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SHIROKA LAKA , nestling in the deep and narrow valley of the Shirokolashka river, is a popular destination for coach parties from Pamporovo, wanting to see a genuine Rhodope village. Its name means "broad meadow", and with its humpbacked bridges and asymmetrical half-timbered houses topped by their distinctive flagstone tile roofs, this remarkably unspoilt settlement of 2000 people could have been lifted off a picture-postcard, though the idyll is slightly marred by the scattering of junk, tossed carelessly in the river. The advantage of coming on a tour is that you get to see a performance by local musicians at the School of Folk Instruments and Music - something you would miss should you turn up on spec - and also stand a chance of visiting the Sgurov Konak (containing the local Ethnographic Museum), which tends to remain shut until a tour bus arrives. You may have more luck with the walled Church of the Assumption at the western end of the village, dating from 1834, where worshippers are greeted by a sobering fresco of a funeral procession surrounded by prancing demons. Inside, the church walls are adorned with more wonderfully naive frescoes, including one of Elijah ascending to Heaven in a smoking chariot, a trail of black smoke billowing in its wake. Note also the iconostasis, with its series of panels, painted in the same "rustic" style, relating the story of Adam and Eve and the Fall. Essentially, however, Shiroka Laka is a place to stroll around the cobbled lanes and enjoy picnics in the surrounding meadows - unless you happen to be around for the first weekend of March, when there's a Kukeri carnival of dancers and musicians in weird costumes, playing out an ancient fertility rite. There is little in Shiroka Laka to detain you for more than a day, but if you do wish to stay, you have a choice of two attractive hotels . The Margarita (tel 03030/693; US$9-18/US$18-60), located on the main road at the end of the village, is a lovely small hotel opened in 2000, which also offers comfortably furnished apartments. Alternatively, you could try the larger Shiroka Laka , located on the hill above the music school (tel 03030/341; US$9-18), which also has its own restaurant. This is much preferable to the sole restaurant in the village, also, inventively, called the Shiroka Laka , a folksy tourist-trap geared up for coach parties, and which is otherwise deserted. The helpful tourist information centre (tel 03030/233, sh_luka@infotel.bg ), located just off the main square, can provide maps, brochures, timetables and details of accommodation throughout the region, while if you're looking for an even quieter spot to rest up, the nearby villages of STOIKITE and GELA - legendary birthplace of Orpheus - have their fair share of private rooms to rent, generally in cosy, modern chalet-style accommodation. Due to the vagaries of the local bus service, though, staying in either place is only practical if you have your own transport. Accommodation in Gela is of a similar style and price to that in Stoikite; try Katia (tel 03030/760; US$9-18) or the cosy two-star Gerus hotel (tel 03030/760; US$18-36). With only a few dozen inhabitants, it's a lovely, peaceful village, whose origins go back over 3300 years, and where the calm is broken only by the annual Illinden festival , a major regional bagpipe-playing contest which takes place in the vicinity on the first Sunday of August. Look out for the silivriak , otherwise known as the Orpheus Flower, an endemic Balkan species whose small pink bells are said to have been formed from the blood of the mythical musician after the Bacchantes threw his butchered body into the river. Thirty-four kilometres west of Shiroka Laka, DEVIN is a pleasant enough town in a bowl between rugged mountain ranges, famous for its bottled water, which you'll find in virtually every supermarket and street kiosk in the country, but there's little to do other than enjoy the warm pool (Mon-Fri 9am-noon & 2-7pm, Sat & Sun 9am-5pm) and baths (Tues-Sat only same hours) at the spa to the left of the bridge beyond the bus station. There's a big military garrison here, and the presence of a firing range in the surrounding hills ensures that hiking possibilities are limited. Aside from a mosque and a church, the only official "sight" is a display of Rhodope folklore in the rarely opened museum on the main square (officially Mon-Fri 10am-noon & 2-5pm). Beyond the square, at ul. Osvobozhdenie 50, is the Manolov (tel 03041/4832; US$18-36), the best of Devin's hotels , while the Grebenets (tel 03041/4141; US$18-36), is a more basic central option, with its own bar and disco. Three buses a day leave Smolyan's Avtogara Zapad terminal for Devin, passing through Shiroka Laka en route, from where up to seven local services a day also go to Devin. From Devin, three daily buses (at 1pm, 5pm & 7.30pm) head westwards to Dospat.
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