18 May - Full Day Sofia

The day started with us trying to understand the system at the Train Central Station.  And since we were there, we might as well get something traditional to eat.  A feta filled filo pastry filled and an espresso set us back 2.7 LEV (AUD 2.2).  That made us think that may be back in the days when we were poor students we should have traveled Eastern Europe instead of Western Europe.

A day transport pass cost us 4 LEV (AUD 3.2).  We considered taking the tram but none of the ones from Central Station go directly to the heart of the city.  So we took the metro to University of Sofia station.   We got out there and headed for Alex Nev church.  On the way, we spotted this incredly large memorial to the Red Army (of USSR) on our left.  The Red Army liberated Bulgaria from the Ottoman Empire. Labour Day in Bulgaria is 9^th May and not the usual 1st May.  On this day, flowers were offered to the Red Army in memory of their contribution to the liberation of Bulgaria.  We learned all that from an Italian who was visiting Sofia and had spoken with a local.  The park attached to the memorial was rather pretty.  The memorial reminds us of a park in Oslo where we had been the year before.

Our next stop was Alex Nev Church.  We went in search of the meeting place for the next morning trip to Rila Monastry.  After identifying it, we then walked all around Alex Nev church.  We found a heavy door at the bottom of a flight of stairs that was slightly ajar so decided to go have a look.  It turned out that this was the museum of icons.  It has the most impressive collection of some of the Orthodox Church's oldest and most significant icons.  One of the curators was most kind to let us know that we can do photography as long as flash was not used.  She also personally showed us the newest additions to the exhibits as well.  

She explained the icons of the 40 martyrs.  We originally wanted to show her that men throughout time were so obsessed with 6 packs torsos that they even painted these on the piece about the 40 martyrs but we stopped short when she told a devotional story about that icon.  

This museum was not well publicized. We found it only because we had stumbled upon it.  The kindly lady also advised us to take note of a pair of deer horns at the entrance to Rila Monastry.  These serve as a reminder to leave one's pride behind as one enters the compound of the monastery.

In Alex Nevski church, we paid LEV 10 for the photography rights and it was well worth it.  Security stopped photographers without the ticket.  By the time we finished our exploration of Alex Nevski church, we were too late for the 11 am Free Sophia tour that started at the Palace of Justice which we would like to have taken.

We decided to explore the surrounding area.  Mistaking the next building as the synagogue rather than an Orthodox church, we was prevented from entering by the police who were stationed there to take care of protesters, the same ones we bumped into earlier on the way to Alex Nevski Church.  We could not quite understand the reason for the protest.

We then took a walk around the market next to the church and marveled at the collection of antique cameras that a young man had but he had a terrible attitude.  A nice lady sold us an hand made cloth embroidered Christmas tree ornament that is typically Bulgarian.  From there, we walked towards the Central Business District of Bulgaria.  We then walked towards a policeman to ask for directions for an ATM as well as St George Rotunda Church which we had wanted to visit.  The policeman pointed us to a Municipal Bank and told us about where he though St George Rotunda could be.  He was not too sure about the latter.

On the way, we found Hagia Sofia and the underground crypt.  Too bad there was a funeral in progress in Hagia Sofia so photography was restricted.  The crypt there contained the necropolis that dated back to the Roman days.  A labyrinth under the church itself, it was impressive.  Entry was 6 LEV with 15 LEV for photography rights.  We were running out of LEV, so we opted against photography.  The curator of that museum was this lady that told us that Sofia is actually the logos – Holy Wisdom – reference to the wisdom of God.  And that is who the city is named for. 

From there it was to the Municipal Bank on Kniaz Alex Dondukov to get some LEV.  Unlike Dubai, it is not always possible to use your credit card here for small transactions, especially at market stalls.  It turned out our prepaid VISA did not work there.  Nor did it work at the Soc Gen bank ATM.  The officer there was kind enough to point out another ATM.   It was Firbank.  ATMs must have Cirrus ability for prepared international visa cards to work in Bulgaria.  Having replenished our funds and feeling secure again, we went in search of St George Rotunda. 

We walked towards St Petka, quaint little church hiding half buried in the entrance to Sedica metro station.  We actually ran across the street in front of a couple of policemen who just smiled and gave us directions to St Petka.  We were half expecting to get a fine for jay walking. People here do not appear to know much about St George Rotunda.  The Sedica complex was wonderful though complete with Roman aquaducts, mosaic and ruins.  The Roman Emperor, Constantine, once considered making Sofia his capital but was advised that Istanbul was better placed at the crossroads of trade between Europe and Asia.  Wandering among the ruins led us to a Mosque, which was apparently constructed by the same architect of the largest mosque in Istanbul.  It was unfortunately closed for renovation so we were unable to verify for ourselves whether the architecture were similar.  The building next to the mosque was the old bath house that has now been transformed to the Sofia Museum.  It was a refreshingly different museum, with a little bits of history as well as a peek into daily lives in history.  To capture a single photograph would set us back 15 LEV, which we declined.  Photography rights can be really expensive.  Fair enough that they would rather one purchase a souvenir booklet but as we were starting a long journey, we were reluctant to become heavier from our souvenir collection just yet.  Finishing there, we went to the fountain outside with its mineral waters and took a good refreshing drink.

We then went in search for the Sheraton and ended up at Central Dept Store.  No one has heard of this elusive but very ancient church which was supposed to be somewhere nearby.  Still lost, we went back past St Petka and the lady curator who earlier advised that St Petka was closed for maintenance walked us to none other than the church itself.  At the entrance we bumped into a Kiwi man with his Bulgarian friend and together we walked inside.  The ladies selling icon were busy with others so his friend advised us to photograph before she stop us.  Wickedly, we did although we felt a little guilty about not paying our dues in a country that was obviously doing it tough.  He explained the round holes in the ceiling were designed to increase acoustics in that church.  We were wandering around outside when low and behold the same English couple that we had crossed path with back in the crypt of Hagia Sofia spotted us.  They had stumbled on the church.  We stopped to chat about Roman ruins.  We advised that they see the inside the church before we go to lunch.  They had invited us to join them for lunch.   Their names were Colin and Mary.  So we end up eating lunch in a local eatery opposite the market and the mosque.  We spent the next 2.5 hours having a leisurely lunch and exchanging travel tales.

We then went to check out the stalls in the Market.  Like the Pasar Malam in Kuala Lumpur, this one housed all kind of stalls – bakeries, olive sellers, convenience stores, beauty products, meat, nuts sellers, snack sellers … it was quite a hosh-posh.  Since it was only 5.30pm, we thought it would be really fun to go do the Free Walking Tour that we missed in the morning.  A nice lady gave us the directions to the Palace of Justice, which is where the tour would start from.  We arrived there 30 minutes early so we decided to walk down the street next to it that appear to be a pedestrian mall.  It turned out that we have stumbled on the famous Vitrosho – we walked to the end and then turned back to find quite a crowd gathered for the Sophia Free Tour.

Our guide, Nikolai, was quite amusing.  We met a gentleman from the Czech Republic who was there on business and he became our walking companion.  It was a good walking tour.  From the Palace of Justice, we walked first to Sveta Nedelya, where we learnt how procrastination was used by the king to avoid Hiltler’s plot and saved all the Jews in Bulgaria – the king procrastinated sending the Jews to the internment camp until it was no longer relevant on the excuse that he needed them for a short periods for specific projects he was undertaking.  He saved 50,000 souls.  We then walked to St Petka’s Church, the Sedica ruins including East Gate, the mosque, the synagogue, the museum and then to the collection of fountains where local were collecting the naturally mineral laden spring water in all kind of vessels.  Along the way we learnt all the history related to the places which we had visited earlier during the day.

We went to the President’s Office and to St George Rotunda which sits right behind the President’s office.  We had not realised that it was behind the President's office.  It did not matter as searching for the church took us to quite a few unique places that we might not otherwise have included in our list of things to see that day.  We walked to the National Theatre and then to the Old Palace where our guide has us enacting the history of Bulgaria through the lives of famous historical figures – starting with a German prince who was ousted, followed by an Austrian that they did not like to a Bulgarian who was driven out by Russian but later worked with the Russian.  After that enactment, we went back to Alex Nevski church.  It was a great walk and we learnt a lot.  There is a stretch of yellow brick roads that made Sofia famous.  It also turned out to be an overkill and not so nice as the bricks are ultra slippery when it rained.  These bricks were imported from Germany at great costs of a loan by the king – the Austrian who also loved nature and green parks.  That is the reason why there are so many parks in Sofia.  The tour was fantastic.  At the end, the Czech walked back with us to Sedica.  There we parted ways.  We got on the metro homeward bound in time to pick up some snacks at the convenient store next to the hotel.   It was a exhausting and packed day but a great one because we learnt so much.

17 May  Travelling from Dubai to Sofia

Breakfast at the Dubai hotel consisted of fried eggs, hard boiled eggs and pita bread with coffee. We watched fellow hotel guests, all Africans at the next table.  There was this lady with yellow ochre painted all over her face.  It is difficult here to determine whether it would be rude or okay to ask about such interesting traditions as well as the observations of everyday life we made yesterday morning on the streets.

We must made quite a sight, with our roller bag, and a back pack walking the entire distance between the hotel and Al Ras metro … it was hot but we made the trip in 20 minutes.  It cost a mere AED 3 to get to the airport.  Metros in cities are really great as they are wonderful for getting around independently without having to expose oneself to the wiles of any specific individual.  There is safety in masses too .... just like the herd keep together so that the hunter cannot pinpoint a prey.

Dubai airport hands out 60 minutes complementary WiFi.  Having more than a single device is a good thing as then one can get several blocks of 60 minutes.  

Qatar flight was on the new Boeing 787-9.  The windows had polarized screens that switch on once a certain attitude is reached.  Suddenly everything had a blue hue which gave us a little surprised.  LEDs dot the ceiling of the plane creating the illusion of a starry night sky outdoor.  The polarized windows cleared automatically as the plane got ready to land.

There as no one in the seat between us and the person on the aisle.  On the next leg to Sophia, we had all the three seats to ourselves so we took a nap.   Emirates flight from Brisbane to Dubai several days earlier was also that empty that everyone had space to stretch out to sleep.  What is the business model of these airlines?  How do they remain profitable with such great service, delicious and generous in flight menus offer compared to western operated airlines?

DOHA airport is wonderful.  It offered unlimited complementary high speed internet.  We stayed only 15 minutes at DOHA on transit as our flight arrived late.  Something tells us that Doha / Qatar is better at customer focus than Dubai.  Enabling communications is an important part of good international airports especially if it would like transit business.

Arrival in Sofia was interesting.   The first thing that one notices is the green that greets one as we approach the airport.  Green valleys surrounded by high hills, some still snow covered even though it is summer.  We would learn that the snow presence is unusual later.

The airport was not large compared to Dubai but the WiFi was good.  Even the approach to Sofia was a welcoming sight – lush green after all that brown dryness of the desert.  It was beautiful.  We arrived at sunset.  The weather was cool but not cold.  Bags arrived promptly.  Doha is able to handle luggage the same way Singapore is able from the look of things as nothing was amiss even though the stop in Doha was only momentary by comparison.  

We collected my bags and headed for the metro.  It was not yet dark.  We paid 1 LEV for the metro ticket (AUD 0.8) to the city to where our hotel was, a short distance from the Central Railway Station.  Cyrillic writing and our inability to read Cyrillic not withstanding, we were able to navigate the metro system as they all appear to operate in similar ways throughout the world.  The names of all the stations were also written in Latin names.  Approach to stations were announced over the intercom but they sounded like nothing we would expect.  So we counted the number of stops between us and our destination to ensure that we did miss our stop.   They announced stations in both Bulgarian and English. Metro limited the interaction required while enabling achievement of task in a place where communications skills are limited.  The metro was run down but it worked as expected.  And it felt safe and quite comfortable.

We arrived at our station and walked to where we needed to go without too much trouble at all.   Note to self : 20kg bags are hard to lug up flight of stairs where elevators are not working and escalators are non existent.  People here are strong from doing all these manual exertions.  The hotel is on a quiet street which hosts mostly apartment buildings.  It is small but the internet is speedy.  The receptionist spoke good English and was most helpful.  It was the only hotel on that street.  There is a convenience store next door which closes at 9.

We hand washed our sweat sodden gear from Dubai as soon as we were in our room.  By the time we were done, it was too late to get a snack from the convenience store downstairs so the receptionist ordered us a pizza which was promptly delivered to the hotel for all of 6.20 LEV (less than AUD 5).  It was warm and delicious.  Unbelievable. Welcome to Sofia, Bulgaria!!

Reflection : Having just spent days at Dubai with all the desert and the constant need to maintain access to a source of water to remain alive, it suddenly becomes very clear why green is the official colour of Islam.  The green of the oasis ... green is life ... Islam is a religion that started in the heat and dryness of the desert.

16 May – Wildlife Sanctuary and Traditional Dubai

We decided that we will try to find the Ras Al Khor wildlife sanctuary even though the honeymoon couple we met at the Burj the night before said that they did not see any flamingos there during their helicopter ride over it.  We decided to get there by public transport – by train to Al Jafiri and then on Bus 61.  The driver of Bus 61 was a friendly Filipino so when my travelling companion spied the reed walls that hid the path to the bird hide of the sanctuary on the other side of the highway, she pointed it to him.  Like a jeepney drivers of Metro Manila, he made a stop at the side of a highway in front of a fuel station for us to jump off.  That was where the next problem began – the highway is 10 lane rated at 100 km/hr with dense traffic travelling way faster than the speed limit. 

There was no way to get across.  After waiting for 10 minutes, a car which had been at the fueling station honked at us and offered to take us across.  The driver did not look dangerous although I could tell that my travelling companion was really uncomfortable about getting into a car with a stranger out of nowhere.  Suppressing her instinct, she got in.  Then he asked how much she would pay him.  He suggested 20 AED which was an exorbitant price for the short ride, considering the ride from the airport through the traffic jam to the hotel in the souk area was only 50 AED.  But beggars cannot be choosers so she paid up as soon as she was deposited at the door of the sanctuary, glad that nothing more untoward had occurred.  She vowed not to take unnecessary risks again.

The sanctuary does not look like much initially – a corridor hidden by reeds and branches to a bird hide.  But the sight that greeted us when we enter the bird hide – hundreds of flamingos less than 50m from the viewing window itself.  These were running around waiting for their treat.  The sanctuary supplements their diets twice a day.  There was more than one species of flamingos.  There were lots of actions among all them, pecking, jostling, territorial and group actions.   It was a spectacular sight for a bird watcher.  At the bird hide was a film crew at work making a promotional video for Dubai newest ministry, the Ministry of Happiness.  Dubai aspires to be the happiest city in the world.  We spent a good few hours there observing the activities. The international film crew very kindly agreed to give us a ride to the nearest metro station when they are done so we hung around with them.  In the end, we went with their boss, Alex.  And he deposited us at Business Bay station, the station next to their office.  Thank you, again, Alex for your kindness and for your help.

We decided that we would spend the rest of the day after that exploring the traditional side of Dubai.  We took the metro to the World Trade Centre where the City Sightseeing tour for the traditional route would pass.  We decided that Concierge at the Ibis would be the best direction giver on where to find the bus and they were.  City Sightseeing’s direction about where they pick up was rather sketchy and there was no marker in situ at the pick up area.  The first bus driver sped past and did not stop even though we waved hard. The wait for the next bus was almost 30 minutes.  Oh well.  We have time.  It was only slightly past noon. 

We took the next bus to the dhow cruise centre when we went for a slow cruise along the Creek. 

It was interesting.  We were reminded of the Bhosphorus of Istanbul.  Dhows lined the side of the creek along with wooden junks filled with goods.  Here, away from container traffic and modern ports, wooden junks bear the burden of shipping goods. Fishing boats and water taxis were mostly wooden structures.  There were a few fibre glass modern yachts anchored at the marina.

Gorga, the Croatian lady who was travelling alone as well and my travelling companion sat down to chat.  She gave us a few tips about Croatia and we exchanged details.  It was fun finding another friend when travelling solo. 

We took a full bus ride around the old town and then stopped at the Dubai Museum which was housed at Fort Al Fahidi.  The museum looked understated from the outside - a simple adobe structure bearing some resemblances to the old Great Wall of China near Jiayuguan.  But once inside and underground, we found it to be extensive with good exhibits on the way of life of the Bedouins.  It appeared that in the past, Bedouin women cover only their noses and their mouths but not their eyes or chin – was it protection against the fine sands of the Sahara or was it a matter of modesty – it is a logical question.  At times those covers were jewellery pieces obscuring their identities.  In this place where the culture is such that a smile is perceived more as a come hither than simple friendliness, one wonders if that is meant to be protective.  My travelling companion found it difficult at times to know the appropriate behavior in a culture where she wants to be friendly but not misinterpreted.

We then went to the museum that used to be the house of the original ruler of the Emirates – Al Maktum house.  Relatively simple and very very square, it has a lofty area where the family spent summer in the relatively open air.  We finally learnt the functions of those tall boxy structures at the top of traditional houses … they are traditional air conditioning.  It made sense that there are no eye level windows at ground level -  both to protect against the sand and for privacy.  These tall “windows” help to ventilate the house and keep everything cooler.

We finally “hijacked” the City Sightseeing Bus as it was passing where we were walking towards the metro station.  The driver opened the door and let us in even though there was no official stop but requested that my travelling companion do Spanish to this lady trying to get a 24 hr ticket.  Again he was trying to get her to buy a 48 hr ticket rather than the 24 hr ticket.  We finally got off the bus at the Gold Souk, where we dined at the local  wrap stall and drank fresh coconut water, all for 13 AED. 

Totally exhausted by then, the adventure of Dubai concluded with a good shower to get rid of all of sweat and grime that had accumulated through the day.  There was a lot of that.  My travelling companion's clothes were soaked as if she had been caught in the rain!!

15 May Part 2

Palm Jumierah was created in the shape of a palm frond so that every property has a waterfront.  Built on created / reclaimed land, it is still a major construction site after five years of constant construction.  It is linked to "mainland" Dubai by a monorail.  At the end of the mono rail is the Atlantis Aquadventure Hotel and Water Park.  Along the outermost fronds, are hotels – the best brands from every country are represented here.  At the Atlantis, there is a Gordon Ramsey restaurant along with all the high end designer goods stores.  We sat down for coffee and a slice of carrot cake at the Starbucks because it is airconditioned and there is promise of free WiFi.  The WiFi, however, was not working.   As we sat sipping coffee, we came to the conclusion that the whole Palm Jumierah has this feeling of "extreme consumerism".

We were going to walk along the outer most palm frond till we can see Burj Arab.  After 5 minutes, we realised that the heat and humidity was way too much for us.  We were not English after all (Mad dog and Englishmen would have walked said the well-known colloquial quote.)  There were two operators of hop on hop off buses.  The City Sightseeing and the Big Bus.  They were both as bad as the other in that they were trying to sell us more features than what we want.  They kept throwing sweeteners in.  In the end we settled for the City Sightseeing and ended up buying 48 hours when we originally thought only of a 24 hrs pass, and only so that we can see the entire outer most frond of the Palm.

With an hour to wait before the next bus comes so we sat crowd watching.  It was interesting to note that Dubai is probably the place to go for holidays for Indians and Africans – sort of like Vegas for the Americans.  We did not see too many traditional Arabs holiday makers here although there were a few families.  The most interesting encounter though was with this group of relatively elderly Uighers from China – all dressed in the traditional Arabic / Turkuric fineries and costumes.  Their guide appeared to be Chinese but was speaking to them in Uigher – we could make out that it was not quite Arabic.  My travelling companion ventured to ask where they were from in Mandarin and they answered China … not too different from the Uzbek she met some years back at the border of China and Uzbekistan on the shore of Lake Karakul.

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It was already 3pm in the afternoon when the bus out of Palm Jumierah took us to Dubai Mall.  We were going to get there early so that we had plenty of time to make "At the Top" visit to the top of the tallest building of the world – the Burj Khalifah – 820m up in the air from the ground level.

City Sightseeing bus offer included the entrance to the Aquarium and the Marine Zoo in the 48 hr ticket.  We had two hours to spare so we had to have a look although I can tell that my travelling companion really hated the idea of so many fishes in so little water.  It is a huge mall but it is nothing like the ocean.  All these fishes are in water had either been brought or were born there.  The pelagic fishes and the rays looked happy enough although some fishes could be seen harassing the rays.  We wondered why the fishes here were way more restless than the usual ones we see in other aquariums – in Singapore or in Australia.  They were constantly moving rather than taking a rest. 

On the second floor of the mall, there is a marine zoo with exotic fishes and sea creatures – turtles, reptiles, and even two huge salty crocodiles.  It is really sad to see how little space and nature these creatures have.  At the regular zoo, at least they had access to nature - natural light and air.  The saddest event was to see a kookaburra, a white face owl, some rainbow parakeets and chickadees among the captive residents.

To say Dubai Mall is huge would be an understatement.  It is a hulk of a mall.  At one end of it was the entrance to the Burj Khalifah.   The reception for At the Top which include visit to both floors.  We were treated like VIPs.  They served us Arabic coffee and sweets while we waited.  The security was similar to that for airports.  Then there was this long walk with bite sizes of trivia about Burj Khalifah on the walls of the path.  Branding and marketing were very professional.  First stop after that was right at the top in the fastest elevator in the world complete with visual presentation as one rode up. 

View at the top was exquisite.  820m above ground level.  One can really see the Arabian Desert and observed how man had carved out of it the city of Dubai.  Every plant living is attached at its root to an automatic watering system.  Every lake is man-made.  Even the Creek which was natural is man-enhanced.  On the one hand, one can see the sheer effort that molded this city.  On the other hand, one wonders how many calories were poured into its creation, how many more are required to maintain it and whether it is sustainable.  There is an incredibly huge fountain in the forecourt.  We watched the fountain show from up above, a totally different perspective.  The high humidity caused a haze which made Burj Arab look more surreal and far away than it is.  The sunset though over the Islands of the World is a unique sight.  Islands of the World are still in progress and thus far no buildings can be seen as yet.  Visitors to At the Top also get first priority to come back down after sunset when other visitors have to queue for remaining spots on the elevators. 

We then rushed to catch the Night Tour which started at 8pm.  There, standing in a queue, were representatives from three states in Australia – Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.  I thought it rather interesting that the Chinese family from NSW asked my travelling companion if she spoke Mandarin.  They went on the night tour of the old town while Shane and Heather from an hour west of Warnambol, Victoria and we took the conventional tour.  City Sightseeing Bus stopped at Shopping Malls rather than interesting sights.  We guess the culture this side of the Creek is about shopping and consumerism.  The Creek is the natural divide between traditional and modern Dubai.  The city lights were interesting and reminded us of Vegas – a single strip is where the majority of the malls concentrated.  Heather and Shane made really good companions on the night tour.

At the end of the 2 hr night bus trip, it was time to run for the metro trains as the last train was at 11pm.  Dubai Mall is next to the Metro Station on the map.  In reality, though, it is 7 travellators away and a very long distance.  It took almost 20 minutes to get to the metro from the Mall walking at a really fast speed.  At least it was cooler than running along the street outside.  We managed to get to Al Ras station (the station nearest to our hotel) by 10.30 pm.  It was a good thing the trek back to the hotel was not so complicated as on the first day.  This late at night though, we stuck out even more.  Solo female going anywhere other than the mall and the international area is quite uncommon.

There is probably a lesson to be learnt in tackling corporate mazes from tackling these mazes of old souk towns.  We decided to go on the outside edge until we absolutely have to enter the labyrinth.  And there it was, much easier to find than the path my lady cab driver took at the instruction of the hotel reception.  Having spent now more than 48 hrs then in Dubai, we realised that using the GPS is better than asking for directions.  Dubai residents method of direction giving presume that the listener actually know the layout of the streets and all landmarks in the labyrinth, hence their instructions were at best incomprehensible.


The best looking building at night in Dubai had to be Burj Arab. It looks like a fat dragon sitting on its hind legs and its nose pointed to the sky.  It remains our favourite.

Footnote :  It is interesting that a recent article in a flight magazine I saw today on Smartwings (6 June) referred to Dubai Mall as the temple to consumerism.  Guess I could not have said it better.