Bulgaria--Flying Domestic

I wanted to give myself a good day in Sofia, and a chance to see the country, and still get back to Sunny Beach to make reasonable use of my all inclusive vacation.

So, the logical move was to take a daytime bus to Sofia to see the countryside, and then fly back to the coast the next night.

Now as I find myself in the midst of a four-hour preflight experience at Sofia's sparkling but nearly comatose airport terminal, I'm thinking I may have been better off "leaving the driving to " one of this countrs numerous bus operators.

The bus to Sofia was cheap and simple. 6 hours, 18 Euros, leaving 500 yards/meters from my hotel. New buses, and relatively new EU-funded roads.

The flight back--2 hour delay for a 45 minute flight. Fare of 65 Euros, and the prospect of negotiating for an overpriced airport taxi now that the flight will arrive 'round midnight.

Airport dinner was 8 Euros--a draft Shumensko beer and a sandwich--about three times the price "out on the economy."

I've only flown domestic twice in my leisure travels, or at least those outside the USA. The first, back on the 2 week rampage through Turkey in 1998 that followed my marital split-up, was excellent. First class on Turkish Airlines, and I felt like a star with my cocktail served in a real glass. The second, over the Andes with LAN Argentina's service between Bariloche and Buenos Aires' main domestic airport, whose name escapes me but which had the most enticing-looking steakhouse in all of air travel.

To be sure, air travel has improved in Eastern Yurp in recent years. Bulgaria saw the disappearance of it's commie-era national airline, Balkan, and its replacement with tonight's tardiness culprit, Bulgaria Air. While Bulgaria Air doesn't belong to a major Western frequent flyer program, it does operate an all -Western fleet, including tonight's veteran Boeing 737. And, for effect, a large Lufthansa Technik maintenance hangar on the airport ground reassures the traveler.