Sofia - golden domes, green spaces (Sofia)

Member Name: fizzywizzy

Product:	Sofia
Date:	25/08/06 (473 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Not too busy, good value for money, green spaces

Disadvantages: Not many "attractions", not much for children

Our visit to Sofia didn't get off to an auspicious start. The other half spent the eve of the trip throwing up in the only bathroom of a hostel in Veliko Tarnovo and we would have stayed there another day to permit his recuperation had we not already reserved and paid for our tickets to the capital. By the following day I was off my food and the day after that I was availing myself of the bathroom facilities, making sure I got my moneys worth!

I suppose the ill thing was due - almost three months of rich food, too much alcohol, late nights and living life to the full was bound to catch up with us sooner or later. All of which begs the question - what exactly do two invalids get up to for three days in Sofia?

ATTRACTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

Sofia is a rather compact city so, while it has trams and a short underground line, weekend visitors should be able to get to most places on foot. Those venturing out of town - perhaps to Mount Vitosha - will find the buses cheap and reliable. For other places in the Sofia region like Rila Monastery, there are plenty of companies offering excursions as well as the standard bus services.

Sofia does have lots of museums but none of them were trumpeted by either of the two guidebooks we had; they are mostly the standard selection of hotels found in most capital cities - the Ethnography Museum, the Natural History Musuem and the Museum of Earth and Man (the Geology Musuem!) spring to mind. Besides this, we were really "all museumed out" by this point. One museum of traditional dress starts to look like any other and the particular corn milling techniques of individual regions of Eastern Europe start to blur into one. Furthermore, we had found out in advance that few museums in Bulgaria have captions in English so we decided to think "outside the box".

Sadly Sofia does not have any outdoor attractions close to the centre - by this I mean things life open air museums, cave cities, fortresses or huge monuments that require a twenty minute climb to appreciate. This probably would have suited us better; we were not in the mood (or the health) for stuffy museums and the other half will climb anything he thinks might have a good view from the top.

Thwarted, we decided to make our mission to explore the central parks of the city: Sofia has three. South of the main shopping area is "Yuzhen Park" where you'll find the vast NKD National Palace of Culture: this is a huge building holding a multi-screen cinema, exhibition halls and concert halls. The park is pleasant and has attractive fountains and flowerbeds and a children's play area. The main draw for me, though, was the wonderfully decrepit monument dedicated to the creation of the first Bulgarian Empire and built in 1981.So decrepit is it now that a wooden wall has been erected around it so protect passers-by from falling debris. The wall is put to good use though - it is used for annual graffiti competitions the results of which can be seen all year round. Near that is another monument: this one is much smaller but also in disrepair. It is dedicated to those 10,000 who lost their lives or disappeared never to be seen again under the old regime. Sadly the fixings of the work are rusting and the names of those commemorated are now difficult to read - some people have taken the step of painting over the names of their loved ones so that they do not completely disappear.

Next up was my favourite - the Sofia City Garden: a small leafy square hidden among the busy streets of the centre with shady spots to take a break from the hustle and bustle of city life. This park is the haunt of elderly men who come here to play chess, people taking an outdoor lunch break and city mothers living in apartment blocks, bringing the children to let off steam. Each group has its own spot: the chess players congregate at the northern end in front of the theatre, workers find a spot on one of the benches hidden amongst the shrubs and the families play at the southern end where an open area provides an excellent place to learn to ride a bike. When we were there a busking accordionist lent a distinctly Gallic air to the park.

Finally there is Borisova Gradina Park also to the south of the city centre but slightly east. This park contains my favourite Soviet era monument in Sofia - it's one of those tableau affairs depicting a scene of upright and patriotic citizens contributing to the war effort. A word of warning - if you do go to admire it, look out for the skateboarding teenagers who like to use the plinths as a skate park. The park itself is pleasant enough with places to sit and an outdoor café just by the main entrance. It also contains the Levski football stadium.

One of the nicest things about Sofia is that the streets are not crammed together but are usually quite wide and offer places to stop for a rest and to take in your surroundings. For example, when we went to look at the Alexander Nevski church, we found seats outside in front of and behind the church. It's a virtually traffic-free area making it pleasant to sit down and really take in this magnificent building with its huge gold central dome and smaller green ones. The church is typical of the Bulgarian style with round squat domes (whereas the Russian domes are more onion-shaped) and I can thoroughly recommend a viewing of the interior, permitted when there are no services. Entrance is free but there is a small charge for the Museum of Icons in the crypt.

Several of the city's museums are situated in the streets around this church but my tip is to scour the weekend flea market held on the small green in front of the church; as well as brand new souvenirs (Russian dolls, t-shirts and ceramics) you can buy old Communist badges, uniforms and memorabilia. As usual when we go to flea markets in this part of the world we came back laden with pin badges and this time came home with some bearing the profile of Lenin that we hadn't seen before.

Across the road was another small market, this time selling handmade items like lace, crochet work and wooden items that are typical Bulgarian souvenirs. You find a little market like this anywhere that tourists might head. It's a good idea not to buy immediately but to look around first and compare prices for a better deal.

Shopping in Sofia can seem, on the face of it, rather dull - unless you know where to look! Vitosha, the central shopping street and its neighbours are home to international chains and their Bulgarian equivalents. You may pick up something here but it isn't very inspiring. Animal lovers should be aware that fur is de rigueur in this part of the world and that you are likely to see it in the windows of the more up-market stores. The underpass next to the main entrance to Borisova Gradina Park holds a terrific secret though - a huge second hand and antiquarian book centre. The actual unit is tiny and so most of the books are displayed on shelving outside but there are others inside and they are displayed so that their spines are next to the glass and you look at them from outside; if anything catches your eye you can ask a staff member to fetch it for you. Of course, the books are mostly Bulgarian and Russian but we found plenty of books in English and other European languages.

The real retail experience of Sofia though is in a underpass-cum-metro station on Boulevard Maria Luisa; from outside it may look like a handy way to cross a busy road but underneath is a subterranean experience of the kind that Eastern Europe does best. Small shops selling toys, accessories like sparkly earrings and glitzy handbags, children's toys, mobile phone covers; teeny coffee bars with just three seats at a high counter and behind it shelves heaving with delicious looking pastries, pizza joints selling by the slice and burger bars brimming with trendy teenagers; would-be entrepreneurs selling the latest gadgets, old ladies trying to sell some fuit and people selling mobile phone vouchers; all of life is here!

One thing you'll be sure to see on the streets of Sofia is people walking along carrying large plastic bottles of water. Not so odd you may think, but the water actually comes from the taps outside the former Public Baths just off Boulevard Maria Luisa; anyone can go along fill up whatever receptacles they have available and take it home. It comes out quite hot, though, and smelling a bit eggy, so you can't drink it straightaway but it is lovely once it's cool - very refreshing and clean-tasting! The citizens of Sofia swear by it!

Sofia is a city of churches; they are on nearly every street corner, hidden away behind high office blocks or lurking behind trees. However, it also has an incredibly beautiful mosque which should not be missed; as you would expect, you cannot enter at prayer times and you sould remember to dress appropriately (no shorts for men, covered shoulders and head for women).

Sofia does not have the instant "wow factor" associated with cities like Prague, Krakow or Vienna; its charms are more subtle and it is easy to spend many hours just strolling and sitting, admiring this quiet but vibrant city without feeling that you should be queuing up for some attraction or other. Sofia has no major river with stately bridges and evening cruises; it has no musical clocks or buglers announcing the passing hours. It is very much a place for independent travellers who can entertain themselves and don't need a comprehensive itinerary.

ACCOMMODATION

The room we'd booked on the internet two days earlier turned out to be a non-starter (another tale lies therein) but we easily found alternative accommodation nearby. This area not far from the train station but within easy walking distance of the central tourist area teems with hostels and budget and mid-range accommodation. Even at night the area is safe and the streets are fairly quiet so traffic noise is not an issue. Those with a little more cash to spare will find hotels like the Hilton just south of the city centre although the impressive Sheraton is next to Sveta Nedelya Cathedral in the heart of the city.

EATING AND DRINKING

As you would expect of a European capital city, Sofia has the usual wide range of eateries covering all price brackets and styles of food. Bulgarian food is very good and quite varied so visitors should aim to go native at least once. My recommendation is "Tsentrale" - a traditional style "inn" serving hearty local dishes; the service is good, the prices reasonable and in summer you can dine outisde in the pleasant beer garden. A rather different but very Bulgarian experience is to eat at the Happy Bar and Grill - a Bulgarian chain which offers an enormous menu of grills, salads, vegetarian dishes and desserts. They have menus in English and fantastic colour photographs of the dishes. There are several Chinese restaurants, two sushi restaurants and there are pizza and pasta places everywhere.

Traditional Bulgarian food is quite "meaty" but vegetarians will not go hungry; there are tasty bean stews, salads and stuffed vegetables.

Dedicated bars are less easy to find and there are more of the "cafe-bar" variety. Summer is the best time to experience Sofia's cafe life, most places have outside seating. Prices can be high but this is a capital city. Imported spirits are very pricey but Bulgarian brands exist for most spirits and are perfectly palatable.

MONEY

The Bulgarian currency is the Lev; you can buy this in the UK before you travel or change cash once you're there although there are plenty of ATMs accepting British cards. Travellers cheques can be changed but it can be a slow task.

LANGUAGE

Bulgaria uses the Cyrillic alphabet and it's worth at least learning the letters before you go just in case you find yourself off the beaten track trying to decipher signs. However, you'll not have much difficulty making yourself understood in English and most signs and menus are in English as well as Bulgarian.


OVERALL

I had wanted to visit Sofia for ages and felt a little disappointed at first when I realised that there was not a huge amount to see and do. However, the charms of this attractive city soon made themselves apparent when I started to relax and enjoy the somewhat slower pace of life that it has.

Sofia is cosmopolitan without losing is sense of being Bulgarian; it is interesting without having scores of attractions to tire you out. It is genuine and firendly without having to have someone constantly wanting to be your guide or to help you spend your money.

I would recommend Sofia to couples in particular but not to young singles looking for loud nightlife or to people with young children - there is little dedicated to children's amusement.

And one last thought - it IS the perfect place for two recovering sickies!

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NOTE - I have not mentioned my hotel here, intending to review separately later.

"Tsentral" can be found on Ulitsa George Washington

Summary: Bulgaria's capital - a city to relax in