10 June
From being cold, to having a cold is how it is going. I now have a sore throat and cough. I just hope I don't pass it on to Roger. Today was the first chance I've had to get some OTC drugs. Hopefully they will treat the symptoms and I'll sleep without coughing.
We're now docked in Vidin Bulgaria. Our morning excursion was inland to Belogradshick, where there is a rock fortress. Along the way there was stork's nest. It was huge. Sparrows live with stocks as they eat parasites and bug that find their way into the nest, whichh is added on to each year. They migrate and return to their nests annually. This fortress was used by the Celts (who were the first people in Bulgaria) and the Romans. The Romans built three gates as the fortification climbed up the hill. Roger and I made it to the top of the hill; however there were lots of people who didn't or couldn't. I think the average age of the people on board is 70, based on our small sampling of talking with people at the various meals.
We traveled through several small towns and the impact of 45 years of Socialism is very noticeable. There were several old factories and "commie condos" along the way. The Russians thought it was a good idea to build factories where the labor was communist, so in this region there were several in active factories that are shells of buildings and just a general eye sore. The brewery we passed still works, and is now owned by Carlsburg. It isn't profitable due to outdated equipment, but so far the government has incentivized Carlsburg to keep it open, with extremely low taxes. The same can not be said about the tire factory, that required importing rubber and steel to make the tires. Our guide said that this factory had 10,000 workers and 2,000 supervisors, which was typical of any Soviet project. There's a statue in Vidin dedicated to the people who were lost to socialism.
Vidin is a tourist town. There are usually 3 boats tied up; however our boat is the only boat today because so far we're the only boat that is down stream from the flooded Danube. Right now we won't be able to get to Budapest, because the water level is too high and we can't pass under the bridges. FYI the pilot house of this boat is on hydraulics, that lifts up and down in order to have enough clearance to pass under some bridges, yet raised it has better visibility and frees up some deck space. The top deck has a small walking track, the Chef's herb garden, and three putting greens.
In Vidin there's a Synagogue that was built in 1894 and it was Bulgaria's second largest synagogue. The Jews came from Spain in the 15th century and eventually got around to building in 1894. Today unfortunately the synagogue is in ruins; however there is a campaign to re-build it to show that Bulgarians are very free thinking in their religious views.
We went for a walk in Vedin. It is a very pedestrian town. We're finding that once you get away from the big cities, bicycle or foot is the most common means of transportation. There is no public bus service between towns. There are some really old Soviet made cars still on the road, but gas is over $8/gal so people walk or ride their bikes like they have for the last century plus.
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