BULGARIA: Sofia – A Pleasant And Economical Capital City
My experience here in Sofia has been more than satisfying and a breath of fresh air. The hotel owners, waitresses, and people on the street here have all been courteous and helpful. Thankfully, I finally hooked up with the walking tour before I take off for Istanbul tomorrow. I just wish I had a few more days here. I highly recommend this capital city. The food is very high quality and inexpensive. What’s furthermore, the design and decor of the restaurants are so pleasing and well-executed. The city planning and renovations they have going on are quite inspired as well. They are really making an effort here regardless of the limited funds and corruption that plagues much of the Balkans. Sofia is also making the most of the many archaeological sites throughout the city, and in one case even integrated one of them with their Metro system.
When I come back to finish up with Europe in 2017, I will probably return here and do some additional exploring. My advice to others is to get here before the prices go up. It has a much more European feel here than the rest of the region.
5 Vintage Hotel – My little palace of a budget hotel. Air Conditioning, Flat Screen, and Blazing Fast Wifi. All for $25 a night and all the comforts of home.
MY COZY ROOM
BASEMENT VENDORS
ELECTRICAL BOX – Painted to look like Bulgaria’s favorite matchbox from South Africa.
HADJIDRAGANOVITE IZBI – Delicious Lamb Shashlik.
COURTHOUSE
SAINT SUNDAY’S CHURCH
CATHOLIC CHURCH
Walking tour guide at a 7th-century church.
ROMAN RUINS – To be converted into an open-air museum.
MOSQUE
NEO-BYZANTINE PUBLIC BATH
ORIGINAL COMMUNIST HEADQUARTERS
Roman gate to the city integrated into the Metro.
ROYAL GUARDS
OLD TIMER
THE ROTUNDA OF SAINT GEORGE – 3rd-century church
NATIONAL THEATER
I took the picture at the wrong angle, but the man who did the goldwork lost his job for putting a golden pee-pee on the cherub.
YELLOW BRICK ROAD – This was installed instead of the dull and boring grey bricks at considerable cost in the center of the city about a hundred years ago. However, when it rained the citizens found out that they were quite slippery, and were quite outraged that such great expense had been gone to in order to bust their butts during rainstorms. Such was the outrage that the government fabricated a story that the bricks had been a gift of the Austrian king. A lie that is still believed by many to this day.
4 Comments
Jason B.
August 22, 201525 bucks a night! That looks like a really great deal. As long as something like this is available why bother with a noisy hostel. Seems like a real step up from the last city as well.
The Travel Zealot
August 23, 2015Yeah Jason it was a phenomenal deal and brand new as well. Like many Eastern European cities graffiti is a big problem, but this city certainly did not suffer from an attitude problem. With 5 Vintage as a home, it makes a stay in Sofia a real joy. When I return to Europe in 2017, I will definitely try and return to Sofia.
Z
September 1, 2015Hey John, I’m glad you had pleasant and comfortable break in Sofia. $25 per night stay must felt like cherry on the top. How long did you stay there? I recall there was very nice Black Sea resort in Bulgaria called Golden Sands. My parents loved staying there..
The Travel Zealot
September 1, 2015Hi Z,
Regrettably, it was only a three night stay. I have been treating Eastern Europe like a bit of a buffet. I am definitely going to be going back for seconds on my next European Tour in 2017. There are a few places that are going to get a second visit. Salzburg, Ljubljana, Budapest, and Romania. I will definitely hit the Black Sea on the next go round.