Arena di Serdica  ***** - Sofia, Bulgaria

Sofia is the capital and the largest city in Bulgaria, with population of over 1 300 000 people. It is located on the northwestern part of Southern Bulgaria, between four mountains.

In 7^th century the settlement on these lands forms itself as a Thracian town that they called Serdica – name which is firstly mentioned by the Romans. During the roman period of the town, its development is strongly progressing, premise for that is its location on main roads, which are connecting Adriatic and Middle Europe with Black and Aegean Sea along with the Middle East. Those conditions had brought large-scale building in the area, as turrets, protective walls, public baths, administrative and cult buildings, a civic basilica, an amphitheatre - the City Council, a large Forum, a big Circus (Theatre), etc. were built. Serdica has been the favorite city of the Roman’s emperor Constantine the Great. According to some historians he loved the city so much, that he intended to replace the capital of the Roman Empire in Serdica and ancient chroniclers often quote him with: “Serdica is my Rome”. In 343 AD, 318 bishops had gathered for the Council of Serdica, which has ecumenical importance, because it approves the orthodox symbol of faith and the orthodox teachings for the Saint Trinity.

When it fell within the territories of the Bulgarian state, the city got the name of Sredets. In 13-14^th century its current name Sofia (Wisdom from Greek translation) is starting to appear. In the period 14^th- 19^th century, Sofia as well as the whole Bulgarian State, is under the Ottoman rule. In 1879 (year after the liberation of the country), Sofia became a capital of Principality of Bulgaria. That contributes for its industry’s development and capital concentration. The city quickly became a large and important political, administrative, economic, scientific and cultural centre of the country. Multiple factories from all sectors of the industry have been built. As a result, the number of inhabitants rose faster compared to other Bulgarian cities, mainly from internal migration (at the time of the liberation the city’s population was 11,649 people). In the period between 1900 and 1946 the population rose from 46 000 people to over half million people. The change of the leadership and arriving of the communism brought another impetus to the expansion of the capital. In that period (till 1989), the population of Sofia reached 1 200 000 people. When the communism fell in 1989, it opened the gates for a new construction, businesses starting and foreign investments.

The city is rich on landmarks, most of which are churches. The most famous ones are: “St. Sophia”- after which the city is named; The Boyana Church “St. St. Nicholas and Panteleimon”- part of UNESCO’s World Heritage List; “St. Parascheva”- the third largest church in Sofia; “St. Nedelya”- famous with its monstrous assault in 1925, when 150 people had died; “St. Petka of the Saddlers”- small one-nave church, partially dug into the ground, from 11^th century; “St. George”- Early Christian red brick rotunda that is considered the oldest building in Sofia. It is built in 4^th century during the rule of Constantine the Great; “St. Nicholas the Miracle-Maker”- also known as the Russian Church; Alexander Nevsky Cathedral- the symbol of the city and one of the biggest orthodox churches in the world. There’s a variety of monuments in Sofia, the Monument of Vasil Levski, the Monument of Tsar liberator and the Mausoleum of Prince Alexander I Battenberg, are also symbols of the city.

There are also several parks in the territories of Sofia. The biggest park in the city is “Borisova gradina”, in which are located several small lakes, playgrounds, monuments, the “Vasil Levski” stadium and the biggest beach in Sofia. City’s garden is the oldest garden in the city, established in 1872. Park “Vitosha” is pronounced for Natural Park in 2000^th year. On its territories are located the biosphere reserve “Bistrishko branishte” and the reserve “Torfeno branishte”.

Being a capital is understandable to be also a culture events center. The main facility for these events is the National Palace of Culture. The National Palace of culture is a big building in the Centrum of Sofia and it’s used mainly for concerts and other cultural events. The biggest hall is with 5000 sitting places. It is built in 1981 and it is visited by nearly 1 600 000 people yearly. Other places for events are: National Theatre “Ivan Vazov”, Theatre “Tear and laugh”, National Music Theatre “Stephan of Macedonia”, National Opera and Ballet and others. From years Sofia is not only a capital of Bulgaria, but also a capital of concerts in the state. Every year the biggest world wide famous names are performing on Sofia’s stage. Names such as: Elton John, Madonna, George Michael, Tiesto, Lenny Kravitz, Kiss, Kylie Minogue, Depeche Mode, Rammstein, Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, Anthrax, Judas Priest, Rihanna, Iron Maiden, AC/DC and Marillion and many others. On the territories of the municipality of Sofia, there are also many galleries and museums, many of which are members of “100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria”. The National Historical Museum is the biggest historical museum in Bulgaria and one of the biggest in Europe. The National Ethnographical Museum and the National Art Gallery are located in the Centrum of the city in the building of the ex tsar’s fortress and many other museums.

Of course with city of that size is normal to have lots of hotels and restaurants and clubs.
With its history, architecture and natural beauty, Sofia has the outlook of modern European capital.        

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