The week was packed with different activities that introduced the students to the university, our lovely city and most important of all- they had a chance to get to know each other in an interesting and fun environment!

We kicked off the week with a general introduction of the St. Cyril and St. Methodius of Veliko Tarnovo. Our section president, Bilyana Marchevska, gave a presentation about our town, our university and the events that out section has planned for this semester

On the second day we organized a tour of the city with the collaboration of ‘Free Walking Tours’ in Veliko Tarnovo. The students saw the street art of our city and, we hope, got to know it in a not-so-touristic fashion.

During the third day we organized ‘Get LOST in Veliko Tarnovo’. We divided the students in teams and gave them interesting challenges which they had to complete all over the city. This was a great opportunity for them to meet each other and work towards a common goal. After the game they went to a traditional Bulgarian mekhana where they experienced our cuisine.

On Friday we had a Pub Crawl through the city. We introduced our Erasmus students to some of the best night life Veliko Tarnovo has to offer, visiting 4 bars and a disco.

They say that the best cure from a hangover is more alcohol. That’s one of the reasons we decided to visit the local beer factory ‘Bolyarka’ on Saturday. The students saw how beer is made, and at the end of the tour had a chance to try the different kinds manufactured at the factory.

On Sunday the exchange students were introduced to the rich history of Veliko Tyrnovo and the Second Bulgarian Empire, while visiting the fortress Tsarevets. The stories about mighty kings, glorious battles and victories grabbed the attention of the students and helped them to understand the Bulgarian culture better. They were very interested in the structure of the fortress and the stories about the daily life of the villagers during these ages.

Altough we faced many challenges while planning this Welcome Week, we hope that it served well to prepare the Erasmus students for their semester in Bulgaria!