In Bulgaria and back

Well, as you can do not go to Bulgaria and not to initiate four to five days of silence and ozone of mountain peaks of Pyrina? HE Sit in the evening in the cozy Cortime of the ethnographic town of Bansko? And at all, it is necessary to be the enemy of yourself, so as not to arrange a festival of speed, desperately rushing on the mountain skiing along the coolest tracks of the sports center "Todori" (here, by the way, the best skiers of Bulgaria national team arrive for long years. )

What now "Everything bites". From flights on the plane I refused for a long time, and now the train has become slightly cheaper. And remember the arrogant border guards and their associates with numerous customs – so in a shiver and throws.

Called to Odessa to the friend, complained about the hardest destiny, and he: "That there are no problems – on my car we will reach two accounts to your Bansko!" But you must not know Odessans, so that like this immediately believes in the temptation and ease of solving the problem. And I was right: the day before arriving in Odessa, the temperature rose, the pressure rose, and the white "Mercedes" (ah, white "Mercedes") turned out to be repaired. HU, Well, everything happens in this world.

"That there are no problems, – again with Odessa optimism exclaimed my buddy, – Say for the bus – and on the other day you will be in Bulgaria. And back you too. In short – Catch!"

And I went. It was possible to go by train – a ticket three times cheaper than to Sofia. I had a free ticket company "Transaero" — And this is a complete kayf, for I have already appreciated the whole wonderful service of this competitor of Aeroflot. And I got the company in the plane – the highest class! Group "Bravo", Presnyakov Jr. and accompanying his faces. The whole flight of the pop stars poured over plastic cups from a six-liter bottle "Martini" and remarkably delayed about the birthday of their comrade. In Kiev "Bráservs" Coming together, in Odessa Presnyakova, a lure of the plane was waiting for a chic "Cadillac" and a Japanese minibus for those accompanying his faces. Have a way out we moved a miserable group that a dense crowd of private taxi drivers immediately crushed. They almost grabbed us by hand: we go – cheap and fast! Type in a cap rushed to me-"Aerodrome" And did not lag behind. I called a buddy – Fortunately in Odessa, telephones are free. He waited for me at home and advised to go only on city transport. What? Yes the jester knows – after all he has "Mercedes" And he does not use trams.

Hung even the numbers of the transport that I could get to the center of Odessa, broke my will, and I surrendered to the grace of the cap-"Aerodrome". "Hu here and Slavnyko, – Odessa delighted, – For five thousand rubles, I will deliver you right to the porch of the house". Five thousand! — what for money? In Sheremetyev (specially asked) no one is less than two hundred thousand, even planting in the car is not going to.

At first passengers in the car were two: I and small on the front seat. In thirty meters, the driver braked, and another passenger was squeezed to my back seat. That immediately like an old friend, inquired me: "To us? To Odessa? In synagogue?" I was indignant: "We have our own synagogue in Moscow!" And pulled the hell to admit that I’m going to Bulgaria. Here the chauffeur slowed down, the man on the side opened the door and blurted out: "For five dollars to the center you take?" I was trying to protest: we did not agree so. The men came to me: "HE BE RUBOVER – A man risks five dollars!" I had to surrender. "So, – continued the cheerful story a peasant between me and "five dollars", — Still, the earliest people these Bulgarians. Here, one game was brought: it seems simple, but interesting". I still did not have time to figure out what game the game is about – children’s, sports or electronic – as small from the front seat snatched the deck of cards from the pocket: well, show! The man took the card, shuffled – and began to pass. Two cards went to me, although I tried to protest. Quickly calculated glasses. I had more than everyone. "I rent again to secure the lesson," — said man. I’ve had a win again. "Understood?" — Hanging funny eyes, asked me a gambler. "I understood, "I said, returning him cards. — But did not understand because I don’t play cards at all. Only in chess". "Tormezos!" — Suddenly screamed the driver "Pyddollarovik". At first I did not realize what was the matter. I thought: a pit on the road, and the driver did not notice. The car stopped, "Pyddollarovik" grabbed my bar and threw it on the sidewalk, right under the legs passing. Then he ordered me: "Take out!" I weakly tried to defend: "Why?" "And therefore – having sternly said "Pyddollarovik". — We are with those who do not play cards, do not go".

And only here I realized that all passengers and chauffeur are one company. And the trick with cards is Naigran, like a scene in a long-spectacular performance.

I raised Baul, asked the man on the sidewalk: "How to get to the center?" — "And what a car did not go further?" — he asked with a smile. I explained: I don’t know how to play cards. "Hau then went, – the man told me. — I will show you how to get to the center on the trolleybus". It was also Odessa – cheerful, friendly and hospitable. Maybe it is because of such people we like Odessa?

Champagne here and does not smell.

I bought a ticket to Bulgaria in an iron booth, which is literally in five hundred meters from the train station, which has already been twenty years old, proud of the inscription: "Slava city-hero Odessa!" Glory, of course, only my buddy was beside himself from indignation: "I told you – go to urban transport! Hiking taxis, especially private owners!" But immediately, on the way to the station, told how wonderful it was inflated "Artists", Waving a scene with allegedly by a damned wallet. As a result, my buddy – Lodded Odessa – remained without a single coupon in his own wallet.

The ticket was discharged to me without any problems, but only there, that is, before Istanbul – and for the full cost of 30 dollars. Turkish firm "Oz Gulen" (I do not know how it translates into Russian, but in Odessa it is as "French Boulevard" and located on the city bus station) fits all passengers of the bus "Mercedes" in a common voucher, and no more documents, except for passport, is not required. But it turned out that we, three "Bulgarian", There will be no general in the voucher, and therefore we still need vouchers customized, or an invitation, or a different document – what, I will say later.

"But but, – said the seller of tickets, – you will give coffee, champagne and will take care of you and protect you on all borders". "And there is a racket?" — A woman asked, gathering to go away, too, in Bulgaria, somewhere around the city of Hov. "Hiking Racket NO!" — Confidently stated the seller of tickets. (The question of the Rack was not as chance. According to a woman, somewhere on the road the bus stop our compatriots and require ten dollars from each passenger. And this, as everyone says in the same Odessa, two big differences: thirty or forty dollars to give off the road. )

HA bus station The bus quickly filled with the people, as it turned out, not the first time the shuttle flight Odessa – Istanbul – Odessa is not at all with tourist purposes – as evidenced by empty bags and powerful wheels carts. All tour of these passengers accounted for ninety dollars, including the road, a cheap hotel and even a breakfast with dinner. Two days on the road there, two days in Istanbul, two days back. Leaving on Saturday, these people returned to Odessa next Sunday. Such a schedule quite satisfied me, and as soon as our bus moved, I began to find out when and where they take me back. It was here that it turned out: no one on the way back is not going to take me. Buses from Istanbul go to the top of the goods loaded, places are free, as a rule, no. In addition, the chaufferes are afraid to take passing passengers: there have already been a case when the girls made on the road took place from the balonickers with gas, unloaded all the goods and – remember as called. You could wait for the bus on the Bulgarian border in Ruse, but no guarantee representative of the Turkish company "Vasya" (so all his name was in Russian manner) did not give. And in general – the bus was dusty, champagne in it did not smell, and there was no hot water for coffee. When are our leader "Vasya" began to collect five dollars "For rapid passage of boundaries", My neighbor, who was interested in Odessa Racket, screamed in all her throat: "Racket! Racket!" The experienced passengers quickly looked at her, offering to go on foot.

Borders we crossed not too fast. "Vasya" dived in booth border guards and customs officers with a bottle in pocket. I liked the most row-colored Moldavian customs officer. He collected the customs declarations from all over the bus, which we filled, crossing the Ukrainian border. At first it was not clear why they are to him, Moldavan. When a sphere was suddenly a spontaneous rally on the bus: "And how we come back without declarations!?" — Moldovan appeared again and graciously allowed everyone to buy out our same declarations for . one dollar. Just! You can only admire the ingenuity of the border guards. Harrot threw off ("Then lose more when you need a declaration!") and bought my customs paper.

Less than all came up on the border of Romanians, and at all the Bulgarians did not fit. Has, three passengers who followed Bulgaria, sent themselves to explain with the Bulgarian border guard. I extracted a prudently prepared voucher in Moscow, in which everything was almost true: and what I was driving in Bulgaria, and what I had to take me "Balkantist", And even the place of stay was indicated quite reliably – Bansko. "Ima Lee Remisted in Bansko?" ("Is there snow in Bansko?") – I asked Bulgarian-border guards, and he replied with pride: "IMA". And slapped the seal in my passport.

My neighbor, who so loudly protested against a five-dollar race, presented as a document to enter Bulgaria. dollars. It turns out, you can briefly enter Bulgaria and so, having for each day of forty dollars. Spend them in Bulgaria, of course, not necessarily. Just need to show them – and all the formalities are solved.

Special attention was paid to all borders to one of my travelers to Bulgaria – Armenian. Already in Bulgaria itself, at the bus stop in the town of Byala, where you can have a snack and drink a cup of coffee (it is impossible to call from the phone, if you do not have a magnetic card), I asked: For that all the border guards dragged him? He showed me his passport, in which he was written in Russian that he is a citizen of SHG. Hu, if there are citizens, then I say exactly.

Adutant of His Majesty Passenger

The delights of the Bansko resort will not describe. I will only say that the Russians at the same time were very few. They were easy to learn about the conversation, which for the most part was a selected mat. But they came on the yellow jeep, were well equipped and every riding ended a generous table in a restaurant.

Prices are literally all (ski rental, lifts, hamburgers and coffee) Compared to last year almost doubled. I must say that I am surprised by advertising of our travel agencies, which are offered by the resorts of Borovets, Pamporovo and Bansko. I saw how tourists from the Czech Republic and Macedonia suffered, getting to "Todork", And how were they disappointed when the only chair lift was found – non-working. Borovets in this respect compared to Bansko – just paradise! There although one lift, but it works, and there are no problems with the service. Here, in Bansko, every day had to solve the problem of transport from the hotel "Pirin" before "Todork": minibuses, last year I regularly transported us at the same time, today for some reason stood without a movement, although the chaufferes were all the same. The road was cleaned bad, I had to wear personal cars on the wheels of the chain. And in general it seems that "Todork" go not very good.

Of course, no beauty of pyrin and clean air could not challenge my alarm about the road back to Odessa: After all, I already had a ticket to Moscow in my pocket.

Thanks to that Odessa who was so afraid of a rack. She gave me phones of private bus companies in Varna, who are also transported by passengers to Odessa. I got through to one of them – and booked a place. And this in itself was amazing that it is possible to make a place on the bus. Early in the morning I was in Varna: the sea, seagulls and a cup of coffee in a cozy restaurant Hotels "Black and sea". At ten in the morning I came to the company, for 23 dollars I bought a ticket to Odessa and was warned that two more dollars would need to pay at the end of the trip in the bus. I must say that these two dollars I gave without regret – it was for what. The bus was purely wash, on the seats – white head restraints. The president of the company.

We drove not familiar expensive – through the bridge over the Danube in the area of ​​the city of Ruse – and significantly east, through the city of Duran-fist and then in Romania along the sea, through Constanta. From the very first meters of the road, we turned out to be called, in the arms of cute Odessaita Vasya (again Vasya!) in a snow-white shirt and a tie, which allowed to call it an adjutant. He was indeed an aduteant of a certain high army rank in the former Soviet army.

Your business knew well: continuously treated us coffee, running on the parking lots on our instructions for water and sandwiches, quite deftly settled all the formalities with numerous border guards and customs officers, having fun, told Odessa jokes and bikes. He said that during traveling among his passengers there were five married couples, of which two have already managed to fire. Vasya turned to us by name, did not forget to leave her phone to everyone in Odessa and called us again on a trip to Bulgaria. Vasily had an inexhaustible supply of beautiful plastic bags and various contents of bottles, which he began to harm at the entrance to the next border.

We walked along Romania with a fairly high speed for two reasons: the road is good here, and there are few vehicles on it. Danube crossed on a new beautiful bridge. As a result, according to Vasi, we set a kind of record: from Varna to Odessa reached exactly in twenty hours. In many ways, thanks to Vasya, fragmented passengers of CHG (or its citizens?) By the middle of the way, they got into one cheerful and friendly team. At the end of the way, Adutanta Vasya all overwhelmed us finally, stating that it was going to put his candidacy for the mayor of Odessa and that his first decree in this post will be the decree on the opening of public houses in the city. It is terrible in the bus worse and began to figure out the details. But it seems, Vasya did not joke and intends to seriously fight for the place of urban head.

And so, when it already seemed that all the boundaries were passing out that you could take a break to Odessa, we early in the morning again braked people in uniform. It turns out that the driver confused the road and we, who already left Moldova, were again in Moldova. And this again: passports, customs officers. Thank you tireless you: he collected the remnants of his bottles, folded them in the last plastic bag with the girl in the picture and rushed to the border guard booth. Those raised the barrier and allowed us to rush on.

In the airplane "Transaero", which, alas, is also late, like all aircraft in the world, I summed up my journey. The whole trip took ten days, and all costs made up one hundred dollars. Plus so many dating, impressions and pleasures. Faster I, of course, could go. But more fun and cheaper? Unlikely.