When you wake up on the day you’re going away, the last thing you want to hear is that there is suspected drone activity at the airport and all flights are suspended. Unfortunately that’s exactly what happened to us, we had picked the day of the Gatwick drone incident to fly to Sofia. As the situation was unclear we went to the airport anyway, as it’s just a short bus ride for us, and upon arrival our flight was officially cancelled. All was not lost though as the airline’s app let me rebook for the following week, I had to pick a different hotel as there was no availability on our dates but this turned out to be for the best as we ended up staying somewhere more interesting.
Our original hotel choice had been one of a typical international chain, I then chose to stay at the Hotel Rila which was not only in a great central location but also had an interesting history. It was right next to the Bulgarian government buildings and in communist times had been used by important officials. Apparently when the Chernobyl disaster occurred those in power knew what had happened before the general population, and the government officials then had their meals in the hotel dining room, eating specially importing produce to avoid potentially contaminated food from the affected region. The building itself retained an air of that era with wood panelling and a somewhat retro feel.
Just around the corner from the hotel was the 4th century church of St George, originally built as Roman baths and Sofia’s oldest church. The Archeological Museum was also nearby. All of these attractions were quiet and a pleasure to stroll around, some of the religious buildings are beautifully ornate.
We noticed that there were quite a few dogs living on the streets of Sofia, some had a tag in their ear which means they’ve received a veterinary checkup by local animal welfare organisations. One of these dogs befriended us and followed us all the way to the metro station, where he got into a fight with another dog! Another dog was following a tour group when one of the people unknowingly dropped a glove. The dog picked up the glove and ran off until it found the owner, the perfect lost property official!
Amongst all the more traditional sights we also went to the more modern Paradise Centre, a very large shopping mall in the south of the city with views over nearby Mount Vitosha. We didn’t actually go to the mountain but it’s known for hiking and winter sports, and its proximity to the centre of Sofia makes that area easily accessible.
Food was good value and we had some lovely meals, typically the Bulgarian cuisine is quite meat-heavy and filling. Eating out seems to be very popular in Sofia and we had difficulty finding a table in some of the restaurants.
Sofia isn’t a large city so we were able to walk to many places, there are also trams and a good metro system. Serdika metro station is particularly interesting as it has Roman remains on display both outside and inside on the platforms themselves.
We only had a short break in Sofia but it was long enough for us to see the main sights, it has some nice architecture with plenty of historical interest, and isn’t expensive compared with many other European cities.
rhtravels 