Freedom in Bulgaria
The sound of a vehicle crawling down the dirt track lifts us. It’s the farmer’s neighbour and he jumps out to add his shoulder to the effort. One, two, three, push. The wheels spin. No traction.
The sound of a vehicle crawling down the dirt track lifts us. It’s the farmer’s neighbour and he jumps out to add his shoulder to the effort. One, two, three, push. The wheels spin. No traction.
There’s something spiritual and holy about this place: the craftsmen turning the wood with love; the fugitive hiding in the monastery; the hermit living in a cave.
I get up at dawn to photograph the site. It’s very windy and I expect to be alone but I instead bump into a small film crew. They are students making a documentary about how this building reflects Bulgaria, how it symbolises the plight of their country. The young man behind the camera is Bulgarian, a student of Architecture in Paris. He applied to get access to the inside but was refused by the authorities.
… Continue readingFrom Thracian Tombs to Communist Monuments: Bulgaria’s rich history
He fires off a flare high into the Bulgarian sky. It echoes around the valley and lights up the pale blue sky. Simple pleasures, redolent of youth and the promise of a life yet lived.
… Continue readingSimple pleasures in the Bulgarian countryside
I’m not Royalist but I am with Prince Charles on this one when he says that “We, the rest of the world, have something to learn from this cultivated landscape of Transylvania. They have a spiritual but also social, economical and ecological significance.”
Imagine the national response should a motorhome-driving Romanian legitimately come to UK to use our health services and accidentally set his van on fire.
… Continue readingA large crisis and a small act of Romanian kindness
The Great Hungarian Plain, an area of 50,000 km² East of the Danube, forms over 50% of the country’s landmass. But don’t let this fool you. Here in the north of the country, the land rises to meet the Slovakian border where lay rolling hills and small mountains.
… Continue readingHungarian National Parks: Bükki and Hortobágy
Holloko, a Unesco world heritage sight is famous for its Palóc culture and traditions, as well as its 14th century castle.
“These kids are the first generation to have everything: iPhones, laptops, free education. When, and we all know these things are in cycles, when the bubble bursts, I’m concerned for their resilience.”
… Continue readingYoung Czechs leap into the unknown in Opatovice