Melnik, one of the smallest towns in Bulgaria, is tucked away in the folds of the South-western Pirin Mountains. . . In the Middle Ages the Bulgarian boyar Alexi Slav made the town the capital of his principality (1215). From those times dates the prosperity of the town, which during Bulgaria's National Revival (18th and 19th centuries) reached the peak of its cultural and economic development. During the Balkan War (1912- 1913), it was burned down. Today it numbers 417 inhabitants.
The most valuable and oldest architectural monument in Melnik is the Boyar House, which is in fact the oldest house in Bulgaria, built between the 10th and the 14th centuries. The impressive Kordopoulo House, which dominates the whole town, dates from the time of the Bulgarian National Revival period and is a veritable fortress. Its walls are decorated with mural paintings. Deep in its basement there is a huge wine cellar, in which tens of thousands of litres of the famous Melnik wine was kept.
The Pashova House today holds the town museum. Many wood carvings and paintings on glass are kept in it. South of Melnik in the Slav Park are the ruins of the old St Nikola Monastery, built in the 13th century. Not far away are the ruins of the fortress of the despot Alexi Slav ephesus daily tour.
Some 5-6 km east of the town is the Rozhen Monastery, which was founded in the 14th century. In the church the iconostasis is decorated with exquisite wood carving and there are rare icons and beautiful glass paintings.
Melnik is best reached from the E-20 International Highway from Sofia to Athens. The distance is some 186 km. South of the town of Sandanski, near the village of Delchevo, a road branches off to Melnik, 12 km away.
KOTEL
As legend has it, Kotel was founded in 1545 by immigrants. It is situated in the eastern folds of the Balkan Range amid wooded hills. It was called Kotel (the Bulgarian for cauldron) because it lies in a valley and the waters of its abundant springs boil as if in a cauldron. Only part of the town has survived the great fire of 1894. This part of the town is now given the status of an architectural historical reservation. The houses which have been preserved reveal the skill of the master-builders from the time of the Bulgarian National Revival. A folklore museum is laid out in one of the old houses, and not far from it, in the building of a school erected in 1869, is the Historical Museum of the town. Today in Kotel there is the first school for playing folk instruments, a school for arts and crafts, etc. The weaving of goat hair rugs and of carpets is traditionally a speciality of Kotel.
In the town there is a modern hotel with restaurant, a cafe and snack bar. In its environs there are game preserves for big game. Kotel can most easily be reached along the Sofia-Bourgas motorway turning off after Sliven at the village of Gorno Alexandrovo; the town is 43 km further on.
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