Built on a hill almost 180 degrees surrounded by a river meander its outlook constantly changes with the weather and the seasons. Bulgarian kids are bussed there on obligatory school tours. In effect, it is not just a major monument of history but also of how the perception of history has changed in the Bulgarian lands through the past decades – the late Communist period included.
Most of these water reservoirs exist to this day, though some are reportedly in a bad state as they have not been maintained for years. The majority are unremarkable, but some are in fact quite serene – and many locals frequent for angling or camping.
The thrust to modernise Bulgaria in the second half of the 20th century was so forceful that the urban and farming planners of the time sometimes relocated whole villages to higher ground to make way for the water.
As a result of what some Bulgarians refer to as the "unbridled" construction of hotels, resorts and holiday homes – "entombing the Black Sea in concrete" – many of them have been destroyed. If you look at photos of the sand dunes south of Sozopol taken just 15 years ago and compare to the reality of today you will be either angered to tears (if you care for nature and the environment) or reach for your pocketbook (if you are a property developer). Still, some beaches do remain as they once were.
But owing to its topography it is one of the best places in Europe to explore bridges. Bulgaria's bridges are dated from the late Middle Ages, when the Ottomans invaded, to the late 20th century, when the Communists went ahead with sometimes megalomaniacal construction projects. Exploring Bulgaria's bridges and the plethora of stories behind them can easily become one of the highlights of your stay in Bulgaria, especially if you do some bungee jumping from the one pictured here.
Still, this country does boast a number of small isles one of which is even permanently inhabited. Used intermittently as an Orthodox monastery, a prison and now a museum the small isle is known mainly for its lighthouse, though few locals imagine it was erected by the Ottoman authorities, back in the middle of the 19th century, as part of a grand project to modernise maritime navigation in the Black Sea. The isle can now be visited by commercial boats run by the local municipality.
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It was supposed to commemorate a series of 19th century battles between Russian and Ottoman forces that led to the restoration of Bulgaria's independence. As such, every Bulgarian school kid knows it as they are taken on obligatory bus tours of the area. Why the mountain the monument is on is of interest to adventure seekers, however, is because it lies in the middle of a major trekking route that starts at the border with Serbia to the west and ends at the Black Sea to the east, covering about 700 km of at times very strenuous climbing and walking.
During the centuries the natural fortification provided by the rocks was used for a military installation by whoever happened to be in power. The nearby town now finds itself in what is Europe's poorest and least developed region, but it does have good potential for tourism. The legends of the rocks will only help.
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Through the centuries, Bulgaria has changed the location of its capital city at least a dozen times. From Pliska and Preslav in the early years through Veliko Tarnovo in the Middle Ages Bulgaria's kings have ruled from various towns and cities not all of which are now in today's Bulgaria. In fact the place whence Bulgaria was ruled for the longest period of time, about 500 years, is currently a major megapolis with over 18 million people living in it. It is still referred to in Bulgaria as "Royal City."
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High hills were deemed a particularly appropriate location as they used both Socialist Realism and the power of nature to assert the invincible authority of the Party and the working classes. Communism in Bulgaria has gone away 30 years ago, but its hilltop monuments survive. Some are in a decrepit condition as they have been abandoned, but some are still lovingly been tended to by local authorities that claim their "artistic" and "historical" value absolves them of the sins of the system that produced them.
A few yards from the muddy waters a small village house stands. This is where Vanga, the blind clairvoyant and one of Bulgaria's best-known 20th century phenomena, used to live. She died in the 1990s, but Bulgarians continue to quote predictions she may or not have made about anything from football to the sinking of Russian submarines and US presidents, among many others. The area is now widely considered to be one of Bulgaria's top vortexes. One of its telltale signs is the flock of helmeted guineafowls roaming about.
He discovered he could find virtually no information relating to it. In fact, he could find a lot more about the Nile's journey through Africa than he could about this river's meanders through southeastern Europe. Yet, this is one of the greatest rivers in Europe, the only one that flows through the continent west to east before it gushes out to sea forming a huge delta. Spanning for about 2,000 miles and going through half-a-dozen countries the river is impregnated with history, culture and nature.
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Often, they can be visited without any restrictions. But Bulgaria has another type of military installations that predate the Warsaw Pact barracks and border outposts. Remember: before becoming the most loyal satellite of the USSR this country was a Nazi ally. Along the whole of the Black Sea coast there is at least a dozen of German bunkers, facing east, and still standing where the German engineers and troops erected them at the beginning of the Second World War.
But behind the trinket souvenir stands and the overpriced tavernas it holds many centuries of history, a charming old town and perhaps the biggest concentration of medieval churches in Bulgaria. All are situated on an erstwhile island, which is now connected to the mainland by a causeway, and have rightfully gained the location an UNESCO World Heritage Site status.
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Every Bulgarian knows it used to be the capital of the medieval kingdom of the Bulgarians just before the Ottomans invaded, in the late 14th century. It is now the home to a large university, many cafés and restaurants, and a reconstructed fortress commanding stupendous views for miles around.
It was in fact paid for by a Turk who bought out hay from the locals only to sell it back to them at a significant profit. Being Muslim, he commissioned the bridge to be built entirely in the Ottoman tradition, with red and yellow decorative stripes, spawning the moniker Colourful Bridge.
The lions came around the turn of the 20th century when the bridge was rebuilt with significant modifications. It is now one of the symbols of the city it is in.
Held every year on the same date, 3 June, in a village deep in the Strandzha in southeastern Bulgaria, the walking-on-fire is the culmination of several weeks of preparations accompanied by minor and major performances by locals in what is a characteristic amalgamation of Christian and pagan rites.
Some folk-themed entertainment venues in Bulgaria put up commercial shows meant strictly for tourists, but the real thing happens once a year, in one particular village.
Those with an interest in cultural heritage and history will inevitably relate it to its multitude of ancient monuments related to the Thracians, ancient tribes who lived in these lands before the Bulgarian state was founded in the 7th century. The Thracians were skilful goldsmiths who famously drank their wine undiluted. They provide another moniker for the location, Valley of the Thracian Kings.
It has been immortalised in various works of fiction by US writers including John Updike and Elizabeth Kostova. Yet few people have ventured to spend a night within its sturdy confines, and even fewer have attended some of the major religious high days' rites the monks conduct with unparalleled enthusiasm and solemnity. The Orthodox Easter midnight mass wins hands down amongst those.
Your only company will likely be the seagulls hovering above your head. With several dozen mainly Byzantine churches, this town, a few miles south of a notorious Black Sea resort, is a major site rightfully inscribed in UNESCO's World Heritage list. If you are lucky, you might be able to experience some very rare snow, which usually does not stay for more than a day or two.
Located in the Thracian Plain just outside Plovdiv, Bulgaria's second largest city, it is hidden in a huge mound where the digs are still ongoing. Despite the media frenzy and speculations that the enormous structure emerging from the ground is anything from the tomb of a Roman emperor to the deed of extraterrestrials, no one actually knows what this really is.
