Travel to Sofia, Bulgaria – Episode 570

Hear about travel to Sofia, Bulgaria as the Amateur Traveler talks to Stephanie Craig from historyfangirl.com about her time in that country.

Stephanie says, “I feel like Sofia is magical. The first time I went in there I didn’t really know anything about it and I think that sometimes it’s those places that you have no idea, that you really don’t know what to expect, that can blow you away. I literally went there in November because it was the cheapest sky scanner flight out of Greece.”

Stephanie went from traveling more or less accidentally to Bulgaria to moving there for a time because she fell in love with the place. She takes us on a virtual walking tour through downtown Sofia, to the churches, the museums, the markets, and the monuments.

We talk about some of the complicated history of Bulgaria, from its time as part of the Roman Empire, to the Bulgars, to the Ottomans to liberation, to time under communism, and then to freedom again. You can see this complicated history and its architecture, ruins, museums, and food.

Stephanie tells us how to take a day seeing some of the Communist history of the city, which of late has been taken down and moved to one central museum.

We marvel at some of the ancient churches as well as the impressive Alexander Nevsky Cathedral which dominates the center of town,

We learn where the locals and the expats eat, both international cuisine and local Bulgarian fare.

Then Stephanie tells us a couple of side trips to take out of the city to the iconic Rila Monastery as well as to the Roman ruins and street art of Plovdiv.

See if Sofia doesn’t surprise you and capture your heart as it did for Stephanie.

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Show Notes

historyfangirl.com
Bulgaria
Ottoman Empire
First Bulgarian Empire
Second Bulgarian Empire
Free Sofia Tour
Vitosha Boulevard
Sofia Central Mineral Baths
Rila Monastery
Saint Sofia Church, Sofia
Bulgars
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Sofia
Alexander Nevsky Crypt Icon museum
Alexander Nevsky
Hamachi
33 Gastronauts
Mr. Pizza
Banitsa (Bulgarian Cheese Pie)
Ayran (yogurt drink)
The 365: Communist Tour of Sofia
Museum of Socialist Art, Sofia
Tour in an old Communist Car
The Bells Monument
The Bohemian Blog
National Historical Museum (Bulgaria)
Boyana Church
Eleonore Reuss of Köstritz
Cinecitta Restaurant
National Gallery for Foreign Art
Free Sofia Hiking Tours – Sofia Green Tour – free Bike and Hike tours with English speaking guides-volunteers
Saints Cyril and Methodius
Plovdiv (city with Roman ruins)
Stobs Pyramids
Sydney’s Corner: Roman Ruins of Plovdiv
kashkaval tourist
Bansko
Ski Dubai: Hitting the Slopes in the Desert
East of the West: A Country in Stories
Foreigners in Sofia & Friends
Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe
UNESCO World Heritage Site #36: Boyana Church (Bulgaria)
UNESCO World Heritage Site #37: Rila Monastery (Bulgaria)
101 Incredible Things to Do in Sofia

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November 2017 – India Amateur Traveler Trip