In the heart of Sofia, right next to the yellow cobblestones, you’ll come across a small but significant landmark in history – the tomb of Alexander I Battenberg. He was the first Bulgarian prince after the Liberation and reigned between 1879 and 1886, before abdicating and leaving the country. After he died at the age […]
The Banya Bashi Mosque is the only surviving medieval mosque still in use in Sofia. It was designed by Sinan, the most renowned Ottoman architect, who designed nearly 300 buildings during his lifetime. The mosque was part of a larger bath complex, from which it takes its name. The inscription on the stone arch at […]
Before the lions took up their comfortable perch above the bed of the Vladayska River, this was the site of the Colourful Bridge. It is thought that it was so named either because of its colourful decoration featuring red and yellow (or white, green and red) stripes, or because of the mix of building materials […]
At the corner of Slivnitsa and Opulchenska streets, time passes a little differently. There, under the watchful gaze of the clock tower, stands the building of the National High School of Applied Arts. The school is named after the saint who is considered the founder of Christian painting and the patron saint of the arts. […]
Just a stone’s throw from the lake, amidst the harmonious block-of-flats landscape of the ‘Druzhba’ neighbourhood, lies one of Sofia’s quietest yet most significant cultural hubs – the ‘Iskar’ Cultural Institute. The building was constructed in 1953 to serve as the Trade Union House of Culture. The cultural institute is the oldest in Sofia and […]
In Lozenets, amidst the scent of pine resin and tales of the city, lies the small, poetic ‘Vishneva’ tram stop. In the 1930s, a group of locals approached the local council with a request – that tram No. 1 should not stop only at Orlov Most, but should go all the way to the Seminary. […]
In 1858, an earthquake shook Sofia. Dozens of homes, churches and other public buildings were destroyed, whilst in the fields to the south-west, surprisingly, a hot spring gushed forth. The locals simply named it ‘Gyolo’ or ‘The Hot Water’. Little by little, the place became an unofficial wellness centre. Decades later, following the end of […]
Behind the old baths at Ovcha Kupel, nestled amongst trees and memories of a slower-paced era, lies one of the few therapeutic beaches with mineral water in Sofia. The site forms part of the National Hospital for Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation. Adjacent to it is one of the few therapeutic beaches with warm mineral water in […]
A memorial complex built in memory of the sacrifices made by the partisans fighting for Bulgaria’s liberation during the Second World War. Unveiled on 2 June 1956, marking the 80th anniversary of the death of the Bulgarian revolutionary Hristo Botev, whose words adorn the monument: “He who falls in battle for freedom does not die”
Bulgarian National Radio remains the largest radio station in Bulgaria, with six professional music ensembles that record in the magnificent Studio 1. The striking BNR building, with its inverted pyramid shape, was completed in 1972 and is situated right next to the old one. It houses the radio station’s Golden Archive, containing over 14,000 archive […]
