SHOOTING & SIGHTSEEING!

Driving through Bulgaria on the way to the ancient town of Veliko Tarnovo, with the Bratz

Stopping for lunch. Generous waiter. I was not driving.

This summer I spent five weeks in one of my second homelands - Bulgaria. I've written about Bulgaria in earlier blog posts - it's an ancient country with a rich history, but it's been brutally occupied by its surrounding aggressive neighbours for years after unfortunate years.

I've recently read a wonderful and highly recommended book about Bulgaria, written by the British novelist Rana Dasgupta - "Solo". It reminded me of this summer, when we were not just sunbathing tourists on the Black Sea Coast as usual, but actually managed to get out and about and do some serious sightseeing. My daughter Johanne was taking part in a pistol shooting competition in the old town of Veliko Tarnovo, and there were six of us holiday makers - including her children - who rented a small van and set off.

Yes, my daughter is a Lara Croft-clone, and suddenly you'll see her getting her guns out to clean them. Travelling on airplanes with a person who has guns and ammunition in her luggage - however legal it may be - is a whole other story, which I might spend some time blogging about, but not right now. It's still very much a traumatic experience and one I've done my best to suppress!

Walking down the streets of the old town, we found a lovely restaurant with a piano player in the backyard and great service. The Hadji Nikoli Inn bore little resemblance to the hundreds of deep-fry-smelling tourist joints in Sunny Beach, and the food was excellent.

Bird's nest above the entrance to the Hadji Nikoli Inn

The following day while Johanne was off shooting it was time for sightseeing. We walked around the partly restored medieval part of town, situated on the hill above the city centre - Tsarevets. It used to be a fortress housing the kings and patriarchs during the Second Bulgarian Empire. Even the children thought it was great - especially the Execution Cliff - where traitors were hurled off to their gruesome death and landed way down in the Yantra River.

The castles and church on Tsarevets

 The Execution Cliff

While we had thoroughly enjoyed the sightseeing, our own Lara Croft had had an awful day at the competition. Having been sick all night after food poisoning (at the fantastic restaurant, alas - but none of the others were ill), she had gone off at seven in the morning, determined to try to compete. In two days she was to shoot twenty-four stages (running through a set course and shooting a number of targets), and she had made fourteen on this first day - in her state and in that heat! She had not eaten all day - obviously - but had managed to drink water and Coke AND keep it down. What stamina this girl must have! I honestly don't think she gets it from me.....

She shot the remaining ten stages the following day and we set off back to the coast, not waiting for the prize ceremony. It turned out she came second in her own category and sixth overall. And there are no separate men's and women's classes! I was a proud Big Mama - for sure.

I had an appointment with my hairdresser today and she asked me if I still wanted to keep growing my hair. YES! I said. Having come this far I might as well continue. Something else to be proud of! So she did the usual treatments, added some sun stripes, snipped a bit off the ends and here I am. It cost a fortune but what the heck. I don't indulge in that many luxuries. Do I?