Sofia to Istanbul
Bradshaw's 1913 Continental Railway Guide in hand, Michael Portillo travels east through the Balkans along the most exotic section of the Orient Express. His destination is Istanbul, a multi-ethnic city where Europe and Asia meet via an underground railway.
A century ago, Michael's journey would have been interrupted by hostilities, for which train services were suspended. Today, the route remains a chequered one but for a happier reason - a new European railway network is being constructed and engineering work is underway.
His journey begins in Sofia, where he discovers the then newly independent orthodox Christian nation, which had broken free of the decaying Ottoman Empire. In the ancient city of Plovdiv, Michael discovers a Roman amphitheatre built in the 2nd century AD and still in use today. Bulgarian independence is traditionally celebrated with a typically Thracian dance, which is not as simple as they make it look.
Further east in the beautiful region of Rumelia, in fields surrounded by the Balkan mountains, Michael picks roses with the flower girls to produce precious rose oil in a 100-year-old distillery. A trip in a works train to oversee the electrification and straightening of the new £300 million section of line between Parvomay and Svilengrad culminates in a chance to drive the train on the tracks of the Orient Express.
Across the border in Turkey, Michael visits Edirne, a former capital of the Ottoman Empire and gets to grips with the 3,000-year-old tradition of oil wrestling. Arriving in Istanbul, Michael orients himself with a trip on the Bosphorus - a much-coveted stretch of water - finds out about Turkish delight and crosses from Europe to Asia on the Marmaray metro line which now joins the two continents.
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