to find.\n\nWe had to walk through a group of people smoking right outside the front door. <em>Thanks, smoking ban</em>. But, inside, the lighting is great and the decor is modern without feeling fussy. Oh and the restaurant is smoke free.  Black and dark browns are the predominate colors in the interior and it makes Alegre feel cozy and warm. It made the occasional pop of color in feel that much more powerful. It was perfect for early fall.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085769847/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8335/8085769847_e750ebbbb8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Decore in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWhen the hostess seated us, she explained that the photos lining the wall were all taken my customers and that we could bring in our own photos on a flash drive to add to the collection. The hostess was warm and friendly which I thought was a nice contrast to many restaurants in Sofia.\n<a title=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768640/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8324/8085768640_582d49b441_z.jpg\" alt=\"At the bar in Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThe photo thing struck me as a little odd but A. told me that while the restaurant\'s name is Alegre. They\'re using this whole tag line: Alegre, a restaurant for travelers. I don\'t really know what this means but it does sound nice. Upon reading the menu and thinking about it, I think Alegre is suggesting that this a place for people who like to eat food from many different cultures and who are interesting in drinking wines from all over the world.\n\n<em>Hey, that\'s me!</em> I like all of those things.\n<a title=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085773167/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8464/8085773167_ea03f2a4bf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085770230/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085770230_773a1da79e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Monthly menu at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe ended up with Bulgarian menus which is fine for A. but more of a challenge for me especially when the font on the menu is more cutesy than functional.  We went for the specials which this month are Latin American dishes. There were salads, appetizers  main dishes, a soup and dessert to choose from.\n\nWe decided to share some dishes and ended up ordering the guacamole and chips (described on the menu as guacamole nachos), empanadas and a dish with beef and veggies in a smoky yet not very spicy sauce served with rice.\n<a title=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767122/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8085767122_12a81653e9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Two dishes at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a><a title=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085768283/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8471/8085768283_9edb4c223e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Chips and guacamole Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nA. and I both liked the food but agreed that it wasn\'t really Latin American. Thee food was missing the necessary heat and flavors to make it really Latin American but it was still good food. Everything was well made, the ingredients were fresh and while the flavors weren\'t exactly what we expected they were significantly different than anything we\'d eaten recently.\n<a title=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085767553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085767553_c0f38c56c8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Empanadas at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAfter eating empanadas for the first time in ages, I couldn\'t stop thinking about them. I found myself dreaming up different empanada fillings--the first, spicy pork, garlic and pepper, tofu, followed by, eggplant with a spicy tomato sauce, oh and there was also, sweet potato and pulled chicken. So this past week, I gave making my own empanadas a go. I have to say it went pretty well but I forgot to take any pictures to prove it. I guess you\'ll just have to trust me.\n<a title=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085765078/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8184/8085765078_f5b166fbdc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dinnner at Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow back to Alegre, I like any restaurant that inspires me to go home and cook. I also like any restaurant in Sofia with service as good as the service we had--the servers and hostess were attentive without hovering at the table. They were there when we needed them and scarce otherwise. <em>Perfect</em>.\n<a title=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8085764348_ea9f2f3cf9_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nIf you want to check out Alegre yourself, you can find it at  <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6871\" target=\"_blank\">29B Hristo Belchev Str.</a> I think it\'s well worth a visit.\n<a title=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8085764807/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8194/8085764807_8e4d905c5a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside Alegre restaurant in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Last Saturday at Alegre','','inherit','open','open','','7249-autosave','','','2012-10-20 07:47:24','2012-10-20 05:47:24','',7249,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/20/7249-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7255,1,'2012-10-21 21:19:55','2012-10-21 19:19:55','I\'ve just made a little overnight trip with some friends. We drove to Koprivshtitsa Saturday morning, we stayed the night and drove back to Sofia on Sunday. I\'ve been missing Koprivshtitsa recently. My first year I went twice, then I went in 2009 and<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/10/11/koprivshtitsa-october-2010/\" target=\"_blank\"> 2010</a> but last year I didn\'t make to Koprivshtitsa at all.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109699400/\" title=\"The bridge in fall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8050/8109699400_0484f62069_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The bridge in fall\"></a>\r\nWe had a great time.\r\n\r\nThe drive from Sofia to Koprivshtitsa is relatively quick and easy. Driving the trip is about an hour and a half and it\'s beautiful drive. We left about 10:30 Saturday morning and we got back on Sunday in time for my Bulgarian lesson.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109722086/\" title=\"Church steeple in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8055/8109722086_2687bb898b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Church steeple in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nIt wasn\'t a long trip but it was exactly what I needed. On Saturday, we got out of Sofia, found a hotel, went on a long walk/hike, ate a lot of really great food and played Settlers of Catan. Sunday morning we slept late, ate breakfast, wandered through town and I stocked up on homemade jam and honey.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109730728/\" title=\"Red and black house in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8109730728_e55cffce4b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Red and black house in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nMostly the weekend away gave me an excuse to enjoy the arrival of fall with some friends.\r\n\r\nThe town was beautiful and the changing leaves made it that much more lovely. The cool weather though signals the eventual changing of the seasons. Winter won\'t be too far off.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109748452/\" title=\"Fal light by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8473/8109748452_3e09430299_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Fal light\"></a>','Field trip: Koprivshtitsa ','','publish','open','open','','field-trip-koprivshtitsa','','','2012-10-21 21:19:55','2012-10-21 19:19:55','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7255',0,'post','',1),(7256,1,'2012-10-20 08:07:08','2012-10-20 06:07:08','I\'ve just made a little overnight trip with some friends. We drove to Koprivshtitsa Saturday morning, we stayed the night and drove back to Sofia on Sunday. I\'ve been missing Koprivshtitsa recently. My first year I went twice, then I went in 2009 and<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/10/11/koprivshtitsa-october-2010/\" target=\"_blank\"> 2010</a> but last year I didn\'t make to Korivshtitsa at all.','Field trip: Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7255-revision','','','2012-10-20 08:07:08','2012-10-20 06:07:08','',7255,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/20/7255-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7257,1,'2012-10-21 21:19:30','2012-10-21 19:19:30','I\'ve just made a little overnight trip with some friends. We drove to Koprivshtitsa Saturday morning, we stayed the night and drove back to Sofia on Sunday. I\'ve been missing Koprivshtitsa recently. My first year I went twice, then I went in 2009 and<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/10/11/koprivshtitsa-october-2010/\" target=\"_blank\"> 2010</a> but last year I didn\'t make to Koprivshtitsa at all.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109699400/\" title=\"The bridge in fall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8050/8109699400_0484f62069_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The bridge in fall\"></a>\nWe had a great time.\n\nThe drive from Sofia to Koprivshtitsa is relatively quick and easy. Driving the trip is about an hour and a half and it\'s beautiful drive. We left about 10:30 Saturday morning and we got back on Sunday in time for my Bulgarian lesson.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109722086/\" title=\"Church steeple in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8055/8109722086_2687bb898b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Church steeple in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\nIt wasn\'t a long trip but it was exactly what I needed. On Saturday, we got out of Sofia, found a hotel, went on a long walk/hike, ate a lot of really great food and played Settlers of Catan. Sunday morning we slept late, ate breakfast, wandered through town and I stocked up on homemade jam and honey.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109730728/\" title=\"Red and black house in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8109730728_e55cffce4b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Red and black house in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\nMostly the weekend away gave me an excuse to enjoy the arrival of fall with some friends.\n\nThe town was beautiful and the changing leaves made it that much more lovely. The cool weather though signals the eventual changing of the seasons. Winter won\'t be too far off.','Field trip: Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7255-revision-2','','','2012-10-21 21:19:30','2012-10-21 19:19:30','',7255,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/21/7255-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7258,1,'2012-10-21 21:19:35','2012-10-21 19:19:35','I\'ve just made a little overnight trip with some friends. We drove to Koprivshtitsa Saturday morning, we stayed the night and drove back to Sofia on Sunday. I\'ve been missing Koprivshtitsa recently. My first year I went twice, then I went in 2009 and<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/10/11/koprivshtitsa-october-2010/\" target=\"_blank\"> 2010</a> but last year I didn\'t make to Koprivshtitsa at all.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109699400/\" title=\"The bridge in fall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8050/8109699400_0484f62069_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The bridge in fall\"></a>\r\nWe had a great time.\r\n\r\nThe drive from Sofia to Koprivshtitsa is relatively quick and easy. Driving the trip is about an hour and a half and it\'s beautiful drive. We left about 10:30 Saturday morning and we got back on Sunday in time for my Bulgarian lesson.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109722086/\" title=\"Church steeple in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8055/8109722086_2687bb898b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Church steeple in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nIt wasn\'t a long trip but it was exactly what I needed. On Saturday, we got out of Sofia, found a hotel, went on a long walk/hike, ate a lot of really great food and played Settlers of Catan. Sunday morning we slept late, ate breakfast, wandered through town and I stocked up on homemade jam and honey.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109730728/\" title=\"Red and black house in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8109730728_e55cffce4b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Red and black house in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nMostly the weekend away gave me an excuse to enjoy the arrival of fall with some friends.\r\n\r\nThe town was beautiful and the changing leaves made it that much more lovely. The cool weather though signals the eventual changing of the seasons. Winter won\'t be too far off.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109748452/\" title=\"Fal light by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8473/8109748452_3e09430299_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Fal light\"></a>','Field trip: Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7255-revision-3','','','2012-10-21 21:19:35','2012-10-21 19:19:35','',7255,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/21/7255-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7259,1,'2012-10-21 21:19:36','2012-10-21 19:19:36','I\'ve just made a little overnight trip with some friends. We drove to Koprivshtitsa Saturday morning, we stayed the night and drove back to Sofia on Sunday. I\'ve been missing Koprivshtitsa recently. My first year I went twice, then I went in 2009 and<a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2010/10/11/koprivshtitsa-october-2010/\" target=\"_blank\"> 2010</a> but last year I didn\'t make to Koprivshtitsa at all.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109699400/\" title=\"The bridge in fall by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8050/8109699400_0484f62069_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The bridge in fall\"></a>\r\nWe had a great time.\r\n\r\nThe drive from Sofia to Koprivshtitsa is relatively quick and easy. Driving the trip is about an hour and a half and it\'s beautiful drive. We left about 10:30 Saturday morning and we got back on Sunday in time for my Bulgarian lesson.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109722086/\" title=\"Church steeple in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8055/8109722086_2687bb898b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Church steeple in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nIt wasn\'t a long trip but it was exactly what I needed. On Saturday, we got out of Sofia, found a hotel, went on a long walk/hike, ate a lot of really great food and played Settlers of Catan. Sunday morning we slept late, ate breakfast, wandered through town and I stocked up on homemade jam and honey.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109730728/\" title=\"Red and black house in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8330/8109730728_e55cffce4b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Red and black house in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nMostly the weekend away gave me an excuse to enjoy the arrival of fall with some friends.\r\n\r\nThe town was beautiful and the changing leaves made it that much more lovely. The cool weather though signals the eventual changing of the seasons. Winter won\'t be too far off.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109748452/\" title=\"Fal light by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8473/8109748452_3e09430299_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Fal light\"></a>','Field trip: Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7255-revision-4','','','2012-10-21 21:19:36','2012-10-21 19:19:36','',7255,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/21/7255-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7261,1,'2012-10-22 20:19:21','2012-10-22 18:19:21','Why visit and re-visit a town like Koprivshtitsa? \n\nWell I have to say that once you can pronounce the name of the town quickly and easily you\'ve got to back a few times or the effort to learn the name of the town is lost. \n\nBut really, Koprivshtitsa is a beautiful little town not far from Sofia. From Mladost it took us about an hour and a half to make the drive and we were driving at a leisurely pace--no speeding for us. \n\nWhat makes Koprivshtitsa different is the fact that the town feels so different from the capitol Sofia without making you drive for hours to get there. Koprivshtitsa is a museum town that has been well preserved. There are six house museums in this lovely revival-style town. \n\nThe houses are beautifully painted and the streets are cobble-stoned. In fall the leaves turn bright yellow and smoke floats out of chimneys. \n\nEveryone moves more slowly. At restaurants you wait and then you wait some more but that\'s okay because you\'re on holiday. \n\nThis most recent trip was an excuse to get out of town, spend time with friends and relax. The trip was also short enough that I didn\'t feel an pressure to take school work with me. I tossed some things in a bag on Saturday morning and that was that. It was great and we set off on our mini-adventure. \n\nThe real reason I love Koprivshtitsa though is the jam. The homemade strawberry jam is delicious. I always buy a jar when I go. This year I also bought a jar of honey and a jar of blueberry jam. Toast has never sounded so good before. ','My love affair with Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7260-revision','','','2012-10-22 20:19:21','2012-10-22 18:19:21','',7260,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/22/7260-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7262,1,'2012-10-22 20:32:39','2012-10-22 18:32:39','Why visit and re-visit a town like Koprivshtitsa? \n\nWell I have to say that once you can pronounce the name of the town quickly and easily you\'ve got to back a few times or the effort to learn the name of the town is lost. \n\nBut really, Koprivshtitsa is a beautiful little town not far from Sofia. From Mladost it took us about an hour and a half to make the drive and we were driving at a leisurely pace--no speeding for us. It\'s close but not too close--meaning that it makes for a nice trip and staying one night makes the trip feel that much more special. Sure you could make a day trip of it but why not stay the night?! \n\nWhat makes Koprivshtitsa different is the fact that the town feels so different from the capitol Sofia without making you drive for hours to get there. Moreover, Koprivshtitsa is a museum town that has been well preserved. There are six house museums in this lovely revival-style town which tell the story of the Bulgarian uprising. \n\nIn the town as a whole, the houses are beautifully painted and the streets are cobble-stoned. In fall the leaves turn bright yellow and smoke floats out of chimneys. Everyone moves more slowly. At restaurants you wait and then you wait some more but that\'s okay because you\'re on holiday. \n\nThis most recent trip was an excuse to get out of town, spend time with friends and relax. The trip was also short enough that I didn\'t feel an pressure to take school work with me. I tossed some things in a bag on Saturday morning and that was that. It was great and we set off on our mini-adventure. \n\nAll of this said, the real reason I love Koprivshtitsa is the jam. The homemade strawberry jam is delicious. It tastes like sunshine. Or I always buy a jar when I go. This year I also bought a jar of honey and a jar of blueberry jam. Toast has never sounded so good before. ','My love affair with Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7260-revision-2','','','2012-10-22 20:32:39','2012-10-22 18:32:39','',7260,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/22/7260-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7263,1,'2012-10-22 20:33:19','2012-10-22 18:33:19','Why visit and re-visit a town like Koprivshtitsa? \r\n\r\nWell I have to say that once you can pronounce the name of the town quickly and easily you\'ve got to back a few times or the effort to learn the name of the town is lost. \r\n\r\nBut really, Koprivshtitsa is a beautiful little town not far from Sofia. From Mladost it took us about an hour and a half to make the drive and we were driving at a leisurely pace--no speeding for us. It\'s close but not too close--meaning that it makes for a nice trip and staying one night makes the trip feel that much more special. Sure you could make a day trip of it but why not stay the night?! \r\n\r\nWhat makes Koprivshtitsa different is the fact that the town feels so different from the capitol Sofia without making you drive for hours to get there. Moreover, Koprivshtitsa is a museum town that has been well preserved. There are six house museums in this lovely revival-style town which tell the story of the Bulgarian uprising. \r\n\r\nIn the town as a whole, the houses are beautifully painted and the streets are cobble-stoned. In fall the leaves turn bright yellow and smoke floats out of chimneys. Everyone moves more slowly. At restaurants you wait and then you wait some more but that\'s okay because you\'re on holiday. \r\n\r\nThis most recent trip was an excuse to get out of town, spend time with friends and relax. The trip was also short enough that I didn\'t feel an pressure to take school work with me. I tossed some things in a bag on Saturday morning and that was that. It was great and we set off on our mini-adventure. \r\n\r\nAll of this said, the real reason I love Koprivshtitsa is the jam. The homemade strawberry jam is delicious. It tastes like sunshine. Or how I imagine sunshine must taste if you could actually eat it. I always buy a jar (or three) when I go. This year I also bought a jar of honey and a jar of blueberry jam. Toast has never sounded so good before. ','My love affair with Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7260-revision-3','','','2012-10-22 20:33:19','2012-10-22 18:33:19','',7260,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/22/7260-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7264,1,'2012-10-23 05:29:37','2012-10-23 03:29:37','Why visit and re-visit a town like Koprivshtitsa? \n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109703732/\" title=\"Koprivshtitsa house in blue by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8049/8109703732_bbb87773ce_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa house in blue\"></a>\nWell I have to say that once you can pronounce the name of the town quickly and easily you\'ve got to back a few times or the effort to learn the name of the town is lost. \n\nBut really, Koprivshtitsa is a beautiful little town not far from Sofia. From Mladost it took us about an hour and a half to make the drive and we were driving at a leisurely pace--no speeding for us. It\'s close but not too close--meaning that it makes for a nice trip and staying one night makes the trip feel that much more special. Sure you could make a day trip of it but why not stay the night?! \n\nWhat makes Koprivshtitsa different is the fact that the town feels so different from the capitol Sofia without making you drive for hours to get there. Moreover, Koprivshtitsa is a museum town that has been well preserved. There are six house museums in this lovely revival-style town which tell the story of the Bulgarian uprising. \n\nIn the town as a whole, the houses are beautifully painted and the streets are cobble-stoned. In fall the leaves turn bright yellow and smoke floats out of chimneys. Everyone moves more slowly. At restaurants you wait and then you wait some more but that\'s okay because you\'re on holiday. \n\nThis most recent trip was an excuse to get out of town, spend time with friends and relax. The trip was also short enough that I didn\'t feel an pressure to take school work with me. I tossed some things in a bag on Saturday morning and that was that. It was great and we set off on our mini-adventure. \n\nAll of this said, the real reason I love Koprivshtitsa is the jam. The homemade strawberry jam is delicious. It tastes like sunshine. Or how I imagine sunshine must taste if you could actually eat it. I always buy a jar (or three) when I go. This year I also bought a jar of honey and a jar of blueberry jam. Toast has never sounded so good before. ','My love affair with Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7260-revision-4','','','2012-10-23 05:29:37','2012-10-23 03:29:37','',7260,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/23/7260-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7265,1,'2012-10-23 05:33:20','2012-10-23 03:33:20','Why visit and re-visit a town like Koprivshtitsa? \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109703732/\" title=\"Koprivshtitsa house in blue by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8049/8109703732_bbb87773ce_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa house in blue\"></a>\r\nWell I have to say that once you can pronounce the name of the town quickly and easily you\'ve got to back a few times or the effort to learn the name of the town is lost. \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109701447/\" title=\"Beautiful Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8470/8109701447_f06af9a6a7_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Beautiful Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nBut really, Koprivshtitsa is a beautiful little town not far from Sofia. From Mladost it took us about an hour and a half to make the drive and we were driving at a leisurely pace--no speeding for us. It\'s close but not too close--meaning that it makes for a nice trip and staying one night makes the trip feel that much more special. Sure you could make a day trip of it but why not stay the night?! \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109704263/\" title=\"The chruch and necrologues in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8185/8109704263_d5f250d8b7_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The chruch and necrologues in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nWhat makes Koprivshtitsa different is the fact that the town feels so different from the capitol Sofia without making you drive for hours to get there. Moreover, Koprivshtitsa is a museum town that has been well preserved. There are six house museums in this lovely revival-style town which tell the story of the Bulgarian uprising. \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109714842/\" title=\"Roof tops of Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8323/8109714842_6aaca59f1b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Roof tops of Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nIn the town as a whole, the houses are beautifully painted and the streets are cobble-stoned. In fall the leaves turn bright yellow and smoke floats out of chimneys. Everyone moves more slowly. At restaurants you wait and then you wait some more but that\'s okay because you\'re on holiday. \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109745893/\" title=\"Yellow house in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8329/8109745893_2e44eaba2f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Yellow house in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nThis most recent trip was an excuse to get out of town, spend time with friends and relax. The trip was also short enough that I didn\'t feel an pressure to take school work with me. I tossed some things in a bag on Saturday morning and that was that. It was great and we set off on our mini-adventure. \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109689375/\" title=\"Fall in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8323/8109689375_e8f5d55bb6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Fall in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nAll of this said, the real reason I love Koprivshtitsa is the jam. The homemade strawberry jam is delicious. It tastes like sunshine. Or how I imagine sunshine must taste if you could actually eat it. I always buy a jar (or three) when I go. This year I also bought a jar of honey and a jar of blueberry jam. Toast has never sounded so good before. <a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109698885/\" title=\"Me in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8189/8109698885_39f9cef0f0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me in Koprivshtitsa\"></a>','My love affair with Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7260-revision-5','','','2012-10-23 05:33:20','2012-10-23 03:33:20','',7260,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/23/7260-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(7266,1,'2012-10-23 17:37:41','2012-10-23 15:37:41','Why visit and re-visit a town like Koprivshtitsa? <a title=\"Koprivshtitsa house in blue by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109703732/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8049/8109703732_bbb87773ce_z.jpg\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa house in blue\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> Well I have to say that once you can pronounce the name of the town quickly and easily you\'ve got to back a few times or the effort to learn the name of the town is lost. <a title=\"Beautiful Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109701447/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8470/8109701447_f06af9a6a7_z.jpg\" alt=\"Beautiful Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> But really, Koprivshtitsa is a beautiful little town not far from Sofia. From Mladost it took us about an hour and a half to make the drive and we were driving at a leisurely pace--no speeding for us. It\'s close but not too close--meaning that it makes for a nice trip and staying one night makes the trip feel that much more special. Sure you could make a day trip of it but why not stay the night?!<!--more--> <a title=\"The chruch and necrologues in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109704263/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8185/8109704263_d5f250d8b7_z.jpg\" alt=\"The chruch and necrologues in Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> What makes Koprivshtitsa different is the fact that the town feels so different from the capitol Sofia without making you drive for hours to get there. Moreover, Koprivshtitsa is a museum town that has been well preserved. There are six house museums in this lovely revival-style town which tell the story of the Bulgarian uprising. <a title=\"Roof tops of Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109714842/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8323/8109714842_6aaca59f1b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roof tops of Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> In the town as a whole, the houses are beautifully painted and the streets are cobble-stoned. In fall the leaves turn bright yellow and smoke floats out of chimneys. Everyone moves more slowly. At restaurants you wait and then you wait some more but that\'s okay because you\'re on holiday. <a title=\"Yellow house in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109745893/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8329/8109745893_2e44eaba2f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Yellow house in Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> This most recent trip was an excuse to get out of town, spend time with friends and relax. The trip was also short enough that I didn\'t feel an pressure to take school work with me. I tossed some things in a bag on Saturday morning and that was that. It was great and we set off on our mini-adventure. <a title=\"Fall in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109689375/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8323/8109689375_e8f5d55bb6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fall in Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> All of this said, the real reason I love Koprivshtitsa is the jam. The homemade strawberry jam is delicious. It tastes like sunshine. Or how I imagine sunshine must taste if you could actually eat it. I always buy a jar (or three) when I go. This year I also bought a jar of honey and a jar of blueberry jam. Toast has never sounded so good before. <a title=\"Me in Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109698885/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8189/8109698885_39f9cef0f0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me in Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','My love affair with Koprivshtitsa ','','inherit','open','open','','7260-autosave','','','2012-10-23 17:37:41','2012-10-23 15:37:41','',7260,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/23/7260-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7267,1,'2012-10-29 07:05:59','2012-10-29 05:05:59','Truth be told, I\'m more of a city girl but this doesn\'t keep me from enjoying an afternoon walk/hike. I am so not a hike person that I am not even sure what the difference is between a walk and a hike. We were out in nature on a dirt path and at times it was uphill so maybe this counts as a hike. Maybe not.\r\n<a title=\"On a hike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109732737/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8469/8109732737_2d6a5240c6_z.jpg\" alt=\"On a hike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nEither way, the weather was beautiful. I thew on my tennis shoes, a pair of capri pants, a long sleeved shirt, tied my sweatshirt around my waist and carried my water bottle around with me.\r\n\r\nThe trees were all turning and the air was crisp. We walked and walked. And we talked and talked.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"H, K and P hiking by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109738950/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8109738950_712edde677_z.jpg\" alt=\"H, K and P hiking\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe weren\'t exactly sure where we were going but that\'s okay. It wasn\'t like we were going to get lost the path was well trod and we ran into plenty of people also out walking.\r\n\r\nThen we ran into the sign below and while it didn\'t help us orient ourselves we knew where we were going. Just for the record, lots of giggling ensued upon spotting the sign.\r\n<a title=\"Koprivshtitsa trees by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109728459/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8192/8109728459_271afb4492_z.jpg\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa trees\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109734810/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8333/8109734810_0441d90398_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nIt was the perfect way to spend the afternoon. And that\'s saying a lot from me. By and large, I prefer cafes and cobble stones to dirt paths and bottles of water. This said, the hike wasn\'t ever that difficult. Sure a lot of it was up hill but it was the nice kind of up hill. It was steady but not too steep.\r\n<a title=\"Koprivshtitsa sign by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109724535/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8047/8109724535_3d58882102_z.jpg\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa sign\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWe made it to the top-ish before turning around and heading back for dinner. We found this view and we were happy.\r\n\r\nI will say, once I was back at home and downloading my photos, I was  reminded o the fact that I wish I was better at taking nature photos. It\'s just not something that I practice much which means that I never get any better at it. Hum, maybe I should actually work on this. Practice does make perfect after all.<a title=\"The view from our hike around Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109723487/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8109723487_56faa77180_z.jpg\" alt=\"The view from our hike around Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','I\'m not much of a hiker but when in Koprivshtitsa','','publish','open','open','','im-not-much-of-a-hiker-but-when-in-koprivshtitsa','','','2012-10-29 07:05:59','2012-10-29 05:05:59','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7267',0,'post','',1),(7268,1,'2012-10-24 05:58:41','2012-10-24 03:58:41','Truth be told, I\'m more of a city girl but this doesn\'t keep me from enjoying an afternoon walk/hike. I am so not a hike person that I am not even sure what the difference is between a walk and a hike. We were out in nature on a dirt path and at times it was uphill so maybe this counts as a hike. Maybe not.\n\nEither way, the weather was beautiful. I thew on my tennis shoes, a pair of capri pan','I\'m not much of a hiker but when in Koprivshtitsa','','inherit','open','open','','7267-revision','','','2012-10-24 05:58:41','2012-10-24 03:58:41','',7267,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/24/7267-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7269,1,'2012-10-28 21:20:27','2012-10-28 19:20:27','Today in Sofia (well and the rest of Europe), our clocks rolled back an hour today to mark daylight savings time. That meant when I woke up this morning at 9am it was really only 8 am.\r\n\r\nYeah! Extra time.\r\n\r\nNow before I realized that our clocks had rolled back, I was really proud of myself for sleeping in to 9am! As a teacher, it\'s become harder and harder for me to sleep in on the weekends. During the week, I\'m up at 6 am so to sleep in until 9am on the weekends doesn\'t happen as much as I\'d like it to. Oh well.\r\n<a title=\"cinnamon rolls by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132029702/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8185/8132029702_bb6632cefd_z.jpg\" alt=\"cinnamon rolls\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nSo I got up, had some coffee, poked around on the internet and read my kindle. By 10 am, I\'d made a small pan of cinnamon rolls. Pintrest, get out of my head.\r\n\r\nI took a late shower, ate a whole pomegranate (which I bought at Billa for 1 leva and was delicious. If it\'s good enough for Persephone then it\'s good enough for me) and shortly thereafter, A. picked me up to go downtown and check out the film <em>For Ellen</em> which is part of the current film festival in Sofia. We got there a little early which gave us plenty of time for a coffee and for me a honey cake. I followed the honey cake up with popcorn during the film because I\'m awesome <em>and</em> you\'re allowed to do this when you\'re at the movies. <!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132006379/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8327/8132006379_6ac2607578_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe watched the film in a relatively old theater which I suspect only gets used these days for film festivals--look at how great the seats are in the picture below. <em>For Ellen</em> was an intense film. I liked it.\r\n\r\nI didn\'t like the dozen or so other movie-goers. There was a woman who took a phone call during the middle of the film and who spoke in a stage whisper and there were the early-twenty somethings text messaging on their phones who were silent but who were lighting up their corner of the audience with their smartphone screens. Just for the record, the teacher in me was displeased with them.\r\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132034780/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8475/8132034780_78a7c44cb2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAfter the film, A. and I went for a beer. I had my first dark beer of the season.\r\n\r\nI guess that means it officially fall here. Oh, how I <em>do</em> like dark beer. Even Kamenitsa and Kamenitza isn\'t that good. (I also like my fall boots but I am not really sure if/how beer and boots fit together.)\r\n<a title=\"kamenitza dark by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132039204/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8055/8132039204_c4dfdd0c3f_z.jpg\" alt=\"kamenitza dark\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nFrom here I went to a dinner on campus for two previous teachers A. &amp; A. They are now living and working at an school in Paris but came back to visit us in Sofia for their first long weekend of the year. We had a taco/burrito bar and it was delicious.\r\n\r\nWhat a great day of eating.\r\n\r\nSure it might be a little questionable in terms of health and merit but these things happen. Maybe I\'ll make up for it tomorrow with an extra carrot. Maybe not.','Eating and drinking my way through the day','','publish','open','open','','eating-and-drinking-my-way-through-the-day','','','2012-10-28 21:20:27','2012-10-28 19:20:27','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7269',0,'post','',0),(7270,1,'2012-10-28 20:57:55','2012-10-28 18:57:55','Today in Sofia (well and the rest of Europe), our clocks rolled back an hour today to mark daylight savings time. That meant when I woke up this morning at 9am it was really only 8 am.\n\nNow before I realized that our clocks had rolled back, I was really proud of myself for sleeping in to 9am! As a teacher, it\'s become harder and harder for me to sleep in on the weekends. During the week, I\'m up at 6 am so to sleep in until 9am on the weekends doesn\'t happen as much as I\'d like it to. Oh well.\n\nSo I got up, had some coffee, poked around on the internet and read my kindle. By 10 am, I\'d made a small pan of cinnamon rolls. Pintrest, get out of my head.\n\nI took a late shower and A. picked me up to go downtown and check out the film <em>For Ellen</em> which is part of the current film festival in Sofia. We got there a little early which gave us plenty of time for a coffee and for me a honey cake. I followed the honey cake up with popcorn during the film.\n\nWe watched the film in a relatively old theater which I suspect only gets used these days for film festivals. <em>For Ellen</em> was an intense film. I liked it. I didn\'t like the dozen or so other movie-goers. There was a woman who took a phone call during the middle of the film and who spoke in a stage whisper and there were the early-twenty somethings text messaging on their phones who were silent but who were lighting up their corner of the audience with their smartphone screens. Just for the record, the teacher in me was displeased with them.\n\nAfter the film, A. and I went for a beer. I had my first dark beer of the season. Oh, how I <em>do</em> like dark beer. Even this Kaminitsa.\n\nFrom here I went to a dinner on campus for two previous teachers A. &amp; A. They are now living and working at an school in Paris but came back to visit us in Sofia for their first long weekend of the year. We had a taco/burrito bar and it was delicious.\n\nWhat a great day of eating. Sure it might be a little questionable in terms of health and merit but','Eating and drinking my way through the day','','inherit','open','open','','7269-revision','','','2012-10-28 20:57:55','2012-10-28 18:57:55','',7269,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/28/7269-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7271,1,'2012-10-28 21:09:31','2012-10-28 19:09:31','Today in Sofia (well and the rest of Europe), our clocks rolled back an hour today to mark daylight savings time. That meant when I woke up this morning at 9am it was really only 8 am.\n\nNow before I realized that our clocks had rolled back, I was really proud of myself for sleeping in to 9am! As a teacher, it\'s become harder and harder for me to sleep in on the weekends. During the week, I\'m up at 6 am so to sleep in until 9am on the weekends doesn\'t happen as much as I\'d like it to. Oh well.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132029702/\" title=\"cinnamon rolls by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8185/8132029702_bb6632cefd_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"cinnamon rolls\"></a>\nSo I got up, had some coffee, poked around on the internet and read my kindle. By 10 am, I\'d made a small pan of cinnamon rolls. Pintrest, get out of my head.\n\nI took a late shower and A. picked me up to go downtown and check out the film <em>For Ellen</em> which is part of the current film festival in Sofia. We got there a little early which gave us plenty of time for a coffee and for me a honey cake. I followed the honey cake up with popcorn during the film.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132006379/\" title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8327/8132006379_6ac2607578_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Untitled\"></a>\nWe watched the film in a relatively old theater which I suspect only gets used these days for film festivals. <em>For Ellen</em> was an intense film. I liked it. I didn\'t like the dozen or so other movie-goers. There was a woman who took a phone call during the middle of the film and who spoke in a stage whisper and there were the early-twenty somethings text messaging on their phones who were silent but who were lighting up their corner of the audience with their smartphone screens. Just for the record, the teacher in me was displeased with them.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132034780/\" title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8475/8132034780_78a7c44cb2_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Untitled\"></a>\nAfter the film, A. and I went for a beer. I had my first dark beer of the season. Oh, how I <em>do</em> like dark beer. Even this Kaminitsa.\n\nFrom here I went to a dinner on campus for two previous teachers A. &amp; A. They are now living and working at an school in Paris but came back to visit us in Sofia for their first long weekend of the year. We had a taco/burrito bar and it was delicious.\n\nWhat a great day of eating.\n\nSure it might be a little questionable in terms of health and merit but these things happen. Maybe I\'ll make up for it tomorrow with an extra carrot.','Eating and drinking my way through the day','','inherit','open','open','','7269-revision-2','','','2012-10-28 21:09:31','2012-10-28 19:09:31','',7269,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/28/7269-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7272,1,'2012-10-28 21:09:45','2012-10-28 19:09:45','Today in Sofia (well and the rest of Europe), our clocks rolled back an hour today to mark daylight savings time. That meant when I woke up this morning at 9am it was really only 8 am.\r\n\r\nNow before I realized that our clocks had rolled back, I was really proud of myself for sleeping in to 9am! As a teacher, it\'s become harder and harder for me to sleep in on the weekends. During the week, I\'m up at 6 am so to sleep in until 9am on the weekends doesn\'t happen as much as I\'d like it to. Oh well.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132029702/\" title=\"cinnamon rolls by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8185/8132029702_bb6632cefd_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"cinnamon rolls\"></a>\r\nSo I got up, had some coffee, poked around on the internet and read my kindle. By 10 am, I\'d made a small pan of cinnamon rolls. Pintrest, get out of my head.\r\n\r\nI took a late shower and A. picked me up to go downtown and check out the film <em>For Ellen</em> which is part of the current film festival in Sofia. We got there a little early which gave us plenty of time for a coffee and for me a honey cake. I followed the honey cake up with popcorn during the film.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132006379/\" title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8327/8132006379_6ac2607578_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Untitled\"></a>\r\nWe watched the film in a relatively old theater which I suspect only gets used these days for film festivals. <em>For Ellen</em> was an intense film. I liked it. I didn\'t like the dozen or so other movie-goers. There was a woman who took a phone call during the middle of the film and who spoke in a stage whisper and there were the early-twenty somethings text messaging on their phones who were silent but who were lighting up their corner of the audience with their smartphone screens. Just for the record, the teacher in me was displeased with them.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132034780/\" title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8475/8132034780_78a7c44cb2_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Untitled\"></a>\r\nAfter the film, A. and I went for a beer. I had my first dark beer of the season. Oh, how I <em>do</em> like dark beer. Even this Kaminitsa.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132039204/\" title=\"kamenitza dark by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8055/8132039204_c4dfdd0c3f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"kamenitza dark\"></a>\r\nFrom here I went to a dinner on campus for two previous teachers A. &amp; A. They are now living and working at an school in Paris but came back to visit us in Sofia for their first long weekend of the year. We had a taco/burrito bar and it was delicious.\r\n\r\nWhat a great day of eating.\r\n\r\nSure it might be a little questionable in terms of health and merit but these things happen. Maybe I\'ll make up for it tomorrow with an extra carrot.','Eating and drinking my way through the day','','inherit','open','open','','7269-revision-3','','','2012-10-28 21:09:45','2012-10-28 19:09:45','',7269,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/28/7269-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7273,1,'2012-10-28 21:19:49','2012-10-28 19:19:49','Today in Sofia (well and the rest of Europe), our clocks rolled back an hour today to mark daylight savings time. That meant when I woke up this morning at 9am it was really only 8 am.\n\nYeah! Extra time.\n\nNow before I realized that our clocks had rolled back, I was really proud of myself for sleeping in to 9am! As a teacher, it\'s become harder and harder for me to sleep in on the weekends. During the week, I\'m up at 6 am so to sleep in until 9am on the weekends doesn\'t happen as much as I\'d like it to. Oh well.\n<a title=\"cinnamon rolls by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132029702/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8185/8132029702_bb6632cefd_z.jpg\" alt=\"cinnamon rolls\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nSo I got up, had some coffee, poked around on the internet and read my kindle. By 10 am, I\'d made a small pan of cinnamon rolls. Pintrest, get out of my head.\n\nI took a late shower, ate a whole pomegranate (which I bought at Billa for 1 leva and was delicious. If it\'s good enough for Persephone then it\'s good enough for me) and shortly thereafter, A. picked me up to go downtown and check out the film <em>For Ellen</em> which is part of the current film festival in Sofia. We got there a little early which gave us plenty of time for a coffee and for me a honey cake. I followed the honey cake up with popcorn during the film because I\'m awesome <em>and</em> you\'re allowed to do this when you\'re at the movies. <!--more-->\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132006379/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8327/8132006379_6ac2607578_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe watched the film in a relatively old theater which I suspect only gets used these days for film festivals--look at how great the seats are in the picture below. <em>For Ellen</em> was an intense film. I liked it. I didn\'t like the dozen or so other movie-goers. There was a woman who took a phone call during the middle of the film and who spoke in a stage whisper and there were the early-twenty somethings text messaging on their phones who were silent but who were lighting up their corner of the audience with their smartphone screens. Just for the record, the teacher in me was displeased with them.\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132034780/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8475/8132034780_78a7c44cb2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAfter the film, A. and I went for a beer. I had my first dark beer of the season.\n\nI guess that means it officially fall here. Oh, how I <em>do</em> like dark beer. Even Kamenitsa and Kamenitza isn\'t that good. (I also like my fall boots but I am not really sure if/how beer and boots fit together.)\n<a title=\"kamenitza dark by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8132039204/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8055/8132039204_c4dfdd0c3f_z.jpg\" alt=\"kamenitza dark\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nFrom here I went to a dinner on campus for two previous teachers A. &amp; A. They are now living and working at an school in Paris but came back to visit us in Sofia for their first long weekend of the year. We had a taco/burrito bar and it was delicious.\n\nWhat a great day of eating.\n\nSure it might be a little questionable in terms of health and merit but these things happen. Maybe I\'ll make up for it tomorrow with an extra carrot. Maybe not.','Eating and drinking my way through the day','','inherit','open','open','','7269-revision-4','','','2012-10-28 21:19:49','2012-10-28 19:19:49','',7269,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/28/7269-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7282,1,'2012-11-05 23:26:11','2012-11-05 21:26:11','I went to Munich with my friend A. for a long weekend.\r\n\r\nWe drank beer. Plenty of it. And it was a great holiday.\r\n<a title=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159032912/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7250/8159032912_3fa3bf2a65_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8158999815/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8158999815_698829cb52_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n\r\nThis past weekend we had four-days to explore Germany and Austria thanks to the Bulgarian Day of Enlightenment. It\'s a teacher-school holiday celebrating the teachers and writers in Bulgarian history who helped to generally enlighten the Bulgarian people.  So the schools close and I went on vacation with teacher-friends.\r\n\r\nEveryone else in the country went to work.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Me drinking beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159035646/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8159035646_2fd9811bb2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me drinking beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159038068/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8209/8159038068_77c802cf59_z.jpg\" alt=\"Beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Sausage at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159007185/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8349/8159007185_20c49349ab_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sausage at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nHere\'s to a holiday which celebrates teachers!\r\n<a title=\"Inside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159008803/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/8159008803_b80eb826a8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Outside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159041966/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8159041966_4db41d16bd_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe went to Munich and celebrated with a few beers and friends at the Hofbrauhaus. It\'s clearly a must when you visit Munich. The next dayd we got serious with sightseeing and shopping.\r\n<a title=\"In the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159036778/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7267/8159036778_36cd4ae1fd_z.jpg\" alt=\"In the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Beer and Munich ','','publish','open','open','','beer-and-munich','','','2012-11-05 23:26:11','2012-11-05 21:26:11','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7282',0,'post','',1),(7275,1,'2012-10-29 06:58:40','2012-10-29 04:58:40','Truth be told, I\'m more of a city girl but this doesn\'t keep me from enjoying an afternoon walk/hike. I am so not a hike person that I am not even sure what the difference is between a walk and a hike. We were out in nature on a dirt path and at times it was uphill so maybe this counts as a hike. Maybe not.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109732737/\" title=\"On a hike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8469/8109732737_2d6a5240c6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"On a hike\"></a>\nEither way, the weather was beautiful. I thew on my tennis shoes, a pair of capri pants, a long sleeved shirt, tied my sweatshirt around my waist and carried my water bottle around with me.\n\nThe trees were all turning and the air was crisp. We walked and walked. And we talked and talked.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109738950/\" title=\"H, K and P hiking by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8109738950_712edde677_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"H, K and P hiking\"></a>\nWe weren\'t exactly sure where we were going but that\'s okay. It wasn\'t like we were going to get lost the path was well trod and we ran into plenty of people also out walking.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109728459/\" title=\"Koprivshtitsa trees by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8192/8109728459_271afb4492_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa trees\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109734810/\" title=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8333/8109734810_0441d90398_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\nIt was the perfect way to spend the afternoon. I will say, it reminded me that I wish I was better at taking nature photos. It\'s just not something that I practice much which means that I never get any better at it. Hum, maybe I should actually work on this. Practice does make perfect after all.','I\'m not much of a hiker but when in Koprivshtitsa','','inherit','open','open','','7267-revision-2','','','2012-10-29 06:58:40','2012-10-29 04:58:40','',7267,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/29/7267-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7276,1,'2012-10-29 06:59:36','2012-10-29 04:59:36','Truth be told, I\'m more of a city girl but this doesn\'t keep me from enjoying an afternoon walk/hike. I am so not a hike person that I am not even sure what the difference is between a walk and a hike. We were out in nature on a dirt path and at times it was uphill so maybe this counts as a hike. Maybe not.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109732737/\" title=\"On a hike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8469/8109732737_2d6a5240c6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"On a hike\"></a>\r\nEither way, the weather was beautiful. I thew on my tennis shoes, a pair of capri pants, a long sleeved shirt, tied my sweatshirt around my waist and carried my water bottle around with me.\r\n\r\nThe trees were all turning and the air was crisp. We walked and walked. And we talked and talked.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109738950/\" title=\"H, K and P hiking by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8109738950_712edde677_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"H, K and P hiking\"></a>\r\nWe weren\'t exactly sure where we were going but that\'s okay. It wasn\'t like we were going to get lost the path was well trod and we ran into plenty of people also out walking.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109728459/\" title=\"Koprivshtitsa trees by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8192/8109728459_271afb4492_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa trees\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109734810/\" title=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8333/8109734810_0441d90398_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa\"></a>\r\nIt was the perfect way to spend the afternoon. \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109724535/\" title=\"Koprivshtitsa sign by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8047/8109724535_3d58882102_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa sign\"></a>\r\nI will say, it reminded me that I wish I was better at taking nature photos. It\'s just not something that I practice much which means that I never get any better at it. Hum, maybe I should actually work on this. Practice does make perfect after all.<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109723487/\" title=\"The view from our hike around Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8109723487_56faa77180_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The view from our hike around Koprivshtitsa\"></a>','I\'m not much of a hiker but when in Koprivshtitsa','','inherit','open','open','','7267-revision-3','','','2012-10-29 06:59:36','2012-10-29 04:59:36','',7267,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/29/7267-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7277,1,'2012-10-29 07:05:42','2012-10-29 05:05:42','Truth be told, I\'m more of a city girl but this doesn\'t keep me from enjoying an afternoon walk/hike. I am so not a hike person that I am not even sure what the difference is between a walk and a hike. We were out in nature on a dirt path and at times it was uphill so maybe this counts as a hike. Maybe not.\n<a title=\"On a hike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109732737/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8469/8109732737_2d6a5240c6_z.jpg\" alt=\"On a hike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nEither way, the weather was beautiful. I thew on my tennis shoes, a pair of capri pants, a long sleeved shirt, tied my sweatshirt around my waist and carried my water bottle around with me.\n\nThe trees were all turning and the air was crisp. We walked and walked. And we talked and talked.\n<a title=\"H, K and P hiking by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109738950/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8109738950_712edde677_z.jpg\" alt=\"H, K and P hiking\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe weren\'t exactly sure where we were going but that\'s okay. It wasn\'t like we were going to get lost the path was well trod and we ran into plenty of people also out walking.\n\nThen we ran into the sign below and while it didn\'t help us orient ourselves we knew where we were going. Just for the record, lots of giggling ensued upon spotting the sign.\n<a title=\"Koprivshtitsa trees by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109728459/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8192/8109728459_271afb4492_z.jpg\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa trees\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109734810/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8333/8109734810_0441d90398_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nIt was the perfect way to spend the afternoon. And that\'s saying a lot from me. By and large, I prefer cafes and cobble stones to dirt paths and bottles of water. This said, the hike wasn\'t ever that difficult. Sure a lot of it was up hill but it was the nice kind of up hill. It was steady but not too steep.\n<a title=\"Koprivshtitsa sign by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109724535/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8047/8109724535_3d58882102_z.jpg\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa sign\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nWe made it to the top-ish before turning around and heading back for dinner. We found this view and we were happy.\n\nI will say, once I was back at home and downloading my photos, I was  reminded o the fact that I wish I was better at taking nature photos. It\'s just not something that I practice much which means that I never get any better at it. Hum, maybe I should actually work on this. Practice does make perfect after all.<a title=\"The view from our hike around Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109723487/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8109723487_56faa77180_z.jpg\" alt=\"The view from our hike around Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','I\'m not much of a hiker but when in Koprivshtitsa','','inherit','open','open','','7267-revision-4','','','2012-10-29 07:05:42','2012-10-29 05:05:42','',7267,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/29/7267-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7278,1,'2012-10-29 20:16:07','2012-10-29 18:16:07','Truth be told, I\'m more of a city girl but this doesn\'t keep me from enjoying an afternoon walk/hike. I am so not a hike person that I am not even sure what the difference is between a walk and a hike. We were out in nature on a dirt path and at times it was uphill so maybe this counts as a hike. Maybe not.\n<a title=\"On a hike by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109732737/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8469/8109732737_2d6a5240c6_z.jpg\" alt=\"On a hike\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nEither way, the weather was beautiful. I thew on my tennis shoes, a pair of capri pants, a long sleeved shirt, tied my sweatshirt around my waist and carried my water bottle around with me.\n\nThe trees were all turning and the air was crisp. We walked and walked. And we talked and talked.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"H, K and P hiking by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109738950/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8109738950_712edde677_z.jpg\" alt=\"H, K and P hiking\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe weren\'t exactly sure where we were going but that\'s okay. It wasn\'t like we were going to get lost the path was well trod and we ran into plenty of people also out walking.\n\nThen we ran into the sign below and while it didn\'t help us orient ourselves we knew where we were going. Just for the record, lots of giggling ensued upon spotting the sign.\n<a title=\"Koprivshtitsa trees by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109728459/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8192/8109728459_271afb4492_z.jpg\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa trees\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109734810/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8333/8109734810_0441d90398_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bich peak and Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nIt was the perfect way to spend the afternoon. And that\'s saying a lot from me. By and large, I prefer cafes and cobble stones to dirt paths and bottles of water. This said, the hike wasn\'t ever that difficult. Sure a lot of it was up hill but it was the nice kind of up hill. It was steady but not too steep.\n<a title=\"Koprivshtitsa sign by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109724535/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8047/8109724535_3d58882102_z.jpg\" alt=\"Koprivshtitsa sign\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nWe made it to the top-ish before turning around and heading back for dinner. We found this view and we were happy.\n\nI will say, once I was back at home and downloading my photos, I was  reminded o the fact that I wish I was better at taking nature photos. It\'s just not something that I practice much which means that I never get any better at it. Hum, maybe I should actually work on this. Practice does make perfect after all.<a title=\"The view from our hike around Koprivshtitsa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8109723487/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8109723487_56faa77180_z.jpg\" alt=\"The view from our hike around Koprivshtitsa\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>','I\'m not much of a hiker but when in Koprivshtitsa','','inherit','open','open','','7267-autosave','','','2012-10-29 20:16:07','2012-10-29 18:16:07','',7267,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/29/7267-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7279,1,'2012-10-30 07:03:28','2012-10-30 05:03:28','<a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/BookShareBulgaria\" target=\"_blank\">The group BookShare</a> which is a part of larger group Tuk/Tam (which was created by ACS alumni a few years ago), invited me to give a book talk to night at their monthly meeting.\r\n\r\nI said yes right away. I <em>love</em> reading.\r\n\r\nApparently <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/events/367969099955644/\" target=\"_blank\">the meeting tonight</a> will focus on literature in translation with a focus on English. Perfect. I can talk about this for a long time--but I wont. Just so you know, I could though.\r\n\r\nThis weekend, I told A. what I was doing and there was a long pause. Then he said: that sounds nerdy. Yes. Yes it does. In fact I might go as far as to say: it sounds<em> really</em> nerdy. And I am totally excited.\r\n\r\nI love books.\r\n\r\nSo I\'ll be at Paper Cake (at 122 Rakovski) at 7pm tonight. Maybe you should come too.','Tuk/Tam: BookShare Tonight','','publish','open','open','','tuktam-bookshare-tonight','','','2012-10-30 07:03:28','2012-10-30 05:03:28','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7279',0,'post','',0),(7280,1,'2012-10-30 07:02:35','2012-10-30 05:02:35','<a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/BookShareBulgaria\" target=\"_blank\">The group BookShare</a> which is a part of larger group Tuk/Tam (which was created by ACS alumni a few years ago), invited me to give a book talk to night at their monthly meeting.\n\nI said yes right away. I <em>love</em> reading.\n\nApparently <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/events/367969099955644/\" target=\"_blank\">the meeting tonight</a> will focus on literature in translation with a focus on English. Perfect. I can talk about this for a long time--but I wont. Just so you know, I could though.\n\nThis weekend, I told A. what I was doing and there was a long pause. Then he said: that sounds nerdy. Yes. Yes it does. In fact I might go as far as to say: it sounds<em> really</em> nerdy. And I am totally excited.\n\nI love books.\n\nSo I\'ll be at Paper Cake (122 Rakat 7pm','Tuk/Tam: BookShare Tonight','','inherit','open','open','','7279-revision','','','2012-10-30 07:02:35','2012-10-30 05:02:35','',7279,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/30/7279-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7281,1,'2012-10-31 06:29:22','2012-10-31 04:29:22','<a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/BookShareBulgaria\" target=\"_blank\">The group BookShare</a> which is a part of larger group Tuk/Tam (which was created by ACS alumni a few years ago), invited me to give a book talk to night at their monthly meeting. I said yes right away. I <em>love</em> reading. Apparently <a href=\"https://www.facebook.com/events/367969099955644/\" target=\"_blank\">the meeting tonight</a> will focus on literature in translation with a focus on English. Perfect. I can talk about this for a long time--but I wont. Just so you know, I could though. This weekend, I told A. what I was doing and there was a long pause. Then he said: that sounds nerdy. Yes. Yes it does. In fact I might go as far as to say: it sounds<em> really</em> nerdy. And I am totally excited. I love books. So I\'ll be at Paper Cake (at 122 Rakovski) at 7pm tonight. Maybe you should come too.','Tuk/Tam: BookShare Tonight','','inherit','open','open','','7279-autosave','','','2012-10-31 06:29:22','2012-10-31 04:29:22','',7279,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/10/30/7279-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7283,1,'2012-11-05 23:25:34','2012-11-05 21:25:34','I went to Munich with my friend A. for a long weekend.\n\nWe drank beer. Plenty of it. And it was a great holiday.\n<a title=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159032912/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7250/8159032912_3fa3bf2a65_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8158999815/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8158999815_698829cb52_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nThis past weekend we had four-days to explore Germany and Austria thanks to the Bulgarian Day of Enlightenment. It\'s a teacher-school holiday celebrating the teachers and writers in Bulgarian history who helped to generally enlighten the Bulgarian people.  So the schools close and I went on vacation with teacher-friends.\n\nEveryone else in the country went to work.\n<a title=\"Me drinking beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159035646/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8159035646_2fd9811bb2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me drinking beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159038068/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8209/8159038068_77c802cf59_z.jpg\" alt=\"Beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Sausage at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159007185/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8349/8159007185_20c49349ab_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sausage at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nHere\'s to a holiday which celebrates teachers!\n<a title=\"Inside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159008803/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/8159008803_b80eb826a8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Outside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159041966/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8159041966_4db41d16bd_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe went to Munich and celebrated with a few beers and friends at the Hofbrauhaus. It\'s clearly a must when you visit Munich. The next day we got serious with sightseeing and shopping.\n<a title=\"In the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159036778/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7267/8159036778_36cd4ae1fd_z.jpg\" alt=\"In the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Beer and Munich ','','inherit','open','open','','7282-revision','','','2012-11-05 23:25:34','2012-11-05 21:25:34','',7282,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/05/7282-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7284,1,'2012-11-06 06:37:17','2012-11-06 04:37:17','I went to Munich with my friend A. for a long weekend. We drank beer. Plenty of it. And it was a great holiday. <a title=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159032912/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7250/8159032912_3fa3bf2a65_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a> <a title=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8158999815/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8158999815_698829cb52_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a> This past weekend we had four-days to explore Germany and Austria thanks to the Bulgarian Day of Enlightenment. It\'s a teacher-school holiday celebrating the teachers and writers in Bulgarian history who helped to generally enlighten the Bulgarian people.  So the schools close and I went on vacation with teacher-friends. Everyone else in the country went to work.<!--more--> <a title=\"Me drinking beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159035646/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8159035646_2fd9811bb2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me drinking beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a> <a title=\"Beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159038068/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8209/8159038068_77c802cf59_z.jpg\" alt=\"Beer at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a> <a title=\"Sausage at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159007185/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8349/8159007185_20c49349ab_z.jpg\" alt=\"Sausage at the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a> Here\'s to a holiday which celebrates teachers! <a title=\"Inside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159008803/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7140/8159008803_b80eb826a8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a> <a title=\"Outside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159041966/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8159041966_4db41d16bd_z.jpg\" alt=\"Outside the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a> We went to Munich and celebrated with a few beers and friends at the Hofbrauhaus. It\'s clearly a must when you visit Munich. The next dayd we got serious with sightseeing and shopping. <a title=\"In the Hofbrauhaus in Munich by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8159036778/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7267/8159036778_36cd4ae1fd_z.jpg\" alt=\"In the Hofbrauhaus in Munich\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Beer and Munich ','','inherit','open','open','','7282-autosave','','','2012-11-06 06:37:17','2012-11-06 04:37:17','',7282,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/05/7282-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7285,1,'2012-11-06 22:10:35','2012-11-06 20:10:35','Well, I emailed in my ballot today. I didn\'t mean to be so last minute about things but it happens some times.\r\n\r\nYep, I voted in the US election in Sofia, Bulgaria by email.\r\n\r\nWell, not exactly by email but almost and I have to say there\'s nothing very exciting or sexy about printing out a ballot, filling it in, scanning it and returning it by email. Actually it\'s downright boring but I did it.\r\n\r\nI did it because it\'s the right thing to do.\r\n\r\nOh, and I can\'t handle the thought of Mitt Romney as president. That\'s just too much for me. Fingers crossed that Obama is reelected.\r\n\r\nSo that\'s that. I did what I can do. I did my part. Now we\'ll just have to wait and see.\r\n\r\nI guess I could get up early tomorrow morning to watch/stalk the live election coverage but these days all I really want to do is to stay curled up in bed. It\'s been cold in my apartment recently. The days are getting shorter, the temperatures outside are dropping and there\'s no central heat yet in Mladost.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, good luck: Mr. President, Gay Marriage (let\'s finally make it legal in Washington State), Marijuana (legalize it and regulate it), Maria Catwell (reelect her as our State senator)  and Jay Inslee (the Democrat running for Washington State governor). If you thought we were only voting for our president, think again. There\'s a lot to be decided today.\r\n\r\nOh and one final note on voting, it is pretty cool that I can email my ballot in from abroad even if it doesn\'t feel very serious. Is this democracy in action?','Doing my part ','','publish','open','open','','doing-my-part','','','2012-11-06 22:10:35','2012-11-06 20:10:35','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7285',0,'post','',4),(7286,1,'2012-11-06 22:09:55','2012-11-06 20:09:55','Well, I emailed in my ballot today. I didn\'t mean to be so last minute about things but it happens some times.\n\nYep, I voted in the US election in Sofia, Bulgaria by email.\n\nWell, not exactly by email but almost and I have to say there\'s nothing very exciting or sexy about printing out a ballot, filling it in, scanning it and returning it by email. Actually it\'s downright boring but I did it.\n\nI did it because it\'s the right thing to do. Oh, and I can\'t handle the thought of Mitt Romney as president. That\'s just too much for me. Fingers crossed that Obama is reelected.\n\nSo that\'s that. I did what I can do. I did my part. Now we\'ll just have to wait and see.\n\nI guess I could get up early tomorrow morning to watch/stalk the live election coverage but these days all I really want to do is to stay curled up in bed. It\'s been cold in my apartment recently. The days are getting shorter, the temperatures outside are dropping and there\'s no central heat yet in Mladost.\n\nAnyhow, good luck: Mr. President, Gay Marriage (let\'s finally make it legal in Washington State), Marijuana (legalize it and regulate it), Maria Catwell (reelect her as our State senator)  and Jay Inslee (the Democrat running for Washington State governor). If you thought we were only voting for our president, think again. There\'s a lot to be decided today.\n\nOh and one final note on voting, it is pretty cool that I can email my ballot in from abroad even if it doesn\'t feel very serious. Is this democracy in action?','Doing my part ','','inherit','open','open','','7285-revision','','','2012-11-06 22:09:55','2012-11-06 20:09:55','',7285,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/06/7285-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7287,1,'2012-11-08 06:30:05','2012-11-08 04:30:05','Well, I emailed in my ballot today. I didn\'t mean to be so last minute about things but it happens some times.\n\nYep, I voted in the US election in Sofia, Bulgaria by email.\n\nWell, not exactly by email but almost and I have to say there\'s nothing very exciting or sexy about printing out a ballot, filling it in, scanning it and returning it by email. Actually it\'s downright boring but I did it.\n\nI did it because it\'s the right thing to do.\n\nOh, and I can\'t handle the thought of Mitt Romney as president. That\'s just too much for me. Fingers crossed that Obama is reelected.\n\nSo that\'s that. I did what I can do. I did my part. Now we\'ll just have to wait and see.\n\nI guess I could get up early tomorrow morning to watch/stalk the live election coverage but these days all I really want to do is to stay curled up in bed. It\'s been cold in my apartment recently. The days are getting shorter, the temperatures outside are dropping and there\'s no central heat yet in Mladost.\n\nAnyhow, good luck: Mr. President, Gay Marriage (let\'s finally make it legal in Washington State), Marijuana (legalize it and regulate it), Maria Catwell (reelect her as our State senator)  and Jay Inslee (the Democrat running for Washington State governor). If you thought we were only voting for our president, think again. There\'s a lot to be decided today.\n\nOh and one final note on voting, it is pretty cool that I can email my ballot in from abroad even if it doesn\'t feel very serious. Is this democracy in action?','Doing my part ','','inherit','open','open','','7285-autosave','','','2012-11-08 06:30:05','2012-11-08 04:30:05','',7285,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/08/7285-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7288,1,'2012-11-09 13:34:00','2012-11-09 11:34:00','On Wednesday night I met my Bulgarian tutor I. and her J. and a couple of their friends after work for a drink. Then we headed over to the club Blender (under NDK)  to listen to some music.\r\n\r\nI hate to admit this but I\'ve listened to very little live music while in Sofia (well, really almost none).\r\n\r\nIn DC, going to clubs like the 9:30 club and the Black Cat was a pretty regular habit for me. Sure it helped that I lived in the neighborhood but I also made time to do it.\r\n\r\nSo when I. invited me to go along, I figured it was about time that I made time to enjoy some live music and frankly that I am glad I did.\r\n<a title=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8168619791/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/8168619791_5e0467b262_z.jpg\" alt=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"640\" /></a>\r\nBlender was hosting two groups the band Oratnitza featuring Kipri and the DJ-musician Kottarashky. In full disclosure  I\'d never heard of either group before being invited to the event.\r\n\r\nI. told me that the music is being made by young Bulgarians with Bulgarian instruments and traditional songs  but that it is a modern take on the classics with unexpected instruments like the didgeridoo or it\'s mixed with a new beats.  She wasn\'t kidding. The DJ Kottarshky was a lot of fun and the group Oratnitza was crazy good. I\'ve never heard Bulgarian music like this before.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nMoreover the crow was amazing, amazing. I\'ve never seen anything like it in a club in Sofia. Usually everyone in a club in Bulgaria looks more or less the same. Guys wear button down shirts or too-tight tee shirts and they are sporting short haircuts or no hair at all. Girls wiggle into tight jeans and short skirts paired with equally close fitting tops and their long hair is worn stick straight or maybe it\'s been crimped here and there. This look is more often than not topped off with teeteringly high heals.\r\n\r\nBut at the Oratnitza and Kottarashky show the crowd was made up of an incredibly diverse group of people sporting such an interesting mix of clothes and styles. There were a lot of great hair cuts on women-short, stylish and modern as well as men with long hair and men and women a like with dreads. As for clothing there was too much variety to even try to describe so I\'ll just say I felt like I could be on the streets of Brooklyn, Portland or Seattle. People looked good but not as overdone or manufactured as is the case most Friday and Saturday nights in Sofia.\r\n\r\nI\'ll just leave it at this the music was great, the people watching was equally good and I had a blast.\r\n\r\nI hope that you enjoy listening to this music!\r\n\r\n<strong>Oratnitza</strong>\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/gS6OBKIisNI\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/Cs-mUjQhEJU\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n<strong>Kottarashky</strong>\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/qBvnJpDR-1Q\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/lOzlfZmiFoQ\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/cbBimnHotmk\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>','A glimpse into the music scene in Sofia: Oratnitza and Kottarashky','','publish','open','open','','a-glimpse-into-the-music-scene-in-sofia-oratnitza-and-kottarashky','','','2012-11-09 13:34:00','2012-11-09 11:34:00','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7288',0,'post','',2),(7289,1,'2012-11-08 06:55:33','2012-11-08 04:55:33','Last night I met my Bulgarian tutor I. and her J. and a couple of their friends after work for a drink. Then we headed over to the club Blender (under NDK)  to listen to some music.\n\nI hate to admit this but I\'ve listened to very little live music while in Sofia (well, really almost none). In DC, going to clubs like the 9:30 club and the Black Cat was a pretty regular habit. Sure it helped that I lived in the neighborhood but I made time to do it. So when I. invited me to go along, I figured it was about time that I made time to enjoy some live music and frankly that I am glad I did.\n\nBlender was hosting two groups the band Oratnitza featuring Kipri and the DJ-musician Kottarashky. In full disclosure  I\'d never heard of either group before being invited to the event.\n\n&nbsp;','Music Scene in Sofia: Oratnitza and Kottarashky','','inherit','open','open','','7288-revision','','','2012-11-08 06:55:33','2012-11-08 04:55:33','',7288,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/08/7288-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7290,1,'2012-11-08 22:34:25','2012-11-08 20:34:25','Last night I met my Bulgarian tutor I. and her J. and a couple of their friends after work for a drink. Then we headed over to the club Blender (under NDK)  to listen to some music.\n\nI hate to admit this but I\'ve listened to very little live music while in Sofia (well, really almost none). In DC, going to clubs like the 9:30 club and the Black Cat was a pretty regular habit. Sure it helped that I lived in the neighborhood but I made time to do it. So when I. invited me to go along, I figured it was about time that I made time to enjoy some live music and frankly that I am glad I did.\n\nBlender was hosting two groups the band Oratnitza featuring Kipri and the DJ-musician Kottarashky. In full disclosure  I\'d never heard of either group before being invited to the event.\n\nI. told me that the music is being made by young Bulgarians with Bulgarian instruments and traditional songs  but that it has a very modern twist with unexpected instruments like the didgeridoo or it\'s mixed with a new beats.  She wasn\'t kidding. The DJ Kottarshky was a lot of fun and the group Oratnitza was crazy good but I\'ve never heard anything like it before.\n\n&nbsp;','Music Scene in Sofia: Oratnitza and Kottarashky','','inherit','open','open','','7288-revision-2','','','2012-11-08 22:34:25','2012-11-08 20:34:25','',7288,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/08/7288-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7291,1,'2012-11-09 07:08:09','2012-11-09 05:08:09','On Wednesday night I met my Bulgarian tutor I. and her J. and a couple of their friends after work for a drink. Then we headed over to the club Blender (under NDK)  to listen to some music.\n\nI hate to admit this but I\'ve listened to very little live music while in Sofia (well, really almost none). In DC, going to clubs like the 9:30 club and the Black Cat was a pretty regular habit. Sure it helped that I lived in the neighborhood but I made time to do it. So when I. invited me to go along, I figured it was about time that I made time to enjoy some live music and frankly that I am glad I did.\n\nBlender was hosting two groups the band Oratnitza featuring Kipri and the DJ-musician Kottarashky. In full disclosure  I\'d never heard of either group before being invited to the event.\n\nI. told me that the music is being made by young Bulgarians with Bulgarian instruments and traditional songs  but that it has a very modern twist with unexpected instruments like the didgeridoo or it\'s mixed with a new beats.  She wasn\'t kidding. The DJ Kottarshky was a lot of fun and the group Oratnitza was crazy good but I\'ve never heard anything like it before.\n\nMoreover the crow was amazing, amazing. I\'ve never seen anything like it in a club in Sofia. Usually everyone in a club in Bulgaria looks more or less the same. Guys wear button down shirts or too-tight tee shirts and they are sporting short haircuts or no hair at all. Girls wiggle into tight jeans and short skirts paired with equally close fitting tops and their long hair is worn stick straight or maybe it\'s been crimped here and there. This look is more often than not topped off with teeteringly high heals.\n\nBut at the Oratnitza and Kottarashky show the crowd was made up of an incredibly diverse group of people sporting such an interesting mix of clothes and styles. There were a lot of great hair cuts on women-short, stylish and modern as well as men with long hair and men and women a like with dreads. As for clothing there was too much variety to even try to describe so I\'ll just say I felt like I could be on the streets of Brooklyn, Portland or Seattle. People looked good but not as overdone or manufactured as is the case most Friday and Saturday nights in Sofia.\n\nI\'ll just leave it at this the music was great and the people watching was equally good. And I had an equally good time.','Music Scene in Sofia: Oratnitza and Kottarashky','','inherit','open','open','','7288-revision-3','','','2012-11-09 07:08:09','2012-11-09 05:08:09','',7288,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/09/7288-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7293,1,'2012-11-09 13:23:08','2012-11-09 11:23:08','On Wednesday night I met my Bulgarian tutor I. and her J. and a couple of their friends after work for a drink. Then we headed over to the club Blender (under NDK)  to listen to some music.\n\nI hate to admit this but I\'ve listened to very little live music while in Sofia (well, really almost none). In DC, going to clubs like the 9:30 club and the Black Cat was a pretty regular habit. Sure it helped that I lived in the neighborhood but I made time to do it. So when I. invited me to go along, I figured it was about time that I made time to enjoy some live music and frankly that I am glad I did.\n<a title=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8168619791/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/8168619791_5e0467b262_z.jpg\" alt=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"640\" /></a>\nBlender was hosting two groups the band Oratnitza featuring Kipri and the DJ-musician Kottarashky. In full disclosure  I\'d never heard of either group before being invited to the event.\n\nI. told me that the music is being made by young Bulgarians with Bulgarian instruments and traditional songs  but that it has a very modern twist with unexpected instruments like the didgeridoo or it\'s mixed with a new beats.  She wasn\'t kidding. The DJ Kottarshky was a lot of fun and the group Oratnitza was crazy good but I\'ve never heard anything like it before.<!--more-->\n\nMoreover the crow was amazing, amazing. I\'ve never seen anything like it in a club in Sofia. Usually everyone in a club in Bulgaria looks more or less the same. Guys wear button down shirts or too-tight tee shirts and they are sporting short haircuts or no hair at all. Girls wiggle into tight jeans and short skirts paired with equally close fitting tops and their long hair is worn stick straight or maybe it\'s been crimped here and there. This look is more often than not topped off with teeteringly high heals.\n\nBut at the Oratnitza and Kottarashky show the crowd was made up of an incredibly diverse group of people sporting such an interesting mix of clothes and styles. There were a lot of great hair cuts on women-short, stylish and modern as well as men with long hair and men and women a like with dreads. As for clothing there was too much variety to even try to describe so I\'ll just say I felt like I could be on the streets of Brooklyn, Portland or Seattle. People looked good but not as overdone or manufactured as is the case most Friday and Saturday nights in Sofia.\n\nI\'ll just leave it at this the music was great and the people watching was equally good. And I had an equally good time.\n<iframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/gS6OBKIisNI\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen></iframe>\n\n<iframe width=\"420\" height=\"315\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/qBvnJpDR-1Q\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen></iframe>\n<iframe width=\"420\" height=\"315\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/lOzlfZmiFoQ\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen></iframe>\n<iframe width=\"420\" height=\"315\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/cbBimnHotmk\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen></iframe>','Music Scene in Sofia: Oratnitza and Kottarashky','','inherit','open','open','','7288-revision-4','','','2012-11-09 13:23:08','2012-11-09 11:23:08','',7288,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/09/7288-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7295,1,'2012-11-09 13:25:51','2012-11-09 11:25:51','On Wednesday night I met my Bulgarian tutor I. and her J. and a couple of their friends after work for a drink. Then we headed over to the club Blender (under NDK)  to listen to some music.\n\nI hate to admit this but I\'ve listened to very little live music while in Sofia (well, really almost none). In DC, going to clubs like the 9:30 club and the Black Cat was a pretty regular habit. Sure it helped that I lived in the neighborhood but I made time to do it. So when I. invited me to go along, I figured it was about time that I made time to enjoy some live music and frankly that I am glad I did.\n<a title=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8168619791/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/8168619791_5e0467b262_z.jpg\" alt=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"640\" /></a>\nBlender was hosting two groups the band Oratnitza featuring Kipri and the DJ-musician Kottarashky. In full disclosure  I\'d never heard of either group before being invited to the event.\n\nI. told me that the music is being made by young Bulgarians with Bulgarian instruments and traditional songs  but that it has a very modern twist with unexpected instruments like the didgeridoo or it\'s mixed with a new beats.  She wasn\'t kidding. The DJ Kottarshky was a lot of fun and the group Oratnitza was crazy good but I\'ve never heard anything like it before.<!--more-->\n\nMoreover the crow was amazing, amazing. I\'ve never seen anything like it in a club in Sofia. Usually everyone in a club in Bulgaria looks more or less the same. Guys wear button down shirts or too-tight tee shirts and they are sporting short haircuts or no hair at all. Girls wiggle into tight jeans and short skirts paired with equally close fitting tops and their long hair is worn stick straight or maybe it\'s been crimped here and there. This look is more often than not topped off with teeteringly high heals.\n\nBut at the Oratnitza and Kottarashky show the crowd was made up of an incredibly diverse group of people sporting such an interesting mix of clothes and styles. There were a lot of great hair cuts on women-short, stylish and modern as well as men with long hair and men and women a like with dreads. As for clothing there was too much variety to even try to describe so I\'ll just say I felt like I could be on the streets of Brooklyn, Portland or Seattle. People looked good but not as overdone or manufactured as is the case most Friday and Saturday nights in Sofia.\n\nI\'ll just leave it at this the music was great and the people watching was equally good. And I had an equally good time.\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/gS6OBKIisNI\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/Cs-mUjQhEJU\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/qBvnJpDR-1Q\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/lOzlfZmiFoQ\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/cbBimnHotmk\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>','Music Scene in Sofia: Oratnitza and Kottarashky','','inherit','open','open','','7288-revision-6','','','2012-11-09 13:25:51','2012-11-09 11:25:51','',7288,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/09/7288-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(7294,1,'2012-11-09 13:24:08','2012-11-09 11:24:08','On Wednesday night I met my Bulgarian tutor I. and her J. and a couple of their friends after work for a drink. Then we headed over to the club Blender (under NDK)  to listen to some music.\n\nI hate to admit this but I\'ve listened to very little live music while in Sofia (well, really almost none). In DC, going to clubs like the 9:30 club and the Black Cat was a pretty regular habit. Sure it helped that I lived in the neighborhood but I made time to do it. So when I. invited me to go along, I figured it was about time that I made time to enjoy some live music and frankly that I am glad I did.\n<a title=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8168619791/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/8168619791_5e0467b262_z.jpg\" alt=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"640\" /></a>\nBlender was hosting two groups the band Oratnitza featuring Kipri and the DJ-musician Kottarashky. In full disclosure  I\'d never heard of either group before being invited to the event.\n\nI. told me that the music is being made by young Bulgarians with Bulgarian instruments and traditional songs  but that it has a very modern twist with unexpected instruments like the didgeridoo or it\'s mixed with a new beats.  She wasn\'t kidding. The DJ Kottarshky was a lot of fun and the group Oratnitza was crazy good but I\'ve never heard anything like it before.<!--more-->\n\nMoreover the crow was amazing, amazing. I\'ve never seen anything like it in a club in Sofia. Usually everyone in a club in Bulgaria looks more or less the same. Guys wear button down shirts or too-tight tee shirts and they are sporting short haircuts or no hair at all. Girls wiggle into tight jeans and short skirts paired with equally close fitting tops and their long hair is worn stick straight or maybe it\'s been crimped here and there. This look is more often than not topped off with teeteringly high heals.\n\nBut at the Oratnitza and Kottarashky show the crowd was made up of an incredibly diverse group of people sporting such an interesting mix of clothes and styles. There were a lot of great hair cuts on women-short, stylish and modern as well as men with long hair and men and women a like with dreads. As for clothing there was too much variety to even try to describe so I\'ll just say I felt like I could be on the streets of Brooklyn, Portland or Seattle. People looked good but not as overdone or manufactured as is the case most Friday and Saturday nights in Sofia.\n\nI\'ll just leave it at this the music was great and the people watching was equally good. And I had an equally good time.\n<iframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/gS6OBKIisNI\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen></iframe>\n<iframe width=\"420\" height=\"315\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/Cs-mUjQhEJU\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen></iframe>\n<iframe width=\"420\" height=\"315\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/qBvnJpDR-1Q\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen></iframe>\n<iframe width=\"420\" height=\"315\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/lOzlfZmiFoQ\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen></iframe>\n<iframe width=\"420\" height=\"315\" src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/cbBimnHotmk\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen></iframe>','Music Scene in Sofia: Oratnitza and Kottarashky','','inherit','open','open','','7288-revision-5','','','2012-11-09 13:24:08','2012-11-09 11:24:08','',7288,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/09/7288-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(7296,1,'2012-11-09 13:26:00','2012-11-09 11:26:00','On Wednesday night I met my Bulgarian tutor I. and her J. and a couple of their friends after work for a drink. Then we headed over to the club Blender (under NDK)  to listen to some music.\r\n\r\nI hate to admit this but I\'ve listened to very little live music while in Sofia (well, really almost none). In DC, going to clubs like the 9:30 club and the Black Cat was a pretty regular habit. Sure it helped that I lived in the neighborhood but I made time to do it. So when I. invited me to go along, I figured it was about time that I made time to enjoy some live music and frankly that I am glad I did.\r\n<a title=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8168619791/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/8168619791_5e0467b262_z.jpg\" alt=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"640\" /></a>\r\nBlender was hosting two groups the band Oratnitza featuring Kipri and the DJ-musician Kottarashky. In full disclosure  I\'d never heard of either group before being invited to the event.\r\n\r\nI. told me that the music is being made by young Bulgarians with Bulgarian instruments and traditional songs  but that it has a very modern twist with unexpected instruments like the didgeridoo or it\'s mixed with a new beats.  She wasn\'t kidding. The DJ Kottarshky was a lot of fun and the group Oratnitza was crazy good but I\'ve never heard anything like it before.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nMoreover the crow was amazing, amazing. I\'ve never seen anything like it in a club in Sofia. Usually everyone in a club in Bulgaria looks more or less the same. Guys wear button down shirts or too-tight tee shirts and they are sporting short haircuts or no hair at all. Girls wiggle into tight jeans and short skirts paired with equally close fitting tops and their long hair is worn stick straight or maybe it\'s been crimped here and there. This look is more often than not topped off with teeteringly high heals.\r\n\r\nBut at the Oratnitza and Kottarashky show the crowd was made up of an incredibly diverse group of people sporting such an interesting mix of clothes and styles. There were a lot of great hair cuts on women-short, stylish and modern as well as men with long hair and men and women a like with dreads. As for clothing there was too much variety to even try to describe so I\'ll just say I felt like I could be on the streets of Brooklyn, Portland or Seattle. People looked good but not as overdone or manufactured as is the case most Friday and Saturday nights in Sofia.\r\n\r\nI\'ll just leave it at this the music was great and the people watching was equally good. And I had an equally good time.\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/gS6OBKIisNI\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/Cs-mUjQhEJU\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/qBvnJpDR-1Q\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/lOzlfZmiFoQ\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\r\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/cbBimnHotmk\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>','Music Scene in Sofia: Oratnitza and Kottarashky','','inherit','open','open','','7288-revision-7','','','2012-11-09 13:26:00','2012-11-09 11:26:00','',7288,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/09/7288-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(7297,1,'2012-11-10 12:43:59','2012-11-10 10:43:59','On Wednesday night I met my Bulgarian tutor I. and her J. and a couple of their friends after work for a drink. Then we headed over to the club Blender (under NDK)  to listen to some music.\n\nI hate to admit this but I\'ve listened to very little live music while in Sofia (well, really almost none).\n\nIn DC, going to clubs like the 9:30 club and the Black Cat was a pretty regular habit for me. Sure it helped that I lived in the neighborhood but I also made time to do it.\n\nSo when I. invited me to go along, I figured it was about time that I made time to enjoy some live music and frankly that I am glad I did.\n<a title=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8168619791/\"><img src=\"http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/8168619791_5e0467b262_z.jpg\" alt=\"Oratnitza at Blender club in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"640\" /></a>\nBlender was hosting two groups the band Oratnitza featuring Kipri and the DJ-musician Kottarashky. In full disclosure  I\'d never heard of either group before being invited to the event.\n\nI. told me that the music is being made by young Bulgarians with Bulgarian instruments and traditional songs  but that it is a modern take on the classics with unexpected instruments like the didgeridoo or it\'s mixed with a new beats.  She wasn\'t kidding. The DJ Kottarshky was a lot of fun and the group Oratnitza was crazy good. I\'ve never heard Bulgarian music like this before.<!--more-->\n\nMoreover the crow was amazing, amazing. I\'ve never seen anything like it in a club in Sofia. Usually everyone in a club in Bulgaria looks more or less the same. Guys wear button down shirts or too-tight tee shirts and they are sporting short haircuts or no hair at all. Girls wiggle into tight jeans and short skirts paired with equally close fitting tops and their long hair is worn stick straight or maybe it\'s been crimped here and there. This look is more often than not topped off with teeteringly high heals.\n\nBut at the Oratnitza and Kottarashky show the crowd was made up of an incredibly diverse group of people sporting such an interesting mix of clothes and styles. There were a lot of great hair cuts on women-short, stylish and modern as well as men with long hair and men and women a like with dreads. As for clothing there was too much variety to even try to describe so I\'ll just say I felt like I could be on the streets of Brooklyn, Portland or Seattle. People looked good but not as overdone or manufactured as is the case most Friday and Saturday nights in Sofia.\n\nI\'ll just leave it at this the music was great, the people watching was equally good and I had a blast.\n\nI hope that you enjoy listening to this music!\n\n<strong>Oratnitza</strong>\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/gS6OBKIisNI\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/Cs-mUjQhEJU\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\n<strong>Kottarashky</strong>\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/qBvnJpDR-1Q\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/lOzlfZmiFoQ\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>\n<iframe src=\"http://www.youtube.com/embed/cbBimnHotmk\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"420\" height=\"315\"></iframe>','A glimpse into the music scene in Sofia: Oratnitza and Kottarashky','','inherit','open','open','','7288-autosave','','','2012-11-10 12:43:59','2012-11-10 10:43:59','',7288,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/09/7288-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7309,1,'2012-11-20 21:13:41','2012-11-20 19:13:41','I\'ve been MIA recently. No actually, I haven\'t been missing at all, I\'ve been hanging out at school, logging lots of hours at my desk and meeting the night guards at school. They\'re a really nice bunch.\r\n\r\nI wish that I\'d been gallivanting around the city--dreaming up blog pots,  taking pictures and collecting stories to tell but this has been anything but the case. Nope it\'s been school, home and back to school again for the last week. I get home, look at my computer but ignore it in order to crawl into bed and fall asleep instead. Only to wake up and do the whole thing over again the next day.\r\n\r\nIt\'s been busy. Busy, busy.\r\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8203915072/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8203915072_611a341505_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\r\n\r\nThe quarter ended at school this past week and I had a lot grading to do, comments to write and in the middle of the whole thing I also made stuffing for 200 people for our school\'s annual Thanksgiving dinner.\r\n\r\nNeedless to say, I didn\'t have a spare minute to breath let along blog. Somehow I did find the time to download <a href=\"https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dama.papercamera&amp;hl=en\" target=\"_blank\">a new app paper camera</a> and play around with it. That\'s what these pictures are.\r\n\r\nBut back to the fact that I haven\'t had any free time in over a week. Really, none at all.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\nHeck, I\'ve been doing laundry at 10pm at night these days and I hate doing laundry during the week. I prefer to laundry on Saturdays. It makes me feel productive. Anyhow, one day last week I had to because I was nearly out of socks and underwear. The other just because my pile of clothes was preventing me from closing my closet door. <em>Ug</em>.\r\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8202751915/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8197/8202751915_dfbd3154fb_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow, now I\'ve got clean clothes <em>and</em> I matched up all of my socks.\r\n\r\nOh and not to brag or anything but there\'s food in my fridge<em> and</em> I\'ve been eating turkey sandwiches for dinner (here\'s to Thanksgiving leftovers).  I did go without milk in my coffee for three days but I remedied this situation this evening after work.\r\n\r\nThat of course was after I finalized first quarter grades for my students and wrote personal comments for each of them. Thankfully that\'s done.\r\n\r\nTomorrow\'s looking up already. Coffee + milk and no more grading/commenting writing? Yes please.\r\n<a title=\"Popa in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8191846181/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8191846181_91d273eca0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Popa in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\r\nThe best thing about this week is that my American school in Bulgaria celebrates Thanksgiving and we\'ve got a four day weekend. Really, how lucky am I?\r\n\r\nI\'m not really going anywhere this year and frankly I couldn\'t be happier about the prospect of me, my couch and my kindle. I might go downtown for a coffee at some point or maybe to do some shopping or exploring but mostly I\'m looking forward to relaxing and wearing my pjs until inappropriately late in the morning.\r\n\r\nI\'ve also daydreamed about making a pumpkin pie but I don\'t want to be too ambitious. This said, I think on vacation it\'s okay to eat pumpkin pie mid-morning in your pjs  and then to wash it all down with a strong cup of coffee and that sounds pretty wonderful to me. That in fact might be the perfect way to celebrate Thanksgiving.','School, home, school','','publish','open','open','','school-home-school','','','2012-11-20 21:13:41','2012-11-20 19:13:41','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7309',0,'post','',1),(7300,1,'2012-11-11 16:32:04','2012-11-11 14:32:04','A. picked me up yesterday late morning. We went for coffee and to wander through the city.\r\n\r\nThe weather has turned in Sofia. This past week when I\'ve gotten up in the mornings the temperature has been hoovering around 2 celsius. Burr. Luckily it\'s been warming up in the day but it hasn\'t been warm enough to go without a coat and Wednesday I pulled out my mittens and I\'ve been wearing them.\r\n\r\nMy apartment was cold this week. The central heat didn\'t turn on until sometime late afternoon on Friday. I battled the cold with leggings, a sweat shirt and some baba-knit socks. It\'s just a lot harder to drag yourself out of bed at 6 am when you know the apartment is going to be downright cold. Anyhow, the central heat is on now and I like scarves so I\'ll be fine.\r\n<a title=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175160303/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8175160303_26d7d809e3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nSaturday the sun was out in Sofia but it\'s definitely the end of autumn. A. and I went to Cafe Nedelya (one of the many in Sofia) and talked about sitting outside but there was no sun to be seen given a large block building and some well placed trees so we decided against it and sat inside instead.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nI had a coffee, sparking water and slice of cake.\r\n<a title=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175157425/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8175157425_a2dc629308_z.jpg\" alt=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175192354/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8175192354_f61f3f808e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Cafe Nedelya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe talked about going to the Communist Museum but decided against it and we ended up downtown instead. I\'d suggested checking out the used English language bookstore Elephant but it turns out they are in the process of moving to Shishman Street and aren\'t currently open. <em>Oh</em>.\r\n\r\nThen we made our way to Popa. The corner that Popa stands on has just been spruced up. I think they laid all new sidewalk tiles, built a number of new planters, put in new benches and fixed up the water fountain. It looks pretty good.\r\n<a title=\"A. at Popa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175162333/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175162333_e2b19cbd2c_z.jpg\" alt=\"A. at Popa\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nFrom Popa, I convinced A. to walk up Graf Ignativ and at the corner of the park in front of the Church of the Seven Holy Saints there was my favorite old man selling roasted pumpkin. Yum, yum. The one disappointing part of this was that because it was later in the afternoon, the pumpkin was cold. Still we got a slice to share.\r\n<a title=\"Roasted Pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175164889/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175164889_a1cd5c223e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175196562/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8175196562_150c12c9ef_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175199362/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8337/8175199362_bd96edf1c0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWe thought we\'d find a bench in the sun to sit on and eat pumpkin in the park but the sunny side of park was packed with babas and their friends sitting on benches enjoying the day. Clever babas.\r\n<a title=\"Church of the seven holy saints by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175168001/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175168001_b118631713_z.jpg\" alt=\"Church of the seven holy saints\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAimlessly, we wandered down Shishman.  When we got to Bilkova all it took was a look and it was agreed: beer at Bilkova.  And really, what goes better with roasted pumpkin then dark beer?\r\n<a title=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175169857/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8175169857_0db655c45b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175171613/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8175171613_9f5132a93b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Bilkova and beer by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175173255/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175173255_b341e825e6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bilkova and beer\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nOkay, maybe if you\'re conveying roasted pumpkin to your mouth in the from of pumpkin pie, whipped cream.  But really now that I think about it pumpkin pie and dark beer sounds like a pretty delicious combination. Yum, yum. Pumpkin pie. Maybe I need to make that. It is November after all.\r\n\r\nOh and it seems totally acceptable to me to eat a slice of cake for lunch as long as you eat a slice pumpkin for dessert and then wash it down with either a coffee or a beer or even better both--just don\'t tell my MoM. <em>Okay?</em>','Autumn in Sofia on a Saturday ','','publish','open','open','','autumn-in-sofia-on-a-saturday','','','2012-11-11 16:32:04','2012-11-11 14:32:04','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7300',0,'post','',4),(7301,1,'2012-11-11 16:31:15','2012-11-11 14:31:15','A. picked me up yesterday late morning. We went for coffee and to wander through the city.\n\nThe weather has turned in Sofia. This past week when I\'ve gotten up in the mornings the temperature has been hoovering around 2 celsius. Burr. Luckily it\'s been warming up in the day but it hasn\'t been warm enough to go without a coat and Wednesday I pulled out my mittens and I\'ve been wearing them.\n\nMy apartment was cold this week. The central heat didn\'t turn on until sometime late afternoon on Friday. I battled the cold with leggings, a sweat shirt and some baba-knit socks. It\'s just a lot harder to drag yourself out of bed at 6 am when you know the apartment is going to be downright cold. Anyhow, the central heat is on now and I like scarves so I\'ll be fine.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175160303/\" title=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8175160303_26d7d809e3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya\"></a>\nSaturday the sun was out in Sofia but it\'s definitely the end of autumn. A. and I went to Cafe Nedelya (one of the many in Sofia) and talked about sitting outside but there was no sun to be seen given a large block building and some well placed trees so we decided against it and sat inside instead.\n\nI had a coffee, sparking water and slice of cake.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175157425/\" title=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8175157425_a2dc629308_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175192354/\" title=\"Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8175192354_f61f3f808e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Cafe Nedelya\"></a>\nWe talked about going to the Communist Museum but decided against it and we ended up downtown instead. I\'d suggested checking out the used English language bookstore Elephant but it turns out they are in the process of moving to Shishman Street and aren\'t currently open. <em>Oh</em>.\n\nThen we made our way to Popa. The corner that Popa stands on has just been spruced up. I think they laid all new sidewalk tiles, built a number of new planters, put in new benches and fixed up the water fountain. It looks pretty good.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175162333/\" title=\"A. at Popa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175162333_e2b19cbd2c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"A. at Popa\"></a>\nFrom Popa, I convinced A. to walk up Graf Ignativ and at the corner of the park in front of the Church of the Seven Holy Saints there was my favorite old man selling roasted pumpkin. Yum, yum. The one disappointing part of this was that because it was later in the afternoon, the pumpkin was cold. Still we got a slice to share.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175164889/\" title=\"Roasted Pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175164889_a1cd5c223e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175196562/\" title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8175196562_150c12c9ef_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175199362/\" title=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8337/8175199362_bd96edf1c0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag\"></a>\nWe thought we\'d find a bench in the sun to sit on and eat pumpkin in the park but the sunny side of park was packed with babas and their friends sitting on benches enjoying the day. Clever babas.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175168001/\" title=\"Church of the seven holy saints by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175168001_b118631713_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Church of the seven holy saints\"></a>\nAimlessly, we wandered down Shishman.  When we got to Bilkova all it took was a look and it was agreed: beer at Bilkova.  And really, what goes better with roasted pumpkin then dark beer?\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175169857/\" title=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8175169857_0db655c45b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175171613/\" title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8175171613_9f5132a93b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175173255/\" title=\"Bilkova and beer by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175173255_b341e825e6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Bilkova and beer\"></a>\nOkay, maybe if you\'re conveying roasted pumpkin to your mouth in the from of pumpkin pie, whipped cream.  But really now that I think about it pumpkin pie and dark beer sounds like a pretty delicious combination. Yum, yum. Pumpkin pie. Maybe I need to make that. It is November after all.\n\nOh and it seems totally acceptable to me to eat a slice of cake for lunch as long as you eat a slice pumpkin for dessert and then wash it down with either a coffee or a beer or even better both--just don\'t tell my MoM. <em>Okay?</em>','Autumn in Sofia on a Saturday ','','inherit','open','open','','7300-revision','','','2012-11-11 16:31:15','2012-11-11 14:31:15','',7300,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/11/7300-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7302,1,'2012-11-11 16:31:22','2012-11-11 14:31:22','A. picked me up yesterday late morning. We went for coffee and to wander through the city.\r\n\r\nThe weather has turned in Sofia. This past week when I\'ve gotten up in the mornings the temperature has been hoovering around 2 celsius. Burr. Luckily it\'s been warming up in the day but it hasn\'t been warm enough to go without a coat and Wednesday I pulled out my mittens and I\'ve been wearing them.\r\n\r\nMy apartment was cold this week. The central heat didn\'t turn on until sometime late afternoon on Friday. I battled the cold with leggings, a sweat shirt and some baba-knit socks. It\'s just a lot harder to drag yourself out of bed at 6 am when you know the apartment is going to be downright cold. Anyhow, the central heat is on now and I like scarves so I\'ll be fine.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175160303/\" title=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8175160303_26d7d809e3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya\"></a>\r\nSaturday the sun was out in Sofia but it\'s definitely the end of autumn. A. and I went to Cafe Nedelya (one of the many in Sofia) and talked about sitting outside but there was no sun to be seen given a large block building and some well placed trees so we decided against it and sat inside instead.\r\n\r\nI had a coffee, sparking water and slice of cake.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175157425/\" title=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8175157425_a2dc629308_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175192354/\" title=\"Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8175192354_f61f3f808e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Cafe Nedelya\"></a>\r\nWe talked about going to the Communist Museum but decided against it and we ended up downtown instead. I\'d suggested checking out the used English language bookstore Elephant but it turns out they are in the process of moving to Shishman Street and aren\'t currently open. <em>Oh</em>.\r\n\r\nThen we made our way to Popa. The corner that Popa stands on has just been spruced up. I think they laid all new sidewalk tiles, built a number of new planters, put in new benches and fixed up the water fountain. It looks pretty good.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175162333/\" title=\"A. at Popa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175162333_e2b19cbd2c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"A. at Popa\"></a>\r\nFrom Popa, I convinced A. to walk up Graf Ignativ and at the corner of the park in front of the Church of the Seven Holy Saints there was my favorite old man selling roasted pumpkin. Yum, yum. The one disappointing part of this was that because it was later in the afternoon, the pumpkin was cold. Still we got a slice to share.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175164889/\" title=\"Roasted Pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175164889_a1cd5c223e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175196562/\" title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8175196562_150c12c9ef_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175199362/\" title=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8337/8175199362_bd96edf1c0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag\"></a>\r\nWe thought we\'d find a bench in the sun to sit on and eat pumpkin in the park but the sunny side of park was packed with babas and their friends sitting on benches enjoying the day. Clever babas.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175168001/\" title=\"Church of the seven holy saints by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175168001_b118631713_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Church of the seven holy saints\"></a>\r\nAimlessly, we wandered down Shishman.  When we got to Bilkova all it took was a look and it was agreed: beer at Bilkova.  And really, what goes better with roasted pumpkin then dark beer?\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175169857/\" title=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8175169857_0db655c45b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175171613/\" title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8175171613_9f5132a93b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175173255/\" title=\"Bilkova and beer by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175173255_b341e825e6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Bilkova and beer\"></a>\r\nOkay, maybe if you\'re conveying roasted pumpkin to your mouth in the from of pumpkin pie, whipped cream.  But really now that I think about it pumpkin pie and dark beer sounds like a pretty delicious combination. Yum, yum. Pumpkin pie. Maybe I need to make that. It is November after all.\r\n\r\nOh and it seems totally acceptable to me to eat a slice of cake for lunch as long as you eat a slice pumpkin for dessert and then wash it down with either a coffee or a beer or even better both--just don\'t tell my MoM. <em>Okay?</em>','Autumn in Sofia on a Saturday ','','inherit','open','open','','7300-revision-2','','','2012-11-11 16:31:22','2012-11-11 14:31:22','',7300,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/11/7300-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7303,1,'2012-11-11 16:31:26','2012-11-11 14:31:26','A. picked me up yesterday late morning. We went for coffee and to wander through the city.\r\n\r\nThe weather has turned in Sofia. This past week when I\'ve gotten up in the mornings the temperature has been hoovering around 2 celsius. Burr. Luckily it\'s been warming up in the day but it hasn\'t been warm enough to go without a coat and Wednesday I pulled out my mittens and I\'ve been wearing them.\r\n\r\nMy apartment was cold this week. The central heat didn\'t turn on until sometime late afternoon on Friday. I battled the cold with leggings, a sweat shirt and some baba-knit socks. It\'s just a lot harder to drag yourself out of bed at 6 am when you know the apartment is going to be downright cold. Anyhow, the central heat is on now and I like scarves so I\'ll be fine.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175160303/\" title=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8175160303_26d7d809e3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya\"></a>\r\nSaturday the sun was out in Sofia but it\'s definitely the end of autumn. A. and I went to Cafe Nedelya (one of the many in Sofia) and talked about sitting outside but there was no sun to be seen given a large block building and some well placed trees so we decided against it and sat inside instead.\r\n\r\nI had a coffee, sparking water and slice of cake.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175157425/\" title=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8175157425_a2dc629308_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175192354/\" title=\"Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8175192354_f61f3f808e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Cafe Nedelya\"></a>\r\nWe talked about going to the Communist Museum but decided against it and we ended up downtown instead. I\'d suggested checking out the used English language bookstore Elephant but it turns out they are in the process of moving to Shishman Street and aren\'t currently open. <em>Oh</em>.\r\n\r\nThen we made our way to Popa. The corner that Popa stands on has just been spruced up. I think they laid all new sidewalk tiles, built a number of new planters, put in new benches and fixed up the water fountain. It looks pretty good.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175162333/\" title=\"A. at Popa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175162333_e2b19cbd2c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"A. at Popa\"></a>\r\nFrom Popa, I convinced A. to walk up Graf Ignativ and at the corner of the park in front of the Church of the Seven Holy Saints there was my favorite old man selling roasted pumpkin. Yum, yum. The one disappointing part of this was that because it was later in the afternoon, the pumpkin was cold. Still we got a slice to share.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175164889/\" title=\"Roasted Pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175164889_a1cd5c223e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175196562/\" title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8175196562_150c12c9ef_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175199362/\" title=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8337/8175199362_bd96edf1c0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag\"></a>\r\nWe thought we\'d find a bench in the sun to sit on and eat pumpkin in the park but the sunny side of park was packed with babas and their friends sitting on benches enjoying the day. Clever babas.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175168001/\" title=\"Church of the seven holy saints by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175168001_b118631713_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Church of the seven holy saints\"></a>\r\nAimlessly, we wandered down Shishman.  When we got to Bilkova all it took was a look and it was agreed: beer at Bilkova.  And really, what goes better with roasted pumpkin then dark beer?\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175169857/\" title=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8175169857_0db655c45b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175171613/\" title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8175171613_9f5132a93b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175173255/\" title=\"Bilkova and beer by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175173255_b341e825e6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Bilkova and beer\"></a>\r\nOkay, maybe if you\'re conveying roasted pumpkin to your mouth in the from of pumpkin pie, whipped cream.  But really now that I think about it pumpkin pie and dark beer sounds like a pretty delicious combination. Yum, yum. Pumpkin pie. Maybe I need to make that. It is November after all.\r\n\r\nOh and it seems totally acceptable to me to eat a slice of cake for lunch as long as you eat a slice pumpkin for dessert and then wash it down with either a coffee or a beer or even better both--just don\'t tell my MoM. <em>Okay?</em>','Autumn in Sofia on a Saturday ','','inherit','open','open','','7300-revision-3','','','2012-11-11 16:31:26','2012-11-11 14:31:26','',7300,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/11/7300-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7304,1,'2012-11-11 16:33:08','2012-11-11 14:33:08','A. picked me up yesterday late morning. We went for coffee and to wander through the city.\n\nThe weather has turned in Sofia. This past week when I\'ve gotten up in the mornings the temperature has been hoovering around 2 celsius. Burr. Luckily it\'s been warming up in the day but it hasn\'t been warm enough to go without a coat and Wednesday I pulled out my mittens and I\'ve been wearing them.\n\nMy apartment was cold this week. The central heat didn\'t turn on until sometime late afternoon on Friday. I battled the cold with leggings, a sweat shirt and some baba-knit socks. It\'s just a lot harder to drag yourself out of bed at 6 am when you know the apartment is going to be downright cold. Anyhow, the central heat is on now and I like scarves so I\'ll be fine.\n<a title=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175160303/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8175160303_26d7d809e3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Coffee at Cafe Nedelya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nSaturday the sun was out in Sofia but it\'s definitely the end of autumn. A. and I went to Cafe Nedelya (one of the many in Sofia) and talked about sitting outside but there was no sun to be seen given a large block building and some well placed trees so we decided against it and sat inside instead.<!--more-->\n\nI had a coffee, sparking water and slice of cake.\n<a title=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175157425/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8175157425_a2dc629308_z.jpg\" alt=\"Coffee and Cake at Cafe Nedelya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Cafe Nedelya by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175192354/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8175192354_f61f3f808e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Cafe Nedelya\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe talked about going to the Communist Museum but decided against it and we ended up downtown instead. I\'d suggested checking out the used English language bookstore Elephant but it turns out they are in the process of moving to Shishman Street and aren\'t currently open. <em>Oh</em>.\n\nThen we made our way to Popa. The corner that Popa stands on has just been spruced up. I think they laid all new sidewalk tiles, built a number of new planters, put in new benches and fixed up the water fountain. It looks pretty good.\n<a title=\"A. at Popa by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175162333/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175162333_e2b19cbd2c_z.jpg\" alt=\"A. at Popa\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nFrom Popa, I convinced A. to walk up Graf Ignativ and at the corner of the park in front of the Church of the Seven Holy Saints there was my favorite old man selling roasted pumpkin. Yum, yum. The one disappointing part of this was that because it was later in the afternoon, the pumpkin was cold. Still we got a slice to share.\n<a title=\"Roasted Pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175164889/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175164889_a1cd5c223e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175196562/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8175196562_150c12c9ef_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175199362/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8337/8175199362_bd96edf1c0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roasted Pumpkin in a bag\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWe thought we\'d find a bench in the sun to sit on and eat pumpkin in the park but the sunny side of park was packed with babas and their friends sitting on benches enjoying the day. Clever babas.\n<a title=\"Church of the seven holy saints by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175168001/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8175168001_b118631713_z.jpg\" alt=\"Church of the seven holy saints\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAimlessly, we wandered down Shishman.  When we got to Bilkova all it took was a look and it was agreed: beer at Bilkova.  And really, what goes better with roasted pumpkin then dark beer?\n<a title=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175169857/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8175169857_0db655c45b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Dark beer and pumpkin at Bilkova\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Roasted pumpkin by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175171613/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8175171613_9f5132a93b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Roasted pumpkin\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Bilkova and beer by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8175173255/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8175173255_b341e825e6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bilkova and beer\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nOkay, maybe if you\'re conveying roasted pumpkin to your mouth in the from of pumpkin pie, whipped cream.  But really now that I think about it pumpkin pie and dark beer sounds like a pretty delicious combination. Yum, yum. Pumpkin pie. Maybe I need to make that. It is November after all.\n\nOh and it seems totally acceptable to me to eat a slice of cake for lunch as long as you eat a slice pumpkin for dessert and then wash it down with either a coffee or a beer or even better both--just don\'t tell my MoM. <em>Okay?</em>','Autumn in Sofia on a Saturday ','','inherit','open','open','','7300-autosave','','','2012-11-11 16:33:08','2012-11-11 14:33:08','',7300,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/11/7300-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7305,1,'2012-11-12 09:44:47','2012-11-12 07:44:47','A couple of weeks ago, A. and I went to Art Kitchen a new Greek restaurant in Sofia. We liked it.\r\n\r\nI thought that A. read about the restaurant in<a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/\" target=\"_blank\"> Programata</a> but when I look at Programata there doesn\'t seem to be a review of the restaurant nor would one know that Art Kitchen serves Greek food as the only thing on the <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6897\" target=\"_blank\">Programata website under Art Kitchen</a> is an address and phone number.  So I assume that A. heard about the restaurant some other way.\r\n<a title=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176279186/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8065/8176279186_4aa4562212_z.jpg\" alt=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI am not super familiar with Greek food. I\'ve been to Thasos a couple of times and I\'ve been to Thessaloniki three or four times. I like what I\'ve eaten when in Greece but much of the food seems to share pretty strong ties to Bulgarian food. I\'d point to the yogurt, the cheese, a love of dill as a spice and garlic as a kitchen staple to make my case. Sure there are differences but on a whole Greek food isn\'t shockingly different from Bulgarian food.\r\n<a title=\"Mythos beer at Art Kitchen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176276886/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8344/8176276886_07a4b33de2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Mythos beer at Art Kitchen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nBut Art Kitchen got off to a great start with Mythos beer and a fairly concise menu.\r\n\r\nI really appreciate it when a menu is a manageable size to read through and when there aren\'t too many choices. First, this signals to me that they take their food seriously and that are happy to focus on preparing a few dishes well rather than trying to do everything poorly and second, it makes it that much easier for me to figure out what to order.\r\n\r\nI always struggle when it comes to deciding what to eat. I hate having to settle on a single dish. <!--more-->\r\n\r\nI love the use of olive oil and the different kinds of olives in Greece. I regularly order seafood when in Thasos because it seems like the thing to do--being on an island and all. Oh and when in Greece, a girl must order a Greek salad. This said, I like Greek food, I am just not 100% sure what makes it <em>real</em> Greek food--what makes it authentic.\r\n\r\nAnyhow enough on my vague musings on Greek food.\r\n\r\nA. and I ended up ordering a few dishes to share. We began with two starters--a salmon spread (or at least I think it was salmon) and fried zucchini with a yogurt dill sauce.  This was followed by homemade pasta with seafood.\r\n<a title=\"Salmon (?) spread at Art Kitchen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176284570/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8060/8176284570_a2c9e02e0d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Salmon (?) spread at Art Kitchen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI was really happy with everything. Truthfully I was afraid that the salmon spread was going to be too fishy for me but it was anything but. <em>Phew</em>. In fact, I liked it a lot and I\'d definitely order it again.\r\n\r\nThe fried zucchini was less interesting. The zucchini had been sliced very thinly into zucchini-coins and as such when they were fried there was more batter on the rounds off zucchini than vegetable. A. was distinctly disappointed and said something to the effect of: in Greece they never cut them into rounds--usually they are strips. Based on what I\'ve seen and eaten in Greece, this is true and given the batter to zucchini ratio there was very little zucchini in each bite which made the dish rather uninteresting.\r\n<a title=\"Fried zucchini at Art Kitchen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176252567/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8176252567_479c1665ba_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fried zucchini at Art Kitchen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nOh well, these things happen.\r\n\r\nThe homemade pasta and seafood dish was tasty. The pasta was great and the seafood sauce was seafood heavy but this was nicely balanced with tomatoes and garlic. It\'s the kind of dish I\'d like to make for myself at home but I never do because it seems like too much work and never cook seafood for myself.\r\n\r\nIn the end, I am not sure that this dish is really Greece but it was tasty and in my book that\'s what matters.\r\n<a title=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176248463/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8176248463_f610981674_z.jpg\" alt=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n\r\nAll in all, I thought the restaurant was cute and felt like a little piece of Greece in Sofia. For the most part the food was good and the service was excellent. I did feel bad that there weren\'t more people eating there.\r\n\r\nA. and I had an early dinner at about 5:30 or 6pm but we stayed for drinks until nearly 8pm and for the majority of the time we were the only people there. I think about 7:30pm another couple showed up but for the most part the restaurant was empty. I hope that they are able to make a niche for themselves in Sofia because I really did like the food and vibe of the restaurant.\r\n\r\nI\'d recommend this restaurant if your looking for something a little different in downtown Sofia. Art Kitchen is at the corner of Yanko Sakazov and Krakra. It\'s number 20 Yanko Sakazov and it\'s down two blocks from the Vasil Levski roundabout monument (бул. Янко Сакъзов 20  and ул. Кракра).','Greek food in Sofia at Art Kitchen','','publish','open','open','','greek-food-in-sofia-at-art-kitchen','','','2012-11-12 09:44:47','2012-11-12 07:44:47','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7305',0,'post','',5),(7306,1,'2012-11-11 22:39:58','2012-11-11 20:39:58','A couple of weeks ago, A. and I went to Art Kitchen a new Greek restaurant in Sofia. We liked it.\n\nI think that A. read about the restaurant in<a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/\" target=\"_blank\"> Programata</a> but when I look at Programata there doesn\'t seem to be a review of the restaurant nor would one know that Art Kitchen serves Greek food as the only thing on the <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6897\" target=\"_blank\">Programata website under Art Kitchen</a> is an address and phone number.  So I assume that A. heard about the restaurant some other way.\n\nI am not super familiar with Greek food. I\'ve been to Thasos a couple of times and I\'ve been to Thessaloniki three or four times. I like what I\'ve eaten when in Greece but much of the food seems to share pretty strong ties to Bulgarian food. I\'d point to the yogurt, the cheese, a love of dill as a spice and garlic as a kitchen staple to make my case. Sure there are differences but on a whole Greek food isn\'t shockingly different from Bulgarian food.\n\nBut Art Kitchen got off to a great start with Mythos beer and a fairly concise menu. I really appreciate it when a menu is a manageable size to read through and when there aren\'t too many choices. First, this signals to me that they take their food seriously and that are happy to focus on preparing a few dishes well rather than trying to do everything poorly and second, it makes it that much easier for me to figure out what to order.\n\nI always struggle when it comes to deciding what to eat. I hate having to settle on a single dish. <!--more-->\n\nI love the use of olive oil and the different kinds of olives in Greece. I regularly order seafood when in Thasos because it seems like the thing to do--being on an island and all. Oh and when in Greece, a girl must order a Greek salad. This said, I like Greek food, I am just not 100% sure what makes it <em>real</em> Greek food--what makes it authentic.\n\nAnyhow enough on my vague musings on Greek food.\n\nA. and I ended up ordering a few dishes to share. We began with two starters--a salmon spread (or at least I think it was salmon) and fried zucchini with a yogurt dill sauce.  This was followed by homemade pasta with seafood.\n\nI was really happy with everything. Truthfully I was afraid that the salmon spread was going to be too fishy for me but it was anything but. <em>Phew</em>. In fact, I liked it a lot and I\'d definitely order it again.\n\nThe fried zucchini was less interesting. The zucchini had been sliced very thinly into zucchini-coins and as such when they were fried there was more batter on the rounds off zucchini than vegetable. A. was distinctly disappointed and said something to the effect of: in Greece they never cut them into rounds--usually they are strips. Based on what I\'ve seen and eaten in Greece this is true and given the batter to zucchini ratio there was very little zucchini in each bite to taste.\n\nOh well, these things happen.\n\nThe homemade pasta and seafood dish was tasty. The pasta was great and the seafood sauce was seafood heavy but this was nicely balanced with tomatotos','Greek food in Sofia at Art Kitchen','','inherit','open','open','','7305-revision','','','2012-11-11 22:39:58','2012-11-11 20:39:58','',7305,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/11/7305-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7307,1,'2012-11-12 07:10:47','2012-11-12 05:10:47','A couple of weeks ago, A. and I went to Art Kitchen a new Greek restaurant in Sofia. We liked it.\n\nI thought that A. read about the restaurant in<a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/\" target=\"_blank\"> Programata</a> but when I look at Programata there doesn\'t seem to be a review of the restaurant nor would one know that Art Kitchen serves Greek food as the only thing on the <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6897\" target=\"_blank\">Programata website under Art Kitchen</a> is an address and phone number.  So I assume that A. heard about the restaurant some other way.\n<a title=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176279186/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8065/8176279186_4aa4562212_z.jpg\" alt=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI am not super familiar with Greek food. I\'ve been to Thasos a couple of times and I\'ve been to Thessaloniki three or four times. I like what I\'ve eaten when in Greece but much of the food seems to share pretty strong ties to Bulgarian food. I\'d point to the yogurt, the cheese, a love of dill as a spice and garlic as a kitchen staple to make my case. Sure there are differences but on a whole Greek food isn\'t shockingly different from Bulgarian food.\n<a title=\"Mythos beer at Art Kitchen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176276886/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8344/8176276886_07a4b33de2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Mythos beer at Art Kitchen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nBut Art Kitchen got off to a great start with Mythos beer and a fairly concise menu.\n\nI really appreciate it when a menu is a manageable size to read through and when there aren\'t too many choices. First, this signals to me that they take their food seriously and that are happy to focus on preparing a few dishes well rather than trying to do everything poorly and second, it makes it that much easier for me to figure out what to order.\n\nI always struggle when it comes to deciding what to eat. I hate having to settle on a single dish. <!--more-->\n\nI love the use of olive oil and the different kinds of olives in Greece. I regularly order seafood when in Thasos because it seems like the thing to do--being on an island and all. Oh and when in Greece, a girl must order a Greek salad. This said, I like Greek food, I am just not 100% sure what makes it <em>real</em> Greek food--what makes it authentic.\n\nAnyhow enough on my vague musings on Greek food.\n\nA. and I ended up ordering a few dishes to share. We began with two starters--a salmon spread (or at least I think it was salmon) and fried zucchini with a yogurt dill sauce.  This was followed by homemade pasta with seafood.\n<a title=\"Salmon (?) spread at Art Kitchen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176284570/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8060/8176284570_a2c9e02e0d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Salmon (?) spread at Art Kitchen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI was really happy with everything. Truthfully I was afraid that the salmon spread was going to be too fishy for me but it was anything but. <em>Phew</em>. In fact, I liked it a lot and I\'d definitely order it again.\n\nThe fried zucchini was less interesting. The zucchini had been sliced very thinly into zucchini-coins and as such when they were fried there was more batter on the rounds off zucchini than vegetable. A. was distinctly disappointed and said something to the effect of: in Greece they never cut them into rounds--usually they are strips. Based on what I\'ve seen and eaten in Greece, this is true and given the batter to zucchini ratio there was very little zucchini in each bite which made the dish rather uninteresting.\n<a title=\"Fried zucchini at Art Kitchen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176252567/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8176252567_479c1665ba_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fried zucchini at Art Kitchen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nOh well, these things happen.\n\nThe homemade pasta and seafood dish was tasty. The pasta was great and the seafood sauce was seafood heavy but this was nicely balanced with tomatoes and garlic.\n<a title=\"Homemade pasta and seafood at Art Kichen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176256011/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8176256011_8fc951974f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Homemade pasta and seafood at Art Kichen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI am not sure that this dish is really Greece but it was tasty and in my book that\'s what really matters.\n<a title=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176248463/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8176248463_f610981674_z.jpg\" alt=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI\'d recommend this restaurant if your looking for something a little different in downtown Sofia. Art Kitchen is at the corner of Yanko Sakazov and Krakra. It\'s number 20 Yanko Sakazov and it\'s down two blocks from the Vasil Levski roundabout monument (бул. Янко Сакъзов 20  and ул. Кракра).','Greek food in Sofia at Art Kitchen','','inherit','open','open','','7305-revision-2','','','2012-11-12 07:10:47','2012-11-12 05:10:47','',7305,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/12/7305-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7308,1,'2012-11-12 09:44:20','2012-11-12 07:44:20','A couple of weeks ago, A. and I went to Art Kitchen a new Greek restaurant in Sofia. We liked it.\n\nI thought that A. read about the restaurant in<a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/\" target=\"_blank\"> Programata</a> but when I look at Programata there doesn\'t seem to be a review of the restaurant nor would one know that Art Kitchen serves Greek food as the only thing on the <a href=\"http://www.programata.bg/?p=71&amp;l=2&amp;c=1&amp;id=6897\" target=\"_blank\">Programata website under Art Kitchen</a> is an address and phone number.  So I assume that A. heard about the restaurant some other way.\n<a title=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176279186/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8065/8176279186_4aa4562212_z.jpg\" alt=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI am not super familiar with Greek food. I\'ve been to Thasos a couple of times and I\'ve been to Thessaloniki three or four times. I like what I\'ve eaten when in Greece but much of the food seems to share pretty strong ties to Bulgarian food. I\'d point to the yogurt, the cheese, a love of dill as a spice and garlic as a kitchen staple to make my case. Sure there are differences but on a whole Greek food isn\'t shockingly different from Bulgarian food.\n<a title=\"Mythos beer at Art Kitchen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176276886/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8344/8176276886_07a4b33de2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Mythos beer at Art Kitchen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nBut Art Kitchen got off to a great start with Mythos beer and a fairly concise menu.\n\nI really appreciate it when a menu is a manageable size to read through and when there aren\'t too many choices. First, this signals to me that they take their food seriously and that are happy to focus on preparing a few dishes well rather than trying to do everything poorly and second, it makes it that much easier for me to figure out what to order.\n\nI always struggle when it comes to deciding what to eat. I hate having to settle on a single dish. <!--more-->\n\nI love the use of olive oil and the different kinds of olives in Greece. I regularly order seafood when in Thasos because it seems like the thing to do--being on an island and all. Oh and when in Greece, a girl must order a Greek salad. This said, I like Greek food, I am just not 100% sure what makes it <em>real</em> Greek food--what makes it authentic.\n\nAnyhow enough on my vague musings on Greek food.\n\nA. and I ended up ordering a few dishes to share. We began with two starters--a salmon spread (or at least I think it was salmon) and fried zucchini with a yogurt dill sauce.  This was followed by homemade pasta with seafood.\n<a title=\"Salmon (?) spread at Art Kitchen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176284570/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8060/8176284570_a2c9e02e0d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Salmon (?) spread at Art Kitchen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI was really happy with everything. Truthfully I was afraid that the salmon spread was going to be too fishy for me but it was anything but. <em>Phew</em>. In fact, I liked it a lot and I\'d definitely order it again.\n\nThe fried zucchini was less interesting. The zucchini had been sliced very thinly into zucchini-coins and as such when they were fried there was more batter on the rounds off zucchini than vegetable. A. was distinctly disappointed and said something to the effect of: in Greece they never cut them into rounds--usually they are strips. Based on what I\'ve seen and eaten in Greece, this is true and given the batter to zucchini ratio there was very little zucchini in each bite which made the dish rather uninteresting.\n<a title=\"Fried zucchini at Art Kitchen by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176252567/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8176252567_479c1665ba_z.jpg\" alt=\"Fried zucchini at Art Kitchen\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nOh well, these things happen.\n\nThe homemade pasta and seafood dish was tasty. The pasta was great and the seafood sauce was seafood heavy but this was nicely balanced with tomatoes and garlic. It\'s the kind of dish I\'d like to make for myself at home but I never do because it seems like too much work and never cook seafood for myself.\n\nIn the end, I am not sure that this dish is really Greece but it was tasty and in my book that\'s what matters.\n<a title=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8176248463/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8176248463_f610981674_z.jpg\" alt=\"Art Kitchen in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nAll in all, I thought the restaurant was cute and felt like a little piece of Greece in Sofia. For the most part the food was good and the service was excellent. I did feel bad that there weren\'t more people eating there.\n\nA. and I had an early dinner at about 5:30 or 6pm but we stayed for drinks until nearly 8pm and for the majority of the time we were the only people there. I think about 7:30pm another couple showed up but for the most part the restaurant was empty. I hope that they are able to make a niche for themselves in Sofia because I really did like the food and vibe of the restaurant.\n\nI\'d recommend this restaurant if your looking for something a little different in downtown Sofia. Art Kitchen is at the corner of Yanko Sakazov and Krakra. It\'s number 20 Yanko Sakazov and it\'s down two blocks from the Vasil Levski roundabout monument (бул. Янко Сакъзов 20  and ул. Кракра).','Greek food in Sofia at Art Kitchen','','inherit','open','open','','7305-revision-3','','','2012-11-12 09:44:20','2012-11-12 07:44:20','',7305,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/12/7305-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7310,1,'2012-11-20 21:02:51','2012-11-20 19:02:51','I\'ve been MIA recently. I\'ve been dreaming up blog pictures, I\'ve been taking pictures, I\'ve been collecting stories to tell and then I get home, look at my computer but ignore it to crawl into my bed and fall asleep instead.\n\nIt\'s been busy.\n\n&lt;a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8203915072/\" title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"&gt;&lt;img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8203915072_611a341505_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" alt=\"Untitled\"&gt;&lt;/a&gt;\n\nThe quarter ended at school this past week and I had a lot grading to do, comments to write and in the middle of the whole thing I also made stuffing for 200 people for our school\'s annual Thanksgiving dinner.\n\nNeedless to say, I didn\'t have a spare minute to breath let along blog. Somehow I did find the time to download <a href=\"https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dama.papercamera&amp;hl=en\" target=\"_blank\">a new app paper camera</a> and play around with it. That\'s what these pictures are.\n\nBut back to the fact that I really haven\'t had any free time in over a week. Really, none at all.\n\n<!--more-->\n\nHeck, I\'ve been doing laundry at 10pm at night these days and I hate doing laundry during the week. I prefer to laundry on Saturdays. It makes me feel productive. Anyhow, one day last week I had to because I was nearly out of socks and underwear. The other just because my pile of clothes was preventing me from closing my closet door. <em>Ug</em>.\n\nAnyhow, now I\'ve got clean clothes <em>and</em> I matched up all of my socks.\n\nOh and not to brag or anything but there\'s food in my fridge<em> and</em> I\'ve been eating turkey sandwiches for dinner (here\'s to Thanksgiving leftovers).  I did go without milk in my coffee for three days but I remedied this situation this evening after work.\n\nThat of course was after I finalized first quarter grades for my students and wrote personal comments for each of them. Thankfully that\'s done.\n\nTomorrow\'s looking up already. Coffee + mi\n\nThe best thing about this week is that my American school in Bulgaria celebrates Thanksgiving and we\'ve got a four day weekend. Really, how lucky am I?\n\nI\'m not really going anywhere this year and frankly I couldn\'t be happier about the prospect of me, my couch and my kindle. I might go downtown for a coffee at some point or maybe to do some shopping or exploring but mostly I\'m looking forward to relaxing and wearing my pjs until inappropriately late in the morning.\n\nI\'ve also daydreamed about making a pumpkin pie but I don\'t want to be too ambitious. This said, I think on vacation it\'s okay to eat pumpkin pie mid-morning in your pjs  and then to wash it all down with a strong cup of coffee and that sounds pretty wonderful to me. That in fact might be the perfect way to celebrate Thanksgiving.','MIA for a week or so','','inherit','open','open','','7309-revision','','','2012-11-20 21:02:51','2012-11-20 19:02:51','',7309,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/20/7309-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7311,1,'2012-11-20 21:03:51','2012-11-20 19:03:51','I\'ve been MIA recently. I\'ve been dreaming up blog pictures, I\'ve been taking pictures, I\'ve been collecting stories to tell and then I get home, look at my computer but ignore it to crawl into my bed and fall asleep instead.\n\nIt\'s been busy. Busy, busy.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8203915072/\" title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8203915072_611a341505_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" alt=\"Untitled\"></a>\n\nThe quarter ended at school this past week and I had a lot grading to do, comments to write and in the middle of the whole thinI also made stuffing for 200 people for our school\'s annual Thanksgiving dinner.\n\nNeedless to say, I didn\'t have a spare minute to breath let along blog. Somehow I did find the time to download <a href=\"https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dama.papercamera&amp;hl=en\" target=\"_blank\">a new app paper camera</a> and play around with it. That\'s what these pictures are.\n\nBut back to the fact that I really haven\'t had any free time in over a week. Really, none at all.\n\n<!--more-->\n\nHeck, I\'ve been doing laundry at 10pm at night these days and I hate doing laundry during the week. I prefer to laundry on Saturdays. It makes me feel productive. Anyhow, one day last week I had to because I was nearly out of socks and underwear. The other just because my pile of clothes was preventing me from closing my closet door. <em>Ug</em>.\n\nAnyhow, now I\'ve got clean clothes <em>and</em> I matched up all of my socks.\n\nOh and not to brag or anything but there\'s food in my fridge<em> and</em> I\'ve been eating turkey sandwiches for dinner (here\'s to Thanksgiving leftovers).  I did go without milk in my coffee for three days but I remedied this situation this evening after work.\n\nThat of course was after I finalized first quarter grades for my students and wrote personal comments for each of them. Thankfully that\'s done.\n\nTomorrow\'s looking up already. Coffee + milk and no more grading/commenting writing? Yes please.\n\nThe best thing about this week is that my American school in Bulgaria celebrates Thanksgiving and we\'ve got a four day weekend. Really, how lucky am I?\n\nI\'m not really going anywhere this year and frankly I couldn\'t be happier about the prospect of me, my couch and my kindle. I might go downtown for a coffee at some point or maybe to do some shopping or exploring but mostly I\'m looking forward to relaxing and wearing my pjs until inappropriately late in the morning.\n\nI\'ve also daydreamed about making a pumpkin pie but I don\'t want to be too ambitious. This said, I think on vacation it\'s okay to eat pumpkin pie mid-morning in your pjs  and then to wash it all down with a strong cup of coffee and that sounds pretty wonderful to me. That in fact might be the perfect way to celebrate Thanksgiving.','MIA for a week or so','','inherit','open','open','','7309-revision-2','','','2012-11-20 21:03:51','2012-11-20 19:03:51','',7309,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/20/7309-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7312,1,'2012-11-20 21:06:06','2012-11-20 19:06:06','I\'ve been MIA recently. I\'ve been dreaming up blog pictures, I\'ve been taking pictures, I\'ve been collecting stories to tell and then I get home, look at my computer but ignore it to crawl into my bed and fall asleep instead.\r\n\r\nIt\'s been busy. Busy, busy.\r\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8203915072/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8203915072_611a341505_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\r\n\r\nThe quarter ended at school this past week and I had a lot grading to do, comments to write and in the middle of the whole thinI also made stuffing for 200 people for our school\'s annual Thanksgiving dinner.\r\n\r\nNeedless to say, I didn\'t have a spare minute to breath let along blog. Somehow I did find the time to download <a href=\"https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dama.papercamera&amp;hl=en\" target=\"_blank\">a new app paper camera</a> and play around with it. That\'s what these pictures are.\r\n\r\nBut back to the fact that I really haven\'t had any free time in over a week. Really, none at all.\r\n\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\nHeck, I\'ve been doing laundry at 10pm at night these days and I hate doing laundry during the week. I prefer to laundry on Saturdays. It makes me feel productive. Anyhow, one day last week I had to because I was nearly out of socks and underwear. The other just because my pile of clothes was preventing me from closing my closet door. <em>Ug</em>.\r\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8202751915/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8197/8202751915_dfbd3154fb_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow, now I\'ve got clean clothes <em>and</em> I matched up all of my socks.\r\n\r\nOh and not to brag or anything but there\'s food in my fridge<em> and</em> I\'ve been eating turkey sandwiches for dinner (here\'s to Thanksgiving leftovers).  I did go without milk in my coffee for three days but I remedied this situation this evening after work.\r\n\r\nThat of course was after I finalized first quarter grades for my students and wrote personal comments for each of them. Thankfully that\'s done.\r\n\r\nTomorrow\'s looking up already. Coffee + milk and no more grading/commenting writing? Yes please.\r\n<a title=\"Popa in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8191846181/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8191846181_91d273eca0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Popa in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\r\nThe best thing about this week is that my American school in Bulgaria celebrates Thanksgiving and we\'ve got a four day weekend. Really, how lucky am I?\r\n\r\nI\'m not really going anywhere this year and frankly I couldn\'t be happier about the prospect of me, my couch and my kindle. I might go downtown for a coffee at some point or maybe to do some shopping or exploring but mostly I\'m looking forward to relaxing and wearing my pjs until inappropriately late in the morning.\r\n\r\nI\'ve also daydreamed about making a pumpkin pie but I don\'t want to be too ambitious. This said, I think on vacation it\'s okay to eat pumpkin pie mid-morning in your pjs  and then to wash it all down with a strong cup of coffee and that sounds pretty wonderful to me. That in fact might be the perfect way to celebrate Thanksgiving.','MIA for a week or so','','inherit','open','open','','7309-revision-3','','','2012-11-20 21:06:06','2012-11-20 19:06:06','',7309,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/20/7309-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7313,1,'2012-11-20 21:13:11','2012-11-20 19:13:11','I\'ve been MIA recently. No actually, I haven\'t been missing at all, I\'ve been hanging out at school, logging lots of hours at my desk and meeting the night guards at school. They\'re a really nice bunch.\n\nI wish that I\'d been gallivanting around the city--dreaming up blog pots,  taking pictures and collecting stories to tell but this has been anything but the case. Nope it\'s been school, home and back to school again for the last week. I get home, look at my computer but ignore it in order to crawl into bed and fall asleep instead. Only to wake up and do the whole thing over again the next day.\n\nIt\'s been busy. Busy, busy.\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8203915072/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8203915072_611a341505_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\n\nThe quarter ended at school this past week and I had a lot grading to do, comments to write and in the middle of the whole thing I also made stuffing for 200 people for our school\'s annual Thanksgiving dinner.\n\nNeedless to say, I didn\'t have a spare minute to breath let along blog. Somehow I did find the time to download <a href=\"https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dama.papercamera&amp;hl=en\" target=\"_blank\">a new app paper camera</a> and play around with it. That\'s what these pictures are.\n\nBut back to the fact that I haven\'t had any free time in over a week. Really, none at all.\n\n<!--more-->\n\nHeck, I\'ve been doing laundry at 10pm at night these days and I hate doing laundry during the week. I prefer to laundry on Saturdays. It makes me feel productive. Anyhow, one day last week I had to because I was nearly out of socks and underwear. The other just because my pile of clothes was preventing me from closing my closet door. <em>Ug</em>.\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8202751915/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8197/8202751915_dfbd3154fb_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\nAnyhow, now I\'ve got clean clothes <em>and</em> I matched up all of my socks.\n\nOh and not to brag or anything but there\'s food in my fridge<em> and</em> I\'ve been eating turkey sandwiches for dinner (here\'s to Thanksgiving leftovers).  I did go without milk in my coffee for three days but I remedied this situation this evening after work.\n\nThat of course was after I finalized first quarter grades for my students and wrote personal comments for each of them. Thankfully that\'s done.\n\nTomorrow\'s looking up already. Coffee + milk and no more grading/commenting writing? Yes please.\n<a title=\"Popa in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8191846181/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8191846181_91d273eca0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Popa in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\nThe best thing about this week is that my American school in Bulgaria celebrates Thanksgiving and we\'ve got a four day weekend. Really, how lucky am I?\n\nI\'m not really going anywhere this year and frankly I couldn\'t be happier about the prospect of me, my couch and my kindle. I might go downtown for a coffee at some point or maybe to do some shopping or exploring but mostly I\'m looking forward to relaxing and wearing my pjs until inappropriately late in the morning.\n\nI\'ve also daydreamed about making a pumpkin pie but I don\'t want to be too ambitious. This said, I think on vacation it\'s okay to eat pumpkin pie mid-morning in your pjs  and then to wash it all down with a strong cup of coffee and that sounds pretty wonderful to me. That in fact might be the perfect way to celebrate Thanksgiving.','School, home, sc','','inherit','open','open','','7309-revision-4','','','2012-11-20 21:13:11','2012-11-20 19:13:11','',7309,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/20/7309-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7314,1,'2012-11-20 21:14:44','2012-11-20 19:14:44','I\'ve been MIA recently. No actually, I haven\'t been missing at all, I\'ve been hanging out at school, logging lots of hours at my desk and meeting the night guards at school. They\'re a really nice bunch.\n\nI wish that I\'d been gallivanting around the city--dreaming up blog pots,  taking pictures and collecting stories to tell but this has been anything but the case. Nope it\'s been school, home and back to school again for the last week. I get home, look at my computer but ignore it in order to crawl into bed and fall asleep instead. Only to wake up and do the whole thing over again the next day.\n\nIt\'s been busy. Busy, busy.\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8203915072/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8203915072_611a341505_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\n\nThe quarter ended at school this past week and I had a lot grading to do, comments to write and in the middle of the whole thing I also made stuffing for 200 people for our school\'s annual Thanksgiving dinner.\n\nNeedless to say, I didn\'t have a spare minute to breath let along blog. Somehow I did find the time to download <a href=\"https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dama.papercamera&amp;hl=en\" target=\"_blank\">a new app paper camera</a> and play around with it. That\'s what these pictures are.\n\nBut back to the fact that I haven\'t had any free time in over a week. Really, none at all.\n\n<!--more-->\n\nHeck, I\'ve been doing laundry at 10pm at night these days and I hate doing laundry during the week. I prefer to laundry on Saturdays. It makes me feel productive. Anyhow, one day last week I had to because I was nearly out of socks and underwear. The other just because my pile of clothes was preventing me from closing my closet door. <em>Ug</em>.\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8202751915/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8197/8202751915_dfbd3154fb_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\nAnyhow, now I\'ve got clean clothes <em>and</em> I matched up all of my socks.\n\nOh and not to brag or anything but there\'s food in my fridge<em> and</em> I\'ve been eating turkey sandwiches for dinner (here\'s to Thanksgiving leftovers).  I did go without milk in my coffee for three days but I remedied this situation this evening after work.\n\nThat of course was after I finalized first quarter grades for my students and wrote personal comments for each of them. Thankfully that\'s done.\n\nTomorrow\'s looking up already. Coffee + milk and no more grading/commenting writing? Yes please.\n<a title=\"Popa in Sofia by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8191846181/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8191846181_91d273eca0_z.jpg\" alt=\"Popa in Sofia\" width=\"640\" height=\"479\" /></a>\nThe best thing about this week is that my American school in Bulgaria celebrates Thanksgiving and we\'ve got a four day weekend. Really, how lucky am I?\n\nI\'m not really going anywhere this year and frankly I couldn\'t be happier about the prospect of me, my couch and my kindle. I might go downtown for a coffee at some point or maybe to do some shopping or exploring but mostly I\'m looking forward to relaxing and wearing my pjs until inappropriately late in the morning.\n\nI\'ve also daydreamed about making a pumpkin pie but I don\'t want to be too ambitious. This said, I think on vacation it\'s okay to eat pumpkin pie mid-morning in your pjs  and then to wash it all down with a strong cup of coffee and that sounds pretty wonderful to me. That in fact might be the perfect way to celebrate Thanksgiving.','School, home, school','','inherit','open','open','','7309-autosave','','','2012-11-20 21:14:44','2012-11-20 19:14:44','',7309,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/20/7309-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7316,1,'2012-11-22 22:14:38','2012-11-22 20:14:38','Even though today is Thanksgiving in the States, I celebrated Thanksgiving last weekend at school. It\'s a long standing tradition for international ACS teachers to make a full Thanksgiving dinner for all of the teachers at school and their families.\r\n\r\nIt\'s a really wonderful way for us to express our thanks for all that our Bulgarian colleagues do to help us acclimate to the routines at school and to feel comfortable in not only Sofia but Bulgaria as a whole.\r\n<a title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209547052/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8209547052_ceb61e83a0_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nWe had great fun last weekend--crazy stressful fun. It\'s a lot of work to make Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people in our antiquated school kitchen but we did it and that kind of makes you feel like you can do anything. Anything.\r\n\r\nIt also makes you extremely thankful that you don\'t have to make lunch for students and staff each day.\r\n\r\n<a title=\"Me and the stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209558240/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8209558240_5c852846a6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and the stuffing\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nJust to give the whole thing a little perspective, we cooked 28 turkeys. Normal people of course only cook <em>one</em>. And one take a decent amount of work and a fair amount of worrying. <em>28?!</em> Well I am not really sure how P. does it but this was his second year and he was great!!\r\n\r\nNeedless to say, normal people don\'t think that making Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people and think it\'s a good idea but we do. <!--more-->\r\n\r\nThe thing is, this is my fourth year cooking Thanksgiving dinner at ACS and I have to say, I know it\'s a lot of work but I apparently have a good selective memory so I never remember<em> exactly</em> how much work it is. Frankly, it\'s probably for the best.\r\n<a title=\"Stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209559388/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8209559388_49929257e5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Stuffing\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nFriday night the day before our Thanksgiving party,as I was staring down 15 loaves of bread that I need to rip up into squares to make stuffing I wondered why on earth I thought making stuffing for this many people was a good idea. This was before--I even started thinking about getting started on the onions, apples, celery, garlic and other spices that get mixed into the stuffing. Luckily prepping this much food goes a lot faster with friends.\r\n\r\nAnd really the whole thing is worth it the day of the party.\r\n<a title=\"Turkey by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208466599/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8208466599_f4aa1870b6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Turkey\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"The Kitchen at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209555516/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8481/8209555516_b91a99d25d_z.jpg\" alt=\"The Kitchen at ACS\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nUltimately, everything went really smoothly. All of the turkeys were stuffed with my stuffing leaving only to pans to heat up on Saturday. Easy-peasy.\r\n<a title=\"P. and his turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209551282/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8209551282_db1f0b9cb8_z.jpg\" alt=\"P. and his turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Thanksgiving turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208462173/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8208462173_c37431759b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Thanksgiving turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Carving the Turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209550008/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8209550008_8b82a083ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Carving the Turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"My plate at Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549688/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8209549688_90f9322583_z.jpg\" alt=\"My plate at Thanksgiving\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe served dinner to everyone and then we ate with our friends and colleagues. Everyone was so kind--wishing the international teachers a Happy Thanksgiving and telling us how great the food was.\r\n\r\nThe one thing is when a Bulgarian wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving, how\'s a girl supposed to respond? I ended up just replying with some variation on Thank-you because it seemed weird to say: Happy Thanksgiving to you too!\r\n<a title=\"Thanksgiving Dinner by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549420/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8209549420_df7d785fd3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Thanksgiving Dinner\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nAfter everyone had eaten and had gone back for seconds, we played a Thanksgiving trivia game and then we did some dancing. This included both pop music and traditional Bulgarian music. Our Thanksgiving is probably the only one that also includes dancing the horo!!\r\n<a title=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208458357/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8208458357_4317272639_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208455913/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8208455913_7fdf13ba4f_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere was fair amount of food left so after the party, I filled up some tupperware containers and I\'ve been happily eating Thanksgiving leftovers all week.  Here\'s to turkey sandwiches and homemade cranberry sauce.\r\n<a title=\"candy turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209588294/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8209588294_ef30237078_z.jpg\" alt=\"candy turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Turkey-scape by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208499739/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8480/8208499739_f6ea952b64_z.jpg\" alt=\"Turkey-scape\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nI am happy to report that there was very little stuffing left at the end of the night. Turns out the fourth year is a charm! I finally made enough but not too much. It\'s nice to finally get it right.','A Day of Thanksgiving! ','','publish','open','open','','a-day-of-thanksgiving','','','2012-11-22 22:14:38','2012-11-22 20:14:38','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7316',0,'post','',1),(7317,1,'2012-11-22 21:53:52','2012-11-22 19:53:52','Even though today is Thanksgiving in the States, I celebrated Thanksgiving last weekend.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209547052/\" title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8209547052_ceb61e83a0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208458357/\" title=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8208458357_4317272639_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving\"></a>\nWe had great fun last weekend. Sure it\'s a lot of work to make Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people in an antiquated school kitchen but we did it and that kind of makes you feel like you can do anything.\n\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209558240/\" title=\"Me and the stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8209558240_5c852846a6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me and the stuffing\"></a>Just to give the whole thing a little perspective, we cooked 28 turkeys. Normal people of course only cook one. Then again normal people don\'t think that making Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people is a good idea.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209559388/\" title=\"Stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8209559388_49929257e5_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Stuffing\"></a>\nFriday night the day before our Thanksgiving party, I didn\'t think it was such a good idea as I was staring down 15 loaves of bread that I need to rip up into squares to make stuffing--something I needed to do before I could even think about getting started on the onions, apples, celery, garlic and other spices that get mixed into the stuffing. Luckily prepping this much food goes a lot faster with friends.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208466599/\" title=\"Turkey by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8208466599_f4aa1870b6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Turkey\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209555516/\" title=\"The Kitchen at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8481/8209555516_b91a99d25d_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The Kitchen at ACS\"></a>\nUltimately, everything went really smoothly. All of the turkeys were stuffed with my stuffing leaving only to pans to heat up on Saturday. Easy-peasy.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209551282/\" title=\"P. and his turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8209551282_db1f0b9cb8_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"P. and his turkeys\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208462173/\" title=\"Thanksgiving turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8208462173_c37431759b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Thanksgiving turkeys\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209550008/\" title=\"Carving the Turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8209550008_8b82a083ca_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Carving the Turkeys\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549688/\" title=\"My plate at Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8209549688_90f9322583_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"My plate at Thanksgiving\"></a>\nWe served dinner, ate with our friends and colleagues. Everyone was so kind--wishing the international teachers a Happy Thanksgiving and telling us how great the food was. \n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549420/\" title=\"Thanksgiving Dinner by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8209549420_df7d785fd3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Thanksgiving Dinner\"></a>\nWe played a Thanksgiving trivia game and then we did some dancing. This included both pop music and traditional Bulgarian music. Our Thanksgiving is probably the only one that also includes dancing the horo!!\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208455913/\" title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8208455913_7fdf13ba4f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\"></a>\nThere was fair amount of food left so after the party, I filled up some tupperware containers and I\'ve been happily eating Thanksgiving leftovers all week.  Here\'s to turkey sandwiches and homemade cranberry sauce.\n\nI am happy to report that there was very little stuffing left at the end of the night. Turns out the fourth year is a charm! I finally made enough but not too much. It\'s nice to finally get it right.','A Day of Thanksgiving! ','','inherit','open','open','','7316-revision','','','2012-11-22 21:53:52','2012-11-22 19:53:52','',7316,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/22/7316-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7319,1,'2012-11-22 21:56:10','2012-11-22 19:56:10','Even though today is Thanksgiving in the States, I celebrated Thanksgiving last weekend.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209547052/\" title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8209547052_ceb61e83a0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\"></a>\n\nWe had great fun last weekend. Sure it\'s a lot of work to make Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people in an antiquated school kitchen but we did it and that kind of makes you feel like you can do anything.\n\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209558240/\" title=\"Me and the stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8209558240_5c852846a6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me and the stuffing\"></a>Just to give the whole thing a little perspective, we cooked 28 turkeys. Normal people of course only cook one. Then again normal people don\'t think that making Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people is a good idea.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209559388/\" title=\"Stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8209559388_49929257e5_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Stuffing\"></a>\nFriday night the day before our Thanksgiving party, I didn\'t think it was such a good idea as I was staring down 15 loaves of bread that I need to rip up into squares to make stuffing--something I needed to do before I could even think about getting started on the onions, apples, celery, garlic and other spices that get mixed into the stuffing. Luckily prepping this much food goes a lot faster with friends.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208466599/\" title=\"Turkey by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8208466599_f4aa1870b6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Turkey\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209555516/\" title=\"The Kitchen at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8481/8209555516_b91a99d25d_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The Kitchen at ACS\"></a>\nUltimately, everything went really smoothly. All of the turkeys were stuffed with my stuffing leaving only to pans to heat up on Saturday. Easy-peasy.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209551282/\" title=\"P. and his turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8209551282_db1f0b9cb8_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"P. and his turkeys\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208462173/\" title=\"Thanksgiving turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8208462173_c37431759b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Thanksgiving turkeys\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209550008/\" title=\"Carving the Turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8209550008_8b82a083ca_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Carving the Turkeys\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549688/\" title=\"My plate at Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8209549688_90f9322583_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"My plate at Thanksgiving\"></a>\nWe served dinner, ate with our friends and colleagues. Everyone was so kind--wishing the international teachers a Happy Thanksgiving and telling us how great the food was. \n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549420/\" title=\"Thanksgiving Dinner by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8209549420_df7d785fd3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Thanksgiving Dinner\"></a>\nWe played a Thanksgiving trivia game and then we did some dancing. This included both pop music and traditional Bulgarian music. Our Thanksgiving is probably the only one that also includes dancing the horo!!\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208458357/\" title=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8208458357_4317272639_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208455913/\" title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8208455913_7fdf13ba4f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\"></a>\nThere was fair amount of food left so after the party, I filled up some tupperware containers and I\'ve been happily eating Thanksgiving leftovers all week.  Here\'s to turkey sandwiches and homemade cranberry sauce.\n\nI am happy to report that there was very little stuffing left at the end of the night. Turns out the fourth year is a charm! I finally made enough but not too much. It\'s nice to finally get it right.','A Day of Thanksgiving! ','','inherit','open','open','','7316-revision-3','','','2012-11-22 21:56:10','2012-11-22 19:56:10','',7316,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/22/7316-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7318,1,'2012-11-22 21:54:07','2012-11-22 19:54:07','Even though today is Thanksgiving in the States, I celebrated Thanksgiving last weekend.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209547052/\" title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8209547052_ceb61e83a0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208458357/\" title=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8208458357_4317272639_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving\"></a>\r\nWe had great fun last weekend. Sure it\'s a lot of work to make Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people in an antiquated school kitchen but we did it and that kind of makes you feel like you can do anything.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209558240/\" title=\"Me and the stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8209558240_5c852846a6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me and the stuffing\"></a>Just to give the whole thing a little perspective, we cooked 28 turkeys. Normal people of course only cook one. Then again normal people don\'t think that making Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people is a good idea.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209559388/\" title=\"Stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8209559388_49929257e5_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Stuffing\"></a>\r\nFriday night the day before our Thanksgiving party, I didn\'t think it was such a good idea as I was staring down 15 loaves of bread that I need to rip up into squares to make stuffing--something I needed to do before I could even think about getting started on the onions, apples, celery, garlic and other spices that get mixed into the stuffing. Luckily prepping this much food goes a lot faster with friends.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208466599/\" title=\"Turkey by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8208466599_f4aa1870b6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Turkey\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209555516/\" title=\"The Kitchen at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8481/8209555516_b91a99d25d_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The Kitchen at ACS\"></a>\r\nUltimately, everything went really smoothly. All of the turkeys were stuffed with my stuffing leaving only to pans to heat up on Saturday. Easy-peasy.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209551282/\" title=\"P. and his turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8209551282_db1f0b9cb8_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"P. and his turkeys\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208462173/\" title=\"Thanksgiving turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8208462173_c37431759b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Thanksgiving turkeys\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209550008/\" title=\"Carving the Turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8209550008_8b82a083ca_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Carving the Turkeys\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549688/\" title=\"My plate at Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8209549688_90f9322583_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"My plate at Thanksgiving\"></a>\r\nWe served dinner, ate with our friends and colleagues. Everyone was so kind--wishing the international teachers a Happy Thanksgiving and telling us how great the food was. \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549420/\" title=\"Thanksgiving Dinner by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8209549420_df7d785fd3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Thanksgiving Dinner\"></a>\r\nWe played a Thanksgiving trivia game and then we did some dancing. This included both pop music and traditional Bulgarian music. Our Thanksgiving is probably the only one that also includes dancing the horo!!\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208455913/\" title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8208455913_7fdf13ba4f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\"></a>\r\nThere was fair amount of food left so after the party, I filled up some tupperware containers and I\'ve been happily eating Thanksgiving leftovers all week.  Here\'s to turkey sandwiches and homemade cranberry sauce.\r\n\r\nI am happy to report that there was very little stuffing left at the end of the night. Turns out the fourth year is a charm! I finally made enough but not too much. It\'s nice to finally get it right.','A Day of Thanksgiving! ','','inherit','open','open','','7316-revision-2','','','2012-11-22 21:54:07','2012-11-22 19:54:07','',7316,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/22/7316-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7320,1,'2012-11-22 21:58:38','2012-11-22 19:58:38','Even though today is Thanksgiving in the States, I celebrated Thanksgiving last weekend.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209547052/\" title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8209547052_ceb61e83a0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\"></a>\r\n\r\nWe had great fun last weekend. Sure it\'s a lot of work to make Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people in an antiquated school kitchen but we did it and that kind of makes you feel like you can do anything.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209558240/\" title=\"Me and the stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8209558240_5c852846a6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me and the stuffing\"></a>Just to give the whole thing a little perspective, we cooked 28 turkeys. Normal people of course only cook one. Then again normal people don\'t think that making Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people is a good idea.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209559388/\" title=\"Stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8209559388_49929257e5_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Stuffing\"></a>\r\nFriday night the day before our Thanksgiving party, I didn\'t think it was such a good idea as I was staring down 15 loaves of bread that I need to rip up into squares to make stuffing--something I needed to do before I could even think about getting started on the onions, apples, celery, garlic and other spices that get mixed into the stuffing. Luckily prepping this much food goes a lot faster with friends.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208466599/\" title=\"Turkey by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8208466599_f4aa1870b6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Turkey\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209555516/\" title=\"The Kitchen at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8481/8209555516_b91a99d25d_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The Kitchen at ACS\"></a>\r\nUltimately, everything went really smoothly. All of the turkeys were stuffed with my stuffing leaving only to pans to heat up on Saturday. Easy-peasy.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209551282/\" title=\"P. and his turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8209551282_db1f0b9cb8_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"P. and his turkeys\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208462173/\" title=\"Thanksgiving turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8208462173_c37431759b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Thanksgiving turkeys\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209550008/\" title=\"Carving the Turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8209550008_8b82a083ca_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Carving the Turkeys\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549688/\" title=\"My plate at Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8209549688_90f9322583_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"My plate at Thanksgiving\"></a>\r\nWe served dinner, ate with our friends and colleagues. Everyone was so kind--wishing the international teachers a Happy Thanksgiving and telling us how great the food was. \r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549420/\" title=\"Thanksgiving Dinner by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8209549420_df7d785fd3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Thanksgiving Dinner\"></a>\r\nWe played a Thanksgiving trivia game and then we did some dancing. This included both pop music and traditional Bulgarian music. Our Thanksgiving is probably the only one that also includes dancing the horo!!\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208458357/\" title=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8208458357_4317272639_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208455913/\" title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8208455913_7fdf13ba4f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\"></a>\r\nThere was fair amount of food left so after the party, I filled up some tupperware containers and I\'ve been happily eating Thanksgiving leftovers all week.  Here\'s to turkey sandwiches and homemade cranberry sauce.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209588294/\" title=\"candy turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8209588294_ef30237078_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"candy turkeys\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208499739/\" title=\"Turkey-scape by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8480/8208499739_f6ea952b64_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Turkey-scape\"></a>\r\nI am happy to report that there was very little stuffing left at the end of the night. Turns out the fourth year is a charm! I finally made enough but not too much. It\'s nice to finally get it right.','A Day of Thanksgiving! ','','inherit','open','open','','7316-revision-4','','','2012-11-22 21:58:38','2012-11-22 19:58:38','',7316,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/22/7316-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7321,1,'2012-11-22 22:13:43','2012-11-22 20:13:43','Even though today is Thanksgiving in the States, I celebrated Thanksgiving last weekend at school. It\'s a long standing tradition for international ACS teachers to make a full Thanksgiving dinner for all of the teachers at school and their families.\n\nIt\'s a really wonderful way for us to express our thanks for all that our Bulgarian colleagues do to help us acclimate to the routines at school and to feel comfortable in not only Sofia but Bulgaria as a whole.\n<a title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209547052/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8209547052_ceb61e83a0_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nWe had great fun last weekend--crazy stressful fun. It\'s a lot of work to make Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people in our antiquated school kitchen but we did it and that kind of makes you feel like you can do anything. Anything.\n\nIt also makes you extremely thankful that you don\'t have to make lunch for students and staff each day.\n\n<a title=\"Me and the stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209558240/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8209558240_5c852846a6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and the stuffing\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nJust to give the whole thing a little perspective, we cooked 28 turkeys. Normal people of course only cook <em>one</em>. And one take a decent amount of work and a fair amount of worrying. <em>28?!</em> Well I am not really sure how P. does it but this was his second year and he was great!!\n\nNeedless to say, normal people don\'t think that making Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people and think it\'s a good idea. The thing is, this is my fourth year cooking Thanksgiving dinner at ACS and I have to say, I know it\'s a lot of work but I apparently have a good selective memory so I never remember<em> exactly</em> how much work it is.\n<a title=\"Stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209559388/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8209559388_49929257e5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Stuffing\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nFriday night the day before our Thanksgiving party,as I was staring down 15 loaves of bread that I need to rip up into squares to make stuffing I wondered why on earth I thought making stuffing for this many people was a good idea. This was before--I even started thinking about getting started on the onions, apples, celery, garlic and other spices that get mixed into the stuffing. Luckily prepping this much food goes a lot faster with friends.\n\nAnd really the whole thing is worth it the day of the party.\n<a title=\"Turkey by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208466599/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8208466599_f4aa1870b6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Turkey\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"The Kitchen at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209555516/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8481/8209555516_b91a99d25d_z.jpg\" alt=\"The Kitchen at ACS\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nUltimately, everything went really smoothly. All of the turkeys were stuffed with my stuffing leaving only to pans to heat up on Saturday. Easy-peasy.\n<a title=\"P. and his turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209551282/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8209551282_db1f0b9cb8_z.jpg\" alt=\"P. and his turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Thanksgiving turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208462173/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8208462173_c37431759b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Thanksgiving turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Carving the Turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209550008/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8209550008_8b82a083ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Carving the Turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"My plate at Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549688/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8209549688_90f9322583_z.jpg\" alt=\"My plate at Thanksgiving\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe served dinner to everyone and then we ate with our friends and colleagues. Everyone was so kind--wishing the international teachers a Happy Thanksgiving and telling us how great the food was.\n\nThe one thing is when a Bulgarian wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving, how\'s a girl supposed to respond? I ended up just replying with some variation on Thank-you because it seemed weird to say: Happy Thanksgiving to you too!\n<a title=\"Thanksgiving Dinner by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549420/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8209549420_df7d785fd3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Thanksgiving Dinner\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nAfter everyone had eaten and had gone back for seconds, we played a Thanksgiving trivia game and then we did some dancing. This included both pop music and traditional Bulgarian music. Our Thanksgiving is probably the only one that also includes dancing the horo!!\n<a title=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208458357/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8208458357_4317272639_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208455913/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8208455913_7fdf13ba4f_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere was fair amount of food left so after the party, I filled up some tupperware containers and I\'ve been happily eating Thanksgiving leftovers all week.  Here\'s to turkey sandwiches and homemade cranberry sauce.\n<a title=\"candy turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209588294/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8209588294_ef30237078_z.jpg\" alt=\"candy turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Turkey-scape by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208499739/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8480/8208499739_f6ea952b64_z.jpg\" alt=\"Turkey-scape\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI am happy to report that there was very little stuffing left at the end of the night. Turns out the fourth year is a charm! I finally made enough but not too much. It\'s nice to finally get it right.','A Day of Thanksgiving! ','','inherit','open','open','','7316-revision-5','','','2012-11-22 22:13:43','2012-11-22 20:13:43','',7316,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/22/7316-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(7322,1,'2012-11-22 22:15:42','2012-11-22 20:15:42','Even though today is Thanksgiving in the States, I celebrated Thanksgiving last weekend at school. It\'s a long standing tradition for international ACS teachers to make a full Thanksgiving dinner for all of the teachers at school and their families.\n\nIt\'s a really wonderful way for us to express our thanks for all that our Bulgarian colleagues do to help us acclimate to the routines at school and to feel comfortable in not only Sofia but Bulgaria as a whole.\n<a title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209547052/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8209547052_ceb61e83a0_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nWe had great fun last weekend--crazy stressful fun. It\'s a lot of work to make Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people in our antiquated school kitchen but we did it and that kind of makes you feel like you can do anything. Anything.\n\nIt also makes you extremely thankful that you don\'t have to make lunch for students and staff each day.\n\n<a title=\"Me and the stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209558240/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8209558240_5c852846a6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and the stuffing\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nJust to give the whole thing a little perspective, we cooked 28 turkeys. Normal people of course only cook <em>one</em>. And one take a decent amount of work and a fair amount of worrying. <em>28?!</em> Well I am not really sure how P. does it but this was his second year and he was great!!\n\nNeedless to say, normal people don\'t think that making Thanksgiving dinner for 200+ people and think it\'s a good idea but we do. <!--more-->\n\nThe thing is, this is my fourth year cooking Thanksgiving dinner at ACS and I have to say, I know it\'s a lot of work but I apparently have a good selective memory so I never remember<em> exactly</em> how much work it is. Frankly, it\'s probably for the best.\n<a title=\"Stuffing by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209559388/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8209559388_49929257e5_z.jpg\" alt=\"Stuffing\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nFriday night the day before our Thanksgiving party,as I was staring down 15 loaves of bread that I need to rip up into squares to make stuffing I wondered why on earth I thought making stuffing for this many people was a good idea. This was before--I even started thinking about getting started on the onions, apples, celery, garlic and other spices that get mixed into the stuffing. Luckily prepping this much food goes a lot faster with friends.\n\nAnd really the whole thing is worth it the day of the party.\n<a title=\"Turkey by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208466599/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8208466599_f4aa1870b6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Turkey\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"The Kitchen at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209555516/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8481/8209555516_b91a99d25d_z.jpg\" alt=\"The Kitchen at ACS\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nUltimately, everything went really smoothly. All of the turkeys were stuffed with my stuffing leaving only to pans to heat up on Saturday. Easy-peasy.\n<a title=\"P. and his turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209551282/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8209551282_db1f0b9cb8_z.jpg\" alt=\"P. and his turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Thanksgiving turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208462173/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8208462173_c37431759b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Thanksgiving turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Carving the Turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209550008/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8209550008_8b82a083ca_z.jpg\" alt=\"Carving the Turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"My plate at Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549688/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8209549688_90f9322583_z.jpg\" alt=\"My plate at Thanksgiving\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe served dinner to everyone and then we ate with our friends and colleagues. Everyone was so kind--wishing the international teachers a Happy Thanksgiving and telling us how great the food was.\n\nThe one thing is when a Bulgarian wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving, how\'s a girl supposed to respond? I ended up just replying with some variation on Thank-you because it seemed weird to say: Happy Thanksgiving to you too!\n<a title=\"Thanksgiving Dinner by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209549420/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8341/8209549420_df7d785fd3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Thanksgiving Dinner\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nAfter everyone had eaten and had gone back for seconds, we played a Thanksgiving trivia game and then we did some dancing. This included both pop music and traditional Bulgarian music. Our Thanksgiving is probably the only one that also includes dancing the horo!!\n<a title=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208458357/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8208458357_4317272639_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rakiya and Thanksgiving\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208455913/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8064/8208455913_7fdf13ba4f_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS Thanksgiving Party\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere was fair amount of food left so after the party, I filled up some tupperware containers and I\'ve been happily eating Thanksgiving leftovers all week.  Here\'s to turkey sandwiches and homemade cranberry sauce.\n<a title=\"candy turkeys by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8209588294/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8209588294_ef30237078_z.jpg\" alt=\"candy turkeys\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Turkey-scape by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8208499739/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8480/8208499739_f6ea952b64_z.jpg\" alt=\"Turkey-scape\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nI am happy to report that there was very little stuffing left at the end of the night. Turns out the fourth year is a charm! I finally made enough but not too much. It\'s nice to finally get it right.','A Day of Thanksgiving! ','','inherit','open','open','','7316-autosave','','','2012-11-22 22:15:42','2012-11-22 20:15:42','',7316,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/22/7316-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7324,1,'2012-11-25 22:09:36','2012-11-25 20:09:36','A. and I took a little road trip this weekend. We went to five different cultural, historical and geological sites all from the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites booklet.\r\n<a title=\"Botevgrad Clock tower by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217324085/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8217324085_85b122062b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Botevgrad Clock tower\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe went to Botevgrad to see the clock tower. Interestingly the clock tower doesn\'t have a clock face but apparently it does chime on the hour. There\'s also an amazing museum in Botevgrad.\r\n<a title=\"Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217323663/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8217323663_28b8e3912a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217323145/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8207/8217323145_64a8c8995f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI know, I know. It\'s Botevgrad. This town isn\'t even mentioned in the Lonely Planet Bulgaria guidebook. How can it have a great museum? I am not sure. But as strange as it may seem,  it\'s one of the nicest museums I\'ve been to in Bulgaria.<!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218404128/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8218404128_a009e26a01_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218405290/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8345/8218405290_0f03438d0e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217322343/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8342/8217322343_fb2060dac3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nHere\'s the thing. It\'s a little museum in the old town court building. The displays are well laid out and labeled in Bulgarian and English. Oh and the museum was remodeled in 2011 so that clearly helped matters along.\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218402836/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8218402836_9b9f7dd436_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217320957/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8217320957_9c19228230_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nA site before the city of Vratsa we drove up a winding road to see a monument for Hristo Botev.  There was lots of fog which made the visibility pretty bad but it was still worth it.  On the way back to Vratsa, we stopped at a house museum for Baba Iliica. This is an attractive little house with a interesting history.\r\n<a title=\"House Museum of Baba  Iliica by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217319961/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8203/8217319961_3177a42529_z.jpg\" alt=\"House Museum of Baba  Iliica\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe stopped to get the stamp for the Hristo Botev monument but then ended up staying to hear more about Baba Iliica. It turns out that Ivan Vasov wrote a story about her that many people assume is a just that a story he imagined but in fact, the story he wrote about her grows out of a the life of a real woman--Baba Iliica. For those of you who speak Bulgarian, <a href=\"http://www.litclub.com/library/bg/vasov/bulgarka.htm\" target=\"_blank\">here\'s a link to the story</a>.\r\n<a title=\"Flowers in the house museum garden by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217319547/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8217319547_70d111ce39_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers in the house museum garden\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe watcher and keeper of the house museum was a wonderful little woman who lives across the street. When we got there, the house was locked but she spotted us and hollered at us. Then she spent a lot of time talking to A. in Bulgarian and looking at me encouragingly. At the end, she told me that it was great that I am a foreigner and that I am interested in Bulgarian history. <em>Aw</em>.\r\n<a title=\"The ticket office for the Ledenika cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218401568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8218401568_e470107652_z.jpg\" alt=\"The ticket office for the Ledenika cave\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Entrance to the Ledenika cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218401314/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8484/8218401314_9d38ed4d81_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to the Ledenika cave\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThen we headed on to a cave also near Vratsa--Ledenika. This is a big cave with lots of stairs and a lot of nooks and crannies to squeeze through. You can\'t take pictures in the cave to protect the bats and beetles who live there but that\'s okay because pictures in caves are usually pretty bad.\r\n<a title=\"Entrance to Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218400726/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8218400726_dfa9bb38c3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to Belogradchik\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nFrom the cave we drove to Belogradchik. We spent the night in Belogradchik and checked out the rocks in the morning.\r\n<a title=\"Me at Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217316719/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8217316719_df3021c010_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at Belogradchik\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik rocks and A. by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218400060/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8344/8218400060_80301aafdf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik rocks and A.\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe rocks are so great. I didn\'t know what to expect but really, wow.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218398582/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8218398582_a932c3e388_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThen we drove to the Magurata cave. This cave is well known for early cave drawings which is why we went to check it out. Here\'s the bad news, you can\'t see the drawings anymore become people drew on top of them. <em>Yuck</em>. Why do people do these things. Anyhow, this cave is really open and has the biggest stalagmite/stalactite in Bulgaria. That\'s pretty cool.\r\n<a title=\"Magurata cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218398208/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8218398208_02a5faa5b8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Magurata cave\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe then had to head back to Sofia.\r\n\r\nBut not before I bought 50 leva worth of Magura wine in the village of Rabisha. It was a busy weekend.','Botevgrad, Vratsa and Belogradchik','','publish','open','open','','botevgrad-vratsa-and-belogradchik','','','2012-11-25 22:09:36','2012-11-25 20:09:36','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7324',0,'post','',5),(7325,1,'2012-11-25 21:14:48','2012-11-25 19:14:48','A. and I took a little road trip this weekend. We went to five different cultural, historical and geological sites all from the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites booklet.\n\nWe went to Botevgrad to see the clock tower. Interestingly the clock tower doesn\'t have a clock face but apparently it does chime on the hour. There\'s also an amazing museum in Botevgrad.\n\nI know, I know. It\'s Botevgrad. This town isn\'t even mentioned in the Lonely Planet Bulgaria guidebook. How can it have a great museum? I am not sure. Here\'s the thing. It\'s a little museum in the old town court building. The displays are well laid out and labeled in Bulgarian and English.\n\nA site before the city of Vratsa we drove up a winding road to see a monument for Hristo Botev.  There was lots of fog which made the visibility pretty bad but it was still worth it.  On the way back to Vratsa, we stopped at a house museum for Baba Iliica. This is an attractive little house with a interesting history.\n\nWe stopped to get the stamp for the Hristo Botev monument but then ended up staying to hear more about Baba Iliica. It turns out that Ivan Vasov wrote a story about her that many people assume is a just that a story he imagined but in fact, the story he wrote about her grows out of a the life of a real woman--Baba Iliica. For those of you who speak Bulgarian, <a href=\"http://www.litclub.com/library/bg/vasov/bulgarka.htm\" target=\"_blank\">here\'s a link to the story</a>.\n\nThe watcher and keeper of the house museum was a wonderful little woman who lives across the street. When we got there, the house was locked but she spotted us and hollered at us. Then she spent a lot of time talking to A. in Bulgarian and looking at me encouragingly. At the end, she told me that it was great that I am a foreigner and that I am interested in Bulgarian history. <em>Aw</em>.\n\nThen we headed on to a cave also near Vratsa--Ledenika. This is a big cave with lots of stairs and a lot of nooks and crannies to squeeze through. You can\'t take pictures in the cave to protect the bats and beetles who live there but that\'s okay because pictures in caves are usually pretty bad.\n\nFrom the cave we drove to Belogradchik. We spent the night in Belogradchik and checked out the rocks in the morning.\n\nThe rocks are so great. I didn\'t know what to expect but really, wow.\n\nThen we drove to the Magurata cave. This cave is well known for early cave drawings which is why we went to check it out. Here\'s the bad news, you can\'t see the drawings anymore become people drew on top of them. <em>Yuck</em>. Why do people do these things. Anyhow, this cave is really open and has the biggest stalagmite/stalactite in Bulgaria. That\'s pretty cool.\n\nWe then had to head back to Sofia but not before I bought 50 leva worth of Magura wine in the village of Rabisha. It was a busy weekend.','Botevgrad, Vratsa and Belogradchik','','inherit','open','open','','7324-revision','','','2012-11-25 21:14:48','2012-11-25 19:14:48','',7324,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/25/7324-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7326,1,'2012-11-25 22:07:23','2012-11-25 20:07:23','A. and I took a little road trip this weekend. We went to five different cultural, historical and geological sites all from the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites booklet.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217324085/\" title=\"Botevgrad Clock tower by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8217324085_85b122062b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Botevgrad Clock tower\"></a>\nWe went to Botevgrad to see the clock tower. Interestingly the clock tower doesn\'t have a clock face but apparently it does chime on the hour. There\'s also an amazing museum in Botevgrad.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217323663/\" title=\"Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8217323663_28b8e3912a_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Botevgrad museum\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217323145/\" title=\"Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8207/8217323145_64a8c8995f_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Botevgrad museum\"></a>\nI know, I know. It\'s Botevgrad. This town isn\'t even mentioned in the Lonely Planet Bulgaria guidebook. How can it have a great museum? I am not sure. But it\'s one of the nicest museums I\'ve been to in Bulgaria. \n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218404128/\" title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8218404128_a009e26a01_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218405290/\" title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8345/8218405290_0f03438d0e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217322343/\" title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8342/8217322343_fb2060dac3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\"></a>\nHere\'s the thing. It\'s a little museum in the old town court building. The displays are well laid out and labeled in Bulgarian and English. Oh and the museum was remodeled in 2011 so that clearly helped matters along. \n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218402836/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8218402836_9b9f7dd436_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217320957/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8217320957_9c19228230_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\nA site before the city of Vratsa we drove up a winding road to see a monument for Hristo Botev.  There was lots of fog which made the visibility pretty bad but it was still worth it.  On the way back to Vratsa, we stopped at a house museum for Baba Iliica. This is an attractive little house with a interesting history.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217319961/\" title=\"House Museum of Baba  Iliica by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8203/8217319961_3177a42529_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"House Museum of Baba  Iliica\"></a>\nWe stopped to get the stamp for the Hristo Botev monument but then ended up staying to hear more about Baba Iliica. It turns out that Ivan Vasov wrote a story about her that many people assume is a just that a story he imagined but in fact, the story he wrote about her grows out of a the life of a real woman--Baba Iliica. For those of you who speak Bulgarian, <a href=\"http://www.litclub.com/library/bg/vasov/bulgarka.htm\" target=\"_blank\">here\'s a link to the story</a>.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217319547/\" title=\"Flowers in the house museum garden by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8217319547_70d111ce39_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Flowers in the house museum garden\"></a>\nThe watcher and keeper of the house museum was a wonderful little woman who lives across the street. When we got there, the house was locked but she spotted us and hollered at us. Then she spent a lot of time talking to A. in Bulgarian and looking at me encouragingly. At the end, she told me that it was great that I am a foreigner and that I am interested in Bulgarian history. <em>Aw</em>.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218401568/\" title=\"The ticket office for the Ledenika cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8218401568_e470107652_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The ticket office for the Ledenika cave\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218401314/\" title=\"Entrance to the Ledenika cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8484/8218401314_9d38ed4d81_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Entrance to the Ledenika cave\"></a>\nThen we headed on to a cave also near Vratsa--Ledenika. This is a big cave with lots of stairs and a lot of nooks and crannies to squeeze through. You can\'t take pictures in the cave to protect the bats and beetles who live there but that\'s okay because pictures in caves are usually pretty bad.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218400726/\" title=\"Entrance to Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8218400726_dfa9bb38c3_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Entrance to Belogradchik\"></a>\nFrom the cave we drove to Belogradchik. We spent the night in Belogradchik and checked out the rocks in the morning.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217316719/\" title=\"Me at Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8217316719_df3021c010_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me at Belogradchik\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218400060/\" title=\"Belogradchik rocks and A. by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8344/8218400060_80301aafdf_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Belogradchik rocks and A.\"></a>\nThe rocks are so great. I didn\'t know what to expect but really, wow.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218398582/\" title=\"Belogradchik rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8218398582_a932c3e388_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Belogradchik rocks\"></a>\nThen we drove to the Magurata cave. This cave is well known for early cave drawings which is why we went to check it out. Here\'s the bad news, you can\'t see the drawings anymore become people drew on top of them. <em>Yuck</em>. Why do people do these things. Anyhow, this cave is really open and has the biggest stalagmite/stalactite in Bulgaria. That\'s pretty cool.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218398208/\" title=\"Magurata cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8218398208_02a5faa5b8_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Magurata cave\"></a>\nWe then had to head back to Sofia but not before I bought 50 leva worth of Magura wine in the village of Rabisha. It was a busy weekend.','Botevgrad, Vratsa and Belogradchik','','inherit','open','open','','7324-revision-2','','','2012-11-25 22:07:23','2012-11-25 20:07:23','',7324,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/25/7324-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7327,1,'2012-11-25 22:08:23','2012-11-25 20:08:23','A. and I took a little road trip this weekend. We went to five different cultural, historical and geological sites all from the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites booklet.\n<a title=\"Botevgrad Clock tower by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217324085/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8217324085_85b122062b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Botevgrad Clock tower\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe went to Botevgrad to see the clock tower. Interestingly the clock tower doesn\'t have a clock face but apparently it does chime on the hour. There\'s also an amazing museum in Botevgrad.\n<a title=\"Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217323663/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8217323663_28b8e3912a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217323145/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8207/8217323145_64a8c8995f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI know, I know. It\'s Botevgrad. This town isn\'t even mentioned in the Lonely Planet Bulgaria guidebook. How can it have a great museum? I am not sure. But as strange as it may seem,  it\'s one of the nicest museums I\'ve been to in Bulgaria.<!--more-->\n<a title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218404128/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8218404128_a009e26a01_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218405290/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8345/8218405290_0f03438d0e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217322343/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8342/8217322343_fb2060dac3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nHere\'s the thing. It\'s a little museum in the old town court building. The displays are well laid out and labeled in Bulgarian and English. Oh and the museum was remodeled in 2011 so that clearly helped matters along.\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218402836/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8218402836_9b9f7dd436_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217320957/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8217320957_9c19228230_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nA site before the city of Vratsa we drove up a winding road to see a monument for Hristo Botev.  There was lots of fog which made the visibility pretty bad but it was still worth it.  On the way back to Vratsa, we stopped at a house museum for Baba Iliica. This is an attractive little house with a interesting history.\n<a title=\"House Museum of Baba  Iliica by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217319961/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8203/8217319961_3177a42529_z.jpg\" alt=\"House Museum of Baba  Iliica\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe stopped to get the stamp for the Hristo Botev monument but then ended up staying to hear more about Baba Iliica. It turns out that Ivan Vasov wrote a story about her that many people assume is a just that a story he imagined but in fact, the story he wrote about her grows out of a the life of a real woman--Baba Iliica. For those of you who speak Bulgarian, <a href=\"http://www.litclub.com/library/bg/vasov/bulgarka.htm\" target=\"_blank\">here\'s a link to the story</a>.\n<a title=\"Flowers in the house museum garden by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217319547/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8217319547_70d111ce39_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers in the house museum garden\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThe watcher and keeper of the house museum was a wonderful little woman who lives across the street. When we got there, the house was locked but she spotted us and hollered at us. Then she spent a lot of time talking to A. in Bulgarian and looking at me encouragingly. At the end, she told me that it was great that I am a foreigner and that I am interested in Bulgarian history. <em>Aw</em>.\n<a title=\"The ticket office for the Ledenika cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218401568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8218401568_e470107652_z.jpg\" alt=\"The ticket office for the Ledenika cave\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Entrance to the Ledenika cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218401314/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8484/8218401314_9d38ed4d81_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to the Ledenika cave\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThen we headed on to a cave also near Vratsa--Ledenika. This is a big cave with lots of stairs and a lot of nooks and crannies to squeeze through. You can\'t take pictures in the cave to protect the bats and beetles who live there but that\'s okay because pictures in caves are usually pretty bad.\n<a title=\"Entrance to Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218400726/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8218400726_dfa9bb38c3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to Belogradchik\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nFrom the cave we drove to Belogradchik. We spent the night in Belogradchik and checked out the rocks in the morning.\n<a title=\"Me at Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217316719/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8217316719_df3021c010_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at Belogradchik\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Belogradchik rocks and A. by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218400060/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8344/8218400060_80301aafdf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik rocks and A.\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThe rocks are so great. I didn\'t know what to expect but really, wow.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218398582/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8218398582_a932c3e388_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThen we drove to the Magurata cave. This cave is well known for early cave drawings which is why we went to check it out. Here\'s the bad news, you can\'t see the drawings anymore become people drew on top of them. <em>Yuck</em>. Why do people do these things. Anyhow, this cave is really open and has the biggest stalagmite/stalactite in Bulgaria. That\'s pretty cool.\n<a title=\"Magurata cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218398208/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8218398208_02a5faa5b8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Magurata cave\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe then had to head back to Sofia but not before I bought 50 leva worth of Magura wine in the village of Rabisha. It was a busy weekend.','Botevgrad, Vratsa and Belogradchik','','inherit','open','open','','7324-revision-3','','','2012-11-25 22:08:23','2012-11-25 20:08:23','',7324,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/25/7324-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7328,1,'2012-11-26 06:37:13','2012-11-26 04:37:13','A. and I took a little road trip this weekend. We went to five different cultural, historical and geological sites all from the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites booklet. <a title=\"Botevgrad Clock tower by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217324085/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8217324085_85b122062b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Botevgrad Clock tower\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> We went to Botevgrad to see the clock tower. Interestingly the clock tower doesn\'t have a clock face but apparently it does chime on the hour. There\'s also an amazing museum in Botevgrad. <a title=\"Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217323663/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8217323663_28b8e3912a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> <a title=\"Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217323145/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8207/8217323145_64a8c8995f_z.jpg\" alt=\"Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> I know, I know. It\'s Botevgrad. This town isn\'t even mentioned in the Lonely Planet Bulgaria guidebook. How can it have a great museum? I am not sure. But as strange as it may seem,  it\'s one of the nicest museums I\'ve been to in Bulgaria.<!--more--> <a title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218404128/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8218404128_a009e26a01_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> <a title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218405290/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8345/8218405290_0f03438d0e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> <a title=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217322343/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8342/8217322343_fb2060dac3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Inside the Botevgrad museum\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> Here\'s the thing. It\'s a little museum in the old town court building. The displays are well laid out and labeled in Bulgarian and English. Oh and the museum was remodeled in 2011 so that clearly helped matters along. <a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218402836/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8218402836_9b9f7dd436_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> <a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217320957/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8217320957_9c19228230_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> A site before the city of Vratsa we drove up a winding road to see a monument for Hristo Botev.  There was lots of fog which made the visibility pretty bad but it was still worth it.  On the way back to Vratsa, we stopped at a house museum for Baba Iliica. This is an attractive little house with a interesting history. <a title=\"House Museum of Baba  Iliica by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217319961/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8203/8217319961_3177a42529_z.jpg\" alt=\"House Museum of Baba  Iliica\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> We stopped to get the stamp for the Hristo Botev monument but then ended up staying to hear more about Baba Iliica. It turns out that Ivan Vasov wrote a story about her that many people assume is a just that a story he imagined but in fact, the story he wrote about her grows out of a the life of a real woman--Baba Iliica. For those of you who speak Bulgarian, <a href=\"http://www.litclub.com/library/bg/vasov/bulgarka.htm\" target=\"_blank\">here\'s a link to the story</a>. <a title=\"Flowers in the house museum garden by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217319547/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8217319547_70d111ce39_z.jpg\" alt=\"Flowers in the house museum garden\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> The watcher and keeper of the house museum was a wonderful little woman who lives across the street. When we got there, the house was locked but she spotted us and hollered at us. Then she spent a lot of time talking to A. in Bulgarian and looking at me encouragingly. At the end, she told me that it was great that I am a foreigner and that I am interested in Bulgarian history. <em>Aw</em>. <a title=\"The ticket office for the Ledenika cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218401568/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8218401568_e470107652_z.jpg\" alt=\"The ticket office for the Ledenika cave\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> <a title=\"Entrance to the Ledenika cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218401314/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8484/8218401314_9d38ed4d81_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to the Ledenika cave\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> Then we headed on to a cave also near Vratsa--Ledenika. This is a big cave with lots of stairs and a lot of nooks and crannies to squeeze through. You can\'t take pictures in the cave to protect the bats and beetles who live there but that\'s okay because pictures in caves are usually pretty bad. <a title=\"Entrance to Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218400726/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8218400726_dfa9bb38c3_z.jpg\" alt=\"Entrance to Belogradchik\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> From the cave we drove to Belogradchik. We spent the night in Belogradchik and checked out the rocks in the morning. <a title=\"Me at Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8217316719/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8217316719_df3021c010_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at Belogradchik\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> <a title=\"Belogradchik rocks and A. by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218400060/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8344/8218400060_80301aafdf_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik rocks and A.\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> The rocks are so great. I didn\'t know what to expect but really, wow. <a title=\"Belogradchik rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218398582/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8058/8218398582_a932c3e388_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> Then we drove to the Magurata cave. This cave is well known for early cave drawings which is why we went to check it out. Here\'s the bad news, you can\'t see the drawings anymore become people drew on top of them. <em>Yuck</em>. Why do people do these things. Anyhow, this cave is really open and has the biggest stalagmite/stalactite in Bulgaria. That\'s pretty cool. <a title=\"Magurata cave by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8218398208/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8338/8218398208_02a5faa5b8_z.jpg\" alt=\"Magurata cave\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a> We then had to head back to Sofia. But not before I bought 50 leva worth of Magura wine in the village of Rabisha. It was a busy weekend.','Botevgrad, Vratsa and Belogradchik','','inherit','open','open','','7324-autosave','','','2012-11-26 06:37:13','2012-11-26 04:37:13','',7324,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/25/7324-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7413,1,'2012-12-13 07:02:09','2012-12-13 05:02:09','I\'m human. My life this week has reminded me of this. Sure I know it but this week I\'ve been confronted with life and the fact that I cannot do everything.\r\n\r\nI have dirty dishes in my sink. I should sweep my apartment. I need to do some laundry (but it turns out I\'m out of laundry detergent).  And I must take the garbage out this morning on my way to school.\r\n\r\nThe thing is, I am not sure what I have been doing.\r\n\r\nBasically, I\'ve been working or doing things related too work. The only problem right now is that I can\'t seem to get caught up. I grade work and then I get more. I read student work and then I get essay. I teach class and then I give a quiz. What\'s more, I\'ve also been going to Balkan dance practice two-plus times a week in the early evening preparing for the school Christmas concert.\r\n\r\nOn top of all of this, these days it seems to be constantly dark. It\'s dark in the mornings. So dark in fact that I wonder if I\'ve failed to correctly set my alarm when it goes off at 6am. Likewise it\'s dark when I leave work.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, Friday is our school faculty christmas party and I\'m looking forward to that. We do a secret santa among teachers which is a lot of fun. For three days (Wednesday, Thursday and Friday) we leave clues and a little something (think chocolate) for the teachers who\'s name you drew. Then on Friday night at the party Santa comes (for real, in a Santa suit and everything) and he delivers presents and the secret santas are revealed.\r\n\r\nSo last night instead of doing any of the other things I\'ve listed, I made christmas cookies to give to my santee while singing (poorly) christmas songs. I\'m human, too, you know.','I\'m Human, too, you know ','','publish','open','open','','im-human-too-you-know','','','2012-12-13 07:02:09','2012-12-13 05:02:09','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7413',0,'post','',0),(7330,1,'2012-11-26 22:47:28','2012-11-26 20:47:28','One of the stops on my weekend out and about in Bulgaria was Belogradchik.\r\n\r\nYou go to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belogradchik_Rocks\" target=\"_blank\">Belogradchik for the rocks</a>. The rocks are amazing.\r\n<a title=\"Me and the rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222077838/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8222077838_c5443715eb_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and the rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe drove into town about 5pm and the sun was beginning to set. So we drove up to the rocks to see what the hours of operation were. Maybe we would have gone to check out the rocks if the day was a little bit longer and we could count on the light but the site closes at 5:30pm these days so we figured that we\'d find a place to stay for the night and go back the next day.\r\n\r\n<!--more--><a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222111892/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8345/8222111892_b84bb13e67_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nIt turns out that finding a place was easier said than done. We didn\'t make a reservation anywhere because we weren\'t sure exactly where we\'d end up for the night and we figured that because it\'s the end of November we\'d have no problem finding a room. Ha, ha.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221032301/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8221032301_1b815a3280_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThere are plenty of signs along the main street advertising guesthouses and pointing the way. We picked the first one because it had a cute name. This one turned out to be pretty far away from the town center and restaurants. Oh and it was 70 leva a night. We figured that we could find something better.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks and the town by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222107098/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8222107098_de9217515c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks and the town\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nSo we followed signs to a guesthouse named after a pasta dish. No one answered the door and we called the number only to find out: no heat. They were really friendly and recommended a guesthouse down the street.\r\n<a title=\"Me at Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222105744/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8487/8222105744_fc660ae78c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe drove down a narrow little street and found the guesthouse at the bottom of the road. A. got out to investigate because it looked dark too. Then a very helpful baba leaned out of the third floor window across the street and told A. that the owner is in the hospital. She tossed in a little neighborhood gossip and then recommended another place around the corner\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221027365/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8221027365_bc76964475_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nFollowing her directions, we had no problem finding the new guesthouse and guess what?! There were people there when we knocked, they had heat, wifi and they had a room for 40 leva. We snapped it up.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221024231/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8210/8221024231_a921eb4743_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221021653/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8221021653_b3dca08b0d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nLater we had dinner in town but things seems strangely dead for a Saturday night. Then again it is a small town in the middle of November and I don\'t really know what to expect.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks and A by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221020511/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8221020511_997df25e28_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks and A\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222097788/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8222097788_ed04dfae86_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nOn Sunday morning I got up about 8:30 and looked out our 5th floor window: fog. Lots of it.\r\n\r\nThat\'s no good if you\'re going to see rocks. So I climbed back in bed and curled up with Catherine the Great--well the book <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/dp/0345408772\" target=\"_blank\">Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman</a>, not the person. I don\'t remember who pointed me to this book but it\'s really good and I can\'t put it down. In fact if I think about it too much I might stop writing a blog post and pick up the biography--it\'s that good.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221018687/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8063/8221018687_6d2b3c8803_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks up close by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221017181/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8060/8221017181_5b4738a1ff_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks up close\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow we headed up to the Belogradchik Rocks about noon. The fog had more or less lifted and the day was grey but not too cold.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221016667/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8221016667_f1eb5800bc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nEntrance is 5 leva and you get a fancy electronic ticket and a paper ticket taped to the back. I don\'t know what the deal is with the additional paper ticket but it\'s there.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks tickets by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222079058/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8222079058_775886073e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks tickets\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Tickets to Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221000937/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8221000937_14f1f5308a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tickets to Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI didn\'t really know what to expect. Basically Belogradchik is a group of big rocks surrounded by a fortress. After paying your fee, you are then able to climb all over the rocks. At your own risk.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222087610/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8222087610_5e0d3536c4_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nNow things like this make me nervous. I don\'t really like heights. In my old group house in DC I always convinced/made my roommate S. change the light bulbs in our stairwell. Sure I held the ladder for him but I wasn\'t about to lean out over the staircase to change a light bulb in what seemed like a precariously placed light fixture.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221008867/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8337/8221008867_cbd6a620ae_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow, back to Belogradchik.\r\n<a title=\"IMG_9982 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222083370/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8222083370_f59719e755_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_9982\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nYou can basically climb wherever you want. Only in a few places are there fences \"protecting\" you from the edge. Otherwise, the rules seem to be if you can climb it, it\'s okay.\r\n<a title=\"A and Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221026357/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8221026357_34d0f7fcd4_z.jpg\" alt=\"A and Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nA. was very adventurous. Me not so much.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks and A having so much fun by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221006421/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8207/8221006421_45489445b1_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks and A having so much fun\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI spent a lot of the time with my stomach tying itself in knots and a little sweaty. Yeah, it wasn\'t a very pretty picture. I did climb out to a few places that I wouldn\'t have gone without some encouragement but really this isn\'t my thing.\r\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221014677/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8488/8221014677_0a42e08914_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI am glad that I went. The views are spectacular and I\'ve never seen rocks like this before.','Belogradchik Rocks, Literally ','','publish','open','open','','belogradchik-rocks-literally','','','2012-11-26 22:47:28','2012-11-26 20:47:28','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7330',0,'post','',1),(7331,1,'2012-11-26 22:02:38','2012-11-26 20:02:38','One of the stops on my weekend out and about in Bulgaria was Belogradchik.\n\nYou go to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belogradchik_Rocks\" target=\"_blank\">Belogradchik for the rocks</a>. The rocks are amazing.\n\nWe drove into town about 5pm and the sun was beginning to set. So we drove up to the rocks to see what the hours of operation were. Maybe we would have gone to check out the rocks if the day was a little bit longer and we could count on the light but the site closes at 5:30pm these days so we figured that we\'d find a place to stay for the night and go back the next day.\n\nIt turns out that finding a place was easier said than done. We didn\'t make a reservation anywhere because we weren\'t sure exactly where we\'d end up for the night and we figured that because it\'s the end of November we\'d have no problem finding a room. Ha, ha.\n\nThere are plenty of signs along the main street advertising guesthouses and pointing the way. We picked the first one because it had a cute name. This one turned out to be pretty far away from the town center and restaurants. Oh and it was 70 leva a night. We figured that we could find something better.\n\nSo we followed signs to a guesthouse named after a pasta dish. No one answered the door and we called the number only to find out: no heat. They were really friendly and recommended a guesthouse down the street.\n\nWe drove down a narrow little street and found the guesthouse at the bottom of the road. A. got out to investigate because it looked dark too. Then a very helpful baba leaned out of the third floor window across the street and told A. that the owner is in the hospital. She tossed in a little neighborhood gossip and then recommended another place around the corner\n\nFollowing her directions, we had no problem finding the new guesthouse and guess what?! There were people there when we knocked, they had heat, wifi and they had a room for 40 leva. We snapped it up.\n\nLater we had dinner in town but things seems strangely dead for a Saturday night. Then again it is a small town in the middle of November and I don\'t really know what to expect.\n\nOn Sunday morning I got up about 8:30 and looked out our 5th floor window: fog. Lots of it.\n\nThat\'s no good if you\'re going to see rocks. So I climbed back in bed and curled up with Catherine the Great--well the book <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/dp/0345408772\" target=\"_blank\">Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman</a>, not the person. I don\'t remember who pointed me to this book but it\'s really good and I can\'t put it down. In fact if I think about it too much I might stop writing a blog post and pick up the biography--it\'s that good.\n\nAnyhow we headed up to the Belogradchik Rocks about noon. The fog had more or less lifted and the day was grey but not too cold.\n\nEntrance is 5 leva and you get a fancy electronic ticket and a paper ticket taped to the back. I don\'t know what the deal is with the additional paper ticket but it\'s there.\n\nI didn\'t really know what to expect. Basically Belogradchik is a group of big rocks surrounded by a fortress. After paying your fee, you are then able to climb all over the rocks. At your own risk.\n\nNow things like this make me nervous. I don\'t really like heights. In my old group house in DC I always convinced/made my roommate S. change the light bulbs in our stairwell. Sure I held the ladder for him but I wasn\'t about to lean out over the staircase to change a light bulb in what seemed like a precariously placed light fixture.\n\nAnyhow, back to Belogradchik.\n\nYou can basically climb wherever you want. Only in a few places are there fences \"protecting\" you from the edge. Otherwise, the rules seem to be if you can climb it, it\'s okay.\n\nA. was very adventurous. Me not so much.\n\nI spent a lot of the time with my stomach tying itself in knots and a little sweaty. Yeah, it wasn\'t a very pretty picture. I did climb out to a few places that I wouldn\'t have gone without some encouragement but really this isn\'t my thing.\n\nI am glad that I went. The views are spectacular and I\'ve never seen rocks like this before.','Belogradchik Rocks, Literally ','','inherit','open','open','','7330-revision','','','2012-11-26 22:02:38','2012-11-26 20:02:38','',7330,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/26/7330-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7332,1,'2012-11-26 22:46:30','2012-11-26 20:46:30','One of the stops on my weekend out and about in Bulgaria was Belogradchik.\n\nYou go to <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belogradchik_Rocks\" target=\"_blank\">Belogradchik for the rocks</a>. The rocks are amazing.\n<a title=\"Me and the rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222077838/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8222077838_c5443715eb_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me and the rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe drove into town about 5pm and the sun was beginning to set. So we drove up to the rocks to see what the hours of operation were. Maybe we would have gone to check out the rocks if the day was a little bit longer and we could count on the light but the site closes at 5:30pm these days so we figured that we\'d find a place to stay for the night and go back the next day.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222111892/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8345/8222111892_b84bb13e67_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nIt turns out that finding a place was easier said than done. We didn\'t make a reservation anywhere because we weren\'t sure exactly where we\'d end up for the night and we figured that because it\'s the end of November we\'d have no problem finding a room. Ha, ha.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221032301/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8221032301_1b815a3280_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThere are plenty of signs along the main street advertising guesthouses and pointing the way. We picked the first one because it had a cute name. This one turned out to be pretty far away from the town center and restaurants. Oh and it was 70 leva a night. We figured that we could find something better.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks and the town by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222107098/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8222107098_de9217515c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks and the town\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nSo we followed signs to a guesthouse named after a pasta dish. No one answered the door and we called the number only to find out: no heat. They were really friendly and recommended a guesthouse down the street.\n<a title=\"Me at Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222105744/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8487/8222105744_fc660ae78c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe drove down a narrow little street and found the guesthouse at the bottom of the road. A. got out to investigate because it looked dark too. Then a very helpful baba leaned out of the third floor window across the street and told A. that the owner is in the hospital. She tossed in a little neighborhood gossip and then recommended another place around the corner\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221027365/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8221027365_bc76964475_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nFollowing her directions, we had no problem finding the new guesthouse and guess what?! There were people there when we knocked, they had heat, wifi and they had a room for 40 leva. We snapped it up.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221024231/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8210/8221024231_a921eb4743_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221021653/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8221021653_b3dca08b0d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nLater we had dinner in town but things seems strangely dead for a Saturday night. Then again it is a small town in the middle of November and I don\'t really know what to expect.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks and A by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221020511/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8221020511_997df25e28_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks and A\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Belogradchik by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222097788/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8222097788_ed04dfae86_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nOn Sunday morning I got up about 8:30 and looked out our 5th floor window: fog. Lots of it.\n\nThat\'s no good if you\'re going to see rocks. So I climbed back in bed and curled up with Catherine the Great--well the book <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/dp/0345408772\" target=\"_blank\">Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman</a>, not the person. I don\'t remember who pointed me to this book but it\'s really good and I can\'t put it down. In fact if I think about it too much I might stop writing a blog post and pick up the biography--it\'s that good.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221018687/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8063/8221018687_6d2b3c8803_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks up close by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221017181/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8060/8221017181_5b4738a1ff_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks up close\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nAnyhow we headed up to the Belogradchik Rocks about noon. The fog had more or less lifted and the day was grey but not too cold.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221016667/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8221016667_f1eb5800bc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nEntrance is 5 leva and you get a fancy electronic ticket and a paper ticket taped to the back. I don\'t know what the deal is with the additional paper ticket but it\'s there.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks tickets by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222079058/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8222079058_775886073e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks tickets\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Tickets to Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221000937/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8221000937_14f1f5308a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tickets to Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI didn\'t really know what to expect. Basically Belogradchik is a group of big rocks surrounded by a fortress. After paying your fee, you are then able to climb all over the rocks. At your own risk.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222087610/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8222087610_5e0d3536c4_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nNow things like this make me nervous. I don\'t really like heights. In my old group house in DC I always convinced/made my roommate S. change the light bulbs in our stairwell. Sure I held the ladder for him but I wasn\'t about to lean out over the staircase to change a light bulb in what seemed like a precariously placed light fixture.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221008867/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8337/8221008867_cbd6a620ae_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nAnyhow, back to Belogradchik.\n<a title=\"IMG_9982 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222083370/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8222083370_f59719e755_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_9982\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nYou can basically climb wherever you want. Only in a few places are there fences \"protecting\" you from the edge. Otherwise, the rules seem to be if you can climb it, it\'s okay.\n<a title=\"A and Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221026357/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8221026357_34d0f7fcd4_z.jpg\" alt=\"A and Belogradchik Rocks\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nA. was very adventurous. Me not so much.\n<a title=\"Belogradchik Rocks and A having so much fun by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221006421/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8207/8221006421_45489445b1_z.jpg\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks and A having so much fun\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI spent a lot of the time with my stomach tying itself in knots and a little sweaty. Yeah, it wasn\'t a very pretty picture. I did climb out to a few places that I wouldn\'t have gone without some encouragement but really this isn\'t my thing.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221014677/\" title=\"Belogradchik Rocks by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8488/8221014677_0a42e08914_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Belogradchik Rocks\"></a>\nI am glad that I went. The views are spectacular and I\'ve never seen rocks like this before.','Belogradchik Rocks, Literally ','','inherit','open','open','','7330-revision-2','','','2012-11-26 22:46:30','2012-11-26 20:46:30','',7330,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/26/7330-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7333,1,'2012-11-27 07:05:56','2012-11-27 05:05:56','Any good road trip has snacks.\r\n\r\nOn Sunday morning in Belogradchik when we were looking for coffee and something to eat for breakfast A. spotted these Bulgarian chocolates in a little neighborhood shop--Rodopa and another similar chocolate with white vanilla-like filling. I can\'t remember the name of the other chocolate.\r\n\r\n<em>Ops</em>.\r\n<a title=\"Bulgarian candy with white filling by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222165106/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8222165106_d2d83666dc_z.jpg\" alt=\"Bulgarian candy with white filling\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nSo we bought chocolates, two coffees, some packaged croissants, water and some cookies by the gram.\r\n\r\nTurns out 100 grams of cookies is a lot more than I\'d have guessed. I\'m glad I didn\'t order 500 grams like a standard shopska salad.<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<a title=\"Rodopa Candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221088983/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8480/8221088983_02c75bfc51_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rodopa Candy\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI\'d really been hoping for some banititsa but no luck. Instead, I ate a crescent moon shaped cookie with ground almonds in it covered with powder sugar. Then I drank my espresso out of a plastic cup. On the road, I ate half of each chocolate.\r\n<a title=\"Rodopa candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222164804/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8222164804_4602787225_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rodopa candy\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI like the Rodopa chocolate best. It almost reminds me a reese\'s peanut butter cup in terms of the texture and constancy of the candy. The big difference is that the filling is not peanut butter but something kind of chocolate like.\r\n<a title=\"Rodopa candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222164496/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8222164496_d89db4317c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rodopa candy\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nBefore we got to Magurata cave, I ate a croissant. I almost ate the other half of the Rodopa candy too but A. tells me that I can find it in Sofia so I didn\'t. That seemed like the nice thing to do.\r\n\r\nI am nice<em> sometimes</em>.\r\n\r\nNow that I\'ve typed all of this, I can\'t help but wonder if I should share these things. Oh well. What\'s done is done.','Snacks on the Road: Rodopa chocolates','','publish','open','open','','snacks-on-the-road-rodopa-chocolates','','','2012-11-26 23:11:15','2012-11-26 21:11:15','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7333',0,'post','',2),(7334,1,'2012-11-26 23:05:43','2012-11-26 21:05:43','Any good road trip has snacks.\n\nOn Sunday morning in Belogradchik when we were looking for coffee and something to eat for breakfast A. spotted these Bulgarian chocolates in a little neighborhood shop--Rodopa and another similar chocolate with white vanilla-like filling. I can\'t remember the name of the other chocolate. <em>Ops</em>.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222165106/\" title=\"Bulgarian candy with white filling by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8222165106_d2d83666dc_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bulgarian candy with white filling\"></a>\n\nSo we bought chocolates, two coffees, some packaged croissants, water and some cookies by the gram. (Turns out 100 grams of cookies is a lot more than I\'d have guessed. I\'m glad I didn\'t order 500 grams like a standard shopska salad.)\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221088983/\" title=\"Rodopa Candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8480/8221088983_02c75bfc51_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rodopa Candy\"></a>\nI\'d really been hoping for some banititsa but no luck. Instead, I ate a crescent moon shaped cookie with ground almonds in it covered with powder sugar. Then I drank my espresso out of a plastic cup. On the road, I ate half of each chocolate.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222164804/\" title=\"Rodopa candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8222164804_4602787225_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rodopa candy\"></a>\nI like the Rodopa chocolate best. It almost reminds me a reese\'s peanut butter cup in terms of the texture and constancy of the candy. The big difference is that the filling is not peanut butter but something thing kind of chocolate like.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222164496/\" title=\"Rodopa candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8222164496_d89db4317c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rodopa candy\"></a>\nBefore we got to Magurata cave, I ate a croissant.\n\nNow that I\'ve typed all of this, I can\'t help but wonder if I should share these things. Oh well. What\'s done is done.','Snacks on the Road: Rodopa chocolates','','inherit','open','open','','7333-revision','','','2012-11-26 23:05:43','2012-11-26 21:05:43','',7333,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/26/7333-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7335,1,'2012-11-26 23:05:56','2012-11-26 21:05:56','Any good road trip has snacks.\r\n\r\nOn Sunday morning in Belogradchik when we were looking for coffee and something to eat for breakfast A. spotted these Bulgarian chocolates in a little neighborhood shop--Rodopa and another similar chocolate with white vanilla-like filling. I can\'t remember the name of the other chocolate. <em>Ops</em>.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222165106/\" title=\"Bulgarian candy with white filling by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8222165106_d2d83666dc_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bulgarian candy with white filling\"></a>\r\nSo we bought chocolates, two coffees, some packaged croissants, water and some cookies by the gram. (Turns out 100 grams of cookies is a lot more than I\'d have guessed. I\'m glad I didn\'t order 500 grams like a standard shopska salad.)\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221088983/\" title=\"Rodopa Candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8480/8221088983_02c75bfc51_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rodopa Candy\"></a>\r\nI\'d really been hoping for some banititsa but no luck. Instead, I ate a crescent moon shaped cookie with ground almonds in it covered with powder sugar. Then I drank my espresso out of a plastic cup. On the road, I ate half of each chocolate.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222164804/\" title=\"Rodopa candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8222164804_4602787225_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rodopa candy\"></a>\r\nI like the Rodopa chocolate best. It almost reminds me a reese\'s peanut butter cup in terms of the texture and constancy of the candy. The big difference is that the filling is not peanut butter but something thing kind of chocolate like.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222164496/\" title=\"Rodopa candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8222164496_d89db4317c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rodopa candy\"></a>\r\nBefore we got to Magurata cave, I ate a croissant.\r\n\r\nNow that I\'ve typed all of this, I can\'t help but wonder if I should share these things. Oh well. What\'s done is done.','Snacks on the Road: Rodopa chocolates','','inherit','open','open','','7333-revision-2','','','2012-11-26 23:05:56','2012-11-26 21:05:56','',7333,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/26/7333-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7336,1,'2012-11-26 23:06:00','2012-11-26 21:06:00','Any good road trip has snacks.\r\n\r\nOn Sunday morning in Belogradchik when we were looking for coffee and something to eat for breakfast A. spotted these Bulgarian chocolates in a little neighborhood shop--Rodopa and another similar chocolate with white vanilla-like filling. I can\'t remember the name of the other chocolate. <em>Ops</em>.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222165106/\" title=\"Bulgarian candy with white filling by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8061/8222165106_d2d83666dc_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Bulgarian candy with white filling\"></a>\r\nSo we bought chocolates, two coffees, some packaged croissants, water and some cookies by the gram. (Turns out 100 grams of cookies is a lot more than I\'d have guessed. I\'m glad I didn\'t order 500 grams like a standard shopska salad.)\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8221088983/\" title=\"Rodopa Candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8480/8221088983_02c75bfc51_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rodopa Candy\"></a>\r\nI\'d really been hoping for some banititsa but no luck. Instead, I ate a crescent moon shaped cookie with ground almonds in it covered with powder sugar. Then I drank my espresso out of a plastic cup. On the road, I ate half of each chocolate.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222164804/\" title=\"Rodopa candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8222164804_4602787225_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rodopa candy\"></a>\r\nI like the Rodopa chocolate best. It almost reminds me a reese\'s peanut butter cup in terms of the texture and constancy of the candy. The big difference is that the filling is not peanut butter but something thing kind of chocolate like.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8222164496/\" title=\"Rodopa candy by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8222164496_d89db4317c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Rodopa candy\"></a>\r\nBefore we got to Magurata cave, I ate a croissant.\r\n\r\nNow that I\'ve typed all of this, I can\'t help but wonder if I should share these things. Oh well. What\'s done is done.','Snacks on the Road: Rodopa chocolates','','inherit','open','open','','7333-revision-3','','','2012-11-26 23:06:00','2012-11-26 21:06:00','',7333,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/26/7333-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7337,1,'2012-12-06 06:52:24','0000-00-00 00:00:00','Sofia\'s basement shops--<a href=\"http://popupcity.net/2012/11/sofias-basement-shops/\" target=\"_blank\">the klek</a>--\n\nA great list of <a href=\"http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2012/11/underrated_books_overlooked_fiction_and_nonfiction_of_2012.html\" target=\"_blank\">overlooked books from 2012 </a>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<a href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/dimiter-kenarov/green-revolution-how-ecoactivism-made-bulgaria-care_b_2198182.html?\" target=\"_blank\">How ecoactivism make Bulgaria care again</a>\n\nACS Alumna and founder of Brain Picker is <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/02/fashion/maria-popova-has-some-big-ideas.html?pagewanted=all&amp;_r=1&amp;\" target=\"_blank\">in the NYT</a>.','','','draft','open','open','','','','','2012-12-06 06:52:24','2012-12-06 04:52:24','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7337',0,'post','',0),(7338,1,'2012-11-27 11:54:46','2012-11-27 09:54:46','','Auto Draft','','inherit','open','open','','7337-revision','','','2012-11-27 11:54:46','2012-11-27 09:54:46','',7337,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/27/7337-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7339,1,'2012-11-28 06:04:27','2012-11-28 04:04:27','This past weekend while exploring north-western Bulgaria, we went to see a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hristo_Botev\" target=\"_blank\">Hristo Botev</a> monument. For anybody following along at home, it\'s site #17 in Bulgaria\'s 100 tourist sites booklet/passport.\r\n\r\nOn Saturday, it was foggy and the road was windy. Luckily the road wasn\'t too bad and there was basically no traffic.\r\n<a title=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013281/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224013281_7989678625_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013005/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8224013005_5b6b17ee7e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI have to say there was something magical about the whole thing. The landscape felt especially remote in this weather. Fog has a way of doing this. I think that by limiting your visual field you begin to see the world in much narrower snippets than you normally do.\r\n<a title=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225088348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8225088348_22f3a2f660_z.jpg\" alt=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224020275/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8224020275_ac5a538bda_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nIn addition to feeling remote, landscape felt very dramatic with the fog. It also slowed down the driving. This was okay.\r\n\r\nIt gave me plenty of time to admire the fall colors and to marvel at the fog and in case you missed this point, there was plenty of fog to think about. <!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225092074/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8225092074_da7465145c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089022/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8225089022_e2b652035d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224016843/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224016843_96eae53c8a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe monument is up a big flight of stairs and either side off the stairs is lined with pine trees. When we got there, we were the only visitors there and the whole time we were there we didn\'t another person.\r\n\r\nAt the top of the stairs there\'s a big cross and it over looks an incredible valley. The monument-cross was tall--really tall. Just look at A. next to the monument. It\'s also concrete colored but that doesn\'t mean anything. I don\'t really know what it\'s made out of.\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090268/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8225090268_aa6829dbf6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089630/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8477/8225089630_8de790e1d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090024/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8225090024_0fe14b9462_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe didn\'t stick around too long because it was cold and windy on the top of the hill but it was enough time to imagine what it must have been like to be  Hristo Botev--a poet and a Bulgarian revolutionary in 1876--and find yourself in a remote corner of Bulgaria fighting for your freedom from the Ottoman Empire.\r\n<a title=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225093698/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8225093698_19a53dc5ba_z.jpg\" alt=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"IMG_9850 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224019651/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8224019651_194cedf8a0_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_9850\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nUnfortunately, I wasn\'t super impressed with this site. Yes, Hristo Botev is a national hero but the monument isn\'t that easy to reach and it\'s simply a huge cross. It\'s not like you can stop by to visit it on your way somewhere else. You really have to make a commitment to visit this site and there\'s not much else there.\r\n\r\nMaybe if I had a greater appreciation for Hristo Botev it would be different but compared to other sites I\'ve been to as a part of the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites this one hardly compares. Sure it\'s culture and historical but there\'s not actually that much to see.\r\n\r\nAnyhow it\'s not like I regret going or anything, it\'s just a <em>wow</em> site but I guess that\'s okay.','Hristo Botev Monument in the Fog','','publish','open','open','','hristo-botev-monument-in-the-fog','','','2012-11-27 22:05:58','2012-11-27 20:05:58','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7339',0,'post','',5),(7340,1,'2012-11-27 21:38:34','2012-11-27 19:38:34','This past weekend while exploring north-western Bulgaria, we went to see a Hristo Botev monument. It was foggy on Saturday and the road was windy.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013281/\" title=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224013281_7989678625_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013005/\" title=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8224013005_5b6b17ee7e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\nI have to say there was something magical about the whole thing.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225088348/\" title=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8225088348_22f3a2f660_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\nThe landscape was especially dramatic with the fog. It also slowed down the driving. This was okay. It gave me plenty of time to admire the fall colors.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225092074/\" title=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8225092074_da7465145c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089022/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8225089022_e2b652035d_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\nThe monument is up a big flight of stairs and either side off the stairs is lined with pine tree. At the top of the stairs there\'s a big cross and it over looks an incredible valley. The monument-cross was tall and white.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090268/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8225090268_aa6829dbf6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089630/\" title=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8477/8225089630_8de790e1d5_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090024/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8225090024_0fe14b9462_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\nWe didn\'t stick around too long because it was cold and windy on the top of the hill.\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225093698/\" title=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8225093698_19a53dc5ba_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224019651/\" title=\"IMG_9850 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8224019651_194cedf8a0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"IMG_9850\"></a>\nI wasn\'t super impressed with this site. Yes, Hristo Botev is a national hero but the monument isn\'t that easy to reach. It\'s not like you can stop by to visit it on your way somewhere else. You really have to make a commitment to visit this site and there\'s not much else there.','Hristo Botev Monument in the Fog','','inherit','open','open','','7339-revision','','','2012-11-27 21:38:34','2012-11-27 19:38:34','',7339,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/27/7339-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7341,1,'2012-11-27 21:39:04','2012-11-27 19:39:04','This past weekend while exploring north-western Bulgaria, we went to see a Hristo Botev monument. It was foggy on Saturday and the road was windy.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013281/\" title=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224013281_7989678625_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013005/\" title=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8224013005_5b6b17ee7e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\nI have to say there was something magical about the whole thing.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225088348/\" title=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8225088348_22f3a2f660_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\nThe landscape was especially dramatic with the fog. It also slowed down the driving. This was okay. It gave me plenty of time to admire the fall colors.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225092074/\" title=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8225092074_da7465145c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089022/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8225089022_e2b652035d_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224016843/\" title=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224016843_96eae53c8a_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\nThe monument is up a big flight of stairs and either side off the stairs is lined with pine tree. At the top of the stairs there\'s a big cross and it over looks an incredible valley. The monument-cross was tall and white.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090268/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8225090268_aa6829dbf6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089630/\" title=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8477/8225089630_8de790e1d5_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090024/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8225090024_0fe14b9462_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\nWe didn\'t stick around too long because it was cold and windy on the top of the hill.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225093698/\" title=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8225093698_19a53dc5ba_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224019651/\" title=\"IMG_9850 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8224019651_194cedf8a0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"IMG_9850\"></a>\r\nI wasn\'t super impressed with this site. Yes, Hristo Botev is a national hero but the monument isn\'t that easy to reach. It\'s not like you can stop by to visit it on your way somewhere else. You really have to make a commitment to visit this site and there\'s not much else there.','Hristo Botev Monument in the Fog','','inherit','open','open','','7339-revision-2','','','2012-11-27 21:39:04','2012-11-27 19:39:04','',7339,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/27/7339-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7342,1,'2012-11-27 21:39:08','2012-11-27 19:39:08','This past weekend while exploring north-western Bulgaria, we went to see a Hristo Botev monument. It was foggy on Saturday and the road was windy.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013281/\" title=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224013281_7989678625_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013005/\" title=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8224013005_5b6b17ee7e_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\nI have to say there was something magical about the whole thing.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225088348/\" title=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8225088348_22f3a2f660_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\nThe landscape was especially dramatic with the fog. It also slowed down the driving. This was okay. It gave me plenty of time to admire the fall colors.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225092074/\" title=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8225092074_da7465145c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089022/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8225089022_e2b652035d_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224016843/\" title=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224016843_96eae53c8a_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\nThe monument is up a big flight of stairs and either side off the stairs is lined with pine tree. At the top of the stairs there\'s a big cross and it over looks an incredible valley. The monument-cross was tall and white.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090268/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8225090268_aa6829dbf6_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089630/\" title=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8477/8225089630_8de790e1d5_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090024/\" title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8225090024_0fe14b9462_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\nWe didn\'t stick around too long because it was cold and windy on the top of the hill.\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225093698/\" title=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8225093698_19a53dc5ba_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument\"></a>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224019651/\" title=\"IMG_9850 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8224019651_194cedf8a0_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"IMG_9850\"></a>\r\nI wasn\'t super impressed with this site. Yes, Hristo Botev is a national hero but the monument isn\'t that easy to reach. It\'s not like you can stop by to visit it on your way somewhere else. You really have to make a commitment to visit this site and there\'s not much else there.','Hristo Botev Monument in the Fog','','inherit','open','open','','7339-revision-3','','','2012-11-27 21:39:08','2012-11-27 19:39:08','',7339,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/27/7339-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7343,1,'2012-11-27 22:03:14','2012-11-27 20:03:14','This past weekend while exploring north-western Bulgaria, we went to see a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hristo_Botev\" target=\"_blank\">Hristo Botev</a> monument. For anybody following along at home, it\'s site #17 in Bulgaria\'s 100 tourist sites booklet/passport.\r\n\r\nOn Saturday, it was foggy and the road was windy. Luckily the road wasn\'t too bad and there was basically no traffic.\r\n<a title=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013281/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224013281_7989678625_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013005/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8224013005_5b6b17ee7e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI have to say there was something magical about the whole thing. The landscape felt especially remote in this weather. Fog has a way of doing this. I think that by limiting your visual field you begin to see the world in much narrower snippets than you normally do.\r\n<a title=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225088348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8225088348_22f3a2f660_z.jpg\" alt=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224020275/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8224020275_ac5a538bda_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nIn addition to feeling remote, landscape felt very dramatic with the fog. It also slowed down the driving. This was okay. It gave me plenty of time to admire the fall colors.\r\n<a title=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225092074/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8225092074_da7465145c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089022/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8225089022_e2b652035d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224016843/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224016843_96eae53c8a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe monument is up a big flight of stairs and either side off the stairs is lined with pine trees. When we got there, we were the only visitors there and the whole time we were there we didn\'t another person.\r\n\r\nAt the top of the stairs there\'s a big cross and it over looks an incredible valley. The monument-cross was tall--really tall. Just look at A. next to the monument. It\'s also concrete colored but that doesn\'t mean anything. I don\'t really know what it\'s made out of.\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090268/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8225090268_aa6829dbf6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089630/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8477/8225089630_8de790e1d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090024/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8225090024_0fe14b9462_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe didn\'t stick around too long because it was cold and windy on the top of the hill but it was enough time to imagine what it must have been like to be  Hristo Botev--a poet and a Bulgarian revolutionary in 1876--and find yourself in a remote corner of Bulgaria fighting for your freedom from the Ottoman Empire.\r\n<a title=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225093698/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8225093698_19a53dc5ba_z.jpg\" alt=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"IMG_9850 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224019651/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8224019651_194cedf8a0_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_9850\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nUnfortunately, I wasn\'t super impressed with this site. Yes, Hristo Botev is a national hero but the monument isn\'t that easy to reach and it\'s simply a huge cross. It\'s not like you can stop by to visit it on your way somewhere else. You really have to make a commitment to visit this site and there\'s not much else there.\r\n\r\nMaybe if I had a greater appreciation for Hristo Botev it would be different but compared to other sites I\'ve been to as a part of the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites this one hardly compares. Sure it\'s culture and historical but there\'s not actually that much to see.\r\n\r\nAnyhow it\'s not like I regret going or anything, it\'s just a <em>wow</em> site but I guess that\'s okay.','Hristo Botev Monument in the Fog','','inherit','open','open','','7339-revision-4','','','2012-11-27 22:03:14','2012-11-27 20:03:14','',7339,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/27/7339-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7344,1,'2012-11-27 22:03:27','2012-11-27 20:03:27','This past weekend while exploring north-western Bulgaria, we went to see a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hristo_Botev\" target=\"_blank\">Hristo Botev</a> monument. For anybody following along at home, it\'s site #17 in Bulgaria\'s 100 tourist sites booklet/passport.\r\n\r\nOn Saturday, it was foggy and the road was windy. Luckily the road wasn\'t too bad and there was basically no traffic.\r\n<a title=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013281/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224013281_7989678625_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013005/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8224013005_5b6b17ee7e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI have to say there was something magical about the whole thing. The landscape felt especially remote in this weather. Fog has a way of doing this. I think that by limiting your visual field you begin to see the world in much narrower snippets than you normally do.\r\n<a title=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225088348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8225088348_22f3a2f660_z.jpg\" alt=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224020275/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8224020275_ac5a538bda_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nIn addition to feeling remote, landscape felt very dramatic with the fog. It also slowed down the driving. This was okay. It gave me plenty of time to admire the fall colors.\r\n<a title=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225092074/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8225092074_da7465145c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089022/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8225089022_e2b652035d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224016843/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224016843_96eae53c8a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe monument is up a big flight of stairs and either side off the stairs is lined with pine trees. When we got there, we were the only visitors there and the whole time we were there we didn\'t another person.\r\n\r\nAt the top of the stairs there\'s a big cross and it over looks an incredible valley. The monument-cross was tall--really tall. Just look at A. next to the monument. It\'s also concrete colored but that doesn\'t mean anything. I don\'t really know what it\'s made out of.\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090268/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8225090268_aa6829dbf6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089630/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8477/8225089630_8de790e1d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090024/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8225090024_0fe14b9462_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe didn\'t stick around too long because it was cold and windy on the top of the hill but it was enough time to imagine what it must have been like to be  Hristo Botev--a poet and a Bulgarian revolutionary in 1876--and find yourself in a remote corner of Bulgaria fighting for your freedom from the Ottoman Empire.\r\n<a title=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225093698/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8225093698_19a53dc5ba_z.jpg\" alt=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"IMG_9850 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224019651/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8224019651_194cedf8a0_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_9850\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nUnfortunately, I wasn\'t super impressed with this site. Yes, Hristo Botev is a national hero but the monument isn\'t that easy to reach and it\'s simply a huge cross. It\'s not like you can stop by to visit it on your way somewhere else. You really have to make a commitment to visit this site and there\'s not much else there.\r\n\r\nMaybe if I had a greater appreciation for Hristo Botev it would be different but compared to other sites I\'ve been to as a part of the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites this one hardly compares. Sure it\'s culture and historical but there\'s not actually that much to see.\r\n\r\nAnyhow it\'s not like I regret going or anything, it\'s just a <em>wow</em> site but I guess that\'s okay.','Hristo Botev Monument in the Fog','','inherit','open','open','','7339-revision-5','','','2012-11-27 22:03:27','2012-11-27 20:03:27','',7339,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/27/7339-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(7345,1,'2012-11-27 22:04:24','2012-11-27 20:04:24','This past weekend while exploring north-western Bulgaria, we went to see a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hristo_Botev\" target=\"_blank\">Hristo Botev</a> monument. For anybody following along at home, it\'s site #17 in Bulgaria\'s 100 tourist sites booklet/passport.\r\n\r\nOn Saturday, it was foggy and the road was windy. Luckily the road wasn\'t too bad and there was basically no traffic.\r\n<a title=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013281/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224013281_7989678625_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013005/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8224013005_5b6b17ee7e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nI have to say there was something magical about the whole thing. The landscape felt especially remote in this weather. Fog has a way of doing this. I think that by limiting your visual field you begin to see the world in much narrower snippets than you normally do.\r\n<a title=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225088348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8225088348_22f3a2f660_z.jpg\" alt=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224020275/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8224020275_ac5a538bda_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nIn addition to feeling remote, landscape felt very dramatic with the fog. It also slowed down the driving. This was okay. It gave me plenty of time to admire the fall colors and to marvel at the fog. <!--more-->\r\n<a title=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225092074/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8225092074_da7465145c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089022/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8225089022_e2b652035d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224016843/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224016843_96eae53c8a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nThe monument is up a big flight of stairs and either side off the stairs is lined with pine trees. When we got there, we were the only visitors there and the whole time we were there we didn\'t another person.\r\n\r\nAt the top of the stairs there\'s a big cross and it over looks an incredible valley. The monument-cross was tall--really tall. Just look at A. next to the monument. It\'s also concrete colored but that doesn\'t mean anything. I don\'t really know what it\'s made out of.\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090268/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8225090268_aa6829dbf6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089630/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8477/8225089630_8de790e1d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090024/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8225090024_0fe14b9462_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\nWe didn\'t stick around too long because it was cold and windy on the top of the hill but it was enough time to imagine what it must have been like to be  Hristo Botev--a poet and a Bulgarian revolutionary in 1876--and find yourself in a remote corner of Bulgaria fighting for your freedom from the Ottoman Empire.\r\n<a title=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225093698/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8225093698_19a53dc5ba_z.jpg\" alt=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"IMG_9850 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224019651/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8224019651_194cedf8a0_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_9850\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\r\n\r\nUnfortunately, I wasn\'t super impressed with this site. Yes, Hristo Botev is a national hero but the monument isn\'t that easy to reach and it\'s simply a huge cross. It\'s not like you can stop by to visit it on your way somewhere else. You really have to make a commitment to visit this site and there\'s not much else there.\r\n\r\nMaybe if I had a greater appreciation for Hristo Botev it would be different but compared to other sites I\'ve been to as a part of the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites this one hardly compares. Sure it\'s culture and historical but there\'s not actually that much to see.\r\n\r\nAnyhow it\'s not like I regret going or anything, it\'s just a <em>wow</em> site but I guess that\'s okay.','Hristo Botev Monument in the Fog','','inherit','open','open','','7339-revision-6','','','2012-11-27 22:04:24','2012-11-27 20:04:24','',7339,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/27/7339-revision-6/',0,'revision','',0),(7346,1,'2012-11-27 22:05:29','2012-11-27 20:05:29','This past weekend while exploring north-western Bulgaria, we went to see a <a href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hristo_Botev\" target=\"_blank\">Hristo Botev</a> monument. For anybody following along at home, it\'s site #17 in Bulgaria\'s 100 tourist sites booklet/passport.\n\nOn Saturday, it was foggy and the road was windy. Luckily the road wasn\'t too bad and there was basically no traffic.\n<a title=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013281/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224013281_7989678625_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tree on the way down from the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224013005/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8490/8224013005_5b6b17ee7e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nI have to say there was something magical about the whole thing. The landscape felt especially remote in this weather. Fog has a way of doing this. I think that by limiting your visual field you begin to see the world in much narrower snippets than you normally do.\n<a title=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225088348/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8489/8225088348_22f3a2f660_z.jpg\" alt=\"The landscape near the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224020275/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8478/8224020275_ac5a538bda_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument in the fog\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nIn addition to feeling remote, landscape felt very dramatic with the fog. It also slowed down the driving. This was okay.\n\nIt gave me plenty of time to admire the fall colors and to marvel at the fog and in case you missed this point, there was plenty of fog to <!--more-->\n<a title=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225092074/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8225092074_da7465145c_z.jpg\" alt=\"Steps up to the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089022/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8206/8225089022_e2b652035d_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224016843/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8224016843_96eae53c8a_z.jpg\" alt=\"Me at the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nThe monument is up a big flight of stairs and either side off the stairs is lined with pine trees. When we got there, we were the only visitors there and the whole time we were there we didn\'t another person.\n\nAt the top of the stairs there\'s a big cross and it over looks an incredible valley. The monument-cross was tall--really tall. Just look at A. next to the monument. It\'s also concrete colored but that doesn\'t mean anything. I don\'t really know what it\'s made out of.\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090268/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8225090268_aa6829dbf6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225089630/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8477/8225089630_8de790e1d5_z.jpg\" alt=\"A and the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225090024/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8066/8225090024_0fe14b9462_z.jpg\" alt=\"Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\nWe didn\'t stick around too long because it was cold and windy on the top of the hill but it was enough time to imagine what it must have been like to be  Hristo Botev--a poet and a Bulgarian revolutionary in 1876--and find yourself in a remote corner of Bulgaria fighting for your freedom from the Ottoman Empire.\n<a title=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8225093698/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8225093698_19a53dc5ba_z.jpg\" alt=\"late fall outside the Hristo Botev monument\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n<a title=\"IMG_9850 by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8224019651/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8224019651_194cedf8a0_z.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_9850\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" /></a>\n\nUnfortunately, I wasn\'t super impressed with this site. Yes, Hristo Botev is a national hero but the monument isn\'t that easy to reach and it\'s simply a huge cross. It\'s not like you can stop by to visit it on your way somewhere else. You really have to make a commitment to visit this site and there\'s not much else there.\n\nMaybe if I had a greater appreciation for Hristo Botev it would be different but compared to other sites I\'ve been to as a part of the 100 Bulgarian tourist sites this one hardly compares. Sure it\'s culture and historical but there\'s not actually that much to see.\n\nAnyhow it\'s not like I regret going or anything, it\'s just a <em>wow</em> site but I guess that\'s okay.','Hristo Botev Monument in the Fog','','inherit','open','open','','7339-revision-7','','','2012-11-27 22:05:29','2012-11-27 20:05:29','',7339,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/27/7339-revision-7/',0,'revision','',0),(7347,1,'2012-11-29 06:29:21','2012-11-29 04:29:21','<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8226962729/\" title=\"Pedestrian  Zone in Botevgrad by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8070/8226962729_6cb964dfaa_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Pedestrian  Zone in Botevgrad\"></a>\r\nThis sign was propped up so carefully against a light pole in the main pedestrian zone in Botevgrad. A little piece of me wanted to steal the sign but I left it there. It was too big for my purse and frankly it would be weird for me to carry this sign around with me. \r\n','Pedestrian Zone in Botevgrad ','','publish','open','open','','pedestrian-zone-in-botevgrad','','','2012-11-28 21:42:58','2012-11-28 19:42:58','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7347',0,'post','',0),(7348,1,'2012-11-28 21:38:23','2012-11-28 19:38:23','&lt;a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8226962729/\" title=\"Pedestrian  Zone in Botevgrad by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"&gt;&lt;img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8070/8226962729_6cb964dfaa_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Pedestrian  Zone in Botevgrad\"&gt;&lt;/a&gt;','Pedestrian Zone ','','inherit','open','open','','7347-revision','','','2012-11-28 21:38:23','2012-11-28 19:38:23','',7347,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/28/7347-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7349,1,'2012-11-28 21:39:23','2012-11-28 19:39:23','<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8226962729/\" title=\"Pedestrian  Zone in Botevgrad by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8070/8226962729_6cb964dfaa_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Pedestrian  Zone in Botevgrad\"></a>\n','Pedestrian Zone in Botevgrad ','','inherit','open','open','','7347-revision-2','','','2012-11-28 21:39:23','2012-11-28 19:39:23','',7347,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/28/7347-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7350,1,'2012-11-28 21:42:55','2012-11-28 19:42:55','<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8226962729/\" title=\"Pedestrian  Zone in Botevgrad by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8070/8226962729_6cb964dfaa_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" alt=\"Pedestrian  Zone in Botevgrad\"></a>\r\nThis sign was propped up so carefully against a light pole in the main pedestrian zone in Botevgrad. A little piece of me wanted to steal the sign but I left it there. It was too big for my purse and frankly it would be weird for me to carry this sign around with me. \r\n','Pedestrian Zone in Botevgrad ','','inherit','open','open','','7347-revision-3','','','2012-11-28 21:42:55','2012-11-28 19:42:55','',7347,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/28/7347-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7351,1,'2012-11-30 06:48:29','2012-11-30 04:48:29','It\'s been a busy fall and I purposefully fell out of the habit of blogging everyday.\r\n\r\nI did other things.\r\n\r\nI watched tv. I read books. I did school. I went to yoga. And I did some traveling.\r\n\r\nRegularly, I thought: Hey, I should write about this. Then I\'d never get around to it or I thought: Oh, the moment has passed.\r\n\r\nAs a result I have a bunch of half imagined blog posts and plenty of pictures that I\'ve snapped but never done anything with. I started to feel bad about this. I felt like I\'d fallen behind and that it would be too difficult to catch up. So I didn\'t write.\r\n\r\nThis, of course, didn\'t help matters much and I couldn\'t figure out how to get myself on a writing schedule of some sort. Then I wondered if it was because I didn\'t want to. I mulled that idea over for a number of days.\r\n\r\nThe thing is, I like this blog and I like the community that I\'ve built because of it. I don\'t want to abandon this project. Sure when I started it four years ago, I never imagined that I\'d still be writing on this blog. Mostly because I couldn\'t imagine a life for myself where I\'d still be living in Bulgaria.\r\n\r\nYet here I am. Funny how that works.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, this is all to say, it\'s nice to feel like blogging again.','Karolinka Around Mladost 1A ','','publish','open','open','','karolinka-around-mladost-1a','','','2012-11-28 22:00:27','2012-11-28 20:00:27','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7351',0,'post','',3),(7352,1,'2012-11-28 21:59:31','2012-11-28 19:59:31','It\'s been a busy fall and I purposefully fell out of the habit of blogging everyday.\n\nI did other things.\n\nI watched tv. I read books. I did school. I went to yoga. And I did some traveling.\n\nRegularly, I thought: Hey, I should write about this. Then I\'d never get around to it or I thought: Oh, the moment has passed.\n\nAs a result I have a bunch of half imagined blog posts and plenty of pictures that I\'ve snapped but never done anything with. I started to feel bad about this. I felt like I\'d fallen behind and that it would be too difficult to catch up. So I didn\'t write.\n\nThis, of course, didn\'t help matters much and I couldn\'t figure out how to get myself on a writing schedule of some sort. Then I wondered if it was because I didn\'t want to. I mulled that idea over for a number of days.\n\nThe thing is, I like this blog and I like the community that I\'ve built because of it. I don\'t want to abandon this project. Sure when I started it four years ago, I never imagined that I\'d still be writing on this blog. Mostly because I couldn\'t imagine a life for myself where I\'d still be living in Bulgaria.\n\nYet here I am. Funny how that works.\n\nAnyhow, it\'s nice to feel like blogging again.','Karolinka Around Mladost 1A ','','inherit','open','open','','7351-revision','','','2012-11-28 21:59:31','2012-11-28 19:59:31','',7351,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/28/7351-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7353,1,'2012-11-29 17:48:21','0000-00-00 00:00:00','Last night after Parent-Teaches conferences at school, I curled up with a cup of tea and a book. It\' about all you can do after teaching all day, popping into a student yoga class, then having a student club meeting after school of the WWF--Bulgaria (that\'s the World Wildlife Federation in case you\'re wondering and not wrestling although a wresting club would be pretty cool) and then four hours of basically non-stop parent conferences and a school cafeteria made sandwich for dinner. Sure it would be better to curl up with a glass of wine and a book but we\'ve got another round of Parent-Conferences today from 10-2pm. I\'ve already said good-bye to my weekend and I\'ve come to grips with the fact that I\'m never going to finish reading the Catherine the Great biography that I stared over Thanksgiving weekend. First, it\'s a long book and second, recently I\'ve only had time to read before bed. This said, I need to finish the book. I\'ve found myself thinking about Catherine sometimes and wondering what\'s going to happen to her next. I wonder how she can survive being married to her horrible prince-husband Peter. I can\'t imagine having to live with Elizabeth the current Russian queen. Elizabeth is both demanding and conniving--what a horrible mix. So I keep thinking about these people in the book as characters in a drama and then I have to remind myself: this is real. This is history.','A cup of tea and Catherine the Great ','','draft','open','open','','','','','2012-11-29 17:48:21','2012-11-29 15:48:21','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7353',0,'post','',0),(7354,1,'2012-11-28 22:07:39','2012-11-28 20:07:39','Last night I cI should probably just finish reading the Catherine the Great biography that I stared over Thanksgiving weekend but it\'s a long book and I\'ve only had time to read before bed recently. This said, I find myself thinking about Catherine sometimes.','A cup of tea and Catherine the Great ','','inherit','open','open','','7353-revision','','','2012-11-28 22:07:39','2012-11-28 20:07:39','',7353,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/28/7353-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7355,1,'2012-11-29 06:55:39','2012-11-29 04:55:39','Last night after Parent-Teaches conferences at school, I curled up with a cup of tea and a book.\n\nIt\' about all you can do after teaching all day, popping into a student yoga class, then having a student club meeting after school of the WWF--Bulgaria (that\'s the World Wildlife Federation in case you\'re wondering and not wrestling although a wresting club would be pretty cool) and then four hours of basically non-stop parent conferences and a school cafeteria made sandwich for dinner.\n\nSure it would be better to curl up with a glass of wine and a book but we\'ve got another round of Parent-Conferences today from 10-2pm. I\'ve already said good-bye to my weekend and I\'ve come to grips with the fact that I\'m never going to finish reading the Catherine the Great biography that I stared over Thanksgiving weekend.\n\nFirst, it\'s a long book and second, recently I\'ve only had time to read before bed.\n\nThis said, I need to finish the book. I\'ve found myself thinking about Catherine sometimes and wondering what\'s going to happen to her next. I wonder how she can survive being married to her horrible prince-husband Peter. I can\'t imagine having to live with Elizabeth the current Russian queen. Elizabeth is both demanding and conniving--what a horrible mix.\n\nSo I keep thinking about these people in the book as characters in a drama and then','A cup of tea and Catherine the Great ','','inherit','open','open','','7353-revision-2','','','2012-11-29 06:55:39','2012-11-29 04:55:39','',7353,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/29/7353-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7356,1,'2012-11-30 06:57:04','2012-11-30 04:57:04','Sofia\'s basement shops--<a href=\"http://popupcity.net/2012/11/sofias-basement-shops/\" target=\"_blank\">the klek</a>--\n\nA great list of <a href=\"http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2012/11/underrated_books_overlooked_fiction_and_nonfiction_of_2012.html\" target=\"_blank\">overlooked books from 2012 </a>','','','inherit','open','open','','7337-revision-2','','','2012-11-30 06:57:04','2012-11-30 04:57:04','',7337,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/30/7337-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7359,1,'2012-12-01 09:06:55','2012-12-01 07:06:55','Sofia\'s basement shops--<a href=\"http://popupcity.net/2012/11/sofias-basement-shops/\" target=\"_blank\">the klek</a>--\n\nA great list of <a href=\"http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2012/11/underrated_books_overlooked_fiction_and_nonfiction_of_2012.html\" target=\"_blank\">overlooked books from 2012 </a>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<a href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/dimiter-kenarov/green-revolution-how-ecoactivism-made-bulgaria-care_b_2198182.html?\" target=\"_blank\">How ecoactivism make Bulgaria care again</a>','','','inherit','open','open','','7337-revision-4','','','2012-12-01 09:06:55','2012-12-01 07:06:55','',7337,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/01/7337-revision-4/',0,'revision','',0),(7357,1,'2012-11-30 12:23:34','2012-11-30 10:23:34','Sofia\'s basement shops--<a href=\"http://popupcity.net/2012/11/sofias-basement-shops/\" target=\"_blank\">the klek</a>--\n\nA great list of <a href=\"http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2012/11/underrated_books_overlooked_fiction_and_nonfiction_of_2012.html\" target=\"_blank\">overlooked books from 2012 </a>\n\nBulgaria\'s <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=145604\" target=\"_blank\">Rozhen Observatory </a>\n\n<a href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/dimiter-kenarov/green-revolution-how-ecoactivism-made-bulgaria-care_b_2198182.html?\" target=\"_blank\">How ecoactivism make Bulgaria care again</a>','','','inherit','open','open','','7337-revision-3','','','2012-11-30 12:23:34','2012-11-30 10:23:34','',7337,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/11/30/7337-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7358,1,'2012-12-01 09:47:19','2012-12-01 07:47:19','This week a student stopped by my classroom and asked me if I wanted to buy a postcard.\r\n\r\nMe: <em>Um</em>. Yes? But what is it for?\r\n\r\nStudent, mumbles: For the Rozhen Observatory.\r\n\r\nThe thing is given the large size of my classroom and a little mumbling I don\'t understand what is being said. That and at this point, I\'d never heard of the Rozhen Observatory.\r\n<a title=\"Rozhen observatory and ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8233473905/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8233473905_37fef603a2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rozhen observatory and ACS\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nMe: What?\r\n\r\nStudent, pulling out a plastic sleeve of beautiful postcards: The Bulgarian government isn\'t funding our observatory. Well, actually they\'ve decided to fund it this year but it\'s underfunded. Rozhen Observatory is the largest observatory in Eastern Europe. So the ACS Science club has made these postcards in support of the observatory.\r\n\r\nMe: Ah. I\'ll buy  a big one and a small one.\r\n\r\nFive leva later I was the proud owner of two of my own ACS supports Rozhen Observatory postcards. <!--more-->I proceeded to tape them to my wall. These days I don\'t need one more piece of paper on my desk.\r\n\r\nThings like this make me so happy and sad at the same time. What a great thing that our students in the ACS Science Club and their advisor care enough to start this campaign but it\'s of course an uphill battle. The sale of postcards certainly wont close the budget gap for the observatory. At the same time, if they don\'t try, then what?\r\n\r\nSupport <em>is</em> support.\r\n\r\nAnd they are doing a great job raising awareness around campus. In fact, this next week we\'re having a lecture on campus about the observatory.\r\n\r\nWhat I didn\'t realize at the time is what a big deal the observatory is. You can read more about Bulgaria\'s <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=145604\" target=\"_blank\">Rozhen Observatory</a> in this article. After reading this article I was extraordinarily proud of our ACS students and I think this year instead of buying Christmas cards for family and friends I am going to buy a stack of Rozen Observatory postcards instead.\r\n\r\nThis said, if you\'d like me to mail you a post card let me know in the comments section below. I\'m willing to mail out 5-10 additional postcards to blog readers anywhere in the world. So just leave a comment and I\'ll follow-up by email to get your address.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, if you\'re a usual suspect--you\'ve gotten cards from me in the past, you\'re related to me by blood (lucky you), you\'ve married into the family, we\'ve been friends for ages or you\'ve been forced to live with me--don\'t worry you\'re already on my list and you don\'t need to leave a comment. I mean, unless you want to leave a comment.  You can always leave a comment.','Rozhen Observatory and ACS','','publish','open','open','','rozhen-observatory-and-acs','','','2012-12-01 09:47:19','2012-12-01 07:47:19','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7358',0,'post','',9),(7360,1,'2012-12-01 09:27:46','2012-12-01 07:27:46','This week a student stopped by my classroom and asked me if I wanted to buy a postcard.\n\nMe: <em>Um</em>. Yes? But what is it for?\n\nStudent, mumbles: For the Rozhen Observatory.\n\nThe thing is given the large size of my classroom and a little mumbling I don\'t understand what is being said. That and at this point, I\'d never heard of the Rozhen Observatory.\n\nMe: What?\n\nStudent, pulling out a plastic sleeve of beautiful postcards: The Bulgarian government isn\'t funding our observatory. Well, actually they\'ve decided to fund it this year but it\'s underfunded. Rozhen Observatory is the largest observatory in Eastern Europe. So the ACS Science club has made these postcards in support of the observatory.\n\nMe: Ah. I\'ll buy  a big one and a small one.\n\nFive leva later I was the proud owner of two of my own ACS supports Rozhen Observatory postcards. I proceeded to tape them to my wall. These days I don\'t need one more piece of paper on my desk.\n\nThings like this make me so happy and sad at the same time. What a great thing that our students in the ACS Science Club and their advisor care enough to start this campaign but it\'s of course an uphill battle. The sale of postcards certainly wont close the budget gap for the observatory. At the same time, if they don\'t try, then what?\n\nSupport <em>is</em> support.\n\nAnd they are doing a great job raising awareness around campus. In fact, this next week we\'re having a lecture on campus about the observatory.\n\nWhat I didn\'t realize at the time is what a big deal the observatory is. There are 50+ astronomers working there\n\nBulgaria\'s <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=145604\" target=\"_blank\">Rozhen Observatory</a>','Rozhen Observatory and ACS','','inherit','open','open','','7358-revision','','','2012-12-01 09:27:46','2012-12-01 07:27:46','',7358,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/01/7358-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7361,1,'2012-12-01 09:31:49','2012-12-01 07:31:49','This week a student stopped by my classroom and asked me if I wanted to buy a postcard.\n\nMe: <em>Um</em>. Yes? But what is it for?\n\nStudent, mumbles: For the Rozhen Observatory.\n\nThe thing is given the large size of my classroom and a little mumbling I don\'t understand what is being said. That and at this point, I\'d never heard of the Rozhen Observatory.\n\nMe: What?\n\nStudent, pulling out a plastic sleeve of beautiful postcards: The Bulgarian government isn\'t funding our observatory. Well, actually they\'ve decided to fund it this year but it\'s underfunded. Rozhen Observatory is the largest observatory in Eastern Europe. So the ACS Science club has made these postcards in support of the observatory.\n\nMe: Ah. I\'ll buy  a big one and a small one.\n\nFive leva later I was the proud owner of two of my own ACS supports Rozhen Observatory postcards. I proceeded to tape them to my wall. These days I don\'t need one more piece of paper on my desk.\n\nThings like this make me so happy and sad at the same time. What a great thing that our students in the ACS Science Club and their advisor care enough to start this campaign but it\'s of course an uphill battle. The sale of postcards certainly wont close the budget gap for the observatory. At the same time, if they don\'t try, then what?\n\nSupport <em>is</em> support.\n\nAnd they are doing a great job raising awareness around campus. In fact, this next week we\'re having a lecture on campus about the observatory.\n\nWhat I didn\'t realize at the time is what a big deal the observatory is. There is a staff of 50+ people and they focus on not only research but also education.\n\nBulgaria\'s <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=145604\" target=\"_blank\">Rozhen Observatory</a>','Rozhen Observatory and ACS','','inherit','open','open','','7358-revision-2','','','2012-12-01 09:31:49','2012-12-01 07:31:49','',7358,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/01/7358-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7362,1,'2012-12-01 09:32:33','2012-12-01 07:32:33','This week a student stopped by my classroom and asked me if I wanted to buy a postcard.\r\n\r\nMe: <em>Um</em>. Yes? But what is it for?\r\n\r\nStudent, mumbles: For the Rozhen Observatory.\r\n\r\nThe thing is given the large size of my classroom and a little mumbling I don\'t understand what is being said. That and at this point, I\'d never heard of the Rozhen Observatory.\r\n\r\nMe: What?\r\n\r\nStudent, pulling out a plastic sleeve of beautiful postcards: The Bulgarian government isn\'t funding our observatory. Well, actually they\'ve decided to fund it this year but it\'s underfunded. Rozhen Observatory is the largest observatory in Eastern Europe. So the ACS Science club has made these postcards in support of the observatory.\r\n\r\nMe: Ah. I\'ll buy  a big one and a small one.\r\n\r\nFive leva later I was the proud owner of two of my own ACS supports Rozhen Observatory postcards. I proceeded to tape them to my wall. These days I don\'t need one more piece of paper on my desk.\r\n\r\nThings like this make me so happy and sad at the same time. What a great thing that our students in the ACS Science Club and their advisor care enough to start this campaign but it\'s of course an uphill battle. The sale of postcards certainly wont close the budget gap for the observatory. At the same time, if they don\'t try, then what?\r\n\r\nSupport <em>is</em> support.\r\n\r\nAnd they are doing a great job raising awareness around campus. In fact, this next week we\'re having a lecture on campus about the observatory.\r\n\r\nWhat I didn\'t realize at the time is what a big deal the observatory is. There is a staff of 50+ people and they focus on not only research but also education.\r\n\r\nBulgaria\'s <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=145604\" target=\"_blank\">Rozhen Observatory</a>','Rozhen Observatory and ACS','','inherit','open','open','','7358-revision-3','','','2012-12-01 09:32:33','2012-12-01 07:32:33','',7358,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/01/7358-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7363,1,'2012-12-01 15:54:45','2012-12-01 13:54:45','This week a student stopped by my classroom and asked me if I wanted to buy a postcard. Me: <em>Um</em>. Yes? But what is it for? Student, mumbles: For the Rozhen Observatory. The thing is given the large size of my classroom and a little mumbling I don\'t understand what is being said. That and at this point, I\'d never heard of the Rozhen Observatory. <a title=\"Rozhen observatory and ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8233473905/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8350/8233473905_37fef603a2_z.jpg\" alt=\"Rozhen observatory and ACS\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a> Me: What? Student, pulling out a plastic sleeve of beautiful postcards: The Bulgarian government isn\'t funding our observatory. Well, actually they\'ve decided to fund it this year but it\'s underfunded. Rozhen Observatory is the largest observatory in Eastern Europe. So the ACS Science club has made these postcards in support of the observatory. Me: Ah. I\'ll buy  a big one and a small one. Five leva later I was the proud owner of two of my own ACS supports Rozhen Observatory postcards. <!--more-->I proceeded to tape them to my wall. These days I don\'t need one more piece of paper on my desk. Things like this make me so happy and sad at the same time. What a great thing that our students in the ACS Science Club and their advisor care enough to start this campaign but it\'s of course an uphill battle. The sale of postcards certainly wont close the budget gap for the observatory. At the same time, if they don\'t try, then what? Support <em>is</em> support. And they are doing a great job raising awareness around campus. In fact, this next week we\'re having a lecture on campus about the observatory. What I didn\'t realize at the time is what a big deal the observatory is. You can read more about Bulgaria\'s <a href=\"http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=145604\" target=\"_blank\">Rozhen Observatory</a> in this article. After reading this article I was extraordinarily proud of our ACS students and I think this year instead of buying Christmas cards for family and friends I am going to buy a stack of Rozen Observatory postcards instead. This said, if you\'d like me to mail you a post card let me know in the comments section below. I\'m willing to mail out 5-10 additional postcards to blog readers anywhere in the world. So just leave a comment and I\'ll follow-up by email to get your address. Anyhow, if you\'re a usual suspect--you\'ve gotten cards from me in the past, you\'re related to me by blood (lucky you), you\'ve married into the family, we\'ve been friends for ages or you\'ve been forced to live with me--don\'t worry you\'re already on my list and you don\'t need to leave a comment. I mean, unless you want to leave a comment.  You can always leave a comment.','Rozhen Observatory and ACS','','inherit','open','open','','7358-autosave','','','2012-12-01 15:54:45','2012-12-01 13:54:45','',7358,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/01/7358-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7401,1,'2012-12-10 07:46:52','2012-12-10 05:46:52','I got back to Sofia late last night in a snowstorm and was greeted by the coldest weather yet this winter in Sofia. <em>Welcome home? </em>\r\n\r\n<em></em>At least I\'ve got these photos (and more) to remind me of the weekend in Vienna. A weekend that I spent outside in Vienna wandering from Christmas market to market, sampling mulled wine and punch, eating noddles, bread-products and potatoes of all sorts, and spending plenty of Euro in the process. The whole thing was great fun.\r\n<a title=\"Christmas Market in Vienna by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8259491325/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8198/8259491325_bb710e6089_z.jpg\" alt=\"Christmas Market in Vienna\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow, it was nearly as cold in Vienna this past weekend as is now is in Sofia so I guess I wont worry about it too much. Frankly, I don\'t have any plans to  spend my whole day outside at Christmas markets shopping and drinking mulled wine this week in Sofia so I\'ll be okay.\r\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8259492443/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8057/8259492443_e6c01a9b17_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nNope, my plans are pretty boring and they include teaching and grading. Oh my, I have a lot to grade, grade, grade. I might do some laundry and I must go to the grocery store.\r\n<a title=\"Untitled by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8259496481/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8355/8259496481_2590ff35dd_z.jpg\" alt=\"Untitled\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nOh and tdhings will get busy at the end of the week with our school Christmas party. Good thing I bought my Secret Santa gift in Vienna this weekend!!\r\n\r\nI can\'t believe it\'s nearly the middle of December already. I\'ve got to put up my Christmas tree and get serious about baking Christmas cookies.\r\n\r\nMore on Vienna later!!','Back from a weekend in Vienna ','','publish','open','open','','back-from-a-weekend-in-vienna','','','2012-12-10 07:46:52','2012-12-10 05:46:52','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7401',0,'post','',0),(7366,1,'2012-12-02 21:45:56','2012-12-02 19:45:56','After a day of Parent-Teacher Conferences, I didn\'t feel like doing much.\r\n\r\nTeaching is hard work. Talking to parents about their students is a different kind of hard work. The worst part about the whole day was that there was no coffee to be found on campus--both Onda and the school cafe were closed. Who does this?\r\n\r\nAfter the conferences wrapped up, I had a short meeting at school and then I headed home to change my clothes and sit on my couch.\r\n\r\nCouches on a Saturday afternoon are a really wonderful thing.\r\n<a title=\"inside Boom Burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239030146/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8349/8239030146_bc4e774979_z.jpg\" alt=\"inside Boom Burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n\r\nSaturday late afternoon it was spitting rain and I didn\'t feel like doing much.\r\n\r\nA. and I met up a little bit later for an early dinner and to watch some football--just for the record I mean soccer--but I\'m trying to train myself to say football. It\'s a when in Rome kind of thing.\r\n\r\nWe went to Boom Burger. We figured that we could eat burgers and watch part of a game there but they\'d taken out their tv to replace it with a bigger one and the bigger one was not yet installed. This really bummed A. out. I still think that football is soccer so it didn\'t upset me as much.<!--more-->\r\n\r\nAt Boom Burger we ran into another table of ACS teachers who were paying their bill. We chatted for a bit.\r\n<a title=\"Boom burger menu by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239028558/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8479/8239028558_2f03909683_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger menu\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nThen we sat down to order. I got the cheeseburger cooked medium/medium well and A. got the Boomburger--a hamburger with cheese and bacon. Two beers and an order of fries later we were happy campers.\r\n<a title=\"at Boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239031506/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8343/8239031506_ab1096eecf_z.jpg\" alt=\"at Boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nWhile we were drinking our beers and waiting for our burgers we ended up talked to two guys at the next table over--Americans who work at the embassy. They were really nice guys and it reminded me how small the expat community in Sofia actually is and how I don\'t do enough to reach out to the community as a whole.\r\n<a title=\"Boom Burger cheeseburger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239033868/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8239033868_a4ffd71ef6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom Burger cheeseburger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\nAnyhow the burgers were great, the service was good and we had a great night out.\r\n\r\nHere\'s <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">my actual restaurant review of Boom Burger</a> on the off chance you want to know more about the food than it\'s good--which it is. Oh yeah, and as a quick reminder: don\'t forget to order your burger medium to medium well done unless you like a  very pink-red burger.','Saturday afternoon: Boom Burger ','','publish','open','open','','saturday-afternoon-boom-burger','','','2012-12-02 21:45:56','2012-12-02 19:45:56','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7366',0,'post','',1),(7367,1,'2012-12-02 21:12:28','2012-12-02 19:12:28','After a day of Parent-Teacher Conferences, I didn\'t feel like doing much.\n\nTeaching is hard work. Talking to parents about their students is a different kind of hard work. The worst part about the whole day was that there was no coffee to be found on campus--both Onda and the school cafe were closed. Who does this?\n\nAfter the conferences wrapped up, I had a short meeting at school and then I headed home to change my clothes and sit on my couch. Couches on a Saturday afternoon are a really wonderful thing.\n\nA and I met up a little bit later for an early dinner and to watch some football--just for the record I mean soccer--but I\'m trying to train myself to say football. It\'s a when in Rome kind of thing.\n\nSo we went to Boom Burger.\n\nAt Boom Burger we ran into another table of ACS teachers who were paying their bill. We chatted for a bit.\n\nThen we sat down to order. I got the cheeseburger cooked medium/medium well and A. got the Boom burger--a hamburger with cheese and bacon. Two beers and an order of fries later we were happy campers.\n\nWhile we were drinking our beers and waiting for our burgers we ended up talked to two guys at the next table over--Americans who work at the embassy. They were really nice guys and it reminded me how small the expat community in Sofia actually is and how I don\'t do enough to reach out to the community as a whole.\n\nAnyhow the burgers were great and we had a great night out.\n\nHere\'s <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">my actual restaurant review of Boom Burger</a> on the off chance you want to know more about the food than it\'s good--which it is. Oh yeah, and as a quick reminder: don\'t forget to order your burger medium to medium well done unless you like a  very pink-red burger.','Saturday afternoon: Boom Burger ','','inherit','open','open','','7366-revision','','','2012-12-02 21:12:28','2012-12-02 19:12:28','',7366,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/02/7366-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7368,1,'2012-12-02 21:41:04','2012-12-02 19:41:04','After a day of Parent-Teacher Conferences, I didn\'t feel like doing much.\n\nTeaching is hard work. Talking to parents about their students is a different kind of hard work. The worst part about the whole day was that there was no coffee to be found on campus--both Onda and the school cafe were closed. Who does this?\n\nAfter the conferences wrapped up, I had a short meeting at school and then I headed home to change my clothes and sit on my couch. Couches on a Saturday afternoon are a really wonderful thing.\n<a title=\"inside Boom Burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239030146/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8349/8239030146_bc4e774979_z.jpg\" alt=\"inside Boom Burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nA. and I met up a little bit later for an early dinner and to watch some football--just for the record I mean soccer--but I\'m trying to train myself to say football. It\'s a when in Rome kind of thing.\n\nSo we went to Boom Burger.<!--more-->\n\nAt Boom Burger we ran into another table of ACS teachers who were paying their bill. We chatted for a bit.\n<a title=\"Boom burger menu by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239028558/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8479/8239028558_2f03909683_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger menu\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThen we sat down to order. I got the cheeseburger cooked medium/medium well and A. got the Boom burger--a hamburger with cheese and bacon. Two beers and an order of fries later we were happy campers.\n<a title=\"at Boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239031506/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8343/8239031506_ab1096eecf_z.jpg\" alt=\"at Boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWhile we were drinking our beers and waiting for our burgers we ended up talked to two guys at the next table over--Americans who work at the embassy. They were really nice guys and it reminded me how small the expat community in Sofia actually is and how I don\'t do enough to reach out to the community as a whole.\n<a title=\"Boom Burger cheeseburger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239033868/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8239033868_a4ffd71ef6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom Burger cheeseburger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow the burgers were great, the service was good and we had a great night out.\n\nHere\'s <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">my actual restaurant review of Boom Burger</a> on the off chance you want to know more about the food than it\'s good--which it is. Oh yeah, and as a quick reminder: don\'t forget to order your burger medium to medium well done unless you like a  very pink-red burger.','Saturday afternoon: Boom Burger ','','inherit','open','open','','7366-revision-2','','','2012-12-02 21:41:04','2012-12-02 19:41:04','',7366,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/02/7366-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7369,1,'2012-12-02 21:42:04','2012-12-02 19:42:04','After a day of Parent-Teacher Conferences, I didn\'t feel like doing much.\n\nTeaching is hard work. Talking to parents about their students is a different kind of hard work. The worst part about the whole day was that there was no coffee to be found on campus--both Onda and the school cafe were closed. Who does this?\n\nAfter the conferences wrapped up, I had a short meeting at school and then I headed home to change my clothes and sit on my couch.\n\nCouches on a Saturday afternoon are a really wonderful thing.\n<a title=\"inside Boom Burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239030146/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8349/8239030146_bc4e774979_z.jpg\" alt=\"inside Boom Burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nA. and I met up a little bit later for an early dinner and to watch some football--just for the record I mean soccer--but I\'m trying to train myself to say football. It\'s a when in Rome kind of thing.\n\nSo we went to Boom Burger.<!--more-->\n\nAt Boom Burger we ran into another table of ACS teachers who were paying their bill. We chatted for a bit.\n<a title=\"Boom burger menu by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239028558/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8479/8239028558_2f03909683_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger menu\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThen we sat down to order. I got the cheeseburger cooked medium/medium well and A. got the Boom burger--a hamburger with cheese and bacon. Two beers and an order of fries later we were happy campers.\n<a title=\"at Boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239031506/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8343/8239031506_ab1096eecf_z.jpg\" alt=\"at Boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWhile we were drinking our beers and waiting for our burgers we ended up talked to two guys at the next table over--Americans who work at the embassy. They were really nice guys and it reminded me how small the expat community in Sofia actually is and how I don\'t do enough to reach out to the community as a whole.\n<a title=\"Boom Burger cheeseburger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239033868/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8239033868_a4ffd71ef6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom Burger cheeseburger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow the burgers were great, the service was good and we had a great night out.\n\nHere\'s <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">my actual restaurant review of Boom Burger</a> on the off chance you want to know more about the food than it\'s good--which it is. Oh yeah, and as a quick reminder: don\'t forget to order your burger medium to medium well done unless you like a  very pink-red burger.','Saturday afternoon: Boom Burger ','','inherit','open','open','','7366-revision-3','','','2012-12-02 21:42:04','2012-12-02 19:42:04','',7366,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/02/7366-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7370,1,'2012-12-02 21:46:59','2012-12-02 19:46:59','After a day of Parent-Teacher Conferences, I didn\'t feel like doing much.\n\nTeaching is hard work. Talking to parents about their students is a different kind of hard work. The worst part about the whole day was that there was no coffee to be found on campus--both Onda and the school cafe were closed. Who does this?\n\nAfter the conferences wrapped up, I had a short meeting at school and then I headed home to change my clothes and sit on my couch.\n\nCouches on a Saturday afternoon are a really wonderful thing.\n<a title=\"inside Boom Burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239030146/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8349/8239030146_bc4e774979_z.jpg\" alt=\"inside Boom Burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n\nSaturday late afternoon it was spitting rain and I didn\'t feel like doing much.\n\nA. and I met up a little bit later for an early dinner and to watch some football--just for the record I mean soccer--but I\'m trying to train myself to say football. It\'s a when in Rome kind of thing.\n\nWe went to Boom Burger. We figured that we could eat burgers and watch part of a game there but they\'d taken out their tv to replace it with a bigger one and the bigger one was not yet installed. This really bummed A. out. I still think that football is soccer so it didn\'t upset me as much.<!--more-->\n\nAt Boom Burger we ran into another table of ACS teachers who were paying their bill. We chatted for a bit.\n<a title=\"Boom burger menu by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239028558/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8479/8239028558_2f03909683_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom burger menu\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nThen we sat down to order. I got the cheeseburger cooked medium/medium well and A. got the Boomburger--a hamburger with cheese and bacon. Two beers and an order of fries later we were happy campers.\n<a title=\"at Boom burger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239031506/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8343/8239031506_ab1096eecf_z.jpg\" alt=\"at Boom burger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nWhile we were drinking our beers and waiting for our burgers we ended up talked to two guys at the next table over--Americans who work at the embassy. They were really nice guys and it reminded me how small the expat community in Sofia actually is and how I don\'t do enough to reach out to the community as a whole.\n<a title=\"Boom Burger cheeseburger by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239033868/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8348/8239033868_a4ffd71ef6_z.jpg\" alt=\"Boom Burger cheeseburger\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\nAnyhow the burgers were great, the service was good and we had a great night out.\n\nHere\'s <a href=\"http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/06/15/boom-burger-in-sofia/\" target=\"_blank\">my actual restaurant review of Boom Burger</a> on the off chance you want to know more about the food than it\'s good--which it is. Oh yeah, and as a quick reminder: don\'t forget to order your burger medium to medium well done unless you like a  very pink-red burger.','Saturday afternoon: Boom Burger ','','inherit','open','open','','7366-autosave','','','2012-12-02 21:46:59','2012-12-02 19:46:59','',7366,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/02/7366-autosave/',0,'revision','',0),(7371,1,'2012-12-03 07:05:30','2012-12-03 05:05:30','I think that grocery stores in Bulgaria kick of the holiday season with pomegranates and mandarin oranges. Well that and chocolate and various Christmas breads like German stollen and Italian panettone.\r\n\r\nMaybe I\'ve made up the pomegranates and mandarin oranges thing but I think it\'s magical to have pomegranates and mandarin oranges and out in the grocery store at the same time. The colors are so wonderful together.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239610511/\" title=\"pomegranate by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8239610511_100c6ea08b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pomegranate\"></a>\r\nI should really have a bowl of oranges and pomegranates out on my table it would be so pretty and delicious. The only problem is that I love to eat both mandarin oranges and pomegranates so I would forever be refilling the bowl. It\'s probably worth it though for the holidays.\r\n\r\nSpeaking of the approaching holidays, I am looking forward to digging out my Christmas tree this week but even more, I am looking forward to going to Vienna this weekend to drink mulled wine and wander through Christmas markets.','Pomegranates and Mandarin Oranges ','','publish','open','open','','pomegranates-and-mandarin-oranges','','','2012-12-03 07:05:45','2012-12-03 05:05:45','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7371',0,'post','',4),(7372,1,'2012-12-03 06:58:05','2012-12-03 04:58:05','I think that grocery stores in Bulgaria kick of the holiday season with pomegranates and mandarin oranges. Well that and chocolate and various Christmas breads like German stollen and Italian panettone.\n\nMaybe I\'ve made up the pomegranates and mandarin oranges thing but I think it\'s magical to have pomegranates and mandarin oranges and out in the grocery store at the same time. The colors are so wonderful together.\n\nI should really have a bowl of oranges and pomegranates out on my table it would be so pretty and delicious. The only problem is that I love to eat both mandarin oranges and pomegranates so I would forever be refilling the bowl. It\'s probably worth it though for the holidays.\n\nSpeaking of the approaching holidays, I am looking forward to digging out my Christmas tree this week but even more, I am looking forward to going to Vienna this weekend to drink mulled wine and wander through Christmas markets.','Pomegranates and Mandarin Oranges ','','inherit','open','open','','7371-revision','','','2012-12-03 06:58:05','2012-12-03 04:58:05','',7371,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/03/7371-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7373,1,'2012-12-03 07:05:05','2012-12-03 05:05:05','I think that grocery stores in Bulgaria kick of the holiday season with pomegranates and mandarin oranges. Well that and chocolate and various Christmas breads like German stollen and Italian panettone.\n\nMaybe I\'ve made up the pomegranates and mandarin oranges thing but I think it\'s magical to have pomegranates and mandarin oranges and out in the grocery store at the same time. The colors are so wonderful together.\n\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239610511/\" title=\"pomegranate by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8239610511_100c6ea08b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pomegranate\"></a>\nI should really have a bowl of oranges and pomegranates out on my table it would be so pretty and delicious. The only problem is that I love to eat both mandarin oranges and pomegranates so I would forever be refilling the bowl. It\'s probably worth it though for the holidays.\n\nSpeaking of the approaching holidays, I am looking forward to digging out my Christmas tree this week but even more, I am looking forward to going to Vienna this weekend to drink mulled wine and wander through Christmas markets.','Pomegranates and Mandarin Oranges ','','inherit','open','open','','7371-revision-2','','','2012-12-03 07:05:05','2012-12-03 05:05:05','',7371,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/03/7371-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7374,1,'2012-12-03 07:05:30','2012-12-03 05:05:30','I think that grocery stores in Bulgaria kick of the holiday season with pomegranates and mandarin oranges. Well that and chocolate and various Christmas breads like German stollen and Italian panettone.\r\n\r\nMaybe I\'ve made up the pomegranates and mandarin oranges thing but I think it\'s magical to have pomegranates and mandarin oranges and out in the grocery store at the same time. The colors are so wonderful together.\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8239610511/\" title=\"pomegranate by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8239610511_100c6ea08b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"pomegranate\"></a>\r\nI should really have a bowl of oranges and pomegranates out on my table it would be so pretty and delicious. The only problem is that I love to eat both mandarin oranges and pomegranates so I would forever be refilling the bowl. It\'s probably worth it though for the holidays.\r\n\r\nSpeaking of the approaching holidays, I am looking forward to digging out my Christmas tree this week but even more, I am looking forward to going to Vienna this weekend to drink mulled wine and wander through Christmas markets.','Pomegranates and Mandarin Oranges ','','inherit','open','open','','7371-revision-3','','','2012-12-03 07:05:30','2012-12-03 05:05:30','',7371,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/03/7371-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),(7376,1,'2012-12-04 17:59:21','2012-12-04 15:59:21','Sofia\'s basement shops--<a href=\"http://popupcity.net/2012/11/sofias-basement-shops/\" target=\"_blank\">the klek</a>--\n\nA great list of <a href=\"http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2012/11/underrated_books_overlooked_fiction_and_nonfiction_of_2012.html\" target=\"_blank\">overlooked books from 2012 </a>\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<a href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/dimiter-kenarov/green-revolution-how-ecoactivism-made-bulgaria-care_b_2198182.html?\" target=\"_blank\">How ecoactivism make Bulgaria care again</a>\n\nACS Alumna and founder of Brain Picker is <a href=\"http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/02/fashion/maria-popova-has-some-big-ideas.html?pagewanted=all&amp;_r=1&amp;\" target=\"_blank\">in the NYT</a>.','','','inherit','open','open','','7337-revision-5','','','2012-12-04 17:59:21','2012-12-04 15:59:21','',7337,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/04/7337-revision-5/',0,'revision','',0),(7377,1,'2012-12-04 21:51:00','2012-12-04 19:51:00','We had our first snow storm yesterday afternoon. Ug. Snow in early December. No thanks.\r\n\r\nI\'m not sure why I can\'t be in charge of these things--but I\'m not.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, the snow fall was beautiful but getting around in the snow less so. This morning the air was cold and crisp and the sidewalks were covered in ice.\r\n\r\nI took these photos this morning and now I guess winter is officially here. At least this means, coffee tastes that much better on dark weekday mornings, I can cozy up in sweaters<em> and</em> I can throw snowballs!!\r\n<a title=\"snow at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8244434553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8244434553_38e78646f5_z.jpg\" alt=\"snow at ACS\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"snow and sunrise by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8244432437/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8244432437_6b9f1e3107_z.jpg\" alt=\"snow and sunrise\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"snowy day at school by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8245498286/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8245498286_acd6db7efd_z.jpg\" alt=\"snowy day at school\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"ACS in the snow by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8245497014/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8245497014_3ca70c86c1_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS in the snow\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','The first snow of the season and campus','','publish','open','open','','the-first-snow-of-the-season-and-campus','','','2012-12-04 21:51:00','2012-12-04 19:51:00','',0,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?p=7377',0,'post','',0),(7378,1,'2012-12-04 21:47:08','2012-12-04 19:47:08','We had our first snow storm yesterday afternoon. Ug. Snow in early December. No thanks.\n\nI\'m not sure why I can\'t be in charge of these things--but I\'m not.\n\nAnyhow, the snow fall was beautiful but getting around in the snow less so. This morning the air was cold and crisp and the sidewalks were covered in ice.\n\nI took these photos this morning. I guess winter is offficiall\n<a title=\"snow at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8244434553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8244434553_38e78646f5_z.jpg\" alt=\"snow at ACS\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"snow and sunrise by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8244432437/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8244432437_6b9f1e3107_z.jpg\" alt=\"snow and sunrise\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"snowy day at school by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8245498286/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8245498286_acd6db7efd_z.jpg\" alt=\"snowy day at school\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"ACS in the snow by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8245497014/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8245497014_3ca70c86c1_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS in the snow\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Snow and Campus ','','inherit','open','open','','7377-revision','','','2012-12-04 21:47:08','2012-12-04 19:47:08','',7377,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/04/7377-revision/',0,'revision','',0),(7379,1,'2012-12-04 21:47:45','2012-12-04 19:47:45','We had our first snow storm yesterday afternoon. Ug. Snow in early December. No thanks.\r\n\r\nI\'m not sure why I can\'t be in charge of these things--but I\'m not.\r\n\r\nAnyhow, the snow fall was beautiful but getting around in the snow less so. This morning the air was cold and crisp and the sidewalks were covered in ice.\r\n\r\nI took these photos this morning. I guess winter is officially here.\r\n<a title=\"snow at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8244434553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8244434553_38e78646f5_z.jpg\" alt=\"snow at ACS\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"snow and sunrise by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8244432437/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8244432437_6b9f1e3107_z.jpg\" alt=\"snow and sunrise\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"snowy day at school by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8245498286/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8245498286_acd6db7efd_z.jpg\" alt=\"snowy day at school\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\r\n<a title=\"ACS in the snow by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8245497014/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8245497014_3ca70c86c1_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS in the snow\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','Snow and Campus ','','inherit','open','open','','7377-revision-2','','','2012-12-04 21:47:45','2012-12-04 19:47:45','',7377,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/04/7377-revision-2/',0,'revision','',0),(7380,1,'2012-12-04 21:50:48','2012-12-04 19:50:48','We had our first snow storm yesterday afternoon. Ug. Snow in early December. No thanks.\n\nI\'m not sure why I can\'t be in charge of these things--but I\'m not.\n\nAnyhow, the snow fall was beautiful but getting around in the snow less so. This morning the air was cold and crisp and the sidewalks were covered in ice.\n\nI took these photos this morning and now I guess winter is officially here. At least this means, coffee tastes that much better on dark weekday mornings, I can cozy up in sweaters<em> and</em> I can throw snowballs!!\n<a title=\"snow at ACS by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8244434553/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8200/8244434553_38e78646f5_z.jpg\" alt=\"snow at ACS\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"snow and sunrise by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8244432437/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8067/8244432437_6b9f1e3107_z.jpg\" alt=\"snow and sunrise\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"snowy day at school by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8245498286/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8486/8245498286_acd6db7efd_z.jpg\" alt=\"snowy day at school\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>\n<a title=\"ACS in the snow by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr\" href=\"http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/8245497014/\"><img src=\"http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8204/8245497014_3ca70c86c1_z.jpg\" alt=\"ACS in the snow\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" /></a>','The first snow','','inherit','open','open','','7377-revision-3','','','2012-12-04 21:50:48','2012-12-04 19:50:48','',7377,'http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/2012/12/04/7377-revision-3/',0,'revision','',0),