Bulgaria's capital Sofia has a lot of interesting stories to tell and each historic attraction gives a new perspective on its complicated past. The churches and mosques have existed here for several centuries, the Soviet architecture or the Roman history is still being uncovered and blends with the modern city seamlessly. The city has suffered destruction through the ages & renovated many times over the years. Many of the buildings one sees are from late 19th century, when the country reclaimed its independence from the Ottomans.
Right in the heart of the city, one finds remains of the ancient Roman city of Serdica. It is a stunning example of how Sofia has kept the ruins on public display amidst all the modern construction taking place over the last few years. It is an open air street museum - an excavation carried out as recently as 2010 found this little gem.
This area is unique in so many ways - it has buildings belonging to different eras in close proximity to each other - a Christian orthodox church, the old roman ruins, a mosque, a new PWC building along with the old buildings of the communist era. There are so many stories behind these buildings and many of them remain unknown until you visit the city & take a guided tour. It truly is a remarkable experience and allows you to appreciate its history even more. In fact, this was probably the main reason I loved Sofia so much!
Nearby is the famous Sveta Sofia statue erected in the year 2000 in place of the statue of Lenin. When it was built, many people did not like it as some felt it was too erotic & some said that it looked more like a Greek and pagan symbol instead of a symbol of Christianity. However, it has survived all the odds and now, has become one of the landmarks of Sofia.
The mineral water drinking fountains are a common sight in Sofia. The water is believed to be good for health, as the water source is a hot water spring. I tried it but the warm water had a sulfurous rotten egg kind of a smell - it was not to my liking. Another nugget of information was passed on to us while we were tasting the water. The statue near the fountain was stolen by thieves some time back. It was found in a nearby shed and the thieves were let scot free. The statue has been reinstalled only recently, after some repairs were carried out.
The ancient city of Serdica connected the East to the West and today, they are connected through a tunnel beneath the streets of Sofia.
The church of St. George or the Rotunda church was the heart of ancient Serdica & is considered to be the oldest building in Sofia. It is a wonder that this red brick church, built in 300s, has survived unscathed for such an amount of time. The detailed medieval frescoes inside the church are a reminder of 1600s when they had been painted over by the Ottomans as the church was converted to a mosque.
Close to this church is an area called The Largo, which was designed and built in 1950s by the Socialists. Their intention was to make this area the city's representative centre by housing all the administrative offices in these buildings. This yellow-cobblestoned square has a hilarious and interesting history to it. The story goes that the government paid lots of money to make this area look good and overshot its budget. Since it was causing a dent in the government's coffers, they expected a negative reaction from the public. So, they them that it was a gift from Hungary for the monarch's wedding. The romantic angle made the citizens quite happy and everything was hunky dory for a few years. But, when the Wikileaks happened in the 1990s, the actual story got out and the Bulgarians felt betrayed. They were very angry and hurt but they could not do anything about it. I wondered how Hungary kept it a secret and what role did they play in this sham!
The Presidency is one of the most important buildings located in The Largo. Built in the 1950s, it is the official chambers of the President. Every hour, a changing of the guards ceremony takes place here and it is fun to watch.
The fanciest street in the city, Vitosha Boulevard is where all the posh boutiques and fashion houses are clustered. If you’re not into shopping like me, then you can just console yourself with those arresting views of Vitosha Mountain framed by the street’s tall buildings.
St. Sofia church (similar to the one in Istanbul) gave the city of Sofia its name in the 1300s. It was converted to a mosque during the Ottoman invasion, but was abandoned after one earthquake in the 1800s brought the minaret down.
The church bell was not placed in the bell tower but on a tree next to the church. It is believed that this is in honor of Bulgaria’s liberation from Ottoman rule, as during a thanksgiving ceremony for the Russians, the bell had been in the same place.
We pass a few more government buildings along the way, which look very beautiful and imposing.
The famous Saint Nedelya Church survived an earthquake in 1858 and later, it was the target of a terrorist attack in 1925 as well. The story goes that the communist party group first killed a General, so that his funeral would take place in this church (as per the custom in those days). And since the monarch Tsar Boris III was expected to attend funerals of high ranking officials, their main objective to assassinate the monarch would be accomplished. With the help of an insider in the church, 25kg of explosives were transferred to the church's attic. The bomb was detonated during the funeral and there were heavy casualties (more than 250 died) but the monarch survived because he arrived late after attending another funeral service. This habit of being late entered the Bulgarian tradition and it is common for local people to arrive late for meetings and appointments, as they like to point out that sometimes, arriving late can save lives.
Our walking tour was almost done and we made our way to the last stop.
The most famous landmark of Sofia - the St. Alexander Nevski cathedral. The scale of this building will blow you away. It has room for 10,000 people and is the second largest cathedral in the Balkans. It was built after the Ottomans were overthrown and the state of Bulgaria was re-established. It was originally dedicated to the Russian soldiers that lost their lives in the course of this liberation. The marble for the building came from Munich, the metal was sourced in Berlin & manufactured in Vienna while the mosaics came all the way from Venice. Its bell tower holds 12 bells with a total weight of 23 tons. It can be heard over a 10 mile radius. Since it is believed that all 12 bells being struck at the same time would shatter glass in the nearby building, they are never struck together.
After the visit to the cathedral, it was time to go our separate ways. I enjoyed every moment of the walking tour conducted by Alex. Their group does it every evening at 6pm in the summers (opposite the courthouse) and I highly recommend it when in Sofia.
Commenti