A bowl of raspberries and blackberries from the garden

Grapes ripening in the front porch

Crab-apples

Elderberries

Red sunflowers

A lush geranium specimen

While David was busy at the garage, Sandi found lovely llamas, in an opposite field, to photograph.

Sandi was booked to do a 3-day course in Huddersfield, but unfortunately the tutor was admitted to hospital, and had to cancel at short notice. Although disappointing, this was fortuitous, as the van took longer in the garage than the time we had allocated for the service, so we used the extra time to explore Devon.

Judy took us for a lovely amble on Dartmoor, near Widdecombe-on-the-Moor.






We came across this ancient sheep enclosure with the ruins of the shepherd's hut. Someone had left evidence of some harvest ritual in the hut.


Wild ponies abound, and are actually fairly tame, seeming not to be fussed by walkers.




We enjoyed wonderful views of Dartmoor, with several hills capped by torrs, and the trees a tapestry of green hues .



On the way back we stopped in Bovey Tracey at the House of Marbles, where we could watch glass-blowing, play with the intricate marble cascades in the museum section, and marvel at the displays of the history of marbles [while reminiscing about schooldays]. We were fascinated by the moving marble artwork on the wall.

Janet had given Sandi a tenner, to spend on herself, so she bought a beautiful perfume bottle with a stunning marble stopper, as a memento, from the enticing House of Marbles tourist shop in the complex.

On Tuesday we spent the day in Exeter city, and happened to pass this ornate door to the Guildhall, so out came the camera!


David was highly amused to find the answer to swine flu in a pharmacy, and insisted on being photographed with the evidence!

Apart from needing to do some shopping we wanted to visit the house that David's uncle, David, was renowned for moving. It is of historical value and unfortunately was sited where the new ring road was planned to go. David, the architect, had to devise a way of trussing up the house so that it did not collapse, then hoisting it onto rollers, and trundle it 300m up the hill to its current position. He did it successfully, and the house has been occupied by many differing tenants to date. In spite of achieving this incredible feat, his name is unfortunately not mentioned in the official records!


There's a lovely little watercolour of the house in the posting [Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Yorkshire], from the 2009 Topsham Art Exhibition. If it wasn't already sold when we saw it it would have been very tempted to buy it.

The house is adjacent to the old city wall, into which many other structures have been built.

The old clock tower opposite the House

FRUITS OF DEVON remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Things which were not so good were:
• Packing up the practice at the Greenhouse, 6 months after we had spent so much time and effort leaving it in good order, and 25 years after we had started it
• Not having enough time to really enjoy CT as we had hoped
• Sandi’s home PC which crashed, had its innards replaced, but never really woke up from its long sleep
• Sandi’s colour laser label printer which jammed, and has not yet recovered, in spite of several visits to the repair shop. Not ideal in the middle of product production time [very stressful as there were lots of bespoke remedies and product orders requiring personal preparation before we left again]


• Having to share one car between 4 of us after Simon overheated the Carina, and it was out of action for a week
• Sandi dashing off to Johannesburg for two Professional Board meetings, and the politics that always accompany such events
• Finding 2 London congestion charges in the post [£182] along with a lawyer’s letter of demand
• Noticing how the cost of living has increased sharply in SA since February
• Both of us having flu [again!]
• Having to deal with practice taxes etc
• David dropping a concrete slab on his finger, while repairing the driveway.

Gastronomic highlights included many good meals enjoyed in the company of dear friends and family:
• As-much-as-you-can-eat Sushi at the Blowfish
• Shabbat with the Morrises [Sandi had flu and regretted not being up to her usual hungry self to enjoy the feast]
• Lunch at Constantia Neck with Granny Gaby and the family [without Sandi, who still had flu]
• Our favourite Chinese fare at Mainland China
• Shabbat with Janet and Tash

Sandi cuddling Janet's little dog Boebie

Simon will drink anything out of a nasturtium leaf!

Dew drop on a vine stem

Sun setting on the Franschoek mountains

What a celebration-filled month!

One crisp and sunny Sunday afternoon Dalene and Ian took us for a walk in the Tygerberg Nature Reserve [its existence hitherto unknown] where we walked among Bontebok, fynbos and had stunning panoramic views of Cape Town, while sipping chilled Veuve Clicquot and eating choc-dipped strawberries. Those Morrises sure are stylish!

So, all in all, the Nye roller-coaster experiences continued, but we decided to test our philosophical bent and patiently accept that: "It is what it is", and just get on with it. Home is however truly where the heart is!

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It was great to spend some time with dear friends, Sue and Kev and their fine lads, Michael and Matthew who were both busy with final exams.

We had fun browsing through charity shops in the city centre, stocked up for the basic kitchen equipment van at Ikea, visited a car boot sale, and a Sunday market on the Newcastle quayside. We had quite a giggle en route to Ikea in Newcastle. To get to the store we keyed the name into Molly, our GPS, and set off in faith that she knew the way. We were soon heading south, which got Dave a bit worried. We checked Molly's destination again and found that she was leading us to Ikea, Holland! Motto of the story: never trust your GPS completely.

Sue is very proud of the magnificent poppies she grows in her front garden!

We spent an afternoon visiting Hadrian's Wall, a colossal feat of engineering, extending 80 miles across North England.

It was built in 122AD by 3 legions of Hadrian's soldiers, in 6 years, to keep the Barbarians out of Roman England. There were 30 forts and a mini fort every mile along the wall, with a great ditch to the north. We visited one of the best preserved forts called Housesteads. It was amazing to see the intricate layout of the facilities, including elevated, ventilated flooring. Standing in the ruins you can see the wall running over the beautiful rural hills to the horizons on either side.





After a week in Newcastle we drove to Livingston [1/2 hour the other side of Edinburgh] to spend a few cozy days with our friends Bernie and Estrelita. Livingston is a very spread out town with wide roads, appearing to have more trees than houses. We spent the next day meandering up and down the old part of Edinburgh City. looking at some touristy things.




This board related the interesting tale of the origin of Jeckyll and Hyde

At the one end of High street is Edinburgh Castle, high on its rock; down the other end is the Palace of Holyroodhouse, which is the Queen's official residence.
St Giles Church in the city centre is a beautiful church with a very ornate ceiling,



but the tiny Thistle Chapel tucked away in the corner is spectacular. Although built only 100 years ago, it is bedecked in the most ornate wood carving in the style of the 15thC. There is a seat for each of the 16 Knights of the Thistle, with a different creature carved onto each of the armrests, and a throne for the Queen when she visits to induct a new knight.

On the Sunday Estrelita drove us up into the Highlands, promising us an excellent cream tea at a place she knew on Loch Tay. After a long, but beautiful drive, we arrived at the isolated Ardeonaig Hotel, in the rain.



To our surprise, the staff were all South African [the hotel is owned by a SA man], and we could place our orders in Afrikaans! We had pots of tea and warm scones with clotted cream, but at a very fancy price: £7 pp! Not only did it bruise my pocket, but I nearly knocked myself out on a low beam as well!

On the way back we stopped to admire banks of bluebells

and a very fine specimen of a hairy Highland cow [pronounced koo]. He was but one of many of these gorgeous, ginger-coloured beasts, with long floppy fringes over their eyes, spotted in the lush fields along the way.


The next day saw us start on the long drive back to London, stopping overnight with Sue and Kev, en route to picking up the campervan. Marty, its previous owner, was nearly 2 hours late, as he could not get away from work, so by the time we had got through a whistle-stop lowdown on how the van works, we hit the peak rush hour of London traffic. It was no fun for each of us now driving unfamiliar vehicles, surrounded by impatient drivers. Again we were glad to put London behind us, as we headed down towards Wincanton in the rapidly fading light.

After a overnight stopover with Ebu and Jeremy in Holton [near Wincanton] we drove the van down to cousin Judy and Rob's where we left it for the 5 days that we spent in Bulgaria.

On our return from Bulgaria we spent the week making new curtains [luvvvverly brown flecked with orange, very 60s, to go with our even more stunning rose-pink velour seating/upholstery], cleaning, sorting and packing the van. 7 of the 9 curtains work perfectly, but unfortunately "someone" was too economical with measurements, so the ones over the back doors cover only half the windows!

Bit of a privacy issue there, considering there's no ablution cubicle on board - so we have to buy more material and redo!

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We enjoyed browsing the many stalls on Saturday at the street market in Bridgport, and walking through the pastures scattered with buttercups, along lush lanes lined with nettles and delicate Queen Anne's Lace flowers.

Hawthorn bushes everywhere are bedecked with blossom like crisp, white snow. Village gardens are brimming with opulent peonies and tulips, and whiffs of lilac blossom tickle the senses. I did not know that lilac comes in white, purple and lilac colours!

We lunched with cousin Judy and Rob down in Ebford, feasting on Damson berry [Ebu's]

and English gooseberry desserts. We visited Dominic, Helen and Beatrice for scones [they worked the 2nd time around....well done Dominic!], strawberry jam and Rodda's clotted cream with English tea in their cute, rose-covered cottage in the forest near Cranborne. Their garden was filled with the sounds of the woods and the heavy scent of Damascena roses. Several days were spent catching up with ourselves, repacking and planning for the travels ahead.

For those who may be avid Terry Pratchett fans, we discovered that the hub of his following is based in a shop in the town of Wincanton, near us in Holton.

The town is the only one in all England which is twinned with a fictitious city, Ankh-Morpork,

and some new streets are being given names such as Peach Pie Street and Treacle Pie Road [BBC 9 April 2009].

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The next afternoon we took a drive along the coast of Donegal Bay, past Killybegs one of Ireland's busiest fishing ports, to see the highest sea cliffs in Europe, called Slieve League. The car struggled up the steep, narrow, winding road to Bunglass Point from where we had a spectacular view of the impressive cliffs streaked with shades of amber, red and ochre, rising up far above the sea below. We thought they were far more impressive than the Cliffs of Mohr, but probably less well known as they are far less accessible.

Even at spectacular heights one feels the call of nature....

Culprit no.1!

Culprit no.2!

The next day we had a long 7 hour drive down to Tipperary for David's next job. We stopped briefly to pay homage to Bundoran, where Jamie and Lis had lived, worked and surfed for several months a few years before. The sea was as flat as a pancake so not sure where the surf was supposed to be!

Bundoran Bay

Surf break at Bundoran!

We followed the coastline of Lower Lough Erne [N. Ireland again] past Enniskillen and down through the Midlands, where David got a haircut next to a garage while we filled the car! Sandi says she can't afford a haircut in this part of the world, so she is threatening to wear a tea-cosy or to shave her head!

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On the way back we drove around Drogheda looking for a KFC to indulge a silly impulse, and came across this wonderful floral display on a traffic island!

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and their lads, Michael and Matthew, in Newcastle, before moving down through the Yorkshire moors towards the coast.

The Bracchi clan - Sue, Michael, Matthew and Kev

Beloved friends

We stopped off in the pretty little port of Whitby, which would have been far more appealing if it were not raining. We spent the next 2 nights at the Scarborough campsite, also mostly in the rain. Campervans come in all shapes and sizes!

The big ..........

and the small of campervan life!

Sandi had an interesting experience in the shower next morning. There were only 2 shower cubicles and several people queuing. A foreign woman went into the one cubicle then proceeded to have a long conversation on her cellphone, before even turning the shower on. Sandi eventually got into the other cubicle and showered while the woman continued to chat. The woman, eventually finishing her call, started singing tunelessly, and turned on the shower taps. Sandi had just finished drying herself in the adjacent cubicle, when her feet got spattered in warm, smelly urine from the woman next door! Speechless, she washed and dried her feet again, while the woman continued singing and showering. This was all a bit too ethno-bungo for Sandi who fled the shower, only to find that it was raining cats and dogs outside. Undaunted she put her towel over her head, and headed out in the torrential rain – in the wrong direction! After 10 minutes of running around in circles, with all the caravans looking the same to her unspectacled eyes, she found herself at the reception office, where they offered her an umbrella. “Too late” she cried, but was quickly shown where the van was - in site #13! She arrived at the van and warned David not to utter a word, but he couldn't control himself, and was in hysterics of mirth. According to him he was very sympathetic. " Bah humbug" she declares!! Drenched to her underwear, she dried off after her “second shower”, and by this time laughing herself, dressed in whatever dry clothes could be found, ready for a walk into town via the cliffs.

The cliffs were only a short walk away, so we set out during a brief spell of sunshine, skidding our way in the mud towards Scarborough town.

View northwards from the slippery cliff top

View across Scarborough beach, towards the town

As we descended to the beach and the town itself the heavens opened, yet again, and the hail came down. Once again we were trapped by the elements! We discovered that Sandi’s jacket was not waterproof, and umbrellas do not function inside out! Remembering our Bulgarian hail-fest during the Rose festival, we just stood there in fits of laughter. After the worst had passed we squelched past all the beach-goers crammed into their colourful beach huts, drinking coffee and revelling in their dryness. With a touch of “sense of humour failure” we shopped for a more waterproof jacket - a tough, yachting, garment - and vowed to take the next bus home [to the campsite] as we were not going to squelch in our soggy shoes for 2 miles to get back. The next bus was in an hour and by then we were in a better mood, as the sun came out and dried up all the rain. We ended up walking back and stopped at the pub for an excellent carvery for £3.50. We [especially Sandi] felt we really deserved it!

Had a long drive next day to Kidderminster [near Manchester] where we met up with Jonathan Mills [Judy’s son, the Druid, who invited us to the wonderful Stonehenge experience]. We took him for supper in the pub nearby, before turning in for the night in his driveway.

Lovely rain-dappled lillies in Jonathan's driveway

Another long drive next day down to Ebford where we spent 3 days sorting out the van and packing for Cape Town. Sandi had fun capturing the summer flowers and fruit in Judy and Rob's garden.

Sunflower and Bee

Crab apples ripening

Judy's beautiful dahlia

Judy invited us to an art exhibition in Topsham, which she had organised and in which some of her paintings were exhibited. We were charmed by some watercolours of "The house that moved", since David's uncle, David, was the architect responsible for this historical feat.

The house that moved

A painting of a typical English countryside that took our fancy

David took the van to get 2 cracks in the windscreen repaired and, £40 later, got back just in time to catch the bus to Heathrow. We were each taking different flights home, with Sandi flying direct and David flying via JHB. David tried to charm the air steward into bumping him up to Business class as it was his birthday while in the air, but she would have none of it [his charm must be wearing off!] The birthday boy was however welcomed home with open arms!!

Janet welcoming David and Sandi home on 5/8/09

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Bernie and Estrelita's house in Livingston

View from their front door

This reflective time allowed us to review how we were doing on our walkabout and we decided that prolonged periods of camper-vanning, with short overnight stops wasn’t ideal for us. We decided we need to spend longer in an area, and occasionally we need to have our feet on the ground, with a clean toilet at hand [hence the fab-u-loos reference]!

Out of this review grew the idea of formal house-sitting. So all systems go, we planned to line up a few sequential house-sits in France, Portugal, Spain and Italy, our intentions being [if we got such assignments], to spend a few weeks in each place, and to fill in the gaps between assignments in the van. So we subscribed to 2 online websites and started creating a website of our own, as a forum to advertise our services. Other than the text, we needed pictures to illustrate our abilities and credentials, so that Speedy-Jamie-the-Webman could get creating. Selecting pictures and writing words was quite fun, as can be seen below.

Gardener Sandi says: "What a lot I got."

Gardener Dave, fondling the produce!

With Jamie and Lis's Bali trip imminent, there was no time to waste.

Lis and Jamie

By now our B and E had arrived back from the States and we were enjoying some great friend-time with them.
For the next few days we engaged mainly in some excellent astrological consulting with Bernie, checking to see whether the stars and planets would provide clarity for us on several issues about which we had to make decisions.

Astro-Bern

In between we did a bit of gardening, helping Bernie put in some berry bushes and harvesting some fresh vittals!

Bernie working up an appetite!

Estrelita hard at work

Berry-nice gardening

Working 9 to 5, what a way to make a living!

Sandi and Bernie foraging for food

A Livingston Lovely lurking in B and E's garden

At night we had wonderful chats around the kitchen table, gorging on the delicious suppers Sandi cooked:
the old stand-by, Roman lamb, seafood chowder, Nye veg and ribbetjies bake, honey-glazed chicken wings etc. These feasts were declared so good that B and E declared they did not want to let us leave! What a way to make friends feel good!!

Bernie and the breakfast bib

Rude boy! Why do boys always play with their food?

Before leaving we visited Queen’s Ferry for brunch with Bernie.
Queen's Ferry is a cute village on the river Forth situated between two impressive bridges.

Queen's Ferry quaint high street

The road bridge over the River Forth

The River Forth rail bridge

At brunch we tried haggis for the first time! It is like a spicy, nutty mincemeat [made from sheep’s heart, lungs and liver with oatmeal and suet, all cooked up in a sheep’s stomach] - sounds a bit vile, but is actually rather delicious.

The much-maligned HAGGIS!

Wandering down the street we came across a little bookshop overflowing with used books.
The caretaker said to take as many books as possible, and to leave a small donation only if we felt like it.
What a dream! We staggered out there, laden with masses of reading material for the months ahead.
Who needs to pay a quid+ per book at the charity shops?!

The Bookshop-beamers

We finally tore ourselves away from our South African pals on the Sunday, but not before being treated to a splendid traditional Scottish breakfast prepared by Estrelita - haggis and all, nog al!

Our first stop en route to Newcastle-on Tyne, for a few more days with our Bracchi pals, was the now famous Rosslyn Chapel, not far from Edinburgh.

In the past 2 years since Dan Brown included the chapel in his book [The Da Vinci Code] the number of tourists visiting has multiplied ten-fold.
The whole chapel has been covered with a “roof” for the past 10 years, while they work on restoration and drying it out.

Rosslyn Chapel with preservation works in situ

Rosslyn Chapel as it could be without the scaffolding!

Inside, it is small and as there were lots of people, it was not easy to move about freely.
The carvings and details are quite exquisite, inside and outside, and well worth the visit.

Rosslyn Chapel details of stonework

Rosslyn Chapel - part of the exquisitely carved interior

The Apprentice Pillar is so-named, according to an 18th century legend involving the jealousy of the master mason in charge of the stonework in the chapel, and the skill of his young apprentice. The apprentice carved this beautiful column in his master's absence, and on seeing it the master was so enraged with envy that he whacked him on the head with a masonry mallet and killed him. As punishment for his crime, the master mason's face was carved into the opposite corner to forever gaze upon his apprentice's pillar.

Apprentice Pillar inside Chapel

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We drove through the Brecon Beacons nature reserve, hoping to find a camp-site near Brecon, but they were all full. We then pushed on for a couple more hours to the coast, just north of Aberystwyth. The site was sloping so much we needed several wooden blocks to prop up the front wheels so that we didn't slide out of bed!

The campsite was called Ocean View, but we didn't think much of the view!

We explored the seafront promenade of Aberystwyth,



found a beautiful pub-front in town

and admired the war memorial with a lady arising from the ashes.

From there we visited Aberaeron, where the streets are lined with Georgian houses painted in pretty colours, which makes a pleasant change from all the grey and brown stone of so many British towns.


The goal was to sample the famous honey ice-cream on the quay, which was good!

We pushed north again, landing up in Porthmadog, and having to stay in a cheap, but crappy camp site, as the others were full. It was raining heavily by now and "cabin-fever" was starting to develop seriously. We couldn't wait to get to Scotland where a week in our friends' empty house with a clean, hot bath awaited us.

The next day found us in the walled town of Conwy on the north coast of Wales. After a rip-off pub lunch, we walked on the quayside in the sun and found the smallest house in Britain.




We didn't visit the castle, but were intrigued with this enormous crack in the town wall. Apparently when the Victorian engineers tunnelled under the wall to build the train line, it appeared, and in spite of the best engineering efforts has remained to this day!

We had a long, four hour drive to the Lake District, where we overnighted near Kendal. Here we decided to join the Camping and Caravan Club to save on site fees in future.

We headed for the nearby Windermere lake, stopping in Bowness-on-Windermere to look at the swans fighting each other off their cygnets.


Lots of holidaymakers about already and the English schools aren't even out yet! On the other side of the lake we visited Hilltop cottage, the home and garden of Beatrix Potter.

We almost caught a glimpse of Peter Rabbit under the flower pots!

Sandi took lots of photos of the flowers that Beatrix loved and grew in her garden.





We had to wait an hour for our timed-entry to the cottage, so what better way to kill time than to enjoy a pint of the local beer in the sun outside a cute pub, admiring the view?

We looked across the street to this house,

where we found "Mr Macgregor" basking in the sun.

The rain came down again, and we had another four hour drive to Livingston, where we had the luxury of Estralita and Bernie's house all to ourselves for the next week. How nice it is to have space, a clean bathroom and a modern kitchen in which to unwind. Even though the weather was unsettled for most of the time, it was wonderful to have the time to sort ourselves out, and catch up with the Travel blog; like a holiday within a holiday!

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We were camping 30 minutes from Bath near Lacock Abbey, which we explored the next day.


We discovered that one of the Harry Potter movies used one of these rooms in the film.

The ceilings of the cloisters

are covered in a fascinating variety of bosses, like this one showing a fish swallowing a goat!

The Abbey also has extensive gardens

and grounds in which we found this tree: could it be an "arthritis tree"?

Lacock is a very pretty village


and has a museum displaying the earliest cameras and the first negative-positive photographs, developed by William Talbot, a resident of Lacock.

In the afternoon we went off to nearby Avebury, which is a much larger circle, of smaller stones, than Stonehenge, 27 km away.





Even part of the village is within the stone circle.

The whole circle is surrounded by a deep ditch and an embankment

We went back into Bath for an evening street comedy tour called BizarreBath, which was supposed to be the highlight of any visit to Bath, but was expensive and disappointing.

Next day we explored Bradford-on-Avon and enjoyed a 2-hour trip on the Kennet-and-Avon canal in a canal boat.

Many people live permanently on the river in houseboats

and carry everything on the roof, including firewood and the kitchen sink!

Someone made creative use of old teapots in which to plant their garden!

On the way back we stopped for ice-cream cones at an Ice cream boat.

Going through a manual lock is a leisurely activity.

Then it was time to head into Wales for a week.

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We were blessed with sunny weather until 5pm when the rain came down and we went in to watch Federer take the Wimbledon title in a gripping match.

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We rented a static caravan for the weekend with the Lilleys. It was situated in a lovely wooded holiday park called Beauport, near Hastings.

The wooden deck was covered in potted fuschias and vegetables, and although the caravan had cardboard walls [there was no escaping David's diarrhoea!] and the bedrooms were hardly bigger than the beds, it was comfortable and clean. The next day we wandered about the very quaint, old village of Rye with its cobbled streets



and stopped for a pint at the Mermaid's Inn [built in 1420 and notorious for its smuggling history].



The beachfront at Hastings was very busy, full of people from "the other side of the railway line", and rather tacky. These wooden net shops, where the fishermen hang their nets to dry, are unique to Hastings.

Back at the caravan, Sandi made one of her now famous seafood chowders for dinner. Here is David Lilley expressing delight at the chowder!

Breakfast next morning was enjoyed out in the sun...

The weather was lovely and hot and thus ideal for walking along the seafronts of Bexhill and Eastbourne, which were both far quieter and nicer than Hastings.


We met a delightful old lady on Bexhill promenade, who after extolling the virtues of living in Bexhill, offered to take this photo of the four of us.

Eastbourne has a long seaside promenade along its extensive beach,


and like Brighton, has a wonderful old Victorian Pier, which sadly has seen grander days.

We met another homeopath, Moira, for lunch at the Golden Galleon near Seaford, after which we enjoyed the walk to the shingle "beach", marvelled at the white chalky cliffs of the Seven Sisters,

then walked back through fields full of bunnies, dandelions, thistles and blackberries [abuzz with bumblebees].




Sadly, it was soon time to bid the Lilleys farewell, but not before we had each had an osteopathic adjustment to our desperate spines.

Our next stop was a camp-site near West Wittering beach. The beach was a 20 minute walk away, but at low tide it took another 5 minutes to reach the water as the beach was so wide! It is a Blue flag beach with lovely fine sand, just like at home. The water was warm and only lacked waves - at last a proper beach in the UK! We now found ourselves in the middle of a "heatwave" - temperatures of 28-30 deg and the BBC full of warnings about what not to do!

These Hypericum blossoms seem to thrive in the heat.

After 3 days at W Wittering we moved to South Lytchett Manor near Poole, which was a very full campsite. We were given a voucher for a free bottle of wine at a nearby pub, of which we took full advantage. We browsed the Saturday street market in Poole, and drove along Sandbanks, a peninsula of supposedly the most expensive real estate in England.

When we arrived at Ebu, it was early evening with still a few hours of light ahead, so we decided to try to find the lane of cherries again that David and Ebu had happened upon 2 years previously. We found the lane, and the black cherries were ripe for the picking! We munched and picked happily for the next hour, taking bagsful home.

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Don't mess with the cook!

The van trundles along the highways at a top speed of 60-65mph [even up to 70 on a good day!], but being diesel, is very noisy. Conversation above the decibels gets shorter and shorter! The radio works well, as long as the volume is turned up high enough above the noise. We enjoy tuning into the various BBC programmes - some are really funny, while others provide good general listening. Climbing hills can be a problem, proportionate to the gradient of the hill ahead; the steeper the hill, the slower we go [often down to 25mph]. As many of the country roads are narrow, the queues of cars pile up in the rearview mirror. It used to make David agitate, but as time goes on we have learned to laugh about it: C'est la vie! [or "tough"!]. As the van is 8' 6" wide, driving along these beautiful, dappled, leafy lanes is not as relaxing as one might expect. Trying to squeeze between an embankment or hedgerow on the left, and a large van, bus, or tractor careering around a blind corner on the right, is no fun for either of us. Sandi leans away from the hedgerow and shuts her eyes in case we collect a branch or hit the curb, and David leans away from the oncoming traffic, trying not to close his eyes, while still gripping the steering wheel! Somehow we've made it through everytime, but our necks are completely out. When we drive over bumps [of which there are many], invariably one of the large, super heavy, speakers at the back will bounce off its mounting and land on the bed, or one of the cupboards will pop open. If we brake sharply, all the food crates and gas barbeque slide ominously out of their storage tunnel towards us in the front. Try as we might, to batten down all known hatches, we never know what will come flying at us! Just like us, it's a work in progress.

We are realising that being in a campervan can also restrict one's mobility. Many car-parks have a 6' height restriction specifically to keep the likes of us out. As we are longer than most parking bays, we have to be careful where we park so as not to obstruct the traffic, or attract a double parking fee for using 2 bays. Also, if one is settled in a camp-site, one thinks twice before engaging in the "packing up and battening down" routine, so that one can go sightseeing or shopping. We envy those who also have a little Smartcar or scooter with which to runabout. We do intend to acquire a pair of bicycles later.

Our next camp-site, called Mena, is on a hill near Bodmin, in the very centre of Cornwall. During the 4 days camped there, we visited St Austell, and the pretty port of Fowey [pronounced Foy, as in joy, for those illiterati among you!].

We also shopped in Truro, and happened upon the Cathedral during a lunch-time organ recital, which at full blast gave David goosebumps, as an organ played at full blast is wont to do. Further down the peninsula we wandered around the Trellissic Gardens, just before closing time.

Foxgloves [Digitalis] seem to be in bloom everywhere

A fine specimen of an ancient tree in Trellissic gardens

We became comfortable with just "being", while letting go of the pressure to always be "doing" something. There is such a lot to see and do in Cornwall, of which we merely got a taste for now. The pace of life is slowing down, and it has become rather appealing to us. We sleep very comfortably in the 8' wide bed, and are often asleep by the time it gets dark at 10pm. In the mornings, by the time we have read our books, emailed, skyped and breakfasted it is often 11 or 12 noon. Now that we have bought an electric hotplate, we often cook outside under the van awning, or just under the sky. Ablution blocks vary considerably from rudimentary and mouldy, to very nice. Twice we have had to pay an extra 20 or 50p for a shower, but usually they are included in the site fee, which varies from £14-20/night, but can climb to £30/night in high season. Electrical hook up is an extra £3-4/night.

Here is a beautiful peony, of which Sandi is particularly fond, growing in cousin Judy's garden

Observing the behaviour of other campers can be a pastime in itself. Often we catch someone peering out of a caravan window at us, but they quickly pretend they weren't when we see them! We've seen only a few visitors from the EU; most campers seem to be British, either young couples in small tents or retired folk in large caravans or campervans. No-one has yet been seen in as unique a converted campervan as ours! David's favourite spectacle so far is that of an elderly woman with a cig hanging from the corner of her mouth, wearing bright orange bedsocks, ambling across the grass! [Wish we had a photo!]

We visited Lanhydrock near Bodmin, which was a really enjoyable and worthwhile excursion.

It is an enormous, 400 year old manor house, with over 50 rooms beautifully decorated with original period furniture, books and copious Victorian ornaments [including fresh fruit in the dining hall!] The contrast between the "above" and "below" stairs was striking, as was the enormous kitchen with its huge open range and leading into a warren of associated rooms: scullery, bakehouse, dry larder, fish larder, meat larder, dairy scullery, and finally the dairy, where elaborate puddings were chilled by spring water piped along grooves in the marble slabs. The Long Gallery is the great room of the house and is 35m long. The remarkable plaster ceiling, which displays 24 panels of Biblical stories, was created in 1642. The gardens were beautiful with views over the 400-acre estate.

We came across a tree that we thought was covered in thousands of white butterflies, only to find on closer inspection that it was a Cornus kousa tree.


On our return trip to Ebford, we stopped at Looe [pronunced Loo, as in poo] - merely because the name fascinated us. This is another enchanting little seaside village on the Cornish coast.


We bought a few different Cornish bottled beers and flat cider to take home, and some Cornish pasties to eat on the quay-side. Needing to wash the pasties down, we opened the cider, which tasted like a cross between fermented rubbing alcohol and poisonous herbal muti! Probably the first time we've not been able to finish a tipple!! Nearby we found Trago Mills, an enormous warren of old-fashioned-type departments in one store, complete with elderly shop assistants! It reminded us of how shops were in our childhoods, and we stocked up with odds and ends, as the prices were really good!

LIFE IN A CAMPERVAN remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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At 11.45 pm we all gathered in the car park, before setting off in solemn procession for the Midnight ceremony; the Druids in single file led by the sword bearer, followed by the invited guests. There were about 50 Druids and 30 guests, which made the whole celebration intimate, since there were 34,000 people at the public gathering the night before! We marched along a path in silence for about 30 minutes to a special mound.

We were supposed to be meditating as we walked, but this proved impossible as we tried to avoid stones and holes in the dark! The sky was overcast, windless and there was no moon. At the mound the Druids formed an inner circle and the guests formed the outer circle. The Chief Druid spoke about various issues, as well as a short guided meditation. This ceremony was meant to reflect the autumn and winter of our lives, but the solemnity of the occasion was interrupted by someone farting loudly, followed by another fainting! The skies cleared, the stars came out, and we walked back to base, where we had 90 minutes to rest before gathering for banner instruction. We decided that the best way to spend the time was by drinking No Caf and playing Scrabble in the van.

At 3.45 am we donned several layers of warm clothes, then our robes, raised the banner and walked in procession through the tunnel to the stone circles of Stonehenge for the Dawn ceremony. The sky was already light and with mist swirling all around us and the stones, it truly was a mystical experience [no pun intended].

We processed to the 4 points of the compass where items that represent the 4 elements - fire, water, earth and air - were collected.

The procession then entered the inner circle of stones, from the east, with everyone forming a circle. The Dawn ceremony which is meant to reflect spring, symbolising new beginnings, ended a few moments before the sunrise. It was incredible to feel the energy and warmth radiating from the stones themselves, even though the air was cold [and we expected the stones to be cold too].

Then the sun, a glowing red orb, rose up through the mist exactly over the Hele or Sunstone in the NE. As it got brighter and cleared the mist, its rays shone through the gap between the stones in the circle, falling on the Stone of Measurement. It was quite mesmerizing and very beautiful to watch. Unfortunately we could not take any photos as our hands were firmly attached to the banner throughout!

We proceeded back to the base park, arriving at 6.00 am, feeling incredibly energized and not sleepy at all! Ebu needed to get back home, but we banner bearers were expected back to participate in the High Noon ceremony. We drove back to Holton, had breakfast with Ebu, then headed back to Stonehenge. Jonathan, who was in charge of equipment, asked Sandi to decorate a fresh floral crown for one of the 2 maids, which was great fun.

A procession again formed at 12.00 noon, but with the inclusion of a Lady [one of 4 French visiting Druids from Brittany] bearing a horn of wine, accompanied by two Maids.

The procession was similar in its route around the periphery of Stonehenge to collect the 4 elements, but the difference here was that we were observed by hundreds of curious tourists, who were kept behind the usual barriers to the stones, by security guards. As we were carrying the banner immediately behind the Lady and her Maids, we had hundreds of cameras pointed at us. Our photographs have probably made it to the far corners of the Earth by now!

We then entered the inner circle of stones from the south for what was to be a 2 hour summer celebration.

By now it was really hot with the sun baking down on us. Amazingly, this time the stones felt cool! A long ceremony commenced, interspersed with a wreath of oak leaves being passed around from head to head, to show that all are equal in honour. The ceremony continued with a ritual sharing of the fruits of the summer harvest.

Then it was all over,

and we disbanded, disrobed and headed for a nearby campsite to shower and collapse in the van, the exhaustion finally catching up with us.

We learnt that the Druid Order is a revival of an ancient order founded in Oxford in 1245. It was reconstituted in 1717 from Druid groups existing in various parts of Brittany and the UK. It recognizes its origins in all systems, which express the 3 great traditions of Power, Wisdom and Love. It embodies 3 fundamental principles of wisdom: Obedience to the laws of Nature, effort for the welfare of humankind, and heroically enduring the unavoidable ills of life. It is concerned with the evolution of humanity in harmony with the Universe, using the techniques of meditation and ritual, following the path of the sun.

A few days later, while visiting Winchester Cathedral, we found a beautiful window decal depicting the sunrise through the stones at Stonehenge.

It now resides on the back window of our van, as a wonderful memory of that enchanting experience. In the mornings, on waking at dawn, looking out of the back window, there is the sun, rising through the oak trees, twinning with the Stonehenge sunrise decal. Stunning!

SUMMER SOLSTICE AT STONEHENGE remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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When the distillation process is finished, the huge lid is winched up, with fragrant plumes of hot vapour billowing out, and the exhausted rose blossom [spent biomass] is washed out to the sump. We received the best full body steaming ever from our vantage point on a balcony above the steel stills!

The steel alambic is then hosed down

and 25 bags of roses [20kg each] are poured in

with 2500 litres of fresh mountain water from the River Leshnitsa nearby.

The distillery is sited near the water supply, rather than near the rose fields, as this is more economically viable.

This distillery is unique in that it combines 10% Rosa alba [a delicate white rose] with the pink Rosa damascena, to give a different quality and aroma oil and rose water.

The lids are fastened back into place

and the roses are boiled for 2 ½ hours.

The distillate goes through a condenser, as well as a special concentrator. The rose water that is produced is a triple concentrate, unlike most others, which are dilute in comparison. The final precious rose otto oil is collected in a Florentine vessel in a separate, secured room.

The oil is so precious there is even a padlock on the outlet pipe!

We were privileged to be allowed to view the Florentine [by Krasimir],

as it is not normally seen by outsider mortals, just as the fresh rose otto was coming through.
And although it was not possible to purchase any essential oil on-site, we were gifted with some glorious triple-distilled rose water [which Sandi is eking out and sharing with some lucky friends and family].

All in all, a totally thrilling and fulfilling experience!

Each hectare of rose fields can produce 4-5 tonnes of flowers per season, but organically cultivated Rosa damascena production is only about 2.5 tonnes per season. It takes 3.5-3.8 tonnes of rose blossom to produce 1kg of pure oil. Up to 5 tonnes is needed to produce 1 kg of rose otto, if the crop is poor. From the research we could glean it appears that the whole of Bulgaria has about 30-40 distilleries, which collectively produce about 1500kgs of oil per annum. A smaller distillery produces 10-20kg/season, and the larger ones up to 200kg. The wholesale price of the oil is about 6000€/kg, so we guestimate a large distillery can make about 1.2 million euros in a 3-4 week season.

Our next destination was a wine farm in Karlovo, but all we could find was a factory outlet in a metal container, where we bought a couple of bottles of very good wine for very little [about 4 leva each].

Plamen had contracted to take us to the station in Plovdiv, from where we could catch the train back to Sofia. Plovdiv is a large city, situated halfway between Kazanlak and Sofia. Having secured our train tickets, we battled our way back through the heavy traffic to the old part of the city. The star attraction of the old city is the Roman Amphitheatre, which was accidentally revealed after a landslide in the 1970s. It was built in the 2nd century AD by the Roman Emperor Trajan, and could hold 7000 spectators. It is well preserved and still used for performances today.

Wandering around the cobbled streets of the old city, we were struck by the large houses with elaborate architecture and decoration, most of which are now preserved as museums or restaurants.

As we were leaving Plondiv, walking down a steep cobbled lane and treading very carefully, with eyes cast down , I was struck by a heady, floral scent that suddenly filled the hot, still air, accompanied by a resonant and frenzied Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzing serenade. An unmistakable scent and sound combo, which meant there MUST be a Linden Blossom tree nearby. I looked up and there it was - with it's fragrant canopy and mellifluous Apis choir - almost touching my head! Memories of aromatic days spent in Provence, under the Linden trees, with beloved friend Janet, flooded my senses and emotions.

All too soon, it was time to catch our train and bid farewell to our new friends Plamen and Chan Yee. After the 2 ½ hour trip we arrived back in Sofia at 1930, exhausted. A notice board outside the station advertised a HOTEL, up the stairs. Going up we found the sign to read HOsTEL which was a bit of a dive, but clean and functional, besides we were too tired to argue. Sneaky advertising though. The station lights outside our window, shining through the thin curtains, ensured that the room was mega-watt bright all night, and the 4a.m. party that sprung up in the road outside added some mega decibels to our slumbers – interspersed only by Sandi’s hacking cough, which had developed in response to all the 2nd-hand smoke we encountered. After a desultory breakfast of Bulgarian salami, squashed apricots and flat Coke, we caught the shuttle back to the airport and flew home [well not exactly home, but Gatwick!] From there we rented a car for 24 hours to get us back to Exeter, as it proved to be cheaper than bus or train tickets!

ROSA ETERNA & PLOVDIV remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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We then set off for the nearby village of Shipka to visit the tomb of one of the great Thracian kings. Bulgaria contains many tombs and relics of the Thracian era, testament to the extensive power of the Thracian kings in the 3rd and 4th centuries BC. These mounds were first used as temples, then ritually closed up after the king was buried inside, together with personal gold ornaments and food and wine for the journey into the after-life. They all have similarities in structure; an entrance, leading into a passage, at the end of which were 2 heavy marble or stone doors, which led into a round chamber with a beehive roof, finally opening into a sarcophagus carved out of a solid piece of rock [often weighing up to 60 tons]. The tomb is solidly built of stone blocks, sometimes joined with iron clamps, and covered with a mound of earth. We noted marked similarities to the mounds of Knowth and Newgrange in Ireland, although those are much older.

This particular one had only been excavated in 2004, and was found to have belonged to King Seuthus lll. His capital city, Seuthopolis, lies several km to the south, submerged under the waters of the Koprinka dam. The ruins of the city were examined before the dam was filled, but there are plans afoot to dry a section of the dam in order to provide tourist access to the ruined city. Unusually, this tomb had been spared plunder by grave-robbers, and a bronze head of Seuthus, which had been ceremonially decapitated, was found in the tomb together with beautiful royal and equine gold ornaments.

The burnished gleam of golden spires halfway up the mountain, was our next destination; known as Shipka Monastery, which is actually a church. It was built by the Russians towards the end of the 19thC to commemorate the joint victory of the Russians and Bulgarians over the Islamic Turks. It is beautifully painted, inside and out, with the many domes and spires covered in real gold leaf, and is still in active use by the Orthodox Church today. At the very top, a gold cross stands above an inverted Muslim moon to symbolize their victory. Sandi lit a candle for all our loved ones, as she does in most of the holy places we visit.

On Monday, another hot day, Plamen took us in search of some top quality rose oil. The oil that is offered on the streets to tourists has either been diluted, or is fake, and most distilleries are not interested in selling anything less than a few kgs. Plamen’s contact at the Scientific Rose Institute said they could supply a small quantity, but we would first have to pay, then they would have to go to the bank to get it out of the vault! After allowing Sandi to assess its quality, they would take another 24 hours to decant and package it, before we could collect it. Sandi was not sold, so the search for the well-hidden, un-signposted distilleries, continued.

We eventually hit Rose Jackpot at a distillery called Damascena, at the foot of the Balkan Mountains.

It is a family-run distillery producing about 200kg of oil per season. Alongside an outdoor museum displaying traditional distillation equipment and some rural antiquities, the owner boasts the most beautiful rose garden imaginable, crammed with voluptuous, hybrid tea roses, but not a Damascena rose bush in sight, or on site! Not unusual, since rose fields can be some distance from the actual distilleries.

We had a "nose” around the distillation shed for a little while before meeting the owner.

After a happy sniff test, he was willing to sell Sandi a modest amount of divine rose otto oil.

As rose oil freezes and crystallizes at 17deg

his son went inside to warm the crystalline oil so that it could be decanted.

The owner kindly brought an electronic scale outside and set it up on the ice-cream countertop and drew up the exact amount under Sandi’s watchful eyes. He allowed us to photograph the event, while decanting it into an aluminium container on the scale, before closing it, winding a three-coloured silky cord around the neck, and finally sealing it with hot sealing wax and his personal ring seal.


Mission accomplished!

Later that day we decided to take in the remaining tourist must-dos in Kazanlak. We visited the Iskra Museum full of famous socialist art by Bulgarian artists, and relics from the tomb of Seuthus lll. Further up the road we found the modest Ethnographic museum, which displayed local living conditions in a bye-gone era. We were intrigued by the low chairs, and even lower table, which ensures that peasants don't need to eat much, because the seating position squashes the stomach, ensuring that one feels fuller than if sitting on chairs that are lower than a table.

We sat up on a balcony overlooking a small garden and wood-fired still pouring out fragrant rose water,

and were given some rose brandy and rose jam to taste.

The Kazanlak Tomb up on the hill, was unearthed by soldiers digging trenches in 1944, and is famous for its detailed frescoes on the walls and ceilings. Unfortunately the original tomb is too fragile to allow visitors, so a replica has been constructed nearby. Sandi found a friendly kitty to cuddle on the steps, which was far more exciting!

TOMBS, TEMPLES AND DISTILLERIES remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Rosa damascena blossoms

Rosa alba

The contrast between the air of decay in the town of Kazanlak and the beauty of the valley, surrounded by mountains, is stark. Even more of a contrast exists with the energy and essence of the precious Rose Otto oil, which derives from the flowers of the valley.

Something that struck us is how shy and unassuming the Damascena rose blossoms, bushes, and whole plantations appear, relative to the exquisite and precious bounty found within each blossom.

Sandi in ecstacy in the rose fields

The few other roses we saw in Bulgaria were much more glamorous and spectacular,

or exquisitely simple,

but none compare in fragrance to their delicate little pink sibling.

Rosa damascena and buds

Smelling the first heady molecules of Rose Otto in a field distillery, right in the very place where the alchemy emerges, is like finding the Holy Grail. There are no words to describe adequately the overwhelming olfactory and emotional sensation of this experience.

On the Saturday, we browsed the street stalls, all selling the same garish, mostly synthetic, rose creams, soaps and candles, etc. There were surprisingly few tourists around, possibly because the weather was gloomy, but also likely due to the change in the usual festival date this year. We spent an amusing hour in a theatre watching a children’s singing “contest”.

Talent show children on stage

A string of 3-6 year-olds each belted out traditional songs with gusto. It was delightfully un-sophisticated, and each child was given a packet of crisps, a pencil, and a balloon after singing. Another striking contrast, compared to many other Western “talent” shows and pageants.

As we were now hungry we found a promising looking restaurant with outside tables [far too smoky indoors]. The menu was all in Bulgarian, with no pictures! The waiter could speak no English either except to say “beans”, so we ended up with two bowls of bean soup and a bowl of French fries instead of the delicious looking fried potato dish at the next table. The beers were easy: there were pictures of the brands.

Kamenitza beer

We then wandered up towards the edge of town past dreary buildings and ubiquitous potholes,

but there was one lovely cottage we couldn't resist capturing,

and a charming gypsy pony and cart.

Arriving at the government Rose Institute and Rose Museum we expected something quite grand, but the Institute building is very modest and austere, and the museum interesting, but simple.

Entrance to the Rose Institute

Rose Institute

Ancient lab equipment in Rose Museum

Photo of 1st Bulgarian chemistry lab for rose oil testing at Rose Museum

The Rose Institute gardens were rather lovely, filled with fragrant damascena blossoms

Rosa damascena blossom and seed-catching bag

Tarragon

Glamorous rose, but no fragrance

Exquisite simple rose

David and the "shaggy-dog" tree

We got into a fragrant mood by going into the rose fields and picking a few damascena blossoms, which we stuffed into our pockets and later dried.

Sandi among Rosa Damascena bushes

Dave and Rosa alba

We found our way back into town via a large flea market, selling anything and everything including varieties of Turkish delight, which of course, we had to buy to taste. One absolutely delightful, but sad, sight was a children's carousel, complete with live ponies rather than the painted Merry-Go-Round variety.

Kazanlak Carousel

The town square was set up with a stage, lights and seating stands for a concert that evening. Just as the show started the rain came down, so we took shelter under the open-air awning of a nearby Bistro, from where we could still see the stage, as the show continued. Within minutes, the skies opened and the deluge of rain turned to hail the size of cherries.

Hailstones on table

The wind whipped through the square like a tornado, flinging seats, lighting stands, giant umbrellas, and shelters to the ground! The stage décor was shredded. Several others, like us, were trapped under the awning, so we stood on the tables under our destroyed umbrella, to no avail!

No place to hide!

The storm was so ferocious and unexpected, we couldn’t move anywhere, let alone indoors, to seek shelter from it. Within minutes the gutters [under the awning for some reason], burst their banks and we were totally drenched, standing in ankle-deep water, unable to dodge the deluge of hailstones that struck us from every direction. We could do nothing except laugh…..hysterically!

Sandi after the storm

Within 20 minutes the skies cleared and we surveyed the devastation; flowerbeds were annihilated and torrents of water coursed through the square.

The devastation to the festival venue after the hail storm

“What about the roses” we thought, wondering whether any blossoms would survive for the Festival the next day, but they did. Since the concert was clearly abandoned, we called Plamen for a lift home, picked up a take-away donner kebab for supper, and waited for him, like two drowned rats, at the Lion Fountain, a well-loved landmark which promises anyone who drinks from it that they will return to Kazanlak one day.

The Lion drinking fountain in the central square

Back at Villa Breza Sandi had to iron her jeans dry, as we had packed so economically, and we both wore squelchy shoes with double socks that night when we returned to the square, and the next day. The show started up again later, goodness knows how they got the sound equipment and stage functioning again, but we missed the eventual crowning of the Rose Queen [which a fellow guest said was not a big deal event, and we would see her and the princesses the next day anyway].

The Rose Queen and her Princesses

We met 2 other special people that evening [also guests at the villa]; Chan Yee, a lovely lady from South Korea, who travels the world sourcing quality essential oils for her company, and Gonsalo from Chile.

Gonsalo could hardly speak 2 words of English, but had come to learn how to grow and distil roses from the Bulgarians [who also don’t speak English!] He is a marine biologist with a keen interest in whales, who has planted 40 hectares of very special, high-yield Damascena roses on his farm in Chile, and now that they were ready for harvesting, he needed to learn from the Bulgarian rose oil experts. We opened some Bulgarian wine and marvelled as Sandi had a fascinating metaphysical discussion with him, into the wee hours, all via Chan Yee who was translating into Spanish.

Sunday was a beautiful, sunny day and Plamen agreed to drop us near the Rose festivities. The centre of town was closed off for the parade later, so we had to make our way through a maze of back streets, skirting enormous potholes and driving over pavements. Rules and regulations don’t seem to exist in Bulgaria! [never mind Health & Safety!].

The festivities took place in a car park next to some rose fields.

The man and woman leading the festivities

There was a crowd of only about 150 people and we had a front line view, until the dignitaries and their guests arrived to stand in front of us [many Asian men, probably on rose oil buying trips]. There were more dignitaries than tourists!! Burly Bulgarian police kept the rabble back, behind flimsy bunting cordons, but they were probably more useful in ensuring that we did not get to throttle the “dignitaries” blocking everyone else’s view of the festivities! The hoi-poloi were each given a rose blossom garland/lei, a ceremonial hunk of bread, and a sip of rose liqueur on arrival.

Offering the celbrities bread and rose liqueur

A group of Bulgarian men in traditional sang beautiful harmonies for us, followed by costumed children dancing traditional routines.

The wonderful baritone male choir

A group of traditional dancers and singers

Older women, also in traditional garb, with creatively decorated baskets full of roses, handed out rose flowers,

A festive rose-picker

Sandi is so tall next to this delightful, toothless lady

Tired after filling all those baskets!

Spraying cool rose water over everyone

A young couple

A wagon full of kids

Festival kids

Crowns of roses

A chat with a pony

Festive pony and cart

Then the barriers were removed, and everyone could join in the circle dancing, and received bread and liqueur.

People were allowed to wander through the fields picking their own roses [and Sandi disappeared for ages, emerging with bulging, blooming pockets.]

Sandi in her element!

Hands full of aroma

As the crowd slowly dispersed, the gypsies, who had just finished the serious rose picking nearby, came gaily forward for the free liqueur.

The real rose pickers have an unglamorous job, away from the festivities

The peasant pickers weighing their bags

A wagon full of roses

Back in town, the street parade was starting, but here the crowds were so dense it was impossible to see anything. The little bit that David could see was not very interesting, so we settled for some chilled Zornitsa beers, in the shade, instead.

KAZANLAK AND THE FESTIVAL OF ROSES remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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More than that will take you hours to learn!

BULGARIAN IN 10 SECONDS remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Our Easyjet flight landed at Sofia airport, which is about as big as East London airport.

David suddenly realized that, even though Bulgaria has been a member of the EU since 2007, that euros might not be generally acceptable, so we had to do a quick [unfavourable] Forex transaction at the airport. We found that hotels and big businesses accept euro but everyone else uses BGN leva. 1 leva = R6 = ½ euro. Apparently they will convert to euro “in due course”.

Arrival at the airport was the start of a bit of culture shock, as it became rapidly evident that English was not freely spoken. A shuttle ride to the central bus station, which cost us 6lv, was the next stage of our journey to our final destination.

We were shocked to see miles and miles of derelict and shanty houses along the road into the city [just like Nyanga].

At the bus station we found about 20 stalls representing 20 different bus companies, all selling bus tickets, but nobody could speak English!
At least the word “Kazanlak” was recognizable, so we secured 2 tickets [after we'd been price-scammed a bit, we later discovered] on a bus leaving at 3pm, several hours later than we expected. We managed to get an e-mail sent to the hostel owner, and held thumbs that he would be there to meet us, as offered.

Central Bus Station

We sat down with a Karmenitsa beer and 2 disprins [for David’s excruciating post-flight sinus pain], to check out the locals. Had we wandered into a Tart Convention, or is this a parallel universe for shocking style and taste? Jet black or bleach brigade hairstyles, coupled with tacky stilettos, fishnet stockings and jeans so tight that Sandi could barely breathe. Many of the young women have very good figures though. Of course the palls of smoke everywhere, inside and out, did not help make our long wait comfortable. More than 80% of Bulgarian's smoke we were told - and by the end of 5 days we could attest to that! Hardship is etched on many faces, especially the elderly, and there is a palpable air of decay and base energy. We did not take any pictures of people though, as we felt it disrespectful, so pardon the lack of pics here! It cost Sandi ½ lv [R3] to have a piddle, which included no paper, a turnstile to get through, and almost a cavity search, only to end up in a grungy stall!

A couple of hours later we found ourselves squashed onto a very full and airless bus, headed for, we hoped, Kazanlak. A few more houses and then we were in the green countryside, with lots of wooded areas, and very few fences or farmhouses.


After 2 hours the bus stopped at a service station and all the locals got off. What now? It turned out to be a smoke and loo break [another 1/2 lv payment each again, for the pleasure], and still a further 2 hours to our destination.

As nightfall was setting in we finally disembarked at the bus terminus, a dirty, desolate, derelict, depressing dump of a building, which was never grand, even in communist times. The only place to take a leak was in the bushes behind the station, where David scared a local woman looking for the same relief! We sat down, waiting for our host to fetch us, on a grimy slab of terminus step, in front of a window spattered with fresh blood. A brawl or a mugging the night before? A less than auspicious welcome to the village.

Kazanlak bus station

Since there was no sign of our host and lift, Plamen, we decided to contact him by mobile, and he thankfully arrived about 20 minutes later in his old Vectra, like an angel out of the twilight. He could speak English! The relief was immense, and we suddenly realised how tired we were. We had been up since 02:30 in order to drive two hours to Gatwick [from Somerset], through the fog, to catch our early flight. By now it was after 8pm and getting dark, and we were very relieved to be rescued from the oppressive energy, and curious stares of some locals, at the bus terminus.

The roads everywhere are in a shoddy state with enormous potholes, something to which Sandi can attest, as she felt each one acutely in the back seat of Plamen's car. Many houses have raw brickwork exposed, apparently because there is not enough money to plaster the walls, which may remain so for 20-30 years.

Sadly, dereliction seems to be a theme throughout Bulgarian towns and villages.

A quick stop-off for Plamen to buy some supplies for our dinner, and we were off on the bumpy drive to Srednogorovo, a tiny village, 12km from Kazanlak, up in the Srednogoro hills.

Srednogorovo village

Ivanka's veggie garden

Another interesting custom in the village are the posters with photos of men and women, which are stuck up on many houses and walls. David thought they were election manifestos for the upcoming EU or local elections; but they turned out to be remembrances of loved ones who had passed on. Each anniversary, new ones are printed, commemorating the number of years since they died.

Arriving at Villa Breza was a great comfort. It is a neat and spotless guest house, thanks to Plamen’s mother, Ivanka, who greeted us at the door with a shy, but friendly smile, and no English. They are really special people, which was immediately evident by their natural solicitous care.

Ivanka and Plamen - great hosts!

They quickly rustled up some dinner for us; Shopska salad consisting of tomatoes, cucumber, spring onions from the garden and sprinkled with soft white Bulgarian cheese [delicious!].

This was followed by some braaied sausage and chopped cabbage washed down with some excellent local red wine. Plamen, a delightful and knowledgeable treasure, regaled us with historical information and Rose Festival schedule, before we collapsed onto our beds, full of anticipation for what the next few days held for us. In spite of the rainy forecast for the next 5 days we were determined to enjoy every minute.

Villa Breza boasts 4 bedrooms; when fully occupied Plamen and Ivanka sleep in the tiny caravan in the garden. The front door leads straight from the street into the dining room; a lovely pine-clad room, full of light with glass walls looking out onto the grapevine, portapool and vegetable garden.

In the middle of the room is a Silver Birch tree [Breza] growing through the roof, around which the room has been built - totally charming. It was planted 17 years ago to commemorate the birth of his daughter.

A simple kitchen forms the other end of the room – where Ivanka reigns supreme - except for the salad making, which is Plamen's domain.

Ivanka the fabulous cook

An extra fold-up bed and a fridge complete the room. The bathroom is tiled throughout, including the basin. When David asked for a plug so that he could fill the basin for shaving, he received a perplexed look [they never did find one]. The fascinating thing about this bathroom is that the shower has no cubicle. It's just one large space that includes the shower, basin and loo. Fortunately a handy squeegee is provided to mop the floor and toilet seat after showering. We wondered how many fractured hips have resulted from the slippery, wet tiled floor? A rubberized car mat is placed in front of the bathroom door, to keep the bedroom carpets dry, but no mat on the lethal tiles. Slip sliding away .........

Daily breakfast consists of a few slices of salami or pink polony, cucumber, tomatoes, white cheese, yellow cheese, olives, spreads and toast with expresso coffee. On our last morning Ivanka baked banitsa, delicious white cheese rolled up in phyllo pastry.

Last breakfast with banitsa

Evening meals included moussaka made with potato instead of brinjals, and stuffed peppers. We learnt that it is traditional to drink Rakia [homemade spirit like witblitz] with the shopska salad, before embarking on the main course. Each person has their own special recipe, and Plamen shared some of his delicious plum version with us, but we also had a very fragrant one made from roses which we bought at a distillery ...…Mmmm!

Plamen plying the lovely Chan Yee with his fire water

Each meal was such an unpretentious, delicious treat. We asked Ivanka what the green fruits were growing on her tree outside, but she was unable to explain, so off she nipped to her neighbour and came back with the ripe goods by way of explanation - walnuts from the previous year's crop.

Unripe walnuts on the tree

So those became the dessert for that meal, together with some cherries and strawberries we had found at a local market that day.

We bade a sad farewell to this "time-in-a-fragrant-bubble" experience, and hope to return again soon, with as many friends as we can persuade to join us. Our last vision of the village was this sign, which for some inexplicable reason, never failed to amuse us.

We would definitely stay at Villa Breza again and highly recommend both the guest house and the wonderful hosts. Plamen’s email is pkaravasilev@abv.bg. Tel 00359-887 486116. He charged us 10 euro each per day for B&B [dinners and transport extra]. Go there, you cannot get better value anywhere. To Plamen and Ivanka we say: Благодаря!

IT’S A LONG, LONG WAY TO SREDNOGOROVO remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Next into London itself under the guidance of Molly [our garmin satnav], who steered us through the traffic to Tottenham. This time it was a shady dealer down an alley who had a Bedford for £3900, which was so mouldy and tatty we got out of there quickly! Then through Clacton, where we spotted loads of Hassidic Jews in the streets [we felt like we were on safari!], down through the Blackwall tunnel under the Thames to Lewisham where we had an appointment for 1800. Very nice guy but the van was similar to the first one we saw, just neater. By now it was evening and we were getting despondent; are all the adverts so much better looking than the real thing?

Our last option was a van in Clapham, for which we had not set up an appointment. We left a voice message for Marty the Aussie guy selling the van and set off for Clapham. We parked in Clapham, eating our supper of roast chicken and Coke, waiting for him to return our calls. Eventually we decided to set off for home, still 2 hours away. Marty phoned before we had driven 5 minutes...he had fallen asleep! We turned around and within minutes of seeing it, we knew we had found our van!

It is a LDV 7-seater van previously used by the army cadets, which Marty had converted and fitted out himself. Being an electrician, he has installed several innovative devices, with an overall sensible design; a big triple bed in the back with the kitchen in the front, with a minimum of folding-down and flapping-out! It is in good repair, 1997 model diesel and only £3700 with MOT and taxes for 12 months!

We decided to leave it in London while we travel up North and will collect it on 25th May. We felt very relieved as we drove back to Wincanton in the dark; 10 hours on the road had produced a good result.

HUNTING DOWN A CAMPERVAN remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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WATERFORD remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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We were accommodated at Innisfree B & B on Limerick Road, Charleville by the GP, but on enquiring from Moira, the hostess, what her rate was, we were horrified to discover that she charged €40 for the partner as well [usually the partner sharing would pay about €25]. Sandi immediately got online while I went off to Tipperary for the evening Caredoc shift. On hotels.com she found the Charleville Hotel 0.5km down the road, who were advertising a winter-break special.

We moved out in the morning and into 4 star luxury! A king-size bed, flat-screen TV, free internet, full gym and swimming pool and sauna, and superb breakfast with smoked salmon and croissants; all for €15/day less than we were being charged at the B&B. We felt like royalty, and relished the luxury especially as Sandi was still feeling poorly from the flu!

On David's afternoon off we visited the Donkey Sanctuary at Liscarroll near Mallow, as Sandi loves these quirky creatures.

Over 2500 have been rescued from neglected or cruel situations and taken into care over the years and lovingly nutured back to health on a lovely farm. Single donkeys are paired up and remain so for life, as bonding is very strong. If possible the pairs are placed in approved foster homes.

A clever back-scratcher!

Via a very circuitous route [we did not get lost!] we drove to Adare, promoted as Ireland's prettiest village, with quaint thatched cottages and castles.

Work finished in Charleville and we reluctantly checked out of the hotel. On the way to Waterford, we stopped and strolled around the beautiful Doneraile Park among magnificent trees in all shapes and hues of green and burgundy [copper beeches and maples], lots of deer, nesting swans, rolling meadows, swathes of garlic scented white flowers and a network of rivers, streams and waterfalls.

CHARLEVILLE, Co CORK remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Canal through Naas

Sandi flew off to Scotland for 3 days to visit her old friend Bernie Rowen for 45 euros [cheaper than staying here!]. Edinburgh is a city full of beautiful architecture and flowers, and the weather was crisp and clear.

Sandi in Edinburgh

Springtime crocusses and daffodils

Crocusses

Scott's monument

Prince's Street buildings

Sandi really enjoyed the time with Bernie, who spent quite a bit of time working on our astrology charts.

Bernie

On his afternoon off, with Sandi in Scotland, David walked around Donadea forest park to stretch his legs, as the weather was fairly pleasant, and there was not much else to do in the area.

The B&B called Avondale that we stayed in for the week was comfortable, but the really good feature was that there is a kitchenette in the TV lounge where you can warm up take aways etc; a real treat when one stays in B&Bs! Email Ronnie and John at kinanev@indigo.ie .

As David was not working on the Sunday, everyone recommended that we drive down to Co Wicklow and visit Glendalough. A very pleasant drive around Blessington Lake took us up through the Wicklow Gap. It is supposed to be a pass over the mountains, but they know nothing of mountains in Ireland! Glendalough turned out to be a walk around two lakes in a scenic valley with hundreds of tourists. Many people seemed to feel the need to wear sturdy hiking boots and walk with ski-poles, even though the paths were pretty flat!

The drive back took us to Roundwood [the highest village in Ireland] where we had a good pub lunch next to the fireplace, and then back over the Sally Gap. Both Gaps take one through rather barren and rocky scrubland, which seems to be a favourite area with the locals for a good walk.

Wicklow Gap

NAAS [pron Naice] and SCOTLAND remains copyright of the author davidsandi, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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