The day started with a walking tour of central Sofia. Our first stop was the botanical gardens. Well, the gardens were small with a few interesting plants to see. There were fruit trees (quince, the furry one, and pear) as well a veggie garden along with a variety of other plants but not an extensive collection. We did spot some orchids of various varieties but not many were in flower.
From there we started our walk towards the main part of the city. There were some amazing buildings, their history I am unable to recount. Some were from the communist regime which are still being used today for different government functions. There were many statues around the parks as well. What impressed us was the effort with the gardens. This is the first place for some time that has taken pride in the gardens. Roses were quite abundant and the guide said that rose oil is a very profitable industry in Bulgaria. Churches and synagogues were also present as well as some well-preserved archaeological spots.
The changing of the guard took place while we were there so that was interesting. It's so good to see these national costumes and traditions being practised.
Many of the fountains were not working when we came through in the early morning so by lunch they were up and running. At this particular building, one for the arts I believe, there was a wedding happening. We saw three brides this morning, one at the Maccas walk through. Hubby must have needed a coffee.
One monument worth mentioning was that of Sofia. She replaced Lenin when the communist regime came to an end so it is a relatively new statue, erected in 2000.
Another interesting monument is that of the 'trabant car'. This iconic car was produced during the communist era. We saw the monument in the park then one came and parked just near us causing great excitement.
The main street was dirty and, as the morning progressed, the shops started to open. Their Saturday mustn’t start until around 11am. There were some market places selling alcohol and food (sausages, shaslik, pate, dried meat, fresh produce especially chilies) which looked really tasty but we didn’t have any local currency (lev).
Back at the hotel, we had a most welcome nap in readiness for the cultural dinner tonight.
This featured blog entry was written by gpric6 from the blog Budapest to Budapest.
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