The flight from Vienna was smooth and, at just 80 minutes, time passed quickly. And suddenly I was in Bulgaria. My first port of call was an ATM as I was 'Lev-less'. For one horrible moment it looked as though I might have to stay that way as both my Nationwide VISA credit and my ING VISA debit cards were declined. Fortunately, my HSBC debit card came up trumps – thank God for MasterCard! – and I breathed an audible sigh of relief as the machine deposited 250 Lev (approx. £105/€125/US$175) into my hands. Next, I had to find my way out of the airport and into the city centre.
I walked out of the airport to be hit with a wall of heat. Although at 28°C (82°F), it was the same temperature as it had been in Vienna, there was no nice breeze to make it feel cooler. I located the surprisingly deserted bus stop and noted that there would be a bus in five or ten minutes.
I had been waiting for a couple of minutes when a shifty-looking man approached me and spoke in rapid Bulgarian. I shrugged and turned away, assuming he was asking for money. Which in a way, being a taxi driver looking for a fare, he was. Realising I was a foreigner he switched to broken English. He demanded to know why I wanted to wait for the bus, which was expensive and didn't go directly to town. I didn't believe him for a second and so made it clear that I would be getting the bus whether he liked it or not. He shrugged and walked off, each of us no doubt thinking "stupid foreigner". Turns out he was right! At 20 Lev (approx. £8/€10/US$14) the bus was more expensive than the 12 Lev (approx. £5/€6/US$8) fixed-fare taxi! And it went all around the houses. And the five (!) conductors I encountered were rude and unhelpful. Being shouted at in Bulgarian when it's obvious you're a tourist who doesn't speak any is far from pleasant. I just ignored them, and as they didn't speak any English, there was nothing they could do! Still, I got into Sofia centre eventually. Now all I had to do was work out where exactly I was. The problem was that the street signs were all in Cyrillic while my map helpfully used Roman script...
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| Hmmmm... is that...? Ummm... |
Nonetheless, I somehow worked out where I was and where I wanted to be, and minutes later I had reached the very thing I had come to Sofia to see. With its gold cupolas glittering in the sunshine, the Aleksander Nevski Cathedral was unmistakeable. I ran the last few yards and stopped dead. The cathedral was as glorious as I had imagined – huge, ornate and proud. I spent quite a while trying to capture its brilliance.
Occupying an area of 3,170 sq. metres (34,100 sq. feet), the Aleksander Nevski Cathedral is one of the largest Eastern Orthodox cathedrals in the world and the second-largest in the Balkans. Built in the Neo-Byzantine style, construction started in 1882 although most of the building work took place between 1904 and 1912. It was created to honour the 200,000 Russian soldiers who died fighting for Bulgaria's independence during the Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878). If you were going to have something built in your honour, you could do a lot worse than this!
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| The stunning cathedral |
Since the centre of Sofia is so small I decided to just wander, and thus I stumbled across many beautiful churches and sights. In need of sustenance I retraced my steps to the Starbucks I'd seen earlier. Then, refuelled, I decided to find my hostel. Yet again, my map reading skills served me well and before long I had reached what turned out to be a very nice hostel indeed. I stayed there for a while chatting to some of the other guests before venturing out again at 16:15. It was not so much as one degree cooler than it had been.
I decided that my first priority should be more food (I blame the heat!) and so I went in search of the Subway I'd passed on my travels. As sullen as my server was, I was most relieved to find that she spoke English. I thought I'd find a nice cool, shady park to sit in. Unfortunately, the only park I could find had grass you wouldn't sit on if your life depended on it! I was also put off by the rabid-looking dog roaming around – not having had a rabies shot I decided to steer well clear. Instead, I found a nice fountain to sit on the edge of and eat my sandwich.
With the sandwich devoured I walked around the corner and realised that I knew where I was. I had apparently walked in a circle. Not quite willing to call it a day I decided to go check out the mosque (from the outside obviously). I wasn't especially impressed, but then something caught my eye. Behind the mosque there was an absolutely fabulous building, which turned out to be the former Central Mineral Baths. The architects had been inspired by Byzantine church architecture, but it was the beautiful glazed tiles on the façade that had attracted me. Seeing something this lovely more than made up for the disappointment of the mosque.
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| The disused mineral baths |
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| This beautiful building has been out of use since 1986, although there are restoration plans in the pipework |
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| Aesthetically-pleasing lines |
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| Close up of the tilework |
For my second day, having seen much of what Sofia had to offer already, I decided to walk a different way. While waiting to cross a busy road, a splash of purple came into view. I grabbed my camera just in time to get a shot of a tram disguised as a bar of chocolate.
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| If Milka did public transport... |
I went down Makedonia Blvd where there was an obelisk to something or other. Unable to read the Cyrillic letters I could only guess at what it was. A little bit of Googling later, and I learned that it was the Russian Monument. Dedicated to Tsar Aleksander II of Russia and the Russian warriors who lost their lives in the war against the Turks, it was the first monument to be built in Sofia following the country's liberation from Ottoman rule.
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| The Russian Monument |
From there I went to the National Palace of Culture, an ugly, late '70s, concrete and glass construction. The overall appearance was not helped by the grounds being in a serious state of disrepair. But then I saw something that made my efforts worthwhile – a Costa Coffee! There's nothing like a bit of your own culture to help you appreciate someone else's! Over tea and a chocolate muffin, I studied my guidebook to see what else I still wanted to see.
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| The far from aesthetically-pleasing Palace of Culture |
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| Mt Vitosha which overlooks the city |
Having decided I just wanted to walk, my travels took me all over town. I walked along Vitosha Blvd, past the huge Court of Justice. From there I went to the City Garden, where I found myself standing in front of the Ivan Vasov National Theatre. I paused briefly to take a few photos before continuing on with my wanderings...
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| One of a pair of lions outside the imposing Court of Justice |
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| Ivan Vasov National Theatre |
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| One of a series of statues |
One of my favourite sights was that of the Russian Church. Officially called the Church of St. Nicholas the Miracle-Maker, it was erected on the site of the Saray Mosque, which was destroyed in 1882 after Bulgaria's liberation from the Ottoman Empire. It was built in 1907 as the official church for the nearby Russian Embassy, and was named – as was the tradition for diplomatic churches – after the patron saint of the ruling Tsar, in this case Nicholas II.
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| The gorgeous Russian Church |
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| Who could fail to be impressed by the detailing? |
But the one thing I had come to see, the Aleksander Nevski Cathedral, drew me back time and again. I just could not get enough of it. Having taken as many photos as I possibly could, I found myself a shady spot from where I could just sit and admire the views...
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| Sheer perfection |
Not being overly-familiar with the Balkan countries, I had no pre-conceived ideas about what Sofia would be like. Other than wanting to see that one cathedral, I was simply curious. Sofia did not disappoint. I found it to be a small and very walkable city and, once I'd gotten to grips with the Cyrillic alphabet, I was able to navigate the place with relative ease. I loved the mix of architectural styles – so unlike anything I'd seen before – and the stories behind them. I hope one day to revisit Sofia (mainly so I can see the cathedral again) and, while I'm there, I'd quite like to explore a little more of the country.
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