There was a lot of excitement and music at the wedding, as if the couple had been in love for many years. The groom, along with about a hundred of his Albanian friends, all dressed in traditional Albanian clothing and riding horses, had earlier ridden along the Koritza road to greet the bride. I went out to watch the arrival. It was a very exciting sight. A group of horsemen came rushing in, dressed in colorful coats with silver belts and kilts, their red fezzes swaying, and their red shoes high in their stirrups. There were both thin and fat Albanians, all riding their horses as they rushed through the streets of Liaskovik, almost bumping into each other.
Following them was a procession of old, dusty carriages that had been traveling for two days from Koritza. The guests in the carriages were also covered in dust but smiled and waved back at the people in the town. Finally, the carriage with the bride arrived. It was an old, beaten-up four-wheeler, decorated with colorful streamers, and a red quilt on top. The windows were closed, except for one that was broken. Inside was the small bride, wrapped in red, with only the top part of her face visible. She looked scared as she watched the noisy crowd that filled the streets, welcoming her loudly. Poor little Turkish bride Meeting the Priest and the Bulgarian Revolutionary!
A Long Journey to Koritza
The next day, I went on the longest ride of my life. We left at one in the morning, and it wasn’t until half-past seven at night that we reached Koritza. We only stopped for two hours, from nine to eleven in the morning, and were on the move almost the entire time. I think the Turkish soldiers complained about being asked to travel in the middle of the night. The one thing they dislike most is traveling in the dark. I was told many stories about the danger of bandits in the area, with some travelers being attacked for daring to travel after dark. My response was that I didn’t want to break their habits, but I was going ahead, and they could follow if they wanted. Once they understood I was serious, they agreed to come with me, ready to face any bandits we might encounter bulgaria tour.
The landscape became open and gently rolling, with no particular features to note. During those sixteen hours, we just rode along without any problems or excitement.
