The Monastery Basarabobski is located not far from the city of Ruse in a rural area. The rocks are impressive. For photographers, it is better to get there in the afternoon to get the rocks illuminated by the sun.
A very surprising place, a definite must-go if you're going to Ruse. As far as I know this is the only acting rock monastery in Bulgaria, although we can boast with a few more and bigger than this one, but currently lacking monks and being museums. So, this rock monastery amazed me for the fact that the monks do their best to make this place better and better, combining old murals and facilities with new buildings and a new church which is currently in construction. It makes one's soul feel much better and happy seeing the care and love with which everything was done there. One curious thing outside the monastery - when you're on the rocks, take a look at the other river bank, you'll see one of the houses having a yard full of stone arches and columns, making it look like some ancient town. I have no idea what it is and why the owner did it, but it definitely looks extraordinary comparing it to the "normal" houses around it. :)
One of the fewest in Bulgaria, among the initial 40 similar places.Not much to see, the presentation is average, so I suggest to have your own private guide for visiting all objectives in the area.
There are several medieval rock church sites in the Rousse area, and this is by far our faourite and most interesting. It is also pleasing to see that it has improved in between our visits and is now more tourist friendly with toilets, a picnic area and some much needed hand rails on the steps which lead up to the monsatery, which is seated in caverns and rooms built into the rockface. We've even seen a wedding going on in here!
В Болгарии много скальных монастырей, где монашеские кельи и помещения для молитвы расположены в пещерах, вырытых в крутом горном склоне (благо. что эти склоны - из песчаника), но монастырь св. Дмитрия Басарбовского - единственный действующий из них. Монастырь находится недалеко от г. .Русе (около 10 км). Как и в любом святом месте, тут хочется побыть в тишине и спокойствии и пока не подъезжает очередной автобус с туристами, это получается. Забравшись по крутой лестнице в крохотную церковь-пещеру, можно помолиться у старинных икон, а можно просто посидеть, глядя на окружающие горы сквозь трепещущее пламя зажженных у икон свечей. У подножия скалы, в которой расположен монастырь, разбит прекрасный цветник и находится колодец, выкопанный св. Дмитрием Басарбовским.
Amazing place.... One of the world's treasures. Unique, well-kept, very interesting...Can be combined with a nice trip along the Rusenski Lom river....
This church is certainly impressive but it's a bit over-restored for my taste (the problem is that they seem to have used modern materials like cement which spoil quickly and can't handle the damp as well as the traditional stuff).What I love about this place is its location: if you just keep on going past the church you get into a pristine wilderness -- a series of small lakes surrounded by limestone cliffs and forests. The further you go the worse the road becomes, the more the nature invades and the more interesting it becomes.I did the whole thing by touring bike and stayed at the English Guest House in Ruse.
Wenn man etwas Zeit hat, dann sollte man sich das Kloster gönnen. Etwas außerhalb von Russe, aber mit dem Auto gut erreichbar. Das Kloster ist nicht besonders groß, aber absolut sehenswert! Im Klostergarten kann man die Ruhe genießen und Energie tanken!
Nice rock monastery, close to Ruse.The surroundings are great, cave is well renovated and the priest was a good guide.
We visited the monastery whilst staying in Ruse. It is nice to see, a small place with some information in english about Dimitar. But there is no information about the monastery and life today. You can easily walk through in 30 minutes, if you are not religiously motivated you will get some pretty pictures on a sunny day, but you will not be leaving fully informed about the place of religion in bulgarian society and the meaning of the site for bulgarians/christians. But maybe this is just knowledge you should bring along. For example I do not know why people kept on kissing the pictures of saints, I have a catholic background but people do not do that in the churches where I live. It would be interesting to find out things like that (or other things ...)