On the eve of the second month of the year, I have decided to start a new series of posts in my site, where I will group my impressions, ideas and advice for my fellow travelers. I hope this will be equally useful and fun. I am starting with some travel ideas for February – places I have visited in this month and I have enjoyed.
1. Festival of the Gods of Wine
It is held by tradition in the first Saturday of February (this year on the 1st) in the village of Ilindentsi, less than 10 km from the Struma Highway at the deviation to Strumyani. Ilindentsi has a very special location amidst the mysterious rocks of the Pirin Mountain foothills. Furthermore, it lies in the heart of the region which is the home of the local – also special – wine sort of Keratsuda. Traditionally, this is the only place where you can try this wine properly, from the barrel, as shortly after it is poured out, it gets oxygenated and never the same again. The festival in Ilindentsi starts in the morning by cutting the vines in the presence of every known god of wine in human history – or at least in this part of the world. There are contests for best wine and, what else if not everyone’s favourite dancing and singing.
2. Days of Open Doors in the wine cellars of the Sandanski-Melnik area
Talking about wine, in the days around St. Trifon’s Day (I absolutely refuse to call it St. Valentine’s Day!), a group of small but extremely pleasant wineries from the region of the Wide-Leaved Melnik and other vines are organizing various events for all who’s willing to join. Of course, there are wine tastings and free winery tours – or what Day of Open Doors would it be? But there are also concerts of local performers – dancers, singers and musicians, as well as demonstrations of rituals related to wine. There are also farmers’ markets and visits to cultural sites. Check the dates of 14th-16th February!
3. Osogovo week-end
At about 20 km up in Osogovo Mountains from Kyustendil, you’ll find a place gloriously called Osogovo Fun Park. This Fun Park is a not so big and not so challenging ski-run where they offer ski, snowboards, tea and meatballs, but if you are in a good company and not too pretentious, the Fun is guaranteed. In the Osogovo Hut, they make the best local bread I have ever tasted in my life, and with some of the tripe-soup of the chef, you get an unforgettable experience. I will not even mention the homemade rakia with pickles. If, by any chance, you get caught by sudden snow-fall in the evening and electricity goes out, the people from the hut will bring you candles, will assure you the heating system is independent from electricity and you will never get cold; only the menu will suffer some limitations but these are proportionally inter-related to the quantity of the above-mentioned rakia. And if in the morning you have to dig your car out of the snow, no matter, the Fun will be complete.
4. A quick southwest outing
The fourth of my travel ideas for February is about our southwest neighbor, today called North Macedonia, where they still serve real food and not ‘imitating products containing… whatever’. I will tell you a secret though – we, the people from Southwest Bulgaria, usually keep those neighboring assets to ourselves, as we fear the millions of Sofians will come in packs and eat everything. But I will be generous now – in Strumica or Novo Selo, Gevgelija or Radovish, there are lovely hidden places, fully deserving a trip to the spot merely for gastronomic and culinary purposes. The opportunity to visit wonderfully maintained churches and monasteries plus other interesting landmarks is an absolute bonus.
5. Athens in February
To be honest, I visited Athens in this exact month not by my choice – I was participating in a conference which just happened to be there. It was quite windy on the Acropolis and not friendly to my hair but what I understood later from friends was that I actually managed to enjoy a rare moment. Namely, the unique opportunity to take a photo of myself in front of any of the Acropolis sites, with only one other tourist entering my shot. I was also assured that the cold-ish wind was mush to be preferred over the sunbaked stones of the hill. And it IS a hill and there is quite some climbing. I should also mention the differences in the ticket prices and everything. In other words, it turns out Athens in February is much warmer than Sofia and the places to visit are even more accessible than usual. So, if you find a good flight, do not hesitate.
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