Once upon a time, among the forests of the Balkan Range a path meandered all wrapped up in greenery, connecting the scattered settlements along the Northern slopes of the mountain. A wedding procession passed once along that path withy newly wed Elena and Samuil heading the party hand in hand. All of a sudden the wedding procession was attacked by a gang of woodland bandits. The groom was slaughtered and the bride kidnapped to find her death later as she refused to marry the chieftain. Devastated with grief on the tragic death of their newly wed children the parents decided to settle in the vicinity and founded a village, which they called Elena, after the brutally murdered beautiful young bride.

This is the legend telling of how the town of Elena was set up in the distant past. To this day the settlement, scattered in the mild folds of the Balkan stirs the fantasy of visitors with its old architecture and invincible feeling of eternity. For the first time the town of Elena appears in a written document of the 16^th century, but the settlement is known to be much older. During the early days of Ottoman rule refugees from all over the country fled the conquerors and took refuge in the bosom of the Mountain where the town of Elena stands today. There were several noble Boyar families who joined the lot after being chased away from the Old Capital Veliko Tarnovo, which is not very far from Elena. With time the initially scattered settlement shaped up as a modern and prosperous town in the more recent past. But like many other places in Bulgaria Elena had to live turbulent moments, glorious upsurge and tragic falls. Vanya Sirakova, curator of the local Revival Period museum tells us more:

“Elena lived through several extensive fires. In the early 19^th century the town was almost entirely destroyed by the Karjalii – bandit groups ravaging the country. Later, during the Russo-Turkish war /1877-78/ a large part of the cultural and historic heritage of the town was destroyed. However some valuable architectural monuments have been preserved to this day. It is an interesting fact that the mountain settlement of Elena had an urban look as early as the beginning of the 19^th century, that is, long before it was proclaimed a town. At that time its streets were covered with cobble stone and its inhabitants enjoyed a highly vanguard for that time acquisition – streetlights, which were actually petrol lanterns. The central part of Elena had a complicated water and sewerage system.”

By the mid-18^th century Elena had become a prosperous crafts center and local people had began building large dwellings with more complex architecture. That was the time of the Bulgarian Revival Period. Culture, arts and education there flourished. Some of the best preserved old houses in the town date back to those times. The oldest preserved church in Elena St. Nicholas dates back to the 15^th century, even though it was set on fire by the Karjalii bands in 1800. Four years later the temple was restored in the form we still have it and that was done in only 40 days with voluntary donations from well-off local families. The restoration was done in secret, without the permission of the Turkish rulers.

“The temple preserves very beautiful frescoes and icons, Vanya Sirakova goes on to say. They are unique and are considered some of the most precious samples we have from the early Revival. The church is decorated with 1600 portraits. Nowadays the temple and paintings have undergone a modern restoration process. Close to St. Nicholas stands the temple of the Assumption built in 1837. Until the liberation from Ottoman rule in 1878 it was the largest Christian temple in Northern Bulgaria. It is an acting temple to this day and a place most tourists to Elena come to visit.”

Old stone fountains lend a special atmosphere to the old town. Ice-cold mountain water still springs from them. The ivy-covered stonewalls of the houses hide beautiful flower gardens or yards shaded by vine arbors heavy with fruit during the warm part of the year. A stroll in the streets of old Elena would inevitably take you to one of the tourist symbols of the place – the old school of 1843. This school has played the role of the first Bulgarian institute for training teachers. The building has been preserved in its initial form and is open for visitors. Another site is the 26 meters high clock tower. It is still kept functioning and its bells resound to mark each hour as it did 200 years ago, measuring time which has stamped each corner of this wonderfully peaceful place with the breath of sweet nostalgia.

English version: Iva Letnikova