We decided a beach break was needed so we headed to the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. The train took us through more fields of corn and sunflowers. Met a nice couple on the train from Sweden who have been just about everywhere and they gave us some great travel advice about India and Nepal. They had also been to Myanmar 25 years ago so we swapped travel stories. Unfortunately the train took us only as far as the border town of Ruse, Bulgaria. Customs and immigaration was confusing and stressful. We were ordered to stay on the train while our passports were taken and cleared. We amused ourselves along with several other passengers by feeding the "station dogs" (common at almost all train stations) food from the windows. We became the overwhelming favorite meal ticket when we dumped two pounds of stinky Romanian cheese that had seen better days out the window. Our passports finally stamped, we hopped off in hot, dusty, depressing Ruse. We were immediately targeted as easy prey (backpack + brief look of confusion) by several rip-off, high-pressure taxi drivers who wanted to drive us the two hours to the coast. They followed us while we attempted to get information from the unhelpful ticket agents talking loudly and distracting us so that we had a hard time getting and understanding the information we needed. The woman at the ticket office was happy to inform us that there were no trains leaving that day. The sharks began to smell blood but somehow we found our way to the tiny bus station with several dejected taxi drivers in tow (their gig was up) and found a cheap bus to Varna leaving in an hour. More pleasant rolling green hills and fields of corn and sunflowers. Arriving in Varna at sunset with no reservations (never a good combination), we asked our taxi driver to take us to a cheap hostel. This plan seldom ends well but he took us to "Hotel Color"- a cute boutique hotel with Wi Fi, HD TV, a downstairs bar, laundry services, close to the beach, and cheap at 25 euros per night. The staff was helpful and friendly too.

We hit the beach the next day, our first chance to dip our toes in the dark green waters of the Black Sea. The beach was crowded but clean and the water was warm and clear with small waves. Hundreds of large, stationary umbrellas were set several feet apart so we rented one for the day. Park yourself under one and an attendant appears and collects his 6 Lev ($3.75). Worth it! The sand was mostly small, soft shells - and comfy. The crowd was a mixture of locals and tourists, very loose. Lots of topless bathing, as was also the case in Croatia. Corn on the cob, pretzel, and ice cream vendors waded through the crowd shouting loudly. Spent the next day wandering around town, shopping, visiting Orthodox churches (only free ones of course) and eating corn. There were corn stands everywhere! Who would have ever thought of corn as a snack food and that it could be so good but it is! Pick your cup size and a saucepan is filled with the freshest, sweetest corn ever (sorry Iowa). It's drizzled with butter and your choice of sauces/dressings (garlic, blue cheese, ranch, Italian, bacon, BBQ), pick your seasonings (pepper, salt, paprika, garlic, basil, etc) and your favorite type of grated cheese. It's stirred on high heat for a minute and poured into your waiting cup. Seriously good.

Sozopol

Took a two hour bus along the coast to Sozopol, a small, quaint, hilly beach town with cute shops along its main street. What a sweet find! Beautiful, kickback, and inexpensive. Who knew? Bulgaria, really? Apparently lots of Europeans know! We had previously checked out hostels online and had a good one in mind...up on a hill and run by a little old lady (who would hopefully bake us homemade cookies, make us hot cocoa before bed, and lovingly wash our laundry) that got good reviews on Hostelworld.

Met a nice guy from Canada, Gilton, on the bus and three of us trudged up the steep hills in the blazing afternoon sun to grandma's hostel. Disappointingly, she wasn't home but her neighbor who had rooms to rent saw us and showed us her place. Fabulous! Balconies overlooking the sea, beautiful airy rooms with big shuttered windows, marble floors, and beautiful gardens of hydrangeas and roses. We even managed to get her down on her already low price! Hit the crowded promenade and had chicken kebobs and local beer plus large crepes "pancakes" stuffed with bananas, nutella, and walnuts for dessert. There was serious good eating in Bulgaria and we were ready after Romania. Swam, lounged on the beach (more umbrellas), and ate fantastic food for three days. The locals were friendly, fun, and helpful. Can we just stay here forever?

Checked out the gaudy, old western-themed Old Town area that we decided looked a lot like Knott's. The place was lively and crowded but didn't offer much except overpricd food and boutiques. Listened to some talented street musicians play acoustic guitars and headed back to our refuge on the quieter side of town. Treated ourselves to a wonderful meal of Tarator (cold cucumber soup), baked cheese and potato casserole, Shishcheta (skewered chicken), Kavarma (Pork Stew), bread, and local beer (Karmenitza) while sitting high over the harbor with the sun setting behind it.

With no clue about the remainder of Bulgaria, I can say that the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast is a treasure and we want to go back very soon!