We made a pit stop in the Netherlands on our way back to the United States to pick up our niece Vivian. She is spending her school break with us in North Carolina. We had a marathon 24-hour trip from Siwa to the Netherlands. It started with a 9-hour drive from Siwa to Cairo. We spent eight hours in the…
We said goodbye to our new friends and Bulgaria and flew to Cyprus. Cyprus is a beautiful island nation located in the Eastern Mediterranean. The history of Cyprus dates back thousands of years, with evidence of human activity on the island dating back to the Neolithic era. We watched some YouTube videos about Cyprus to help us understand its history.…
Our last full week in Bulgaria was a busy one. We attended the family dinner this week at Victoria Restaurant. The restaurant is one of our favorites. They have pizza, pasta, and traditional Bulgarian food like most of the restaurants in Bansko, but they also have sushi, which is Lucas’ favorite. Michael organized another roundtable. This one was about education,…
We started the week with a day trip to the Rila Monastery. It is a medieval Eastern Orthodox monastery an hour and a half from Bansko. It is one of the most important cultural, historical, and architectural landmarks in Bulgaria and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Rila Monastery was founded in the 10th century by the Bulgarian hermit St.…
Week 7 in Bansko started with a road trip to Thessaloniki, Greece for me and a few other moms. We spent two days walking along the water and eating delicious food. It was nice to get away from Bansko and warm up for a few days. Thessaloniki, Greece is just a three-hour drive south of Bansko. It is the second…
Week 6 in Bulgaria is a week of goodbyes. The second session of the worldschooling hub is ending, and some families were moving on. Four weeks went by fast. It is sad to see the families go, but we believe we will see many of them again somewhere in the world. We had a week full of activities. Lucas and…
A cold snap came to Bansko this week. Temperatures were in the single digits and low 20s. We know it is winter, but it feels especially cold because the temperatures here have been mild. This week we went to the Deska House for traditional Bulgarian food, music, and dancing. The three sisters are famous in Bulgaria. We had fun dressing…
We are settled into Bankso. We know our way around the town. We have a rhythm with skiing and worldschooling activities and meet-ups. It has been great being in one place for an extended period. The weather finally got cold. Average temperatures for the first few weeks were in the upper 30s and low 40s. Now we are consistently in…
Bankso hosted the FIS Snowboard World Cup while we were there. Michael saw a notice about volunteering, so he and I signed up. We got credentials and swag, including a waterproof jacket, neck warmer, sunglasses, and t-shirts. We engaged with the fans and watched a lot of the competition. It was interesting to be in the room during media interviews.…
Our time at the worldschooling hub in Bankso finally arrived. We have been planning and talking about it for months. We joined ArcticTerns in Bankso after hearing great things about the program from people who participated last year. Emmy Hermanos and her family have created worldschooling pop-ups and hubs in the Netherlands and Bulgaria. We moved from our Airbnb in…