This will be my third (and probably final) entry into the Melnik series I've been posting over the last few days. Whereas the first was dedicated to a medieval trader's house located in the tiny town (https://steemit.com/photo/@brentssanders/4vtrwq-melnik-bulgaria-i-kordopulovata-kushta-the-kordopulov-house), and the second to the surrounding landscape (https://steemit.com/photography/@brentssanders/melnik-bulgaria-ii-in-harmony-with-nature), this post will focus on the unique architecture found there. Some of the pics are from my latest trip there last weekend, and some are from previous trips, but not much has changed over the last 25 years, thankfully :)
Although the Bulgarian Revivalist style will already be familiar to my regular readers, notice the Arabic/Turkish influence on the molded chimney:
![HPIM3109.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/DQmTyZy23Np4tF3Tu2mTofg1tdtZk1NqUvtMnKDYWuPGD8h/HPIM3109.JPG)
I love the narrow passageways running between the houses here (this is an old pic; all the paint jobs have been fixed up since I took it):
![HPIM3118.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://steemitimages.com/DQmXYzuxpYmtWp12eXsyp8YhqxsvQV65dsNAPRvAN6DCSHG/HPIM3118.JPG)
A comparison of old (left) and new buildings (right). The wood braces and balconies and the red tile roofs are staple ingredients:
![HPIM3119.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/DQmPRwmsdieQXcupTz8r928ojDyRxj4SnWjDztRLd6tt9hB/HPIM3119.JPG)
This has all been rebuilt (what a shame -- I love the color!):
![HPIM3120.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://steemitimages.com/DQmY4aU4v4R7Zdg4NEJzaMzpUBvBQ8SFTMeMJShX5mXmiVy/HPIM3120.JPG)
This is the St. Nikola Church. You can see the techniques used in the restoration process several years ago:
![HPIM3128.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/DQmYSrhmXaZ4wXNMvCuMfxhZ8FKLx2myasB3aA7TaLgTwhg/HPIM3128.JPG)
And this is the front of the church now. (I like the decorations around the windows, don't you?):
![DSCF2062.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://steemitimages.com/DQmUsczJFH4tdV3gjg7CYvkzxyEkyHYjjvbAuTKaqik1Uio/DSCF2062.JPG)
Many houses are high above the road, meaning you have to be a hiker just to reach them :D
![DSCF2068.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/DQmbLoUdL32js8Dq87tVt2M7yU7vNvaE6idMPUexxGqr45P/DSCF2068.JPG)
Quite imposing, aren't they?
![DSCF2066.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://steemitimages.com/DQmXbL8dnXvrHsbwDo4pu8CZ4QeXiQopansdYiGnXaWaUvN/DSCF2066.JPG)
Cool in the summer heat, but difficult to keep warm in the winter:
![HPIM3138.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/DQmdwECXMk9xQHzd1MafnjKUxrPYt91uKXd6LJ1arHs3ZAP/HPIM3138.JPG)
Interesting angles:
![HPIM3143.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://steemitimages.com/DQmSzJ8TLCrUZRPDE9TQCY6xQDffdfkYPz44egDr9i956hp/HPIM3143.JPG)
The old ruins towering above the town for decades, if not centuries:
![HPIM3136.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/DQmNyU54yrr5prBpF43WSbL8ah4Zq98QVG7uJhytyfssvmz/HPIM3136.JPG)
And finally, one of my favorite buildings in all of Bulgaria -- the former school building (now being restored):
![HPIM3132.JPG](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://steemitimages.com/DQmQDB7JUkhT56D7pxnFSAojCB4SfcgsHqiQbxDaTjavuzo/HPIM3132.JPG)
Ciao за now!
Everyone loves Melnik and Melnik loves wine :) ... great pictures
And Melnik wine loves us :) Thanks!
Great work UPVOTED, Please stop by and help spread the steem on my last post it would mean allot!
https://steemit.com/travel/@adriansky/flying-high-above-san-francisco-international-airport
Thanks, will do!
Nice pictures!
Thanks, Georgi. You have better pics than I do, though! Keep up the good work :)
Reminds me of the buildings in Plovdiv and Karlovo
Yes, it's pretty typical all over Bulgaria, with minor variations, of course :)
I really love Melnik, I have many good memories there.
You know what they used to say about the 'sixties: "If you can remember them, you weren't there" ;) It applies almost equally to Melnik :D
Some of those structures remind me of Spanish "casas colgadas" in Ronda. Interesting, how they have been changed and seem to be almost patchwork. Great job on the images!
I see the resemblance with the balconies and the stone walls. What do you mean has been changed into patchwork, though? The houses? The stones?
You can see various types of construction from different eras, where repairs have been made or parts added on.
Yeah, you're right in that case. Patchwork, indeed :)
i like the pictures,especially the school building (y)
Glad you like it!