Euxinograd Residence – once upon a time

Once upon a time, there was the Euxinograd Residence, which used to be a royal summer residence for the monarchs who ruled Bulgaria after the liberation of the country from the Ottoman Dominion (1878) – Alexander Battenberg, Ferdinand and Boris the 3rd.

Prince Battenberg began building his palace, but the project was completed by his successor – Prince Ferdinand. The exterior of the Palace is very similar to the French Renaissance palaces of the 18th century, and the park, surrounding the Palace is very much alike the Versailles’s Parks. It was designed by French architects in 1888, as more than 300 plants were carried from South France, including rare tree species collection – from black oak to Atlantic cedar, which are the only species on the Balkan Peninsula.

After the establishment of the communist regime in 1944, the Palace is nationalized and turned into governmental residence, which is its current statute. The hotel part of the residency is now opened for ordinary people, like us. So, we booked our weekend in Euxinograd 3 weeks ago. I was exited and anxious to see where all of our politicians relax. We wanted the time to go faster, but at the same time, this means that we will be 3 weeks closer to the end of the summer…as some people say… “you cant have it all”. The weekend came fast…we planned to drive off on Friday after work and come back on Sunday. So, we had to pack everything on Thursday night and put it in the car, so we could leave straight after work.

It was crazy week, lots of work and personal stuff to be done. On Thursday night we were already exhausted from the busy week, as if we were working 7 days straight. We threw some towels for the beach, swimming suits in the bag, grabbed my laptop, my phone and left. After 400 km, we realized we forgot the camera, the flip flops, my clothes…pretty much everything lol…thank gosh we were there only for the weekend…and I personally didn’t need any clothes…i can spend much more time on the beach just in my swimming suit… As long as i have the sea and the beach I am happy! We arrived around midnight, we were exhausted from the long drive, so we went straight to bed. On the next morning we went for a big breakfast in the nearest restaurant – which is actually in the same building…The restaurant has an amazing terrace with an unbelievable view at the sea and beach. We ordered the “King Breakfast” – an egg, croissant, ham & bacon, butter, jam, bread, cheese and salad. All this for 3 euro. Yes, it is cheap…the prices in the restaurant do compensate for the a bit expensive hotel rates.

After breakfast we rushed to the beach and this is my favorite part…like most of the private beaches this one was also quiet, clean, and there were not more than 5 people (well, 10 maybe). All of the umbrellas and long chairs were placed at least 10 meters apart, so every guest could enjoy their privacy. It was just perfect. I have never been on a beach so “crowded”, except these little wild beaches, which are far from all living and you can’t find the luxury of a long chair or a bar with cold drinks. Our beach was just perfect.

Even they had to take a nice, refreshing shower..

Before dinner we went for a nice walk around the residency area..there was so much to see – endless gardens, the Palace, the wine cellar, vineyards, vegetable and fruit gardens, greenhouses and many more.
Dinner time was spent on the terrace with romantic view of the ocean and moonlight.

I can’t not mention the dessert – french nougat ice-cream, it is one of my favorite desserts. I have never prepared it at home…but i have decided to give it a try in the next couple weeks. I will let you know how it goes.
Sunday morning – quick sunny breakfast, a couple of hours on the beach and heading home… Sad! I did not want to leave..the only thought that saves me is our upcoming trip to Turkey this week…