"I liked it better before I saw the cave churches in Cappadocia," I said to my friend, who didn't really ask for my opinion of the Churches of Ivanovo.

Not the most nuanced assessment, I know, but it does reflect the fact that while the church (singular) is interesting, but it can compare less favourably to other old religious sites that are carved into cliffs/mountains/remote areas.  To give an illustration, I initially gave Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo a rating of 3.5 stars.  After visiting the churches in Cappadocia, however, I revised the rating to 3 stars, even though I know that the ratings do not have to be in relation to other sites.

The frescoes of Ivanovo church are very vivid and, frankly, impressive.  However, the totality of the experience does not elevate this UNESCO World Heritage Site to a "must see" (I am clearly speaking from a tourist's perspective and not from someone less ignoble).  You can only visit one church, the church is small, there isn't much of a hike to build up excitement to the church (you can see it from the parking lot), and the nature surrounding the church is ordinary.

As for how I went to the rock-hewn church, it was a simple process but tad inconvenient.  The village of Ivanovo is a short train ride from Ruse.  I did not see any taxis at the village, but to be fair, I did not look very hard for one either.  I instead walked to the church, which took me a bit more than an hour.  I did not want to do that walk again, so I asked for a ride back to the village from a French tourist with a rental car. 

Specifically, I said, "Voiture. D'accord pour moi avec vous, ahhh, la choo-choo station?"

"Are you saying that you want me to give you a lift to the train station?" the man replied in English.

"Oui," I answered.