A solo traveler explores Sofia's Christmas markets and design shops, then drives through a snowstorm to Rila Monastery, which she'd anticipated for eight years. She finds the same meditative peace there that she felt in a childhood temple in Nepal, before heading toward North Macedonia and Albania.
Chapters
First snow of the season, Sofia, Bulgaria. I'm very excited, guys. Christmas is almost here. I love the festive season and it's one of my favorite holidays of the year. Whenever I'm in Europe during the wintertime, I plan my trip around the opening of Christmas markets. I absolutely love them. There is so much joy and happiness in the air. Alexander Nevsky is the heart of Sofia, and this was something was kind of playing peekaboo with me since the time I had arrived. I could see this building from different corners of the city, and guys, once I arrived and I was standing in front of it, I was like, wow. Let's go in. Beautiful timeless chandeliers throughout. These aged brass fixtures reminded me of St. Sava from Serbia, another calming and peaceful place. The colors through the stained glass windows or the hand-painted murals through throughout the ceilings and walls is a reminder of great artists from centuries ago. What caught my eye at Artme was their beautiful display in the window. At first glance, it might be overwhelming for some of you. They have a lot of stuff at their store. What I would say, when you are inside a store like this, you are on a treasure hunt. I found a store, it's called Art Me. They have lots of inexpensive, um, decor item furniture pieces. I know I can't take the furniture pieces, but decor items are really good to take home. If you're in town, come check out this shop. I actually bought some boxes for myself self. So look at this, how neat this is. And this is the most unique and fun, I would say. I mean, you can put anything in these boxes— playing cards, I don't know, any kind of knickknacks that you guys may have. But yeah, they had excellent vintage decor pieces. Decorative boxes, and unique accent pieces. We are heading to the caves, or as I like to call them, the caves that are always watching you. You'll see why. No one's here. Quite spooky. Can you spot Waldo? That's Adi. How cool is that? Like eyes. The caves see you. The night before, there was a snowstorm, and though it wasn't the best day for travel, We planned to head out anyway, only to find ourselves caught in another storm on the drive back. By the next morning, the whole city was covered in a snow blanket, and I finally got my white Christmas. The store we're about to walk into right now— well, I'm about to walk into— is called N8. It's one of those rare finds that you want to find in every city because they have it all. The shops, the decor, anything, you name it. It's so cool, you want to take everything home, but you can't. But you'll take a few items home. Let's go in. So when I talk about rare finds, so look at this. It's a lantern. Basically, you can hang it. So cool. These mouse lights, um, by like a small kids' bedroom nightstand. It's very cute. For instance, this, uh, salt and pepper, it's a very unique design and it's handmade. This piece right here is from Italy and Bulgaria. I love the color and the shapes of these candle design that they have made. It is very, very unique, very hip. So this piece is from Magis. It's an Italian brand. It's for kids, but I would say you can put it anywhere in your home if you have a very modern decor. It's perfect. I could see it in kids' room, in your living room by a big window. It's a very cool piece of furniture. So these books are a perfect display options for any coffee table. I get asked a lot by my clients, where do you find this kind of stuff? On your travels. This is a rare feature on a candle. It burns by the hour. Welcome to Exklada. They're actually, um, related to the store N8 that we were in yesterday, and eskalada means warehouse. They used to have a warehouse with 3 floors. Now they have 1 store in the city, so let's go check out what they have. They have very cool items from Italy, Lithuania, Bosnia, you name it. Very cool stuff. Let's go check it out. I really liked the modern take on some of the vintage pieces. It was a unique store with one-of-a-kind decor, light fixtures, and artwork selections. All the modern furniture selection was beautifully built and really comfortable. This piece right here I thought was hand-blown glass. It's actually not, it's resin. It's a very cool take on it. When I looked at this setting, I loved everything about it because I love breaking rules when it comes to design. Everything is so different than one another, but at the same time it works. This by far might be my favorite piece in the showroom. It's a very unique take on a console table. This is a very cool, um, lamp. That I just glared at and didn't understand. But you know what? It's almost like an art piece. The wait is over. The surprise I spoke about earlier. We are on our way to this incredible place, and I still don't want to tell you what it is. This is the main reason why I am here in Bulgaria. It's coming up next. The drive was beautiful between snow-covered mountains, trees covered in snow, and small passages through villages. Now we are getting closer and closer, and the drive is Unbelievable. Hitting some very unexpected road traffic, another reminder to myself that we are taking over their space. It's freezing cold at Rila Monastery. I've been wanting to come here for 8 years or maybe 10, and it is so good. Like, it's peaceful. You gotta come here to experience this, and all I gotta say, everyone must come here. It is absolutely stunning, beautiful, and just walk around, spend the day, the whole day. As I walk in, my thought is, I am finally here. And for me, this place is one of the wonders of the world. For a quick second, this place reminded me of a temple in Nepal I visited as a 9-year-old. In places like these, I find deep peace. My soul tells me to simply be present. Sit down and do nothing, Kanika. There are parts of Rila Monastery you are not allowed to film. The temple in the middle, I cannot show you what it looks like from the inside. It's so divine that it will make you Pause and reach out to your inner soul. So we are halfway through our journey on this road trip, and guys, it's been incredible. And we are on our way to North Macedonia, and North Macedonia is supposed to be a couple of days rest period because we are driving through Albania to get to Corfu, Greece, which is one of the islands. And guys, we're not going to shoot anything here, seriously, we're just going to relax. But life always doesn't go as planned plan, and you will see why. Hi guys, how are you? I'm here to ask you for a little favor. So I am seeing 98% of you guys watching the videos but not subscribing. So guys, can you please subscribe to the channel? Because this will really help our channel.
