My friend Andrei agreed to take John and I out into the country around Sofia. With a local, who has a car, one gets to see things that we would not be able to otherwise.
The Stob Pyramids are a natural rock phenomenon (a set of earth pyramids) located 7 km to the northeast of the village. The Pyramids have been under state protection since 1964 as a protected site encompassing 74,000 m2. The Pyramids are rock formations up to 12 m high and around 40 cm (16 in) thick at the base. They vary in shape from sharp through conical to mushroom like. Some of the columns are topped by flat stones. Groups of individual Pyramids have been named The Towers, The Pinnacles and The Samodiva Chimneys.
According to a popular local legend, the pyramids are in fact wedding guests who were petrified because the bride was so beautiful that the best man attempted to kiss her. Based on the legend, the local population has identified some of the pyramids as the best man, the groom, the bride and other attendants of the wedding ceremony.
Although similar to the tent rocks in New Mexico these are much smaller and made of earth so are much more fragile.
The Monastery of Saint Ivan of Rila, better known as the Rila Monastery is the largest and most famous Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria. It is situated in the southwestern Rila Mountains, 117 km (73 mi) south of the capital Sofia in the deep valley of the Rilska River at an elevation of 1,147 M above sea level. The monastery is named after its founder, the hermit Ivan of Rila (876 – 946 AD).
Founded in the 10th century, the Rila Monastery is regarded as one of Bulgaria’s most important cultural, historical and architectural monuments and is a key tourist attraction for both Bulgaria and Southern Europe. It attracts over one million visitors a year.. The monastery is depicted on the reverse of the 1 lev banknote, issued in 1999.
The entire complex is quite impressive for its size. The 4-floor residential part consists of no less than 300 monks’ cells, 4 chapels, an abbot’s room, a kitchen, a library and guestrooms for donors. The kitchen is particularly interesting for its really huge cooking vessels. The exterior of the monastery is no less intriguing for its high and severe stone walls (reaching 4 floors and even more at some places) cut through by small windows – reminding of a military fort rather than a monastery.
The monastery was declared a national historical monument in 1976, while in 1983 it was inscribed in UNESCO’s list of world heritage.
Thanks to Andrei for showing us a bit more of his beautiful country.
Regards
Wayne
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Hi Wayne,
My son Tim was at the Rila Monastery when he was in Bulgaria. It was a day trip for the math students. He had some pictures and was impressed with the site.
Looks like you are having a great time . Look forward to your stories when you return.
Cheers,
Carol
Hi Carol,
Missed you at badminton last night. I am back but still catching up on my posts. Still have two more to go from Romania. See you on Monday.
regards
Wayne
Wayne,
Thank you for the nice post. I did enjoy our trip to the Rila mountains. And it was the first time for me to visit the Stob Pyramids. The path was quite steep at times but the view from the top was worth seeing.
All the best,
Andrei
Andrei,
Yes I agree that path was steep and also very narrow with not much, but a drop off on either side. The difficulties in getting to a location make the end result more worth while. Again Thanks!!
regards
Wayne