Day 133 - Plovdiv, Bulgaria to Edirne, Turkey -- a Bus Adventure
Tuesday, November 13, 2018.
Today we woke up slowly, had breakfast, prepared lunch for the bus and got ready to go. We left the apartment around noon and our bus took off at 1:15pm. I started to get nervous when we had waited for 15 minutes for a taxi. Gregory ran to the Grand Hotel and asked them to call a taxi. The taxi came and took us to the bus station. You can imagine how nervous I was, considering that we still needed to buy the bus ticket. When we tried to buy them yesterday, the lady had said no, come back next day.
We made it and we pulled out the credit card but the lady said that they only took cash! I wanted to scream. Gregory ran to find an ATM while I stayed with the kids. Of course, I told the lady in charge that her coworker had said that we could pay with a credit card and now she was saying no. This is the things that I can not live with. Often Sunshine tells me that I'm the American and Gregorio is the Mexican.
Anyway, we had plenty of time to go to the bathroom, buy drinks, chat with the bus driver (who only spoke Turkish) and hop on the compact bus. The buses have gotten progressively worse once we left France, so you can imagine the size and the smells (I had to take out my tiny essential oil bottle).
I didn't care, I just wanted to be in Turkey safe and sound. The first hour went smoothly. We read and had lunch but after that, the adventure began. I saw the driver walking back and forth, talking in a low voice to passengers. He stopped and talked to Gregory. Later, we made a stop at a large liquor/cigarette/candy store where the drivers loaded up on of bottles of vodka and beer. I mean, hundreds that they stashed in hiding places around the bus. They also asked everyone in the bus to carry two bottles of alcohol each. I didn't agree of course, and I was upset and worried that Gregory had accepted. He said that I didn't have anything to worry about. Of course, all I could think of was the movie Midnight Express. Ok, a very different scenario, but still, we were in a different country, laws, and culture.
After leaving Bulgaria, we made another stop in no-man's land at the Duty Free shop, and the whole bus got out to buy cartons of cigarettes. A friendly passenger told us excitedly to go buy cigarettes. I told him that we didn't smoke and he looked at me like, you strange foreigners!
Anyway, I was getting upset with all these stops because it was getting late. We finally made it to the Turkish border and we all had to get off the bus with our luggage. We had our passports stamped and I realized it was from the Bulgarian exit. While I was in line, waiting to put my bag in the X-ray machine, an old lady stepped in front of me. Gregory told me to go but I had listened to the police who had told me to wait my turn. Again, I'm the one who follows the rules and Gregorio the Mexican.
The customs agents wanted to inspect our backpacks and were wondering about the liquids. Daniel, for example, was stopped because he had juice in a water bottle and they were wondering what it was. Me, I had balsamic vinegar and Sunshine was carrying soy sauce. You are probably thinking, why do I carry all that? Well, mostly because it's what we use the most and we hate to buy it again every time we get to a new place. Plus, we didn't know if we were going to find it in Turkey. Honestly, I didn't even consider that we were crossing the border and that someone might actually want to inspect our things!
The customs agent also stopped Gregory and had him open our super safety bag and wanted to know why was he carrying Mickey Mouse coins. I explained to them that we were traveling and collecting items. The only nervous one was the young bus driver/smuggler. He was just trying to grab the suitcases and explaining to the police in Turkish what it was. He was in a rush to leave. He had already taken the kids' suitcases and asked them to go with him while I waited with Gregory. I was not nervous at all, just having fun to see their curious faces. They finally finished and welcomed us into their country.
We went back to the bus and, after finally crossing this border and making another stop (apparently a bathroom stop), the smuggler told Gregory that this bus wasn't actually going to Edirne, but they would leave us nearby on the side of the road, where a smaller bus could take us downtown. Of course, he agreed. I told the smuggler that we were told at the bus station that we would be dropped off at the bus station in Edirne, where I wanted to go. I didn't care if it was further away. At least I thought it would be safer.
To make the story short (or not) we got out, in the middle of the road, almost no civilization around, just a dirty motel and a stray dog that got my kids' attention. [Gregory's note: we were at a bus stop at the highway exit for Edirne, across the road from a large tavern] At least they were distracted by the dirty dog while I prayed and Gregory talked to the smuggler. They all thought that the bus was waiting for us to catch the minibus and were thinking, how nice of them. But I had seen the other driver walked across the street with a bag of alcohol, probably doing their first business!
Anyway, we got lucky, the small bus came, flash it lights and the smuggler made sure it was the right bus. He changed our last Bulgarian money into Turkish lira and we paid the bus driver.
The tiny bus (a little larger than a large van) reminded me of the public transportation in Mexico. It was empty but we soon filled it up with all our suitcases. When I sat and began to see some sort of civilization, I started to cry. Only Daniel noticed and came to hug me. He asked why was I crying and I told him that I had been really worried and a little scared. I'm glad they don't notice or think about dangerous situations.
On the other hand, I admire Gregory for staying calm and always trusting people. I think I was raised not to trust anyone and be aware of my surroundings. I have become more protective since I became a mom. I guess it's a good thing, but I'm not sure I want my children to live that way. I have learned in this trip that human beings, in general, are kind and trustworthy!
We made it to downtown or at least what we thought it was downtown. After not understanding the bus driver, we got out of the bus, luckily in front of a bank (read, ATM) and a street full of taxis. Gregory got cash and gave the taxi driver the address of our hotel. Yes, hotel! We actually couldn't find any Airbnb listings in Edirne, but Gregory did find a residence hotel on booking.com.
I can not explain how nice it felt to arrive at a hotel which felt safe and clean and they spoke English! Our suite is really nice, with two bedrooms, a living room, and a kitchenette. Breakfast is included and all for $40 a night!
After we got settled in our room, we went downstairs to explore the hotel which is more like university dorms with hotel rooms. The cafeteria had good food for very low prices so we decided to stay and eat there. After pizza and salads, we finished our adventurous day with a long, hot showers!
Good night!
Plovdiv apartment pictures
Today we woke up slowly, had breakfast, prepared lunch for the bus and got ready to go. We left the apartment around noon and our bus took off at 1:15pm. I started to get nervous when we had waited for 15 minutes for a taxi. Gregory ran to the Grand Hotel and asked them to call a taxi. The taxi came and took us to the bus station. You can imagine how nervous I was, considering that we still needed to buy the bus ticket. When we tried to buy them yesterday, the lady had said no, come back next day.
We made it and we pulled out the credit card but the lady said that they only took cash! I wanted to scream. Gregory ran to find an ATM while I stayed with the kids. Of course, I told the lady in charge that her coworker had said that we could pay with a credit card and now she was saying no. This is the things that I can not live with. Often Sunshine tells me that I'm the American and Gregorio is the Mexican.
Anyway, we had plenty of time to go to the bathroom, buy drinks, chat with the bus driver (who only spoke Turkish) and hop on the compact bus. The buses have gotten progressively worse once we left France, so you can imagine the size and the smells (I had to take out my tiny essential oil bottle).
I didn't care, I just wanted to be in Turkey safe and sound. The first hour went smoothly. We read and had lunch but after that, the adventure began. I saw the driver walking back and forth, talking in a low voice to passengers. He stopped and talked to Gregory. Later, we made a stop at a large liquor/cigarette/candy store where the drivers loaded up on of bottles of vodka and beer. I mean, hundreds that they stashed in hiding places around the bus. They also asked everyone in the bus to carry two bottles of alcohol each. I didn't agree of course, and I was upset and worried that Gregory had accepted. He said that I didn't have anything to worry about. Of course, all I could think of was the movie Midnight Express. Ok, a very different scenario, but still, we were in a different country, laws, and culture.
After leaving Bulgaria, we made another stop in no-man's land at the Duty Free shop, and the whole bus got out to buy cartons of cigarettes. A friendly passenger told us excitedly to go buy cigarettes. I told him that we didn't smoke and he looked at me like, you strange foreigners!
Anyway, I was getting upset with all these stops because it was getting late. We finally made it to the Turkish border and we all had to get off the bus with our luggage. We had our passports stamped and I realized it was from the Bulgarian exit. While I was in line, waiting to put my bag in the X-ray machine, an old lady stepped in front of me. Gregory told me to go but I had listened to the police who had told me to wait my turn. Again, I'm the one who follows the rules and Gregorio the Mexican.
The customs agents wanted to inspect our backpacks and were wondering about the liquids. Daniel, for example, was stopped because he had juice in a water bottle and they were wondering what it was. Me, I had balsamic vinegar and Sunshine was carrying soy sauce. You are probably thinking, why do I carry all that? Well, mostly because it's what we use the most and we hate to buy it again every time we get to a new place. Plus, we didn't know if we were going to find it in Turkey. Honestly, I didn't even consider that we were crossing the border and that someone might actually want to inspect our things!
The customs agent also stopped Gregory and had him open our super safety bag and wanted to know why was he carrying Mickey Mouse coins. I explained to them that we were traveling and collecting items. The only nervous one was the young bus driver/smuggler. He was just trying to grab the suitcases and explaining to the police in Turkish what it was. He was in a rush to leave. He had already taken the kids' suitcases and asked them to go with him while I waited with Gregory. I was not nervous at all, just having fun to see their curious faces. They finally finished and welcomed us into their country.
We went back to the bus and, after finally crossing this border and making another stop (apparently a bathroom stop), the smuggler told Gregory that this bus wasn't actually going to Edirne, but they would leave us nearby on the side of the road, where a smaller bus could take us downtown. Of course, he agreed. I told the smuggler that we were told at the bus station that we would be dropped off at the bus station in Edirne, where I wanted to go. I didn't care if it was further away. At least I thought it would be safer.
To make the story short (or not) we got out, in the middle of the road, almost no civilization around, just a dirty motel and a stray dog that got my kids' attention. [Gregory's note: we were at a bus stop at the highway exit for Edirne, across the road from a large tavern] At least they were distracted by the dirty dog while I prayed and Gregory talked to the smuggler. They all thought that the bus was waiting for us to catch the minibus and were thinking, how nice of them. But I had seen the other driver walked across the street with a bag of alcohol, probably doing their first business!
Anyway, we got lucky, the small bus came, flash it lights and the smuggler made sure it was the right bus. He changed our last Bulgarian money into Turkish lira and we paid the bus driver.
The tiny bus (a little larger than a large van) reminded me of the public transportation in Mexico. It was empty but we soon filled it up with all our suitcases. When I sat and began to see some sort of civilization, I started to cry. Only Daniel noticed and came to hug me. He asked why was I crying and I told him that I had been really worried and a little scared. I'm glad they don't notice or think about dangerous situations.
On the other hand, I admire Gregory for staying calm and always trusting people. I think I was raised not to trust anyone and be aware of my surroundings. I have become more protective since I became a mom. I guess it's a good thing, but I'm not sure I want my children to live that way. I have learned in this trip that human beings, in general, are kind and trustworthy!
We made it to downtown or at least what we thought it was downtown. After not understanding the bus driver, we got out of the bus, luckily in front of a bank (read, ATM) and a street full of taxis. Gregory got cash and gave the taxi driver the address of our hotel. Yes, hotel! We actually couldn't find any Airbnb listings in Edirne, but Gregory did find a residence hotel on booking.com.
I can not explain how nice it felt to arrive at a hotel which felt safe and clean and they spoke English! Our suite is really nice, with two bedrooms, a living room, and a kitchenette. Breakfast is included and all for $40 a night!
After we got settled in our room, we went downstairs to explore the hotel which is more like university dorms with hotel rooms. The cafeteria had good food for very low prices so we decided to stay and eat there. After pizza and salads, we finished our adventurous day with a long, hot showers!
Good night!
Plovdiv apartment pictures
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| Killing time before going to the bus station in the living room |
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| Our cute kitchen |
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| Stairs to the kid's bedroom in the attic |
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| Happy Sunshine |
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| Daniel and Sunshine's bedroom had an awesome window and view! |
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| I just had to add this picture to remember how fun was (not) to take showers in this apartment. Notice that the drain of the shower is in the middle of the bathroom! |
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| Sunshine playing with my phone |
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| When you are trying to read the rules inside the elevator and you got no clue! |
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| The young driver aka the smuggler. License plate blurred to protect the not-so innocent! [Gregory's note: see the large hotel across the street? And I happen to know they have a stocked bar!] |
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