Sofia, Bulgaria Pt. II (Rila Monastery)

This morning, I went on a hostel-sponsored tour deep into the Bulgarian countryside to Rila Monastery. It was a nice, small group, just two Austrian girls, myself, and our Bulgarian driver. As we moved out of the city, the first thing I noticed was how green the entire countryside was; just two weeks ago there was a foot of snow on the ground, and the snowmelt has really made the whole landscape flourish. Our driver said that in another week or two, everything will be even greener as the temperature continues to rise.

After around an hour and a half of driving, we started snaking through narrow valley roads as we got deeper into the mountains. We started going through small villages and towns that, apart from power lines and some run-down farm machinery, could have been from the 1800s. Dogs and donkeys foraged alongside the road. The whole area was like being transported back in time, hundreds of years. We passed big, tilled brown fields where people were planting by hand. We passed herds of cattle and goats grazing without any fences, old women walking down the road with hoes or sacks slung over their shoulders, and groups of people eating at outdoor restaurants sitting on stools fashioned from thick logs. The villages of Rila and Pastra were the closest to the monastery and life looked especially aesthetic there.

We drove more uphill now, deeper into the mountains and through a landscape criss-crossed by streams that tumbled over white, polished stones in thousands of miniature rapids. Every so often we'd pass by a narrow waterfall cascading down the hill from the snow-capped peak above. Pine trees gave way to other trees, like white-flowered myrtles, closer to the roadway below.

We parked at the dead end of a dirt road and got out to climb up the mountain to a little bit. A hundred meters or so above the road there lies the cave that St. Ivan/John, the patron saint of Bulgaria and called the Wonderworker, lived in solitude as a monk for seven years. His piety was quite strong and many miracles had been attributed to him, so much so that the king of Bulgaria, Tsar Peter I went to pay homage to St. Ivan outside of Rila. St. Ivan did not want to feel overly proud or vain by being the subject of a kingly visit, so he and the king humbly bowed to each other from a distance. He rejected the many gifts the king had brought and instead urged Tsar Peter I to spend them on the defense of Bulgaria and the protection of her peoples.

We climbed into the cave, where there was a small alter with an icon of St. Ivan, illuminated by several candles. Handwritten notes scribbled on scraps of paper were placed in the walls in cracks in the stone, as people believe their wishes will be granted if they ask them of St. Ivan in this fashion. Furthermore, going into the cave to pay homage to St. Ivan supposedly cleanses one's sins from the penitence paid.

There was also a magnificent little chapel next to the cave entrance with some splendid old fresco paintings on the walls and various icons of Jesus, the Virgin, St. Ivan and others on display in the church's two small rooms. I lit a few candles here and then we climbed back down through the forest to our car to go to the actual monastery.

St. Ivan, the cave dweller, never lived in the monastery at Rila but he attracted so many followers that they built the monastery in Rila to be nearer to the place of his piety and devotion. Plus, it's overall just a gorgeous place to have a monastery. Bordered by pine forests and snow-capped mountains on all sides, the monastery was a square shape, with four stories of cloisters forming the perimeter with a typical domed Orthodox church and bell tower in middle of the central courtyard. I spent a little while slowly perusing the grounds before going into the church, the outside of which was completely decorated with more magnificent frescoes, all clearly in the old Orthodox style adapted from Byzantium (who converted the Slavic Bulgars and invented the Cyrillic alphabet to accomplish this purpose). The inside was even nicer; it was a five-domed structure in the shape of a cross with the largest dome in the center. Saints and biblical images covered the walls in frescoes, and icons and candelabras were placed everywhere throughout for veneration and reflection. I pondered the art inside for a little while, and ten I lit a few candles here as well.

I had lunch at a little restaurant nearby that our drier had recommended, before the four of us headed back to Sophia through the majestic green countryside. Overall, fantastic day and perhaps my favorite of the entire trip so far. The scenery was purely amazing and everything about the mountains, especially the crisp, cold air, just took my breath away. I could have stayed in Rila with a good book and a cup of coffee for a lot longer than we had there. Ended up just making smalltalk with some other travelers in the hostel over dinner and our conversation extended past midnight. Hence, another tame evening, but I enjoyed talking to some retiree Australian guys that have criss-crossed the globe and had a lot of useful backpacker wisdom to share. Hopefully I'm as well-traveled as those guys by the time I'm there age, but I also hope I've made enough money to stay in hotels when I go!