Bulgaria After spending two wonderful nights exploring the artistic streets and ancient hills of Plovdiv, it was time to move on to Bulgaria’s bustling capital city, Sofia. While a railway connection exists between the two cities, taking the long-distance bus is widely preferred by independent travelers because services are significantly more frequent and highly reliable. The […]
Bulgaria While the ancient town of Plovdiv has no shortage of inner-city charm, some of Bulgaria’s most dramatic cultural gems lie just on its scenic outskirts. Nestled in the Rhodope Mountains are two must-visit historical icons: Bachkovo Monastery, the country’s second-largest Eastern Orthodox sanctuary, and Asen’s Fortress (Asenova Krepost), a medieval stronghold perched high on a […]
Border Crossing When traveling overland from Edirne, Turkey, to Plovdiv, Bulgaria, there is one critical rule every backpacker and independent traveler must know: the Kapıkule border checkpoint is strictly a vehicle-only crossing, and crossing on foot is completely forbidden. During our summer travels in 2023, a sudden hotel Wi-Fi crash left us without internet access the night […]
Turkey 
Turkey 
Turkey 
Turkey 
Turkey 
Turkey 
Turkey