The Black Sea is not, in fact, black. The name was derived from a system of color symbolism representing the cardinal directions, with black or dark for north, red for south, white for west, and green or light blue for east. So... "Black Sea" simply meant "Northern Sea".

It has been a busy and prosperous shipping route since ancient times, and still is today. It was a naval theatre in WW1 and the site of military action again in 2022 in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

I spent part of the day at Varna Beach one day last week, enjoying the smell of the sea air (it reminded me of the beaches in Florida) and the music of the waves. It was a chilly 65 degrees so I only waded in up to my ankles, just to say I'd done it. I was mostly by myself due to it not being "beach weather," so I sat on the beach for a few very peaceful hours and read a book. And incidentally - the insides of most of the seashells are a lovely purple color.

I visited the large, gold-domed church called the Dormition of the Mother of God Cathedral. The picture seen here was the most popular of the ones I posted on social media. It is filled with elaborate frescos and art. It doesn't have quite as much gold and alabaster of the cathedral in Sofia but I think the art itself is more interesting.

To see more pictures of the Black Sea and the cathedral, go to my travel Instagram here. You don't need an account to look at the photos. Look for arrows on the sides of the pictures to scroll through and see the entire series.

These little coffee and latte machines are all over the place in Bulgaria. I don't recall seeing anything like them except for at hospitals back home. Here you can find them in all sorts of random places. By the bank. On a sidewalk in a residential neighborhood. In the park. They are very inexpensive - it's about 50 cents for a cup of black coffee. Hey, there's always a need for coffee, right?

I was also able to get to the museum yesterday and will be posting pictures of that on Instagram and Facebook. There's a really fascinating history in this region, and it's where the oldest gold treasure in the history of the world has been found. A cemetery dating back 6500 years was unearthed and
the things discovered were magnificent.

On the prepper side, I've learned a few new recipes and agrarian eating styles. Unlike Athens, you can't grow food year-round in Bulgaria. People rely greatly on preserved chutneys and such for veggies with traditional meals.

As well, they use a brined cheese that's a lot like feta with a lot of meals. The nice thing about this cheese is that if you have a proper storage brine and a root cellar, it can be carefully stored for about a year.

A meal I've eaten frequently since being here is a plate of fresh veggies - tomato, cucumbers, roasted red peppers, onions, and grilled pepperoncinis, with two large triangles of that cheese and fresh-baked bread. It's sprinkled with a spice called sumac, which I'd liken to ground coriander, and drizzled with olive oil. I'm a carnivore but it's actually a very satisfying light dinner. As well, it would be fairly easy to duplicate with your home-grown goodies and homemade bread!

I hope you have a lovely week ahead!