Tzari Mali Grad

The months of April and May were the most cold and rainy spring months I remember. It rained almost every day and made impossible our regular weekend outings to the near mountains. So when the forecast promised a few sunny days we immediately planned a trip to a newly restored Early Middle Ages fortress some 60 km from Sofia - Tzari Mali Grad. And despite the fact that in the morning the forecast changed to more coming rain, we grabbed the umbrellas and went to see the fortress.

It's a very small fortress on top of a hill over the village of Belchin (which is so rich in stork nests, I have never seen storks fly so low over my head - impressive!). Two eco trails and a funicular take the visitors up the hill.

Lots of attractions for the children outside the fortress - the best of which is the long rope path.

The fortress wall with the two towers:

A view from above to the village and fields below and the stormy skies. The promised rain was visible as a grey veil, as it fell in the distance. Some of it rained on us too:

The church and the towers were fully restored and turned into small museums:

A view from the third floor of the right tower:

A part of the fortress wall with a model of an ancient battle machine:

A restored residential building:

Just at the end of the second eco trail, which took us down the hill, starts a hiking trail. We walked along it for about a kilometer, but it started drizzling, so we turned back to the village.

A small ethnographic museum in the village reconstructs the ways and means of living of the locals in the past:

It's raining outside. Again. Back to embroidery :)