Day two in Sofia, Bulgaria | scared, cats and photos

SECOND DAY IN SOFIA, BULGARIA
…and here’s the daily update.

Today I woke up at 12 pm. Apparently I slept through the ten alarms I had set, the latest one at 9 am.

I went to a shopping mall today (review later — all the malls I’m visiting will get their own post) and did some damage. Well… not that much.

Shorts ● A cap to protect my head from the sun since I get headaches and migraines often ● A pack of ankle socks ● A power bank (I KNOW! I HAVE MANY! 😂 But I wanted a slim one instead of the heavy-duty one I already have.) ● A little phone bag so I don’t have to dig through my handbag every time ● Three niacinamide creams for a ridiculously good price! In Sweden, one bottle costs about the same as all three together, so of course I bought them.

To get there — Paradise Mall — I had to take the metro, and… it was an experience.
I have only been on one once before, and that was in Stockholm, Sweden. I didn’t like it back then, so today I stepped out of my comfort zone to try and overcome that fear.

Not working yet! 💀

When I came back from the mall after spending a few hours there, I went back to the hotel to drop everything off. That somehow turned into staying in the hotel for a couple of hours because the heat gave me a massive headache.

When the evening came and the sun had gone down, I went out again. Camera in one hand and a water bottle in the other. I went click click click like a typical tourist…

…except I wasn’t photographing the typical tourist spots. I walk around into allies, watching people etc.

I noticed how many stray cats there are here. It breaks my heart. And I’m not even a cat person, but seeing all these little cuties without a home… many of them super skinny… it’s heartbreaking.
I want to adopt them all.

Uh… okay, enough of the heartbreaking part. It just makes me sad.

I walked through alleys, just walking… and walking… and walking some more. I got lost, so thank God for Google Maps! 😂

I honestly don’t know how many photos I took with my camera today.

I also took some photos with my phone to show you guys. The photos from my camera are completely different, so I’ll share those later. I honestly don’t have the energy right now to sit with my laptop, transfer everything, empty memory cards and all that.
It’s just too much hassle right now. Hahaha.

I also got scared when I was walking back to the hotel.

People here don’t seem to know what street lights are (at least where I was). The only light came from the store windows.

The reason I got scared was because I was walking alone with my camera around my wrist when I saw a group of people (mostly men) further ahead. As I got closer, one of the men crossed the road and started walking towards me. So I pulled my bags to the front, started walking really fast… almost running… and kept looking over my shoulder. Every time I turned around, I saw him still walking behind me.

Luckily, I was just around the corner from my hotel, so I hurried even faster. He followed me almost all the way to the entrance but turned away when we got closer because there were people sitting outside the hotel entrance, talking and having drinks.

I had written to my sister Marina while this was happening, saying that I’m being followed. She called me instantly. I love her 🖤

Even though we’re thousands of miles apart, she still cares about my safety. 🖤

So when I got back to the hotel, I stayed on the phone with her for a while. I told her I’m not going out again tonight, even though I really wanted to take some night photos.

Instead, I’ve been here at the hotel trying to calm down. My heart was racing for quite a while, but eventually I calmed down enough to take a shower.

Now I’m in bed, writing this while watching Drama Kween on YouTube.

I hope you’ve all had a wonderful day. Sorry this post took a bit of a darker turn at the end, but I wanted to share what happened.