Koprivshtitsa is one of at least a dozen or so "museum towns" spread around Bulgaria. Many of them had historical events occur there or important figures that lived there, and the buildings have been preserved as an architectural preserve of 18th and 19th century "Bulgarian National Revival" buildings. Koprivshtitsa is about 2 hours from Sofia (MAP), and we were able to enjoy some lovely fall colors on our trip (pictured below, on our hike).
There is not a lot to do in K-town except eat, drink, play cards, check out the old buildings, maybe take a hike and shoot some photos (check, check, check, check, and check). It's a cute village and makes a pleasant enough excursion.
Above: "I thought you knew where it was!" (wandering the streets, looking for our hotel)History sidebar: Many of the most famous Bulgarian "founding father" types (think your Washingtons, Franklins, Adams, Reveres, etc) lived or spent some time in tiny Koprivshtitsa. In the mid-1800s, the population of Koprivshtitsa was roughly 12,000, at that point roughly the same size as Sofia was at the time. In April 1876, a Bulgarian uprising against the Ottoman Turks (who ruled Bulgaria for 500 years) started in Koprivshtitsa.
The painting above was a mural in a restaurant we ate at. I like the historical drama. Exhilirated rebels celebrate after shooting some Ottoman troops, a mother weeps, and the Ottomans write a sternly worded memo back to Istanbul (Click on the photo for a larger version to better appreciate the drama).The rebellion spread across the country, but was soon completely and viciously repressed by the Turks (estimates differ wildly, but likely 30,000 or more were killed). Though the April Uprising was unsuccessful, the brutal suppression contributed to the general western European disapproval of the Ottomans, and also led indirectly to the Russians going to war with the Turks the next year, which in turn led to the creation of the current independent Bulgarian state in 1878. The beautiful Nevsky Cathedral in downtown Sofia was built by the Bulgarians to thank the Russians for "liberating" them from the Turks. Certainly the Russians had larger geopolitical goals than simply liberating the Bulgarians (this piece of land allowed Russian troops a land route to bypass the Ottoman-controlled Bosporus, and the Russians wanted "friendlies" here). Whatever the Russian motivations, Bulgarians appreciated it. I've pieced this history together from Lonely Planet Bulgaria guidebook, Wikipedia, and a variety of Balkan history books I've read. Sorry if I've incorrectly depicted any events.
Back to our weekend trip...we stayed in an old Bulgarian Revival guesthouse (it would have been part of the Ottoman Empire when it was built), hiked in the hills above town, and just wandered the pretty cobbled streets. Shannon reluctantly schooled the boys at poker, and much merriment was had.
Above: our guesthouse. Below: Shannon peering out from the guesthouse.
Below: Roma (the more PC term than "Gypsy") horse carts cruising through town. I have a goal to get a ride in one of these before I leave Bulgaria.
National Revival house prettiness, above and below.
I forgot to include this description of Koprivshtitsa, taken from a completely unbiased hotel/restaurant brochure: "If the charm and beauty of nature and human spirit could be described in one word, then this word is Koprivshtica -- the town museum." Note that they mistranslated the town's name. From the same brochure, the mural paintings (pictured above)help you realize "why still in the 18th century Europe bows down before Bulgaria."
ReplyDeleteIf that brochure doesn't sell you on a visit, I'm not sure I'll be able to do any better!