I think I'll write my first series. You've seen how much-watched series are now. Netflix is full of series...
Why wouldn't Hive be too?
I am a man limited in many things, I am lazy and shallow. I don't know many things, I haven't traveled to many places, and I don't have tools for writing, photography, painting, or music, I am just an amateur who strives. All of the above are some of my passions. I try to take advantage of these passions and collect them in a few insignificant posts here.
The fact that I have so many shortcomings forces me to write about a few things and have pretty much the same themes that I do. I try to get the most out of every walk, shopping trip, show, and exhibition, no matter how small. That's why I write many posts about the same subject...
That's how I got the idea to approach these posts about Balchik as a series!
In fact, so recent short trip to the sea, the Black Sea, to Balchik in Bulgaria, my favorite place for walking and relaxing, for forgetting my troubles and cooling off with the breeze, for the salty smell near the sea, has been so full of activities that it's worth trying to expose them here in several episodes!
An important part of this short holiday was dedicated to the botanical garden of Balchik, a fabulous garden surrounding the Castle of Queen Mary of Romania. I managed to tell about one part of the garden, which is the cactus garden. The most important cactus garden in south-eastern Europe. But the botanical garden still has an important part dedicated to other plants, flowers, and trees, separated from the cactus garden by a trickle of water, spring water, and a huge natural fence made of cypress.
As I like to do many things backward, and this time I will do the same with the botanical garden, from which I show you, for now, and to make you curious, just going out, the end of its exploration...
The exit from the garden brings Queen Mary's favorite fountain close by.
Those who have landscaped the place knew not to make the exit from the beautiful garden too brutal and abrupt and put a few more flowers and shrubs to say goodbye.
Everything has an end, unfortunately, and I'm not talking only about the end of the visit to the botanical garden. The end has come and my holiday companions, my wife, and our girlfriend are quite tired, even though they have rested many times on the garden benches. I almost said age was to blame, but I'm afraid they'll read this too...
I knew, I don't know if they knew this anymore but I knew that they would immediately come alive because there was going to be a commercial area. This exit from the garden was also an... entrance at the same time. It's where most tourists arrive, by bus, on day trips that necessarily include a visit to the garden. So they pass through a lot of stalls with all kinds of objects only good to buy, to be made as gifts or for their own enjoyment.
The goods are not of the best quality (many Chinese, like everywhere else in this world) but they should not be too expensive so that the traders can benefit from that good principle in such business.
That is, to collect small amounts of money from a lot of customers!
"My girls" are sure victims in such situations. They simply can't resist... even though they bought similar items last year, which they're already bored with.
We had a bit of a chance though. Being the beginning of the season, with still few tourists, many stalls were closed, so it was a poorer offer.
"The girls" found something else after buying small gifts for friends and relatives. Clothing, summer clothes, good for the sea. Another must-have!
I have to admit, I too was interested in a piece of clothing... for my head. Hats! I've developed a passion, also forced by the increasingly aggressive sun, for hats.
Of course, the girls got involved immediately. The pleasure of shopping. It doesn't matter for whom, but for them to look, for them to buy...
I bought my hat in Bucharest. I've been fooled twice! The first time in Bucharest, where I found the hat I had just bought cheaper in another shop.
The second time I realized here, in Balchik, that I had fooled myself by not waiting to buy from this bazaar, where the hats were nicer and obviously cheaper!
We arrived at the exit of the small bazaar quite well, i.e. not with a lot of money spent. Only one temptation remained. Ceramics!
Luckily we have a house full of these items from previous trips. We don't have any more room to put them! So we moved on, especially since we were supposed to go for lunch at our favorite restaurant, the Blue Lion (a new episode?... Yes!).
Today is #MarketFriday initiated by 
I signed up for Hive's precursor in the same year and month as Denise. I turned 6 here and coincidentally, I earned this badge on a post that contained the number 6! Happy 6th Hive Birthday, Denise!
We always have to put a flower at the end, #alwaysaflower, now more than ever, being an anniversary!
Because Denise wrote today about lavender then I dedicate this Balchik lavender to everyone!
End of the 7th episode.