I am finally in Bulgaria! It is so exciting to be here, and even more exciting to use the language that I have been practicing for a year.
My good friend Martin picked me up at the airport, and has agreed to give me a tour of this beautiful country. He lives in Sofia, but we will stay with his relatives scattered around Bulgaria.
We started off the tour at the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the largest in the Balkans.
This beautiful church is the crown jewel of the capital city, and even more beautiful on the inside.
Right next to the basilica, in a square brick building, is the St. Sofia Church. This building is set on a maze of catacombs that you can tour for free. Buried here are the tombs of many priests and saints, as well as beautiful mosaic frescoes that survived the tumultuous history of this church (for example, it was converted to a mosque for a short time during Ottoman rule). While driving through downtown Sofia, you may notice that the road is paved in (slippery) golden bricks. These were a wedding gift for Prince Ferdinand of Bulgaria and Princess Marie Louise of Bourbon-Parma in the 19th century. The bricks were intended to pave downtown Sofia and grow it into a fashionable European destination.
Sofia is absolutely beautiful with a lot to do. I am excited to see the rest of the country!
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