We thought travelling by train in Bulgaria was difficult, but it was a doddle compared to the local bus. As the country’s third largest city, Varna was only a 30-minute bus journey from our beach resort Golden Sands, and a trip into town was an ideal way to spend a cloudy day.
Getting to the 109 bus stop involved climbing around 200 steps from our hotel, with the 9.37am bus arriving just as we were getting our breath back. On boarding, we discovered tickets had to be purchased from a machine, resulting in us simultaneously trying to keep our balance, working out how to use the machine, whilst keeping out of the way of locals who already had tickets. We eventually paid 4 Lev (less than £2) for a day ticket. We’d taken a screen shot of all the stops which we counted down, but it was not helped by the fact that none were named and the digital display on the bus simply said ‘Welcome’.
We eventually got off at the beginning of a wide pedestrianised area heading for Tourist Information passing a lovely ornate theatre, and similarly beautiful buildings adjacent to Soviet era monstrosities.
Armed with maps and information, our first port of call was conveniently across the road: the photogenic golden-domed Assumption of the Mother of God Cathedral, consecrated in 1910. Frescoes adorned every inch of the walls and ceiling and unusually for an orthodox church, photographs were allowed inside.
There were several museums, but as the weather was brightening, we decided to visit just one, choosing the Museum of National Revival. An elderly lady charged us 10 Lev or £4.50 each, and then huffed and puffed her way up a wooden staircase, putting both feet on each step, and switching on the lights as she went. Presumably to avoid a repeat trip, she sat on the landing waiting for us to visit the exhibits. Unfortunately the display of books, and photographs were not captioned in English, and so it was all a bit of a mystery. However, the mock-up of the first Bulgarian school with rows of wooden benches was self-explanatory, and whilst most had slates for writing, the front row had sand for the younger children. Downstairs were displays of weapons which were not particularly interesting, but at least we were able to visit the loo for free.
On our way to the coast, we passed what appeared to be an old house in beautiful grounds, and we later read that it was built as a school in 1862 before being converted into the tiny church of St Archangel Michael. A statue in the garden of a young girl facing a soldier was familiar and I later found it in our Lonely Planet.
We then found the Sea Gardens or Primorski Park, a huge expanse of green space between the sea/beach and the main road. There were several elements including an open air theatre (which sadly would not rival Regents Park), an area of exotic plants, and a rock garden with a wooden ‘wishes bridge’. According to legend, if you made a wish and could cross the bridge with your eyes closed without touching the sides, your wish would come true – we both failed. A long path, called the National Revival Alley, was lined with plaques and busts of heroes down the side and bare flower beds in the centre, which would presumably have been filled with summer bedding plants. This led to the Alley of Cosmonauts, where Yuri Gagarin planted the first tree, a silver fir, in 1961, and an impressive statue, the Pantheon of the Perished in the Fight Against Fascism. In the nearby Rosarium a few stragglers were hanging on for dear life although it’s said to be home to more than 4000 roses. The garden’s designer was obviously a fan of alleys, as next came the Alley of the Olympics with 10 plaques engraved with an Olympic year, the host country, and a list of sports where athletes from Varna had excelled. Having passed a zoo, lots of food and drink outlets, and children’s rides, we came to the Dolphinarium where we crossed through the park onto the main road and caught the bus back.
Unfortunately by the time we had walked back down the 200 steps and returned to the hotel, the weather had improved.