Not Koprivshtitsa

Koprivshtitsa—or as we started calling it, just “Kop”—never happened.

We had planned to visit the town in hopes of escaping the brutal heat of Plovdiv and finding a bit of cooler mountain air. Unfortunately, a perfect storm of issues meant that Kop just wasn’t going to happen.

First and foremost, Will came down with a bad case of heat exhaustion. We’re talking headaches, dizzy spells, elevated heart rate, asthma flare-ups—you name it. The relentless heat had completely knocked his body out of whack, and it became clear that what he really needed was cool temperatures and rest. We were hoping that a mountain town like Kop would offer some relief.

But then came the second blow: when we checked our booking, we discovered that our accommodation in Kop had no air conditioning. None. Worse, after scanning the entire town’s listings, it turned out that nowhere had air con—not even the restaurants or shops, according to some quick research. It’s a small town, and air conditioning just isn’t a thing there.

To top it off, the forecast showed temperatures soaring past 40°C. Again. So, with that in mind, we made the call: we cancelled Kop and stayed in Plovdiv instead. This time, though, we booked ourselves a nice hotel with glorious, powerful, blessed air conditioning.

And wow, was it the right decision.

On our first full day of complete rest and recovery, our phones suddenly blared with emergency alerts—warnings from local authorities urging people not to go outside due to extreme heat. That moment pretty much confirmed it: we’d absolutely made the right call.

We turned our room into a fridge, lay low, rehydrated, and gave Will the rest he desperately needed. We watched movies, napped, and stared out the window as heat haze shimmered off the pavement below. It wasn’t the cultural excursion we’d planned, but it was absolutely what we needed. And to be honest, after nearly 6 weeks travelling, it was nice to just stop for a while!

On our final day, we managed to get out for a couple of hours to see a little more of Plovdiv, just for a short wander, and also managed to watch the sunset from the hotel rooftop. But really, this part of the trip was all about pressing pause, recovering, and gearing up for the next leg.

Maybe we’ll make it to Kop one day. But for now, we’re just relieved to feel human again—and finally ready to restart the trip as temperatures hopefully begin to cool down.

Next stop: Stara Zagora.
Dear God, please let it be cooler.