Tour Sofia
Trail photos
Author
Trail stats
- Distance
- 1.53 mi
- Elevation gain
- 371 ft
- Technical difficulty
- Easy
- Elevation loss
- 351 ft
- Max elevation
- 1,891 ft
- TrailRank
- 35
- Min elevation
- 1,783 ft
- Trail type
- One Way
- Moving time
- 50 minutes
- Time
- 2 hours 18 minutes
- Coordinates
- 434
- Uploaded
- October 21, 2023
- Recorded
- October 2023
near Sofia, София-град (България)
Viewed 15 times, downloaded 0 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
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Tour of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria.
We begin the Tour in front of the courthouse, located in the center, flanked by two bronze lions, which have witnessed several political rallies. In fact, in some of them, protesters have even thrown tomatoes at the building and painted red clown noses on the lions as a sign of protest.
Nikola Lazarov and Pencho Koychev designed the Sofia Courthouse in the 1920s, and it was the first structure in the city to feature a monumental style. Later other buildings were added to it, such as the National Bank of Bulgaria and the Largo.
We continue a few steps away with the Church of Santo Domingo.
Although it is a monument whose beginnings possibly date back to the 10th century (Sveta Nedelya was originally, at that time, a church built with stone and wood), it is a temple that has suffered frequent damage over the centuries, having It has been destroyed on several occasions to be rebuilt again later.
The most notable story was when, on April 16, 1925, the cathedral was devastated by a bomb attack that intended to end the life of King Boris III, resulting in 128 deaths.
The attack could not fulfill its main objective, since Boris III was delayed and saved his life by not being in the building, an anecdote that Bulgarians use as an excuse to be late for their appointments.
Our next visit was to reach Nevazisimov Square, where we could see on a façade the coat of arms of Bulgaria, in which appears, in a field of gules, a lion crowned with gold, armed with silver, supported by two lions crowned with gold. They hold it on two crossed oak branches with acorns and symbolize the three main parts of Bulgaria: Moesia, Thrace and Macedonia. At the bottom of the shield there is a ribbon with the colors of the flag on which the national motto can be read: "Съединението прави силата" ("Unity is strength").
The arms of Bulgaria are stamped with a royal crown, the same one worn by the former monarchs from 1878 to 1946, composed of eight crosses (five seen), as many diadems decorated with pearls and topped with an orb and another cross.
Leaving the shield aside, we saw the statue of Hagia Sophia, which just that day appeared with a blindfold on its eyes as a sign of protest by a citizen. The statue generates a lot of controversy because it does not represent the real Hagia Sophia and symbol of the country, one more mistake by the rulers.
Crossing the street we find the most representative spectrum of the capital, where we can see in the basement a Roman crypt, a few meters above a church from the 5th century and communist remains at street level; all of this homogenized in today's Sofia.
We next visited the 16th century Banya Bashi Mosque, which is located a few meters from churches and synagogues, a symbol of the peace that Bulgarians pursue when different religions coexist.
The next building we see is an imposing bathhouse that receives an unstoppable flow of hot and drinkable thermal waters, which any citizen can freely enjoy in its surroundings.
Next visit, the communist-style political Triangle (Parliament, Assembly and presidency), where the political power of the country resides.
At this point we return to the underground of the city to find Roman remains and the remains of the eastern gate of Serdica.
Back on the surface, we head inside one of these political buildings to visit the oldest building in Sofia, Church of St. George sVI, known as the Rotunda.
On the way to the main course and the end of our little tour, we passed through a beautiful park where the National Theater is located. Ivan Basov, a famous Bulgarian writer, who lived on a street with his name, went to the theater that had his name, to sit in the seat that had his name, to see the works that, surprise, were his. An ode to the ego in every way.
Now we head into the final stretch and visit the small Church of Hagia Sophia, an authentic symbol of the city and not the statue, which is practically in front of the impressive Cathedral of Saint Alexander Nevsky, seat of the Patriarchate of Bulgaria and one of the sixty largest Christian cathedrals in the world, as well as one of the Ten largest Orthodox Cathedrals in the world, as well as a symbol of Sofia and the city's main tourist attraction, and the point where we conclude our tour before going to eat :)
We begin the Tour in front of the courthouse, located in the center, flanked by two bronze lions, which have witnessed several political rallies. In fact, in some of them, protesters have even thrown tomatoes at the building and painted red clown noses on the lions as a sign of protest.
Nikola Lazarov and Pencho Koychev designed the Sofia Courthouse in the 1920s, and it was the first structure in the city to feature a monumental style. Later other buildings were added to it, such as the National Bank of Bulgaria and the Largo.
We continue a few steps away with the Church of Santo Domingo.
Although it is a monument whose beginnings possibly date back to the 10th century (Sveta Nedelya was originally, at that time, a church built with stone and wood), it is a temple that has suffered frequent damage over the centuries, having It has been destroyed on several occasions to be rebuilt again later.
The most notable story was when, on April 16, 1925, the cathedral was devastated by a bomb attack that intended to end the life of King Boris III, resulting in 128 deaths.
The attack could not fulfill its main objective, since Boris III was delayed and saved his life by not being in the building, an anecdote that Bulgarians use as an excuse to be late for their appointments.
Our next visit was to reach Nevazisimov Square, where we could see on a façade the coat of arms of Bulgaria, in which appears, in a field of gules, a lion crowned with gold, armed with silver, supported by two lions crowned with gold. They hold it on two crossed oak branches with acorns and symbolize the three main parts of Bulgaria: Moesia, Thrace and Macedonia. At the bottom of the shield there is a ribbon with the colors of the flag on which the national motto can be read: "Съединението прави силата" ("Unity is strength").
The arms of Bulgaria are stamped with a royal crown, the same one worn by the former monarchs from 1878 to 1946, composed of eight crosses (five seen), as many diadems decorated with pearls and topped with an orb and another cross.
Leaving the shield aside, we saw the statue of Hagia Sophia, which just that day appeared with a blindfold on its eyes as a sign of protest by a citizen. The statue generates a lot of controversy because it does not represent the real Hagia Sophia and symbol of the country, one more mistake by the rulers.
Crossing the street we find the most representative spectrum of the capital, where we can see in the basement a Roman crypt, a few meters above a church from the 5th century and communist remains at street level; all of this homogenized in today's Sofia.
We next visited the 16th century Banya Bashi Mosque, which is located a few meters from churches and synagogues, a symbol of the peace that Bulgarians pursue when different religions coexist.
The next building we see is an imposing bathhouse that receives an unstoppable flow of hot and drinkable thermal waters, which any citizen can freely enjoy in its surroundings.
Next visit, the communist-style political Triangle (Parliament, Assembly and presidency), where the political power of the country resides.
At this point we return to the underground of the city to find Roman remains and the remains of the eastern gate of Serdica.
Back on the surface, we head inside one of these political buildings to visit the oldest building in Sofia, Church of St. George sVI, known as the Rotunda.
On the way to the main course and the end of our little tour, we passed through a beautiful park where the National Theater is located. Ivan Basov, a famous Bulgarian writer, who lived on a street with his name, went to the theater that had his name, to sit in the seat that had his name, to see the works that, surprise, were his. An ode to the ego in every way.
Now we head into the final stretch and visit the small Church of Hagia Sophia, an authentic symbol of the city and not the statue, which is practically in front of the impressive Cathedral of Saint Alexander Nevsky, seat of the Patriarchate of Bulgaria and one of the sixty largest Christian cathedrals in the world, as well as one of the Ten largest Orthodox Cathedrals in the world, as well as a symbol of Sofia and the city's main tourist attraction, and the point where we conclude our tour before going to eat :)
Waypoints
Waypoint
Fountain
Religious site
1,828 ft
Iglesia de San Jorge sVI
Edificio más antiguo de Sofía, llamado como la rotonda
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