Tales from Strandza mountain...
the sequel
- Get up! - I hear a soft whisper in my ear. - I have an idea!
I open my eyes sleepily to see my boy hanging his head over me in bed with that playful smile I can't resist and my eyes immediately light up. I can feel the summer, even through the sheets, the early sun beating down and the looming heat through the open patio door. The heavy curtain in front of her casts a carefree and warm shade of blue that paints the moment in a particularly beautiful, magical way. And the birds outside, ahhh, a perfect symphony.
- I want coffee! - I whisper sleepily and I already know that the day will be exciting and nice.
I roll out of bed, and while I'm brushing my teeth, he tells me his plan, which doesn't really involve anything planned, and that's what I like about it. A wonderful opportunity to walk several dresses creeps through my sleepy thought.
- Great! - I respond enthusiastically and already run to the kitchen for a cup of coffee. I fill not only my soul with it, but also a large thermos, which will do a great job for us on the road. Strandzha is calling us again.
Turn after turn, the asphalt turns into a forest, a touchy breeze enters through the open window of the car, I am barefoot, I am blackened "like a gypsy", as my grandmother used to say, still shaggy, and my soul is full and thirsty for adventure.
Strandza is wonderful. Her nature trembles and vibrates divinely, giving us all her charm. We meet no one on the way, and this gift seems to be only for us. We travel along already trodden, familiar roads and forests, but nevertheless I experience it in a new and exciting way, as if I am here for the first time.
And whoop, we reach the Turkish border.
We pass it after some waiting, and already on neighboring land, we set off with ease on the winding highway, following the hills of Strandzha. Gilded fields, fields and horizons open before us, a beautiful blue sky, undisturbed by any clouds, and the heat has already died down. Work is bubbling in the area, we pass combine harvesters, heavily loaded trucks, tractors... it's harvest time.
You can probably guess that the initial idea is to run to Turkey, but there is no particular plan and no specific goal. The driving force is our enthusiasm for travel and the desire for new unknown places. We pass by Lozengrad, but decide that we will pay attention to it a little later on the way back and continue in the direction of Midia or Kiyiköy in Turkish. We are supposed to have launched some navigation, but we don't pay much attention to it, we use the good old-fashioned approach - roadside signs and signs, and of course, the intuition of the traveler. The southern slope of Strandzha accompanies us all the time and seems to suggest and playfully wink at us where to go. I trust her completely.
We arrive in Kiyiköy. We park, ravenously hungry. We start walking around the town, and the heat is no longer forgiving. It was a market day by all accounts, a shame we missed it. I really love markets, especially places like this.
And a timelessness reigns...
I decide to screw around a bit, or rather the dress I'm in prompted me, of course stealing almost all the looks from the locals :)
Hunger prevails with terrible force and we decide to sit down somewhere to have lunch.
Something inside me tells me that this is our place. We are greeted by a man and a woman, extremely hospitable, visibly happy and pleased to welcome foreigners who have chosen exactly their place. They start explaining to us something about food in Turkish, we don't understand anything, but we trust them completely.
Delicious, delicious, delicious. Home made food. And the bread, Oh God! I felt at home.
After this moment of food bliss, we feel that the day is progressing, we pay, we say thank you in Turkish (google translate helped) and we leave satisfied and full.
We get into the car, and inside is a greenhouse. We will look for a beach.
We drive into the unknown and hop - beach, camping, river, boats... wonderful!
Without even saying a word, I jump into the first boat, let my boy negotiate the price with a local, and wait impatiently.
We go along the river.
I've already changed the dress, as you can see, it's hard to pay attention to just one, they get mad at me later :)
The river is fabulous. And everything around her...
We go in and in and in. Crickets and all sorts of other hissing insects welcome us. It's wild, beautiful, pristine, unspoiled. We had no idea that we would find such a treasure.
After about an hour we get off the boat, as much as I don't want to. The day is well advanced. We quickly jump into the car and gas.
I'm putting on a third dress that's falling out of the trunk, just in case I accidentally forgot it. Of course I'm not :)
We stop to pay attention to her and take her picture, because she was bored, and she also had a bohemian soul, she wants what she wants :)
We couldn't resist the watermelons and melons on the way to Lozengrad, we grabbed two of everything, and I couldn't hold back and took pictures of everything my eyes could see.
We reach Lozengrad and this time we are hungry for ice cream.
We do a lavish tour of the central part of the city, buying fruit, baklava and bread, which we ate a little later in the car, not because we were that hungry, but because we couldn't resist the smell of it.
And the taste - without words...
So, ardent girls, I hope I managed to transport you, albeit virtually, in our Strandzan fairy tale, and for those of you who missed the first part, you can take a walk here.
I wish you a magical summer, just the kind you dream of.
Love,
Plamenna