София

So, A, K and I took the Ryanair flight to Sofia and settled into our smart apartment in a grubby building near the city centre. This morning, we eventually got over to the nearby apartment where my student's parents live, and after the Eastern Orthodox Easter egg bashing, eating Bulgarian yoghurt and sweet bread with big chocolate chips, we spent the rest of the day walking round central Sofia with my student and her father. It's a lovely open, laid-back place with some fine buildings - both ancient and modern - and pleasant parks. See extras. A and K also tied their martenitsi to a flowering tree which was already festooned. In the evening the six of us went out to eat a lot and drink a lot in a traditional Bulgarian restaurant, and had a lot of fun. Not the preparation for tomorrow's exertions.