It was a good walk, about 10 kilometers per direction.
The walk itself was lot more rewarding and interesting than the monastery.
The monastery is way too commercial for my taste. They demanded 1 Lev (EUR 0.5) to allow me to have pictures inside the monastery. Otherwise – forbidden.
I refused to pay. Had plenty of shots from outside 😛
There is small open restaurant in front of the monastery with roasted meat, beer, salads and french fries. Prices were a bit steep (as high as a city center pub) so we bought just a small amount of food and went to the nearby creek to have lunch. Mainly pre-made sandwiches from home.
I managed to shoot plenty of pictures (that’s why I came here – I am not devoted to any religion) while walking towards the monastery.
Some are good, some are junk, some are funny 🙂 so have fun browsing.
 Potato plant in full bloom. |
 Crows were abundant around this cemetery. I managed to shoot just one, the others got away. |
 Someone decided to make a lock of … grass instead of hair. |
 A brick, attached to a power line. Your guess is as good as mine … |
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And here is ME, mooning to have a good shot on a snail crossing the road 🙂 After the picture, I immediately removed the critter from the road and put it on a big leaf nearby:
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This is supposedly a “Holy water source”. In Orthodox church, when near the temple is a water source, it is called “Ayasmo” (Аязмо) and is deemed Holy or Curing.
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Giant sequoia (red wood). 50 year old trees.
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 “Roses are red …” |
 Bloody red. |
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While walking around the creek I passed through this guy’s net. He is enormous, so I decided he is a boy. He was not afraid of me and walked a bit over my t-shirt. Unfortunately, I was not quick enough to capture him with my camera before he jumped:
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Me, myself and I lazying up with a bottle of fake Coca Cola. Still named Cola though 🙂
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So, anyway – if you decide to come and visit this place (either for the nature or for the monastery).
Get the train from Sofia.
Get off on station named “Prolet” and then walk straight south on the road parallel to the river.
The river and the first village near the train track are both named “Gabrovnitsa”.
You can’t miss the monastery. It’s like a small marketplace with a church in the center.