Shiroka Laka

Shiroka Laka is now one of my favorite Bulgarian towns. Will, Georgi, and I spent a day there on our recent swing through the Rhodopes; we were enchanted by its old-world atmosphere and enthralled by the stunning hiking available in the surrounding hills. The tiny village is composed of about 100 homes, virtually all of which are constructed in the Bulgarian Revival style of wood beams and jutting windows, often with stone foundations. Unlike the colorful houses of Koprivshtitsa, though, these are mostly white or cream color with dark wood accents, rendering them more aesthetically consistent with the mountainous environment. It's a thoroughly charming walk back in time, further enhanced by the fact that these houses are painstakingly preserved as such; there is even new building going on in the same style. Wood smoke and arch bridges complete the experience. On Monday, after a hike to a nearby ridge that brought us to an alpine pasture, we returned to town for dinner at a local restaurant. Sitting outside in the crisp mountain air, we enjoyed patatnik (a Rhodopean potato specialty), kachamak (a Rhodopean corn meal specialty), and other local dishes (bean stew, shopska salad). As the sun went down, we remarked about how there was nowhere else in the world that we could have had the combined outdoor-culinary experience that we had that day.

This was one of several stone arch bridges we saw in the Rhodopes.

The sun sets on a home built in typical Bulgarian Revival style.

Will and me outside the Ethnographic Museum.

The town church

Will enjoying our last few moments in Shiroka Laka, as we waited for our breakfast outside a restaurant

Wonderful Bridges (literally!)

On our way to the Rhodopes, Georgi, Will and I took a 20 km detour over somewhat bumpy roads to natural stone arches, the names of which translate literally to "Wonderful Bridges." After doing a little circuit around the stone monuments, we set off on a hike of the area. The highlight was these little purple flowers that seemed to be peeking up right on the edge of the snow line. They must love the cold. Once the snow recedes, you can see fields of them all over the Rhodopes.

The Rhodopes at Sunset

Will, Georgi and I headed off into the Rhodopes on Sunday morning. After a stop at the "Wonderful Bridges" (I'll post about that later), we arrived in late afternoon, just enough time to grab some dinner and head into the hills to find a camp spot. The Rhodopes are the Appalachians of Bulgaria -- the softer, friendlier mountains. While they don't contain the sheer jagged peaks of the Pirins, or the alpine lakes of the Rilas, the Rhodopes are home to dozens of villages and gently rolling hills, along with innumerable hiking paths networking them all. While other mountains often make the postcards, ask most Bulgarians where they'd rather go, and they'll express a preference for the Rhodopes, with all the villages that remind them of their youth, the old-style architecture, and the traditional food. We drove through a town famous for its yogurt, camped outside a town known for its woodwork, and drove by countless roadside stands selling homemade honey, jam, and wicker baskets. The Rhodopes are both an outdoor and cultural experience, and we made the most of it.

Sunset light lived up to its billing, goldening the hills as we hiked to find a camp spot.

I took the picture above as Georgi and Will set up tents (below).

After they finished, the sunset looked more like this.

And the distant ridges like this. Remind anyone of the Blue Ridge?

And then we hiked out the next morning, by perfectly manicured fields and well-used wood sheds.