Day 20

Big surprise - S2 was up early and went for a bike ride.  We had to ask NS nicely to try and leave her wad of sheets and blankets, and help us pack up and get ready to go.  The day was heating up but our 9:30 departure at least got us on our way.

Carmen cooperated with my ten different destination entries so that we could go the way we actually wanted.  This included the 100+ kms on one of those lovely new Bulgarian highways.  It was a bit unsettling, however, to find so few exits.  Would we be able to get off where we wanted?

Fortunately, yes there was an exit at Starry Zobaga, and soon we were heading into the foothills, where it really was much cooler.  We stopped at Kazanlak for S2 to look at some Thracian tombs.  Who are the Thracians?  They were here before the Romans.  You know how all that early world history is so hard to remember .. The Sumerians, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, why are today's borders so much easier to remember?  Anyhow, this tomb dates from 4000 BC.  S2 returned with a gift for us.  He claimed it was a Thracian railroad spike.  I asked, "they were here before the Romans with railroads?"  Without blinking an eye,  NS claims, "that's why the Romans got rid of them, they were jealous of their trains."

We called it a day quite early today.  We found a non-guidebook, non-Carmen accommodation with a pool.  We were all in it by 4 in the afternoon.

The young desk clerk, clearly tickled that her English was helping her communicate may have got in trouble with her parents for letting us have the matrimonial suite for 3 people.  NS is loving the couch, the big screen TV, and the huge overstuffed bear. S2 reported the clerks very shyly asked, when looking at his passport, where his name was.  She admitted it was her first time seeing a U.S. Passport.

So where yesterday we were on the beach with hundreds of people, today we were the only ones poolside, enjoying the late afternoon sun.

A funny story for middle-aged women (others may not find this as funny or interesting): I had to buy some tampons at a highway gas station (yes, for me, you can stop laughing now).  The 'owner's manual' was in 13 languages!!!!