As you know we flew out of Calgary to London at 2200 Aug 26. Our ultimate destination being Varna Bulgaria, flying from Heathrow to Sofia with British Airways and then to Varna with Air Bulgaria. Being in our 70s we decided to overnight in London. When we checked in with BA in Calgary The agent said she could ship our bags directly to Sofia. That made sense to us until we arrived at the hotel in London with no clean clothes no toothbrush and no deodorant, they were all with British Airways somewhere. We had a small travel toothpaste so I asked the hotel front desk for a complimentary toothbrush. Sorry we don't do that but you can buy one for $5. We used the brush with finger technique. Then we spent the night wondering if we would ever see our luggage again.

Up at 0500, took the overpriced but fun driverless pod back to LHR and subjected ourselves to the security check. The good news is there wasn't any cheek spreading. We have been in LHR before and knew if a good breakfast restaurant. It was really crowded but we got in. I had the best Earl Grey tea ever, It's made by Teapigs. I asked our very overworked server where I could buy some because it was so good but she wasn't sure. When she brought our bill she brought me 3 teabags. Neat!!!

2 middle aged men from London were sitting next to us. I commented on how rigorous the security check was. Europeans have a totally different fear of terrorism than Canadians. The only real fear of terrorism we face is Justin Trudeau and his destroy all of the Alberta economy, embarrassing the country on the national stage and growing our debe be $20B annually. Europeans have a genuine fear.

Anyway we made it thru Sofia and so did our luggage. Standing in line for the flight to Varna I was talking to the young girl in front of us. When she learned we were from Canada, her remark was yummy Maple Syrup.

Our b&b in Varna is outstanding. Large room, great bathroom and good breakfast. Our hostess lived in the states and speaks fluent English.

Varnas's beach is beautiful, like the one in Constanta Romania. The water has been very rough and not all that warm. We are going to give it another chance this morning.

The newer areas of Varna are quite modern, wide walking streets, new modern stores etc. The older areas are quite dilapusated. A tale 2 cities.

Lots of stray cats

Lots of scooters and skate boards

Not many bikes

Food has been good. On our first night Kitty had lamb, I had sea bass. Both were delicious and the total bill was $34 with tip.

2 more nights here then probably off to Ruse. Still TBD.

More later. Have to tell you about the food fair.

Hope everyone is well. This trip is fun so far. Great people. Different cultures

Hippies Out