Day 103: Communist Bulgaria Tour

Today we opted for a history tour to learn about communism in Bulgaria and how people lived during the Soviet imperialist era. Our guide disclaimed he was born in 1980, but had stories from his family and distinct memories from when Soviet rule collapsed. We toured the various government buildings which were cleaned of their red stars and sickles/hammers as soon as the government was overthrown.

Our favorite stop was the Georgi Dimitrov Mausoleum where they buried their first communist leader and held yearly parades. The mausoleum is no longer standing because the Bulgarian government attempted to blow it up three times but it actually was built as a nuclear bomb shelter and had underground tunnels to the major government buildings. Instead it had to be manually disassembled and took longer to destroy than it was built. There was pain behind this building because at the May 1, 1986 parade, the government leaders couldn’t be found while everyone marched outside; it was 5 days after Chernobyl explosion and they didn’t tell anyone.

Final stop was the largest communist monument in the city that is being torn down right now. Since 1987, many vandalize the monument or write political messages which Russia threatened action against Bulgaria if they didn’t reign in their people. However, Ukraine’s invasion was the final straw and the Bulgarian government decided swiftly to remove the monument in 2022.

Restaurants: Divika

Food:
Roasted Pork Knuckle
Shopska SaladRead more