Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(ul Panagyurishte 22; adult/student 4/2 lv; 9am-5pm Tue-Sun)
This charming revival-
era mansion built in 1860 houses an interesting collection of traditional folk costumes and
furnishings, and displays on local customs, festivities and industries such as winemaking.
GALLERY
Varna City Art Gallery
(Boris Georgiev Gallery; ul Lyuben Karavelov 1; 10am-6pm Tue-Sun; 14, 109)
You can peruse two floors of 19th- and 20th- century Bulgarian art, including works by
Vladimir Dimitrov and David Peretz, at this gallery. Various temporary exhibitions are
held here too.
Beach
Steps from Primorski Park lead down to the city's long, sandy beach, which is hugely
popular with local sunbathers, paddlers and beach-volleyball players. There are also a
couple of tiny, outdoor, steaming
mineral-water pools
.
Running alongside the beach is the long coastal lane, officially known as aleya Georgi
Georgiev but more commonly referred to either as Plazhna aleya or
Kraybrezhna aleya
,
which is the name we've used here. In summer, it's the centre of Varna's nightlife, lined
with clubs, bars and restaurants.
BEACH
ROMAN BATHING
Like all self-respecting Roman cities, Odessos was graced with the very best public bathing facilities, and the vast
thermae
here were a visible, powerful symbol of the fruits - |and engineering skill - of Roman civilisation. Far
from being simply a place to wash up, the baths were an integral part of civic life. They were a place to socialise,
make business deals, eavesdrop on the latest gossip, snooze, read, eat and pick up male prostitutes. All classes
were allowed, though men and women were admitted at different times. Larger baths, such as the one in Odessos,
had a
palaestra,
or exercise hall, where wrestling and other athletic activities took place, often accompanied by
music. Bathers would then rub themselves down with oil and sweat for a while in the
sudatorium
(a kind of
sauna) before scraping it off with a strigil, examples of which are on show in the Archaeological Museum (
Click
here
)
. A plunge in the hot water of the
caldarium
would follow. They would then move on to the more bearable
temperature of the
tepidarium,
finishing off with a dip in the icy
frigidarium
. The remains of these shallow pools
can still be seen in Varna's Thermae (
Click here
)
, as well as the furnace and hypocaust system that provided un-
derfloor heating and hot water.
