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Ruse Regional Museum of History
The 5th-century BC Borovo Treasure , consisting of sliver cups and jugs adorned with Greek gods, is one of the highlights of Ruses interesting museum. Other artefacts on display include Thracian helmets, Roman statues and 19th-century costumes.
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Old City
Built on the grid of an ancient Roman city, Stara Zagora has yielded some amazing discoveries. One, a massive floor mosaic (4th to 5th centuries AD), is in the post office’s eastern entrance. The room relies on natural light: see it on a sunny day.
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Mineral Baths
The Mineral Baths – also known as the Turkish Baths – was completed in 1913. Its elegant striped facade and ceramic decorations recall the designs of Nesebâr’s medieval churches. The building now hosts occasional art exhibitions, advertised in Programata magazine.
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Sveti Sveti Konstantin & Elena Monastery
This tiny church was built in the early 18th century on the site of a holy healing spring, though it has been rebuilt and remodelled since then. The spring remains, under the communion table. The church houses relics of St Valentine, as well as its patron saints.
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Rila Monastery
Bulgarias most famous monastery is nestled in a towering forested valley. The 300 monk cells span four levels of colourful balconies, overlooking a large misshapen courtyard, while the Nativity Church, built in the 1830s, contains 1200 magnificent murals.
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Doctors’ Garden
Behind the National Library, this neat, secluded park features a big, pyramidal monument dedicated to the medics who died in the Russo-Turkish War (1877–78). Also here is an outdoor lapidarium, with lots of Roman architectural fragments dug up around Sofia.
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Sveta Petka Samardzhiiska Church
This tiny church was built during the early years of Ottoman rule (late 14th century), which explains its sunken profile and inconspicuous exterior. Inside are some 16th-century murals. It’s rumoured that the Bulgarian national hero Vasil Levski is buried here.
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Roman Odeon
Constructed between the 2nd and 5th centuries AD, the Odeon was once the seat of the city council. It now hosts occasional performances in its tiny reconstructed amphitheatre: check out the original columns. Its adjacent to the tourist-information centre.
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Christ Pantokrator Church
Typical of the characteristic Nesebâr construction is the well-preserved Christ Pantokrator Church, built in the mid-14th century. An unusual feature at the eastern end is the frieze of swastikas, an ancient solar symbol. The church is now used as a commercial art gallery.
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Presidents Building
The Bulgarian president’s office isnt open to the public, but the changing of the guard ceremony (on the hour) is a spectacle not to be missed; for the full ceremony, replete with music, weapons and all manners of pomp, be there on the first Wednesday of the month at noon.
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Sveti Georgi Monastery
On a dusty road about 2km out of town, heading towards the main bus station, is Sveti Georgi Monastery. Built in 1856, it’s a small complex set in pretty gardens with a quaint, icon-filled church and a bell tower covered in saintly frescoes. It’s also possible to stay here.
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Vasil Levski Museum
The Vasil Levski Museum contains extensive displays about the revered revolutionary.
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Tsarevgrad Tarnov Wax Museum
En route to the Fortress is this new wax museum showcasing the medieval glory days of Veliko Târnovo. Explore the well-crafted figures (everyone from kings to craftsmen get a look-in), catch an explanatory film, or get in the mood playing dress-up in period costume (5 lv).
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Sveti Nikolai Russian Church
This beautiful church, with its glittering mosaic exterior and golden domes, was completed in 1914 for Sofia’s Russian community, and named in honour of St Nikolai, the ‘miracle worker’. The cramped interior features icons painted between the 11th and 14th centuries.
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St Michael the Archangel Church
St Michael the Archangel Church was founded in 1865 and is historically significant as the first place where religious services were given in Bulgarian. The building also contained Varna’s first school. The church is small and badly lit but there are some fine wooden icons.
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Museum of Folk Craft & Applied Arts
The impressive Museum of Folk Craft & Applied Arts by the bridge comprises 10 halls exhibiting local textiles, woodcarving, metalwork, weaving, pottery and ceramics, as well as some archaeological artefacts. The adjoining History Museum is included in the admission cost.
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Oborishte Park
This attractive park, with its fountains, lovely rose beds, cafes and popcorn vendors, is especially popular with young families, and there are some attractions for younger kids, including electric cars and a bouncy castle. There are also ping-pong tables that are free to use.
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Museum Complex of Pancho Vladigerov
One of several National Revival and early-20th-century baroque houses dotted along ul Tsar Osvoboditels cobblestone western section, this museum commemorates Bulgaria’s most renowned composer and pianist. The handsome structures include a library, set around a shady courtyard garde
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Church of Sveti Konstantin & Elena
This is Plovdiv’s oldest church and one of its most beloved: the riotous frescoes and gilded iconostasis within belie its broody exterior. The original church – dedicated to Emperor Constantine the Great and his mother, Helena – was built in AD 337; what stands today dates to 1832.
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Sofia Synagogue
Sofia’s Moorish-style synagogue was designed by Austrian architect Friedrich Gruenanger, and was consecrated in 1909. Built to accommodate up to 1170 worshippers, it is the second-largest Sephardic synagogue in Europe, and its 2250kg brass chandelier is the biggest in Bulgaria.
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