Subjective perception of cities

I had mentioned to you some time ago that I would show you more photos from this special inner-center place in the old town of Plovdiv, called Kapana/the Trap.
Unfortunately, the only photos I was able to take back then were between periods of rain and with the phone. And I am not sure when I would be able to visit this interesting city again, as there are many places and things that I would like to see and photograph with a camera. Because...

I recently thought that a city could only be evaluated objectively, impartially and correctly if we did not live in it, or if we did not associate it with something that affected us directly or indirectly.

Maybe you studied in a certain city, and this period of your life is not very pleasant. Maybe you had a boyfriend from some city who cheated on you or didn't treat you very well. Maybe you know some unpleasant person from some city and this person is your only association with it, you have not visited it. Or maybe you've visited a city and been robbed or scammed, or someone tried to. (That's exactly the story I heard from a guy last year about the next town, lol.)

Maybe, maybe, maybe...
We are so subject to subjective associations, aren't we?

I definitely have favorite cities. Even in Bulgaria. 🤭 I told you that. But I haven't lived there. Maybe that's why they're my favorite. Maybe if I encounter local inhospitality, cheating on wages and working conditions or something else, I won't be as happy as I am now when I visit these places only as a tourist.

On the other hand, last year I added another one to the list of not favorite cities. And it is because of this unfortunate workplace of mine, one of whose offices was located in this particular city. Beautiful city otherwise, old capital, extremely touristy, with many foreigners living here.
But because of the company I worked for, I changed my attitude towards it to such an extent that I now react like: "This guy is from this town. Oh, I already hate him." Or: "This musician or this artist was born there - well, now I understand why I never liked him/her." Or: "That musician was born there. Well, I don't like him/her anymore." 😁
Ha ha, pretty irrational isn't it?

And at the same time, completely understandable given the circumstances and, dare I say it, completely human.

And maybe I wouldn't have known that this was the case if I hadn't happened to talk about this topic with my boyfriend. Actually, we talked about Plovdiv, photos of the city that I am showing you now.
I had mentioned before that I used to live here. And despite all the mess at my workplace, what I remember from this city is: loneliness.
At the very beginning, when I went there, I was told that the locals are very closed to "foreigners", lol. Now I realize how funny this is, given the fact that Plovdiv is an extremely international city and all kinds of foreign communities live in it, with people who immigrated to the country, as well as generations born in this city.

But local people are closed to Bulgarians from other cities, as I was.
Jeez, I even came from the other side of the country and there were people who told me that they don't understand me when I speak, I mean, what I mean, or some words I used, lol. 😃
So I had a pretty lonely time there, compounded by many other circumstances.

The city of Plovdiv is a great city, viewed from its touristic side. For any adventurer or history buff with all these excavations, layers of eras on top of each other, beautiful old-time buildings, etc. You can even see the graffiti from The Kapana that I'm showing you. Aren't they beautiful? Aren't they impressive?
As I told you before, even the street cats seem to feel and live well here, which is a great sign that the city is probably a wonderful place to even live.
But then one day I had a conversation with my partner. I asked him when we would go to this city again. There are so many places to photograph, including at least two churches that I have marked on the map.
The last time we went there was for my visit to a specialist doctor. It wasn't just like that, some sort of tourist walk. And then I realized that he doesn't really like this city and avoids going there when he doesn't have to. Due to personal reasons. Just like me.

Still, the city is wonderful to visit, don't forget it. 😉

Thank you for your time! Copyright:	@soulsdetour
	Soul's Detour is a project started by me years ago when I had a blog about historical and not so popular tourist destinations in Eastern Belgium, West Germany and Luxembourg. Nowadays, this blog no longer exists, but I'm still here - passionate about architecture, art and mysteries and eager to share my discoveries and point of view with you.

Personally, I am a sensitive soul with a strong sense of justice.
Traveling and photography are my greatest passions.
Sounds trivial to you?
No, it's not trivial. Because I still love to travel to not so famous destinations.🗺️
Of course, the current situation does not allow me to do this, but I still find a way to satisfy my hunger for knowledge, new places, beauty and art.
Sometimes you can find the most amazing things even in the backyard of your house.😊🧐🧭|