Wok N Roll with us...Bob and Teri Along with Atlas and Kalani: Belogradchik Fortress, Baba Vida Fortress, and the Winery in Bulgeria August 28, 2023

The initial Belogradchik Fortress was constructed during the occupation by the Roman Empire. Initially, the natural rock formations of the Belogradchik Fortress was used mainly just for surveillance. In the 14th Century the Bulgarian tsar of Vidin extended the old fortress, building fortified garrisons in front of the existing rock formations. Considerable changes to the fortress were made in the early 19th century. The fortress served an important role in the Ottoman suppression of the Bulgarian Belogradchik Uprising of 1850. It was last used in warfare during the Serbo-Bulgarian War in 1885. On our return down the narrow windy road our bus was hit by a car. Our bus faired so much better than the car. Our driver got out to exchange information. It was clearly the car that hit us. Well 20 minutes down the road we were waved over by the police. It seems the driver of the car claimed that our bus driver fled the scene of an accident. So some of our passengers were asked to give witness statements. Just another thing to add to an exciting day, ha, ha.

After lunch on the ship we headed out to the Baba Vida Fortress. As the central defensive mechanism of Vidin, the Baba Vida Fortress was built in the 10th Century. The last Bulgarian king before the falling of Bulgaria under Ottoman dominion, Ivan Sratsimir (1324– 1397) had lived in the fortress. According to a legend, Vida had been the eldest daughter of a wealthy Bulgarian. Due to the unsuccessful marriages of her sisters – Kula and Gamza, Vida rejected all of the proposals for marriage, built the castle and remained in it for the rest of her life. The fortress is surrounded by a moat, which was sometimes filled with water from the river Danube, and the bridge was mobile. The Fortress included a chapel from the 13th-14th century a prison with various torture devices as well as cannons and gallows. The fortress is very well preserved. After visiting the fortress we went to another small winery near Negovanovtsi. There we sampled various wines and even one wine straight out of the barrel. We finished up our day with more local entertainment on the boat.