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July 4, 2002

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Koprivshtitsa is a good village to know for Scrabble. If you can spell it and say it correctly, you're way ahead of the game. Try walking up to a surly Bulgarian ticket seller (Bulgarian service people greet you with a stare and frown) and buying a bus ticket for Kopriv…Koprish…Koprit…uh…village that begins with a K. The ticket seller will still be staring and frowning. Koprivshtitsa gained notoriety in the minds and hearts of Bulgarians as the birthplace of Bulgarian independence from the Turks. It's been preserved as an open air museum and now it's a great place to see if you're an enthusiast for Bulgarian architecture. Of course if you're really an enthusiast for Bulgarian architecture you'd probably find anything interesting. The rest of us like Koprivshtitsa because we can't say it (Kopriv…Koprish…Koprit), it has cobblestone streets, and a few interesting wooden houses.
Bulgarian National Revivalist Architecture: brightly colored facade, colonnaded entrance, jutting eaves, overhanging second storey.
Rich merchants owned these houses, most of whom died in Bulgaria's uprising against the Turks in 1876.
Inside, these houses display open salons, elaborate ceilings, and sofas that stretch around the walls.