The picturesque little city of Vratsa (Враца) sits at the foothills of the Balkan Mountains in Northwest Bulgaria. On a recent road trip I was amazed when I saw the city sitting under the craggy cliffs of the “old mountain” (Стара Планина / Stara Planina in Bulgarian). What with the water and all it’s kind of like a poor man’s Cape Town!
![The city of Vratsa below the Balkan mountain](https://englishbulgaria.net/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/DSC_0002-1024x683.jpg)
I’ve never actually been to Vratsa, but after reading Wikipedia for a few hours I am fascinated by the history of the region.