Author: Lisa

Every time we go out in the snow, we have to wear our transceivers, and our guide checks to make sure he can receive our signal. In our backpacks, we all have shovels and probes to locate and unbury someone in the event of an avalanche.

One day, we did an avalanche training exercise.  Ivo, our guide, buried a transceiver tuned to “send” position in the snow. We took turns individually tuning our transceivers to “search” mode and finding the buried transceiver. Once it was found, that person would bury it for the next person. 

I strongly hope we don’t face an avalanche, and I’m glad we have had a bit of training and preparation. 

Big snowshoeing day!  My Fitbit said 8 miles, although I think it was more like 6 miles. Regardless, I kept up!  We hiked up to a frozen snow-covered lake. The views would have been magnificent if it weren’t snowing the whole time. Notice the icicles hanging from my hood?! Great fun and tiring day!😊

While sitting in an alpine hut after nice morning snowshoeing rather than continuing another two hours up the mountain, I want to share some of my insights and reflections on the Russian invasion into Ukraine. First and most important to me is war is HORRIBLE. The images out of Ukraine are abhorrent. 

Before leaving for Bulgaria, a few friends expressed their strong concern, even opposition, to my taking this trip. I love my friends and completely appreciated their input and care. I left it, however, to our Bulgarian guide and the US State Department to determine the safety of our adventure. Both allowed the trip, so here I am. 

One of my first conversations with Ivo, our guide, focused on Ukraine. He said that Bulgarians feel that Russia invading Bulgaria would be like the sun rising in the west. He also said that if that were to happen, then NOWHERE would be safe in the world. Bulgaria is housing 25,000 refugees, so the NYT’s refugee map leaves out the impact on Bulgaria. Also something I hadn’t thought about, which Ivo mentioned, is the treatment of Russians by Ukrainians in the eastern provinces of Ukraine. With the atrocities being committed during this war, this information has been left out. 

My British travel buddies had no concern about visiting Bulgaria.  One of them mentioned the economic impact of COVID and how the return to tourism is so vital to European economies.

Interesting, too, to me is the history of this area. On our first day here before meeting our group, we went to the Ethnographic Museum, which provided a great overview of the history and culture of Bulgaria. It’s so easy to forget that this area has frequently been contested by various countries and cultures. 

The first two days in Bulgaria exceeded all expectations.  We first explored the city, walking around the many Greek, Eastern, and Russian Orthodox churches and cathedrals.  After resting in the afternoon for a bit – time to deal with jet lag – we met our group for a short walking tour of Sofia and a traditional Bulgarian dinner – lots of food hanging from the chandeliers, fire water, wine, and beer, accordion music with dancing.

Our tour group consists of eight travelers and one amazing guide.  Three of the travelers are siblings from England, one is their friend and kick-boxing buddy, one is also from England, an ER doc from Phoenix, Joel, and me.  I couldn’t ask for a better group to travel with – everyone is friendly, helpful, well-traveled, fit, etc.

Today was our first snowshoeing day – an adventure different than we expected! The plan was to drive to Vitosha National Park, Bulgaria’s first national park and the oldest park on the Balkan Peninsula. Declared a national park in 1934 and visible from Sofia, the park is home to Mount Vitosha (2290m).  However, with falling heavy snow, the police would not let us drive up the mountain until the road was cleared.  While we were waiting, though, buses and other cars went around the police car and proceeded up the mountain.  We finally also continued up, only to be blocked by a skewed bus.  Ivo, our guide, backed up the big Mercedes Sprinter van, we pulled off and put on our snowshoes, and off we went.  The powdery snow reminded Ivo of the snow in Siberia (hence, our WhatsApp group name is Bulgarian Siberia).  We snowshoed for a couple of hours…much harder than I imagined given the conditions.  Tomorrow, the weather should be better.  For the next three days, we’re staying at a nice hotel in Mount Maliovitsa, a Bulgarian mountain which is so well respected, that its North Face is the symbol of the Bulgarian Alpine Association.

After an uneventful 11 hour flight from San Francisco to Frankfurt, we’re now hanging out in the airport for four hours awaiting the final leg of our journey to Bulgaria.  We traveled from the international terminal to the domestic terminal to find better shops and food, and our passports were stamped as if we entered and exited Germany. 

Today is the day!  Very excited – and a bit anxious.  Today, Joel and I head to Bulgaria for a week of snowshoeing in Bulgaria and a week of sightseeing in Istanbul.  Lots of pics to come.