While in varna I stayed with a fellow biker, Leo. He is from France, and moved to Varna a few years ago. We had a great time, and he introduced me to many of his friends. We also visited the public thermal baths, which are right on the beach; partway through my stay with Leo, another surfer –Matt– from Poland joined us.

Unfortunately, tragedy struck and I came down with a case of traveller’s diarrhea. Leo was very generous, and he let me stay at his home for a few extra days on bedrest. Once I was felling better, I relocated to a hostel to fully recover.

Yo Ho Hostel, in a central location, was great. I was walking distance from the great sights and attractions of Varna. I took it easy and let my stomach heal, mostly just walking through parks and along the beach.

Once I was all better, I took my bike to a shop that Leo had recommended me and I got a few things taken care of. Mostly routine maintenance, but while he was replacing the brake fluid we uncovered a problem with the front brake pump. We had to rebuild the front brakes, but he was able to find a kit in town, so it was taken care of same day.

While I was at Yo Ho Hostel, I met a guy from Belgium –Thomas– who also spoke French. We hit it off quite well, and I was able to get a few more days of language practice. We went to the hot baths again, and visited some really cool geologic features.

Once my bike was out of the shop, we went on a day trip to a nearby area called the Golden Sands. At the Golden Sands we visited an abandoned monastery and catacombs carved into the side of a cliff. We also found an old watch-tower on the side of the road and climbed to the top. The view was phenomenal.

We finished the day with a few hours at a spa resort. There were multiple pools and saunas with various properties, and we also tried cryotherapy. Very relaxing, and an excellent price considering the facilities provided.

Once the day was done, I gave Thomas a ride to the airport; he had a flight early the next morning, so he just overnighted in the airport.