Day 10: Around Bulgaria in 14 days

The tenth day of our trip was really exciting because we toured many sightseeing places that are relatively far from each other. During that day we passed through Lovech, the Devetashka cave, the vertical cave “Golyama Ravenitsa”, Krushun waterfalls, Hotnishka waterfall and ended the evening in Veliko Turnovo. While still in Pleven we decided to try one more time to visit the epic of Pleven. This time we arrived much faster after having already learned the route. So, we were able to sneak into the museum and listen to the whole lecture.

Here you can see part of the panorama depicted in the museum:

The author of the painting and the main performer is Nikolay Ovechkin (Military Studio “M. Grekov”, Moscow). The collective consists of 13 Russian and Bulgarian artists: V. Shcherbakov, I. Kabanov, A. Chernishov, M. Ananiyev, N. Ovechkin, D. Donchev, V. Esaulov, V. Lemeshev, Hr. Boyadzhiev, G. Essaulov, V. Tautiev, Y. Usipenko, and A. Trotenko.

Lovech

After the tour of the museum we headed to Lovech. On the way, we stopped at a gas station for coffee and drinks. I decided to get a lottery ticket to cheer up Eileen a little. Still, there was a long way to go. Turnout to Lovech we got really fast. In the city itself, it was a little difficult for me to navigate, independent of navigation. We stopped near the covered bridge. The bridge is one of the symbols of the city and one of the most visited landmarks in the city.

However, our goal was to reach the monument of Vasil Levski and the fortress “Hissarya”. The Lovech Fortress is located on the two terraces of the beautiful and picturesque Hissary Hill, which is located in the old part of Lovech. The fortress was built during the Roman era, but it is best known for the fact that in 1187 the Lovech Peace Treaty with Byzantium was signed, which marked the beginning of the Second Bulgarian Kingdom. The Lovech Fortress is one of the last conquered by the Ottomans – in 1446. Inside the fortress is a huge metal cross, visible from almost every point of Lovech.

Near the fort is the monument of Vasil Levski. It is the largest monument of the Apostle in Bulgaria. It was built in 1964, after which it became a symbol of the city. Today, even on Lovech’s coat of arms is depicted this monument.

Of course, we couldn’t help but admire the city from the hill

While walking around the fortress, I was contacted by Radiana Bozhikova – a BTV reporter. He told me that he was working on a report on the Tsar Assen Mine, and wanted to do an interview after she had reviewed our article about the mine. to get a new drone so we can capture the rest of the excursion and provide more and better photos for people.

After that phone call, our day became somehow more enjoyable and we were extremely pleased with the invitation, even though we had to decline. So we continued our walk, where we saw a plastic composition in honor of the 820th anniversary of the signing of the Byzantium-Bulgaria peace agreement. The sculpture is made of bronze and is the only monument in Bulgaria to which the horse faces three anchor points.

Devetashka cave

After the Lovech tour, we got back in the car and headed for the Devetashka Cave. We chatted with the cashier at the entrance. He explained to us that in the recent times, many foreigners had chosen the cave as a place for their marriage. About 40 m inside the entrance there is a spacious hall of 2400 m². Inside the cave there are two branches, one of which runs a creek and the other is dry and warm. There are beautiful stalactites and stalagmites. The arches at the entrance are impressive. The hall in the cave is named “Altara”. During excavations from the Regional Museum of History, Lovech, some of the most interesting remains of the Neolithic period on Bulgarian lands were discovered. They are included in the exhibition of the Vasil and Atanas Atanasovi Museum Collection.

Vertical Cave Great Garvanitsa

Soon we headed to the next destination for the day – the Golyama Garvanitsa Cave, located near the village of Karpachevo. Vertical Cave Golyama Ravenitsa is more than 60 meters deep and 275 meters long. There is an impressive entrance, but it is poor in formations. The galleries of the cave are filled with sediment (clay and mud). In the 80s, metal ladders and platforms were installed to make the entrance plummet accessible to tourists. The stairs are a real experience.

Krushuna waterfalls

Undoubtedly the Krushun waterfalls are one of the most famous and the most beautiful in Bulgaria. The cascade was formed along the Proinovska River springing from the Krushun Cave. The first and largest waterfall in the cascade is the 15-meter Pruskalo, which, together with the following unnamed smaller waterfalls, is commonly known as Krushun waterfalls.

Hotnitsa Waterfall

After a short tour of Krushuna, we headed to one of my favorite waterfalls – the Khotnishka or still known as Kaya Bunar. The waterfall is located about 2.5 km west of the village of Hotnitsa. It can be reached from Republic Road I-5 through Samovodene or from Republic Road I-4 through Momin Sbor village. There is convenient car parking near the waterfall. The waterfall is no more than 50 meters from the parking lot. To the left of the waterfall there is a short eco trail that allows you to climb to the top of the hill.

Veliko Tarnovo

Finally, we headed to Veliko Tarnovo where we would spend the night at the Tsarevets Hotel. We strongly recommend the hotel to anyone who stays in Veliko Tarnovo. The rooms are clean, the furniture is new and modern, and there is parking in front of the hotel itself, which is a big plus considering how difficult it can be to find a parking lot in Veliko Tarnovo.

In the afternoon we went for a walk around the city, taking some pictures from there as well.

For dinner, we decided to go to Casa Di Bianco. This is our favorite restaurant in town. Every time we go to Veliko Tarnovo we eat there. They have an amazing kitchen and the service is more than good. As a fan of burgers, I couldn’t help but try this miracle:

The burgers were made with different cakes containing (from left to right) activated charcoal, spinach, tomato juice / puree. They were stunningly delicious. I did not let Eileen try them at all. And those on the right are actually carrots (not potatoes as I thought).
So after eating, we took a midnight stroll in one of our favorite cities. Before bed, we decided to scrub the ticket we had taken earlier. We claimed that we won BGN 100, which we subsequently managed to cover two of our nights. From then on, we decided that each time we would travel outside of Plovdiv, we would get one ticket.