While in Melnik, we stayed at Mili’s place in Kapatovo inherited from her grandfather. In Bulgarian villages, it’s normal for each house to have fresh fruit and vegetable gardens, and so early in the morning, Mili’s dad took me through the neighborhood to pick produce from approved gardens.
I’ll be honest, walking through Melnik made me a little jealous of Mili’s childhood. It must have been so nice to be able to retreat to a summer house outside the city where you can pick figs from the trees in the backyard, have fresh grapes from the Villa Melnik vines, or know everyone in the small town because your family has lived in the area for many years. I am who I am because of my past, but one day I hope to have a summer house and garden of my own.
After eating the most amazing figs in my life (it really was a foodgasm), we hiked up to the monastery and sand pyramids. Like everything else I have seen, the landscapes were breathtaking. We hiked back down to the village, enjoyed some lunch, and walked through a 200-something year old merchant house. All the ornaments and details of the house were preserved to reflect the lives of that time. I loved the mosaics on the ceilings and the beautiful carpets and tapestries that lined the floors and walls. Though it’s not exactly my taste in interior design, I deeply appreciated the time it took for each piece of that house to be put together.
All in all, it was a good day. Had good food, of course, and stayed up having late night conversations over tea. Tomorrow, it’s back to Sofia, and soon, back to Boston.