Colette Sheridan enjoyed a stay in Bulgaria where your Euro goes a long way
Fancy a holiday in a fascinating city with a compact centre where the Euro goes very far? Sofia, Bulgaria’s capital city, is just the ticket. One Bulgarian Lev is worth about fifty cents so every time you see a menu with a main course costing 12 Lv, halve it and you know you’re dining on the cheap relative to Ireland.
Bustling Sofia city centre..lots to do and prices are cheap
Sofia, which has a population of 1,288,000 has a real capital city vibe with administrative buildings and plenty of museums and galleries to keep visitors interested. There are religious buildings for a number of faiths, from the simple and ancient St Sophia to the iconic gold-domed St Alekasandur Nevski. Sofia has a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Boyana Church and its own mountain, Vitosha, on the edge of the city making for a spectacular view as you walk along the main shopping street.
I spent a week in Sofia in June last year, staying with a friend in her sister’s city centre apartment where we decided the landmark was St Alekasandur Nevski Cathedral. The building was completed in 1912. For many years, craftsmen and artists created this huge church which can hold 5,000 people. According to local lore, as related by our city tour guide, dentists “lined up on the street” outside the building where people had their gold teeth extracted to help make the gleaming dome.
The belfry in the church is 52m high and contains twelve bells which can be heard across the city. I was disappointed to learn that the chief bell ringer, Maria Subova, working up until her late eighties, had died a couple of years ago. Subova used to climb 220 steps up a winding stairway to the belfry twice a day. She carried out this task for thirty years. What dedication and what a great way to remain physically supple.
Across the square from the cathedral is the Church of St Sophia from which the city takes its name. In the grounds is the grave of Bulgaria’s national writer, Ivan Vazov. He requested to be buried there in order to continue to be part of the everyday life of the people.
Nearby is the bronze lion which guards Sofia’s eternal flame in memory of the Unknown Soldier. You can also visit the Necropolis beneath the church. Archaeological research revealed over fifty tombs and the ruins of four preceding churches, including artefacts and mosaic floors. An astonishing twenty-three centuries of history lies below the church.
Twentieth century history saw the Bulgarian government beginning to expel Jews from Sofia to the countryside in May 1943. Within two weeks, more than 20,000 Jews had been expelled from the capital. Many of the men and younger males were put into forced labour camps and Bulgarian authorities confiscated Jewish property that was left behind.
Before that, public outcry from the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the wider society forced the authorities to stop the deportation of Jewish Bulgarian citizens. But the authorities did deport more than 11,000 Jews from territories it had occupied in Macedonia, Thrace and Pirot to German-held territory.
While almost all these Jews perished, nearly the entire pre-war population of Jewish-Bulgarian citizens survived the war. The community was impoverished. The Communist regime in Bulgaria permitted emigration to Israel and over 32,000 Jews had left Bulgaria by May 1949. According to the World Jewish Congress, there are 2,000 to 6,000 Jews living in Bulgaria, one third of whom are core Jewish.
There are plenty of museums and galleries to visit
One tour guide, a Jewish Bulgarian man, became emotional as he spoke about his grandfather who could never draw attention to his origins as he knew of Jewish people who ‘disappeared.’
It’s well worth linking up with the tour guides who work independently and for free (donations are welcome). They spoke of the statue of Sofia who used to be St Sophia. But people objected to the depiction of the saint because of her “provocative” tight-fitting low-necked gown. On her arm is an owl, signifying wisdom.
The wisdom and handicraft of women was on show at the National Gallery in an exhibition titled ‘Needles in a Haystack.’ The exhibition was the result of an open call for art projects by women artists in 2022. Invited to respond to the challenges of this day and age, the women artists reacted with character and style. Some turned to their inner selves, sharing personal stories. The needle is the symbol of the skills passed on through generations of women with embroidery and sewing facilitating story-telling.
The flea market in front of St Aleksandur Nevski Cathedral is a big draw for tourists. You’re supposed to negotiate prices but this was met with blank faces when we tried, probably because we were trying to communicate with older Bulgarians who don’t speak English. However, reasonable prices are charged by elderly women selling tablecloths and mats decorated with intricate needlework. You can also buy embroidered blouses. It’s not just at markets like this that cash is king. In restaurants and bars, cash is expected and there are plenty of ATMs around the city.
The younger folk in Sofia are keen to practise their English; so when Google Maps fails, you can always ask directions from them. We met a young man at a train station who engaged us with his good grasp of English. He scoffed when we praised Sofia. “I suppose you think it’s beautiful?” he asked, clearly thinking otherwise.
It may not be beautiful in a picture box way but it is a stately city with impressive government buildings. The 500 years of Ottoman rule has left some visible Muslim buildings. Sofia has a yellow brick road. The municipality adopted an ambitious plan to pave a big portion of the city after its liberation. Sofia’s mayor at the time, Martin Todorov, wanted something unique. A ceramic yellow pavement was deemed necessary. The cobblestones had to be imported from the then Austro-Hungarian empire. It was hugely expensive. The city had to sign a fifty-year loan for 35 million Lv with German banks. The loan was underwritten by the Bulgarian state. The yellow cobblestones were made out of limestone marl, mined near Budapest. It shines. But beware. During and just after rainfall, it can be slippery.
The liberation of a large part of Bulgaria in 1878 caused a building frenzy in Sofia, the new capital. Infrastructure projects such as water supplies and drainage were undertaken. There is an amazing amount of outdoor taps, in parks and near big buildings, at which people stop to drink the sometimes tepid water. In one park, I saw what looked like a vagrant filling empty plastic bottles with water. It was a hot day in otherwise average weather with a few heavy downpours.
Bulgarian food is rich and varied. Banitsa is an omelette type dish made with whisked eggs and cheese
Restaurants are good, or at least the ones we visited, including Pastorant which offers Italian and Mediterranean food. It has vegetarian and vegan options. I recall a pizza there nearly the size of a small round table which was scrumptious.
Our regular pit stop was the Art Club Museum Cafe. You can sit outside in the shade and watch young people sipping Aperols. The food is at the pricier end here but is still less than what you’d pay in Ireland.
One day, we took the three hour train journey to Plivdiv (and felt like we were being transported through Tolkien’s Middle-Earth). Plovdiv is the country’s second city and serious rival to Sofia. With its attractive Old Town, it is often described as being more attractive than Sofia. It has an appealing mix of ancient, medieval and modern buildings and layout.
The development of the Kapana Creative District has revitalised the new town, attracting young artists to the city. It has classical remains, Byzantine churches, mosques and some fine National Revival domestic buildings. It’s also a really good base for exploring the Rhodope Mountains and villages. We had lunch in a casual restaurant called Sofra; stuffed vine leaves and tasty doner kebabs. Near the Dzumaya Mosque, Sofra offers cheap homemade Turkish and Eastern Mediterranean food. Because it was full when we arrived, we were invited by an American couple to share their outdoor table. They were on a stop off from a cruise. We were just off the train – and hungry.
Transport doesn’t cost much. A single ticket in Sofia for all kinds of public transport is just 1.60 Lv. Ten trips on the underground costs 12 Lv and it’s the same amount for ten trips on trams, trolley buses and buses.
Getting from the airport to the centre of Sofia is straightforward. There’s bus number 84 or you can take a taxi. Taxis are quite cheap but some drivers will try to rip you off. The advice is to check the rates displayed on the dashboard and only use reputable companies; Green Taxi, OK Supertrans, Radio SV Taxi, Taxi S Express and Yellow Taxi. Avoid getting into an argument with the driver.
On buses, you’ll need to buy an additional ticket for your luggage. You can use the Metro from Terminal 2. It’s a convenient inexpensive option. There’s a free shuttle between the terminals every 15 minutes.
More information
Ryanair fly from Dublin to Sofia
Also check out any deals from your local travel agent
