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🇧🇬 Bulgaria: Sofia
  • Leonardo Floridia
  • Leonardo Floridia

🇧🇬 Bulgaria: Sofia

A short but fine adventure by Leonardo Read more
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  • Trip start
    August 14, 2024
    Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Istanbul-Catania with stop-over in Sofia

    August 14, 2024 in Turkey ⋅ 🌬 33 °C

    Instead of the direct Turkish Airlines flight, we decided to take a low-cost Pegasus Airlines flight to Sofia and then a Wizz Air flight from Sofia to Catania.

    This way, in addition to saving money, we had the opportunity to see the city center of Sofia in half a day.

    (If you want to see the pics of Istanbul, I created a specific section in my Find Penguins profile)    Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Walking through the (hot) city

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    A walk through the streets of the city was pleasant. Sofia appears very clean and orderly.

    Given the temperatures (40 degrees Celsius), the pre-holiday day (August 14th), and the season, most of the population and tourists are probably out of the city, enjoying cooler areas near the sea or on the mountains.Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Lunching in a typical restaurant (Moma)

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 36 °C

    We decided to have lunch at Moma, a traditional restaurant where my travel companion had already been on a previous trip to Sofia.

    The walls are decorated with typical Bulgarian clothing and photos of local people. For starters, we had various pâtés, which we enjoyed with some excellent bread and a delicious reddish spice mix.

    After four days in a Muslim country, we finally ate pork again. We had a fantastic pork stew, tender and served with a flavorful sauce.

    Everything was delicious! Lunch approved!    Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Sofia National Palace of Culture

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 36 °C

    The National Palace of Culture is one of the largest conference and cultural centers in the world. It can host up to 3,500 people and was built when Bulgaria was a satellite state of the Soviet Union.

    As a result, the style reflects Soviet/socialist architecture with a modern design.
    In front of the building, there is a huge park with fountains and statues.    Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    The Statue of Sveta Sofia

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    The Statue of Sveta Sofia represents Saint Sofia, the patroness of the city.

    The lady holds a crown and a sword, symbols of power and justice, while above her there is a bird symbolizing freedom. All these virtues are associated to Saint Sofia.

    In front of the facade, there are the gardens and fountains of the **City Garden**, which further enhance the beauty of the building.    Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Orthodox Church of Saint Nicholas

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    The Russian Orthodox Church of Saint Nicholas was built in 1914 on the site of the Saray Mosque, which was destroyed after Bulgaria's liberation by Russia from the Ottoman Empire.

    It is named after Saint Nicholas, whose name was also that of Tsar Nicholas II, the ruler at the time of construction. Tsar Nicholas II would later become the last Tsar of Russia before the Russian Revolution.

    The church is very small, but its golden domes and decorations make it quite fascinating.    Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Alexander Nevsky Orthodox Cathedral

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral is an Orthodox cathedral built in the Neo-Byzantine style. It is the second largest church on the entire Balkan Peninsula, surpassed only by the magnificent Temple of Saint Sava in Belgrade (which I visited during my Balkan road trip).

    The cathedral is dedicated to the Prince of Russia and its soldiers who, during the war with the Ottoman Empire in 1878, allowed Bulgaria to become an autonomous state independent from the Turks.    Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    The National Assembly of Bulgaria

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    The building of the National Assembly of Bulgaria was constructed in the 1950s during the Bulgarian socialist period, and its style is heavily influenced by Soviet architecture.

    This building, part of the complex known as the Largo, was used as the headquarters of the Bulgarian Communist Party until, following the end of the dictatorship, it became the bilding of the Parliament.Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Presidential Palace of Bulgaria

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    The Presidential Palace of Bulgaria. Also this building is part of the Largo complex, built in the 1950s during the socialist period, and an excellent example of monumental socialist architecture.

    I was very lucky because we arrived at the palace at 4:00 PM and we coud assist to the changing of the guard, with the honor guards wearing their white and black uniforms.Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Banja Baši Ottoman Mosque

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    The Banja Baši Mosque is an Ottoman mosque and is also a reminder of the Ottoman rule over Bulgaria.

    The architectural style is typical of the Ottoman Empire and Islamic architecture, and was built in mid-1500s.

    The interior designs on the dome, and the floral and geometric decorations, are truly colorful and captivating.

    The mosque's elegance and historical significance make it a fascinating place to visit. It is also reall close to the center and the metro line to/from the Airport.    Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Serdika: 2 millenia of history with 500M

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    The Serdika metro station (Сердика) in the heart of Sofia contains Roman artifacts discovered during the excavation work for the metro. These include roads and buildings from the ancient Roman city of Serdica, which was conquered by the Romans in 29 BC.

    The 2009 metro line perfectly integrates the ruins from 29 BC, and when going out it is possible to see the blue/grey dome of the Banya Bashi Mosque, built in the mid-1500s.

    Two millennia of history within just 500 meters.    Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Time to go back home!

    August 14, 2024 in Bulgaria ⋅ ☀️ 36 °C

    This half day stop-over has passed, and it is time to go back home.

    The time was sufficient to see the main attractions of this relatively small Capital. I hope to go back soon to better explore Sofia and most of all to see the many natural beauties that the country has to offer outside its capital.Read more

  • Leonardo Floridia🇧🇬 Bulgaria: SofiaLeonardo Floridia

    Landing in Catania with Etna eruption

    August 14, 2024 in Italy ⋅ 🌙 29 °C

    We are landing in Catania and the city welcome us with a strong eruption of Mount Etna, the highest active volcano in Europe.

    The glow of the lava fountains erupting from the crater is clearly visible from the plane. We have been very lucky because our flight was one of the last to land before the airport was closed due to excessive volcanic ash in the air.Read more

    Trip end
    August 14, 2024
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