Bringing Ivan Home - Day 12 - Last Day in Sofia

Wednesday was our last full day in Sofia.  We started off with breakfast at our hotel and then went out to do some final souvenir shopping.  Instead of going over to the shops in the Serdika metro station, we walked over to this little gift shop on Vitosha Blvd.  We had stopped in to browse earlier in the trip and then had some nice things.  We also went to the rose shop next door to pick up some of rose soap and rose oil.  Bulgaria is well known for its rose production.  About 70% of the world's rose oil comes from Bulgaria.

After we finished our shopping we stopped by Raffy for one last gelato treat. Nikolas and Ivan loved the bubble gum gelato and were very happy to get some before lunch.  I really liked the coconut gelato with chocolate pieces.  It was all so wonderful!

We went back to the hotel after and Jason went out to pick up lunch again.  After lunch the boys napped while we started to get everything packed.  It's amazing how much more stuff we had going home than we brought to Bulgaria with us.

We met up with Ben, Heather and Delaney for our final dinner in Sofia.  We chose Pizza Palace and it was as good as it always is.  I love how Bulgarians dine outside and how everyone takes dinner time as a time to relax and socialize with friends.  You rarely see people on their phones.  They actually sit and talk to each other.  The slower pace of life is something that I enjoy about Bulgaria.

We wrapped up our dinner and said our goodbyes.  It was so nice to have another couple to spend the pick up trip with.  We spent at least a little time with them almost every day.  Our trip ended up being about a week later than we first expected due to the judge being on vacation and their trip was a week or two earlier than they expected.  I'm so thankful it worked out that way and we had the pleasure of forming a new friendship!

We went back to the hotel and bathed the kids and got them to bed so we could finish packing.  We got everything together and got to bed at a decent time.  The alarm would be going off very early the next morning!

Bringing Ivan Home - Day 11 - Final Paperwork!

On Tuesday morning we got ready and enjoyed breakfast at our hotel.  The nice thing about staying at the hotel is that they provided a really nice breakfast buffet.  The boys definitely filled up on muffins and eggs.  After breakfast we walked around Vitosha Blvd. and did a little shopping.  We bought some cute clothes and shoes for Nikolas and a new suitcase to hold all of the extra things we were bringing home.  We went back to the hotel and Jason ran out to pick up lunch again.  Both boys took a nice nap after lunch.

Later that afternoon we met up with Mariana to pick up our final paperwork. Both Nikolas and Ivan were very happy to see her.  We went over everything, said our goodbyes and then decided to do some shopping with Ben and Heather. We had a great time shopping at H & M.  All of our kids ended up with some new cute clothes.  Jason even found some shirts and a belt for himself.


After our shopping trip we had dinner at Raffy with the Greene family.  The menu is so large that I don't think we had the same thing twice.  Ivan was a huge fan of the Raffy pizza.  Nikolas had been asking for the pepperoni pizza for the past week, so I ordered one for me and the boys to share.  Jason had the Beef Wellington.  Only in Sofia can you order Beef Wellington for about $9.00.  It was really good!

After dinner we headed back to our hotel for the night.  Our typical nightly routine in the hotel included a quick bath, a snack of bananas, yogurt and juice, music time (watching Bulgarian children's song videos on the Kindle) and then bed time.  Ivan usually went to bed first, and we sent Nikolas over there after Ivan was asleep.  If they were sent to bed at the same time, they wouldn't stop giggling at each other.  Here's a picture of Ivan in his pajamas because little kids in pajamas are so cute. :)

Bringing Ivan Home - Day 10 - US Embassy Day

On Monday morning we moved from our apartment to a suite at the Best Western Thracia.  It was only about a block and half away, so we were able walk over there.  Jason made one trip alone and then we all made the second trip together.  The two-room suite was nice. The sofa turned into a bed for Nikolas and we requested a pack-n-play for Ivan.  It took a while for the boys to realize that they could run around and scream like they did at the apartment.

We got settled and Jason ran out to pick up some lunch.  We sure missed having a kitchen table, but it was still easier to eat in the hotel room than to take everyone out to a restaurant.

After lunch we met Mariana for our visit to the US Embassy.  When we arrived at the embassy we were informed that the visa system was down, but they were going to try alternate ways to process Ivan's visa. About 90 minutes later while we were filling out the paperwork by hand, it all of a sudden came back up. We had a quick interview and Ivan's visa was approved.

We took a taxi back to the city and center and did a little shopping before returning to our hotel.  We relaxed for a bit and went over to Pizza Palace for dinner.  Ivan loved the spaghetti with pesto.  We followed up dinner with some gelato before picking up some drinks and fruit at the grocery store and returning to our hotel.  It had been a long day and we were all tired.  We were all asleep by 10:00pm.

Bringing Ivan Home - Day 9

A friend had shared with us that not only does Raffy have good dinner and gelato, but they also served a nice breakfast.  Since Sunday was our last day before moving to our hotel that offered free breakfast, we decided to give it a try.  Vitosha Blvd. was very peaceful at that time on a Sunday morning.  Only a few people were out.  It was very relaxing. 

The server brought us the English menu, but it was the lunch/dinner menu and didn't include any breakfast items.  We asked her if they had a breakfast menu and she brought a small menu in Bulgarian that included four choices.  They did not have a breakfast menu in English and she could not translate, so we took a chance and chose two of the four items on the list for our family.  We had no idea what would show up at our table, but everything else we had ever ordered from Raffy had been good, so we hoped this would be good, too.  We ended up with a breakfast platter for two that included eggs, sausages, a small salad, and french fries with mayo and a traditional Bulgarian breakfast with cucumbers, tomatoes, sliced meats and cheeses, and some tasty chocolate chip bread. It was all very good and there was plenty there for all four of us.  

After breakfast we walked over to the grocery store to pick up a few items.  It had been very hot outside, so we tried to do most of our outdoor activities either earlier in the morning or in the evening.  We finished our shopping and went back to the apartment to rest for a bit. Jason ran out and picked up a quick lunch for us.  Later in the afternoon we were able to Skype with our church family during their morning worship service.  It was nice to have a little contact with our friends back home and to let them know how our trip was going.  

After the Skype session we walked over to Wok to Walk for some Chinese food.  Wok to Walk is a little stir fry restaurant on Vitosha Blvd. where you choose your rice/noodles, meat, veggies and sauce. The portions are generous.  Two meals was plenty for all four of us. Nikolas really liked eating there and had been asking to go back for several days.  The first time we went Ivan didn't want anything to do with it, but this time he happily ate lots of chicken and rice.  Our family really enjoys Chinese food, so we were hoping that he'd come around.     

And as normal, after dinner we met Ben and Heather for our nightly gelato. Bulgarian gelato is so good.  They have lots of different flavors and it doesn't cost much at all.  We could get four dishes with one scoop each for about $5 total.  Sometimes we even splurged and got two scoops!  (Since being home I have attempted to satisfy my gelato cravings with store-bought gelato.  Sadly, it's not even close to the same.)  Families who are traveling to pick up their children should definitely check out the gelato shops!

After our snack we headed back to the apartment and got the boys to bed so we could get things packed up and ready to move to the hotel the following morning.

Bringing Ivan Home - Day 8 - More Souvenir Shopping

After breakfast on Saturday morning we decided to walk over to our favorite souvenir shop.  We have been to this shop on several previous visits to Sofia and have always been very happy with it. They have a wonderful selection and the staff is very nice.  For anyone traveling to Sofia who is looking for a great souvenir shop, check this one out.  It's located in the Serdika metro station.  If you go in the entrance next to the St. Nedelya Church, go down the stairs and make a couple of turns until you get to the corner.  There are lots of souvenir shops in this area, but this one is our favorite by far.


We were able to pick up St. Nicholas and St. Ivan artwork, traditional costume tops for each boy, jogging suits for each boy, some rose products, a Bulgaria t-shirt for Ivan, a set of matryoshka dolls and a few other items.  Since this was our last trip to Bulgaria for a while (not planning another visit until we take the boys back for a visit when they are teenagers!), we bought a few more souvenirs than normal.

After the shopping trip Jason stopped by Raffy to pick up a pizza for lunch.  The pizza there was very inexpensive (around $5) and was plenty for all four of us.  The pizza and a bottle of Coke was a great lunch!

We had an early dinner and then got the boys in bed at a decent time.  We had been staying up way too late every night so everyone was tired.  After the boys were asleep Jason walked back over to Raffy to pick up a couple of their amazing desserts.  He said it was very busy on Vitosha Blvd. at that time on a Saturday night.  We enjoyed our strawberry pie and peach cheesecake before crashing for the night.