69.23 Bulgaria: Pomporovo: Climbing to Murgavets, a minor peak, and then following through to Momchilovstzi Peak, plus Yatzovira Dam.

The solution to peace of mind: Commence each day with sights such as this...and hold onto them.  

En route; enjoying the thick forest coverage in color.
  Isn't a strange feeling when you know you are going to be 'taken for a ride', but you cannot do much about it? Well, it does not happen regularly, certainly not more frequently than monthly, but it clearly reoccurs. Also, how appropriate being 'taken' when you are actually in a taxi. It sort of makes sense until one realizes one concept is literal while the other is figurative.  

  I remember when we took a taxi from Sofia Airport to our hotel upon landing in the country recently. The idea was to spend a night in a hotel and the following morning head to the car rental depot and from there onto Bansko, formally commencing the trip. The driver told us that we ought to be careful as there were pirate taxis operating. Jen suggested we take an Uber. I replied that then we would have to Lyft our feet and walk—only formal taxis operate in Bulgaria. 

  I wondered how to recognize a pirate taxi. The driver probably wore an eye patch, maybe limped around on one leg and was unshaven. Aye! At least we were prepared.  (Continues below...at end.)

A different perspective as the reflections continue.
Both the distance and interference from closer subjects hamper the clarity of the distant subjects. Thought it an interesting perspective, though, taking the gap.
From the peak, poor visibility hampers the sight but nevertheless, the height is interesting as we gaze down upon the town.
From a different position on another occasion.
Another perspective of Snezhanka Tower, as mentioned, a 'lighthouse'/beacon in a fashion.
You should have got the 'covrd protection' flu shot. I don't know whether you will survive. A scene from a minor peak into the mist.
A closer view of a suburb and the autumn effect.
With the superb backdrop.
"How often must mommy tell you, my girl, to wear your fir-covering at night. It's getting icy as the season changes. It's very silly to show off your trunk to those naughty boys who shower you with their leaves. Now it's going to be a season of shame for you."
From the low peak of Momchilovstzi, we stand above the village and watch it appear through the mist.
The mist was moving quickly as depicted below. 

Village reappears.
Back at ground (lake) level again.
Time to exit the forest, no matter how attractive and haunting.
  Move forward 2 months and we had driven from Pamporovo into Sofia to arrive at the car rental depot. What a struggle that was. We could not find the rental return office. Eventually we did. The sign was misleading—it had many missing letters; the place was so well hidden behind junk that even when the GPS pointed out the destination, we had trouble identifying it as the 'you have arrived' place. Admittedly, we are not that bright but then in our defense, it was an extremely dull day which had poured with rain for most of the trip. 

  In fact, at the commencement of the return journey, I ran down to the manager of the apartments and asked him to let me into the garage so I could load the baggage internally. Unfortunately, the elevator did not travel into the basement garage so when I saw the rain had abated for a short while, I sprinted down to the garage, dumped our trash outside while running between the raindrops, drove the car back up to the outside entrance, loaded it and off we went into the recommencing rain. Jen thought I was wet from the rain—it was sweat. 

  After returning the car to the rental depot, I explained to the man on duty that I had filled the tank but it did not show as such. 

"No problem", he replied, "We do have an issue with the vehicle."  Heck, thanks for letting me know—I already have enough stress. 

  We arrived back at the airport and walked toward the taxi rank searching for an Uber/Lyft. We were to the spend a night at a hotel near the airport. Then I remembered. Sometimes I can be pretty sharp...no Ubers/Lyfts in Bulgaria. A taxi driver signaled he was available and off we went. He was a young guy, very unfriendly, which unfortunately, is not unusual in this country. The trip was supposed to be about ten minutes or so but there was much traffic. I did notice that he did not have a formal meter, but he did have an I-phone plugged in upfront. I thought of asking him about it but decided against it. I was in a trusting mood. 

  We arrived at the small residential hotel and he placed the screen of the phone before me and it read the equivalent of $36. Yikes. I said to him how can that be. He seemed quite aggressive. He explained in English, needing repair as it was rather broken, that it included an exit toll from the airport. It was as if we'd spent a week at the airport and were now paying the accommodation bill. 

  I faced a dilemma although I could think of a lot worse descriptions for this guy. I had put up resistance but what was my next move? What rights did we have? Who could we appeal to? Clearly, we could not reason with him. 

  I thought a good strategy might be for Jen to argue with him and I would go into the hotel, check-in and get the baggage up to the room. Obviously, this was the tougher job and would be a good use of my time. Jen would settle with the guy and arrive up in the room after she had completed the task. I also know that Jen really loves a clean room, especially under the beds where dirt is often swept and accumulates. I placed myself strategically in such a position and began to collect dust balls, a rather tough and uncomfortable task. However, one makes sacrifices. If nothing else, I certainly had the balls to show for it...at least a dozen offloaded in the bin. 

  The following morning, to meet Lufthansa's schedule (6am) we had to be at the airport soon after 4am. The plane was scheduled to arrive in Munich at 7:30am for our connection to San Diego—Departure at 12:45pm, 'only' a 5-hour layover which of course is far more pleasant than sleeping in a room, after waking at 3am. At one stage, we considered walking to Munich instead of taking a plane but then Jen's back was giving her much difficulty. 

  We arranged for another taxi which arrived on time and got us there early so we could accumulate even more waiting time. The taxi fare after a very generous gratuity was...wait for it...$12 (a third). I hate being taken and still don't know what I should have done to avoid a problem. Perhaps Jen was not firm enough with the guy.  

It was a little disappointing not being able to take a dip. At the temperatures being experienced, it would have been most refreshing. Who you kidding?