TATUL and the TOMB of ORPHEUS in 2011

TATUL the ancient church, Tatul the sacred Pagan Sanctuary, Tatul the ancient fortress and Tatul the TOMB of ORPHEUS in 2011

With its ancient tombs temple holy well and staircases dating from the 4th, 3rd and 2nd century BC, Tatul, historically, has been quite a busy sacred place!
Again it was time to take a visit to Tatul to view the updated ancient historic site see what changes the EU and local Bulgarian funding has made there and most of all because I purrrrsonally love going there!

TATUL and the TOMB of ORPHEUS in Southern Bulgaria 2011

Tatul is situated near to Momchilgrad in southern Bulgaria.

and you can find the new 2011 photos here

You can now see the photos of Lavat the Lion plus photos of other stone formations resembling Egyptian Sphinx, taken in southern Bulgaria

Also coming soon, the stone mushroom located nearbyLavat the Lion, there are many stone mushroom formations in Bulgaria, but this stone mushroom is the famous one mentioned in many sites online, howevers the mushroom is disintegrating with each winter rain and snow fall!

I have noticed quite a big change in the shape of the mushroom in the years I have been living in Bulgaria

I also have photos of the elusive Bulgarian Castle Ustra

Tatul and the tomb of Orpheus

and added many more items under Miscellaneous for you

of course, you can always visit the forum for expats wishing to move to Bulgaria, for buying in Bulgaria, more on the costs of living in BG, the way of life and lots of photos taken around southern Bulgaria and the Yambol region where lots of expats have decided to settle and find out more on living and working in Bulgaria, it does also cover such things as

Bringing your UK registered car, registering it onto Bulgarian plates, tax issues, setting up your Bulgarian company, dentists, health care and general chit chat

Airports and travelling around, hiring a car, hotels and up to date news on the southern border crossings from Bulgaria into Greece or Turkey.

It has some pretty large photos diaries too

Perperikon archaeological dig site situated near Momchilgrad in southern Bulgaria, new archaeology and ancient artifacts have been found.

Howevers, ‘grave’ robbers have already moved some of the ancient artifacts and securing the Holy Temple is quite some task!

As is the dig itself, this historic site is huge!

WISH TO SEE MORE PHOTOS? 

these photos were taken at Perperikon Archaeological dig site in southern Bulgaria

Recently there have been further digs and more ancient artifacts found at this site of huge archaeological importance.

There have been more recent new artifact finds at this archaeological dig site, more to come as soon as new photos in!

PERPERIKON the HISTORY
as told by a LOCAL BULGARIAN

Perperikon is an ancient Thracian city which you can find near
Kardjali Bulgaria. It is a steep and rocky climb up to the former
glorious city and surely not for the unfit!

READ MORE ON PERPERIKON ARCHAEOLOGICAL DIG SITE and see the photos taken at the site here

The photos might take some time to load, please bear with me…

To view the flash content, please go to PERPERIKON

Although Perperikon is thought to have been a sacred place with sacrificial alters, all the stories I have personally listened to regarding this archaeological site have been based on theories. True facts have still yet to be uncovered.

Considered to be the largest megalith here in Bulgaria, I would also add that I thought it to be much larger than Stonehenge in the UK.

Currently this ancient site has no proper visitor centre it does however have a few open air, well stocked shops to buy souvenirs and booklets from!

It is said that humans first arrived at this city way before 5000 BC, bronze age artifacts and other ceramics have been unearthed dating also the early iron age of man. The huge altar which you can see in one of the photos has been carved out of the local rock.

According to my own personal guide around this glorious site, the Romans built a huge multi storey palace and one of these photos show what is believed to be the Queen’s room with its glorious views!

It does appear, as you are walking around, that this city was vast with many occupants and has obvious rooms where some honoured people would have lived in.

I was further informed that the city had not only laid in ruins and undiscovered for centuries, being blocked mainly by the pine forest that has taken back their hill, but by lack of humans to upkeep such a vast estate. It does look like its been added to over the various times in history too.

To back up the Roman theory a church pulpit has also been revealed which dates to when the Bulgarians were being enticed into Christianity. It is only in recent years that Perperikon has been rediscovered and is a find of enormous value and well worth a visit up there on your trip to Bulgaria.

If you are staying in the Kardjali region, it is also wise to visit the the Tomb at Tatul Bulgaria Tomb at Tatul

The houses are very run down and a lot of them are made of mud bricks, the large gardens contain the outside loo with natural seep away septic tanks and running water is usually available in the garden but not in the house itself. Although the houses for sale are very inexpensive, a lot of work would be involved in renovating an old house there and as Bulgaria is in the midst of being renewed, most of the work force there are now busy with house and business projects. The people of Bulgaria proved to be very peaceful, quiet and friendly people. One day my rent a car battery was flat. Three Bulgarian men all got on their mobile phones to organise some jump leads and another car to jump start mine! I tried telling them that I could call the car rent company as they insisted they could help me quicker and they did!
The Bulgarians couldn’t do enough for us throughout our stay and I returned to the UK thrilled at how these people treated their animals with such care and devotion! Such a different story!

Bulgaria is a country full of natural running clean and fresh springs and the entire country are eco friendly. The forests are very well maintained and cutting down a tree at the wrong time and not replanting is a huge no go! Bulgaria for the best eco holiday on earth! Where the animals are free to roam Bulgarian Castles where the Englishman’s Home is his Castle! Bulgarian Castles where the Englishman’s Home is his Castle!

SHOPPING in BULGARIA
There are many markets in the villages of Bulgaria. Apart from the well stocked markets, there are also frequent delivery vans, delivering to your doorstep a variety of foods, vegetables, pots n pans etc! The markets offer extremely cheap purchases, so if you’re looking to go shopping while in Bulgaria, the markets your oyster!
The main market square in the old part of Kardjali, is currently being revamped to have a spectacular roof offering the new under cover market! I have photos of the market place under construction and will continue to take photos as the development develops!
The supermarkets all stock a wide variety of food stuffs, although some is obviously unrecognisable by us, the foods offered are cheap and some English style foods are available even in the smaller more remote villages! You won’t go hungry!

ARCHAEOLOGY in BULGARIA
Bulgaria is full of archaeological sites now being rediscovered by teams of archaeologists from all over. The important holy temple at Perperikon is one such archaeological digs site we have visited. We intend to visit as many archaeological sites as we can, we did visit the Tomb of Tatul, photos coming soon. When we arrived at the archaeological site of Perperikon, there was a camera crew and many working on the new digs, new finds of ancient jewellery and other artifacts.
To visit the site of Perperikon, attempt the climb in the cool of the day, or off season as it is a strenuous climb up to the top of the hill that is the ancient temple site of Perperikon. So far I have put a few pages of photos from this lovely site well worthy of a visit or two! We intend to return once the digs have finished around the temples tower so we can photograph the tower in more detail and enjoy the archaeological site without leaking!

READ ON ABOUT DOCTORS, MEDICAL CARE and more here :

DOCTORS and MEDICAL CARE in BULGARIA – using natural age old remedies to cure
I have a great need for doctors due to a neck injury I sustained in an accident. In the UK after being treated for psychological problems that were non existent according to the psychiatrist, I was finally given the treatment. Numbing injections into my neck and shoulders. Since I have been in Bulgaria I have had numerous episodes of extreme pain due to the lack of these injections and had to visit the local hospitals. Although you can purchase medicines over the counter in the chemist, a visit to the doctor is often necessary.
Each time I am given medicines, obviously written in Bulgarian, I check the name on the internet and research before I take the prescribed pills, each time I am extremely shocked. The medicines you are most often prescribed here are natural, herbal homeopathic medicines!

My health has improved remarkably!
I have had a problem with a dropped shoulder since the accident, the doctors in the UK asked me what I would expect at my age (47), plus in order to get to see a UK specialist you must wait a long time, to see a Bulgarian specialist in the hospital is immediate plus very cheap! See the cost of this treatment below.
On one visit to a specialist in a private clinic, he looked from one shoulder to the other and, I thought was just checking their alignment with his arms, that was until he quite brutally forced his arms down heavy on both my shoulders, causing me to almost drop to the floor and put me in quite a state of shock. He proceeded to tell my interpreter that my reaction was ‘quite normal’!
It has been a week since that episode, and over that week I have experienced much pain, an almost drunk like state and flashing lights, due to the previous injury on my brachial plexus (nerves from neck spine down throo arm into hand).
Today, I feel extremely good, extremely full of life and after taking the Tilcotil vitamines prescribed for me and looking at my shoulder alignment in the mirror, all I can say is that I am a new woman! My shoulders, even at my age, are now equal, my neck looks normal again, I am walking in straight lines, my eyes are happily open and not looking so strained, I feel good! In one violent blow I am once again a straight woman!
The cost of all this treatment? I paid 20 leva for two x-rays, 15 leva to see the private consultant plus 15 leva for two sets of pills.

Cheap Houses cheap land and cheap property for sale in Bulgaria
Blagoevgrad Burgas/Bourgas Dobrich Gabrovo Grad Sofia Khaskovo/Haskovo Kurdzhali Kyustendil Lovech  Montana Pazardzhik Pernik Pleven Plovdiv Razgrad  Ruse Shumen Silistra Sliven Smolyan Sofiya Stara Zagora Varna Veliko Turnovo Vidin Vratsa Yambol Bulgaria hotspot for holiday homes. Or if you wish to speak to other English Expats who have already gone throo the process of buying a house and land in Bulgaria, check out the forum for information from other expats experiences, Bulgarian Dentists, costs of living in Bulgaria, cheap houses and land in Bulgaria and how you can still buy a cheap house or land in Bulgarian Leva! Alternatively you can buy a cheap house or land directly from a large Bulgarian Estate Agents who, for a fee, will take all the ‘running about’ out of the equation! or the estate agents link! With land and property prices starting at around 7,000 euros for property for sale in Bulgaria Europe’s hotspot now is the time to buy! Blagoevgrad Burgas/Bourgas Dobrich Gabrovo Grad Sofia Khaskovo/Haskovo Kurdzhali Kyustendil Lovech  Montana Pazardzhik Pernik Pleven Plovdiv Razgrad  Ruse Shumen Silistra Sliven Smolyan Sofiya Stara Zagora Varna Veliko Turnovo Vidin Vratsa Yambol

Bulgaria Perperikon Archaeology Photos Mosques in Bulgaria shops for archaeology
BG TV program Bulgaria for a holiday Bulgarian castles old Trabants in Bulgaria
leva luv medical care Bulgaria my town Kardjali castles in Bulgaria for sale
home window Bulgaria Bulgarian view Bulgaria Tatul cheap Bulgaria house land property Bulgarian tv camera photos from Bulgaria animals Orpheus Tomb at Tatul
hotels in Kardjali in Bulgaria stone houses for sale in Bulgaria Bulgaria mosque
Kardjali property stone houses for sale in Bulgaria Bulgarian artifacts expats in Bulgaria Perperikon stone steps carved by schools in Kardjali Tatul orpheus
pictures of Kardjali Kardjali town Bulgaria in spring pictures value of archaeological digs hydropower for sale Bulgarian people photo Perperikon climb Bulgarian TV
Bulgarian mosque photos Kardjali Bulgaria ancient door mechanisms in temples
historical pictures of Bulgaria rivers and lakes in Bulgaria picture sacrificial alter
Bulgarian home Ustra latest archaeological finds Bulgaria Bulgarian horses
cheap part removals to Bulgaria Bulgarian cows Perperikon stonehenge
holiday pics Bulgaria archaeological sites Bulgaria Bulgarian archeology
south Bulgarian villages photos Bulgaria archaeology Mosques Bulgaria
Orpheus tomb Tatul eco friendly transportation systems Bulgaria horses sales
luvitsa heavy transport bulgarie rubber boots Bulgaria Bulgaria lion beautiful Bulgarian pictures Perperikon altar stone Bulgarian lion Luv Luvitsa Buglaria BG
Luv its a in this edition – Perperikon Tatul paper mache tree Ustra decorated walls Kardjali Bulgarian lion Trabant paper mache pickup luv its Perperikon Bulgaria Kardjali Bulgaria paper mache car Bulgarian castles paper mache houses skateboard stunt trabant pick up damms lavat the Bulgarian Lion archaeology digs Bulgarian tv program Kardjali start bg lion Bulgaria Bulgarian horses Bulgarian lakes its a luv thing tv plus Bulgaria Bulgarski luv Bulgarian view what’s in Bulgaria photos Bulgaria Tatul Bulgaria lion – bułgaria Bulgarian animals Bulgarian stone trabant eco bg.tv program Kardjali bg Tatul bg Bulgarian people photos historical digs number of horses in Bulgaria off the beaten track in Bulgaria stone alters bg tv program Bulgaria animals Kurdjali houses with windows pictures of archaeological digs trabi pick up

Luvitsa shows you Bulgarian Holidays off the beaten track!  Luv its a few scenic photos from around the beautiful Bulgarian countryside – Luv its a warm welcome to our newest EU member! Houses for sale derelect homes to renovate old and new houses for sale in Bulgaria Your perfect holiday home in Bulgaria where the property for sale is in the beauty of scenic forests, hills or the skiing resorts popular and easy to fly to winter and summer! Photos from around Sofia airport Plovdiv Kardjali Haskovo Asenovgrad the Rhodopi mountains Pamporovo Bulgaria Photos of the picture perfect Bulgarian villages that can be found off the beaten track Zlatograd We hired an inexpensive car from a Sikon car rental company in Sofia and went mountain trekking in a little 1.2 Corsa! and walks around the archaeological sites of southern Bulgaria including Perperikon and the Tomb of Tatul

Bulgarian Lioness Luvitsa first page of photos and more coming soon!
and why not visit Whats on Bulgaria

Regions o BG Blagoevgrad Burgas/Bourgas Dobrich Gabrovo Grad Sofia Khaskovo/Haskovo Kurdzhali Kyustendil Lovech  Montana Pazardzhik Pernik Pleven Plovdiv Razgrad  Ruse Shumen Silistra Sliven Smolyan Sofiya Stara Zagora Varna Veliko Turnovo Vidin Vratsa Yambol BG

and of course my beloved BEASTS of the BALKANS

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY HERE :

Bulgaria Weddings romantic stone wedding Kardjali Rhodopes romantic Bulgaria weddings holidays Tatul Perperikon Bulgarian television crew Bulgarian TV crew at Perperikon digs news finds at Perperikon archaeological dig southern Bulgaria important finds Perperikon Bulgarian TV television crew Bulgarian archaeology plus photos Luvitsa Bulgarian eco Trip off the beaten track Tomb Orpheus Tatul Bulgaria Zlatograd Sofia Kardjali Haskovo Asenovgrad Rhodope Mountains Pamporovo mountains photos Bulgaria Shopping Bulgaria expats forum animals of Bulgaria Luv Its An eco friendly Bulgarian Holiday Bulgarian Holidays a wedding in BG Bulgaria winter skiing holiday mountains winter holidays warm summer days for summer holidays Luv its a holiday 2 Bulgaria this summer! Houses apartments studios long term rent short term rent holiday homes land and development for romantic weddings romantic getaways wedding honeymoons luv its a romantic wedding day celebration in Bulgaria thinking of getting married in Bulgaria. Luvitsa the Bulgaria n Lioness show you the free wandering Bulgaria n cows, photos from an archeological dig site in Bulgaria BG the lion of Bulgaria! Photos from the numerous Bulgaria  mosques hidden in the warmest places in Bulgaria and the true Bulgaria in winter pics on the huge forum for expats.
Bulgarian roads are still full of ancient Russian heavy transport trucks and the famous paper mache Trabbant too! Luvitsa takes you off the beaten track to the Tomb of Orpheus at Tatul passing many beautiful mosques in Bulgaria. Still on a quest to find the Bulgaria castles at Ustra, while you wait for evidence of this very elusive castle you can enjoy photos of the archaeology dig at Perperikon with our pictures of Bulgaria. The forum is getting bigger with whats on in Bulgaria with a visit to Zlatograd southern Bulgaria seeing history recreated. Zlatograd the proposed new border opening into Thermes northern Greece. One of my favorite modes of transportation in BG is the old Trabant and I was lucky enough to get this super photo of a Trabant pick-up. My aim is to bring you as many Bulgarian old ancient pictures as I can. We were visiting the archaeological site at Perperikon when one BG TV crew were filming for a BG TV program! This site is dedicated to the fantastic Bulgarian people with many photos taken as I tour around in my offroad jeep. See the fantastic photos taken from the Stone Wedding near Kardzhali southern Bulgaria, a wedding ceremony naturally carved out of the rock face! This is a very romantic wedding story set in local stone! We visit the huge lakes of Kardzhali in southern Bulgaria, the purrrfect setting for a romantic meal after a visit to the stone wedding. Luvitsa is Bulgarian for Lioness, Luv is Bulgarian for Lion and currently there are many important changes going on in Bulgarian since it’s joining the EU in January 2007. Houses appear cheap by comparison to the rest of Europe, however there is little or no work available in BG so currently it is a good place for retired expats to retire to! Internet is available in BG and the internet providers offer a cheap and fast internet service of many sorts including broadband type internet, internet provided by wire less modems and mobile phone type modems. Asenovgrad offers the best wedding dress town as almost every shop in Asenovgrad is a wedding dress shop! This very historical town makes for a very good day out too! These historical people of Bulgaria for sure know how to provide an eco friendly transport system and how to look after their very eco friendly land which is Bulgaria!

BULGARIA HEADING FOR KIRKOVO KARDJALI SOUTHERN BULGARIAN RHODOPES MOUNTAIN REGION

FORUM – my little forum for expats information on moving to Bulgaria, living in Bulgaria, the cost of living in BG

a teeny bit of history of the Kardjali (Kardzhali) Region of southern Bulgaria Eastern Rhodopes and a very romantic wedding day!

Kardjali is situated to the east of the Rhodope mountain range of southern Bulgaria. The huge and superb Arda River runs throo Kardjali and into the Kardjali town centre reservoirs including Studen Klanedets, a deep cold well of a reservoir!

Kardjali artifacts discovered that people lived in Kardjali since the Neolithic period and still plenty of archaeological excavations, including Perperikon, the tomb at Tatul of Orpheus, the stone wedding and more recently finds near Momchilgrad near Kardjali town.

There is a local museum of history, well worthy of a visit on your stay in the Kardjali or Haskovo region.

Thracians settled here as one of the most advanced of civilisations found so far, building sacturaries for their gods and creating artificial caves too.

Many castles of stone and palaces, such as Perperikon, are still awaiting discovery in the dense pine forests, hiding these treasures for all time.

The great Byzantine times also appear among many undiscovered artifacts in the Kardjali region and the name Kardjali, which is spelt in many different ways (Kardzhali being one of them) was mentioned in Ottoman documents, after the Ottomans conquered Kardjali in the 14th century.

Although Kardjali today is not very well positioned, due to all the roads south still being blocked off, Kardjali once was a prime position for trade being on the northern Greek border with Komotini, Kavala, Alexandropoli and close enough to Thessaloniki.

21st October marks the anniversary of its liberation by the Bulgarians in 1912. Since 1937 the 21st October has been heralded as a day of celebration.

MY FIRST VISIT TO BULGARIA!

We landed at Sofia airport at 3am local Bulgarian time. I had organised to stay for the remainder of the night at the Brod hotel in central Sofia near the airport. A young man arrived in his car to pick us up for the short journey to the hotel. The Brod hotel gave us a very clean and comfortable nights sleep. In the morning we enjoyed breakfast and some well needed coffee as we awaited the car we had chosen to rent through the internet from the UK. The car rental company I chose was Sikon Group. At the arranged time, two guys from Sikon car rental arrived with my hire car, a little 1.2 purple Corsa. I paid them the £100 deposit and the car rental charge was just 18 euros per day inclusive!
We headed out of Sofia and onto the motorway towards Plovdiv. The scenery was pretty flat until we got nearer to Plovdiv and it started to change into hills on the right and flat plain on the left. We passed by Plovdiv and took the road to Asenovgrad. This road was pitted with pot holes! The other drivers in front appeared to be driving drunk as they slowly swerved around the road in order to avoid the very deep holes! We stopped about half way through the road from Asenovgrad to Kardjali at a place high in the mountains with a fresh spring of drinking water flowing and very beautiful scenic area where they had placed some garden table and chairs for tourists and locals to enjoy the very scenic view over the hills and forests!

We took the rest of the journey into Kardjali with caution of the many potholes in the road. Along the way were many animals walking about enjoying the scenery!
Ghandi said ‘You can judge a nation by how they treat their animals’ well I have never seen such patient people as those I saw in Bulgaria. The animals were free to roam and enjoy the fresh grass and natural spring water coming down from the snowy mountains. Occasionally we saw a cow being led by a rope by the farmer, when the cow wished to nosh some fresh grass, the farmer patiently waited for the cow to be ready to move on! I also caught on camera the same happening with a horse on a lead!
We were welcomed into Kardjali by Martin a Bulgarian property agent and shown to a very cosy hotel with spectacular view over one of the lakes of the Kardjali region.
The Zarazen hotel was warm and welcoming and the Bulgarian food cooked there delicious! All the vegetables grown in the Bulgarian fertile soil, even the carrots tasted very different and extremely tasty.
Most nights we ate different variations of chicken, and each chicken meal was full of taste and soft like butter. I highly recommend the hotel Zarazen if you are looking for a holiday in the Kardjali region. From Kardjali it is not far to the Greek border, although there are still Bulgarian border patrols stopping you to ask where you are going and they only speak Bulgarian. Luckily for us we were with Dimo a Bulgarian property estate agent or I’m unsure as to whether or not we could have passed! Aparently the Greek border pass is soon to be fully open making the Kardjali region a lovely place to stay for a very relaxing holiday in a totally unspoilt land.
The centre of Kardjali was filled with old high rise blocks of apartments and of the Bulgarians who lived there for the work available. The countryside was full of abandoned derelect houses and forests of pine trees.