20 November 2023, beyond Zvezdets, 57.48km
Hotel Ribarniku 80lev [R837]

Despite arriving at the wrong hotel, down a country lane under a half moon off the main road between Burgas and the Turkish border, we had a great day.
The hotel with which we had booked a room, either not signposted or so badly signposted it may as well not be signposted, when we called from the "wrong hotel", said people often end up at their neighbour and agreed there was no need for us to backtrack. I wonder why they don't do something to lure at least those with whom they have engaged to their door.
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The weather forecast for yesterday was icy cold and wet, so we decided to spend the day in Burgas, venturing out only to shop on a drier day than expected.
The forecast for today was partly cloudy and dry; ditto tomorrow. Thereafter, it looks like a week of heavy rain. We did 60km today and will do another 60km tomorrow, crossing into Turkey, in an effort to get out of the mountains as soon as possible.
As we climbed into the hills from sea level, in perfect weather, we were surprised and thrilled to find snow! We assume it fell yesterday or last night and were glad to have stayed home. If you must encounter snow when cycling, it is nicer to do so on a sunny day after the fact rather than during!
Barring Xmas cards, this is only the third time Charl has seen snow up close. The first time was driving to East London in 1972. On the Katbergpas, he and three friends parked on the verge to take a closer look and their Vauxhall slid down the embankment. Charl was wearing shorts, a T-shirt and slip-slops, not ideal clothing for pushing a car out of a snow-filled ditch. Luckily a passing group of army guys were instructed by their sargeant to "Help daai manne" (Help those men) and literally lifted the car back onto the road.
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We also met our first cycle tourer in several weeks. Andreas from Germany, travelling with his dog, cycles in lederhosen and tattoos with a front-loaded setup. He has done 12,000km in the last year, travelling slowly, and mainly wild camping. He gifted us his Turkish SIM card, so we will be connected much faster than is usual when crossing to a new country. Generous.