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The Leif Eriksson memorial at Hallgrímskirkja (Hallgríms Church), Reykjavik – Iceland. The church is the largest in Iceland and the most visible landmark of the city.
Cathedral of Valladolid – Mexico
Cathedral of Valladolid – Mexico.
In Pictures: Fairy chimneys and churches of Cappadocia – Turkey
After driving across the dusty Anatolian plateau the entry into the region of Cappadocia is marked by a landscape like no other. It starts off with one or two fairy chimneys, then a whole valley will open up to these remarkable rock formations.
[Fairy Chimneys]
[Monks Valley - Pasabag]
In addition to the draw of this unique landscape, Cappadocia has a collection of important church caves dating from the regions Christian era. The most accessable of these is at the Goreme Open Air Museum, where there are cave churches from the 10th, 11th and 12th centuries.
[Nunnery and Monastery - Goreme Open Air Museum]
I stayed in Goreme, which has a good cross section of what Cappadocia has to offer within walking distance. A short walk from the town of Goreme is Love Valley. No guesses as to why it was called that.
[Love Valley - Goreme]
Outside of Goreme there are plenty of other valleys and churches and abandoned cave homes to explore. They are spread out over the region and public transport isn’t really an option, so either hire a car or take a day tour which will cover the best of the area.
[Camel Rock - Devrent Valley]
[Ceiling of The Church of St John]
Cappadocia is also famous for cave dwellings. Even up to the 1980′s many communities lived in caves carved out the hillsides. Most of these are now abandoned, but there are hotels and guesthouses everywhere that are built into caves and rock formations.
[Cave Hotel]
Balloon rides are popular here as well, and on a clear morning ballooons fill the sky.
[Cappadocia Balloons]
If ballooning is out of your budget, no problem – just hike up to the nearest hill and enjoy the view.
[Cappadocia Sunset]
Cathedral of San Ildefonso, Mérida – Mexico
Cathedral of San Ildefonso in Mérida is the oldest cathedral in Mexico, and the second oldest in the Americas.
Sacred Heart Cathedral, Guangzhou – China
Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus of Guangzhou.
Salvatorkirche and Rathaus, Duisburg – Germany
Salvatorkirche and Rathaus (city hall), Duisburg – Germany.
St. Stephen's Basilica, Budapest – Hungary
St. Stephen’s Basilica (Szent István-bazilika), Budapest – Hungary.
Cathedral of the Holy Assumption, Varna – Bulgaria
Taxi’s lined up outside the Cathedral of the Holy Assumption, Varna – Bulgaria.
Bulgaria's Black Sea Coast
The Black sea Coast of Bulgaria has been a budget holiday favourite for decades. First with the countries behind the Iron Curtain, and now with the countries from the cold north. Along this stretch of coast is a good cross section of Europe with styling urban cities, cheapo package holiday resorts, old fishing villages and ancient ruins.
Varna
I arrived in Varna with the intention of moving on after a day and ended up spending a few days here. It is a good sized city with stately old buildings that are a bit run down. Varna is a port city that is close to the beach, so it has a part work,part play feel to it. Varna is a candidate city for the European Capital of Culture in 2019, so you may hear more about it in the future.
Varna’s Drama Theatre
Market – Varna
Most people who fly to Varna are coming for the beach resorts. There are two popular resorts nearby called Golden Sands and Sunny Beach. I have seen those names many times in British travel agent windows, so I knew that they were going to be package holiday beaches, but I wanted to check it out for myself.
I was intending to go to Golden Sands but it was a cold and drizzly day – not a good beach day – so I opted to spend my day hiding from the rain in cafes instead.
Espresso Time – Varna.
Sunny Beach
With a name like Sunny Beach it has to be dodgy, but I kind of liked it actually. Sunny Beach is all resort hotels and seaside tackiness, but it doesn’t pretend to be anything else. As an Australian I find European beach resorts fascinating. I mean look at this beach!
Sunny Beach – Bulgaria
There is not a spare piece of beach for all the umbrellas. The sand itself is very good quality, but I don’t come to Europe for the beaches. I come for the old towns.
Nessebar
Next to Sunny Beach is Nessebar. You can walk right along Sunny Beach until you get to a peninsula where Nessebar is situated. This old fishing town is a World Heritage listed site and is filled with old ruins and lovely cobbled side streets. The crowds are quite scary when you first arrive, but as you wander deeper into the town the crowds thin out.
Christ Pantocrator Church – Nessebar
Burgas
South of Sunny Beach and Nessebar is the port city of Burgas. There is another airport here with low cost flights around Europe, and it is also a handy place to base yourself for visiting villages along the coast.
Along the main shopping street of Burgas.
Sozopol
South of Burgas is the ancient town of Sozopol, which like Nessebar is filled with old ruins and winding little streets. It is also surrounded by some decent beaches that aren’t as crowded as the resort towns.
Looking to the beach at Sozopol.
Getting to the Black Sea Coast
Low cost airlines and European charter flights fly to Varna and Burgas. Trains are also a good option, with both cities being connected to Sofia.
Apocalypse Wow! Judgement day frescoes at the Rila Monastery – Bulgaria
The Rila Monastery in Bulgaria is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and perhaps the most well known structure in the country. When you enter the monastery it just looks like an old fort and it doesn’t prepare you for the view that is inside.
The monastery is famous for its frescoes by Bulgarian artist Zahari Zograf. The external porch walls of the main church is covered in colourful religious imagery.
Much of the subject matter is of apocalyptic last judgement images. Bat-winged demons and gruesome death scenes are prominent. There are so many little details, so spending some time looking over every detail of each panel reveals some pretty bizarre interpretations of what the apocalypse would look like.
The Rila Monastery is an easy day trip from Sofia. There are tours that go there but the cheapest way is to get a local bus which will take you straight there in 2 and a half hours.
