INFO KIT BULGARIA Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in southeastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, and the Black Sea to the east. The capital and largest city is Sofia; other major cities are Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas. With a territory of 110,994 square kilometers (42,855 sq mi), Bulgaria is Europe's 16th-largest country. History of Bulgaria The land that gave birth to the legendary Orpheus and Spartacus, Bulgaria is a country with a long, tumultuous and fascinating history. Founded in the 7th century, Bulgaria is one of the oldest states on the European continent. To read more about Bulgaria’s history, please check the link below. http://bulgariatravel.org/data/doc/ENG_49-Istoria_na_Bulgaria.pdf FACTS Language in The official language is Bulgarian language with Cyrillic Bulgaria alphabet. English, Turkish and Russian are spoken by part of the population. Currency The official currency in Bulgaria is Bulgarian lev. One lev is made up of 100 stotinki. 1 EUR is equal to 1,9558 BGN. Population 7,050,034 Religion Bulgarian orthodox church. Minority religious groups include Muslims, Protestants, Catholics, Jews, and Gregorian Armenians. National anthem Mila rodino (Dear motherland) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RBmnMsO_B8 1 | P a g e AIRPORT AND TRANSPORT The most convenient way to travel to Bulgaria is by plane. Sofia Airport is the main international airport of Bulgaria and has two terminals. Terminal 1 currently serves low-cost and charter carriers. Terminal 2 is new and bigger terminal and provides fast connection to the city center via Metro Line 2, in an 18-minute journey. For transferring between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, there is a shuttle bus provided by Sofia Airport free-of-charge at every 30 minutes between 07:00 hrs. and 19:00 hrs. Sofia Airport metro station of M2 is next to the building of Terminal 2 of the airport. The metro trains operate from 5am to midnight. Single ride ticket price is 1.60 levs (0.82 EUR). The ticket is valid for the entire metro network so you can use the same ticket for transfer to M1. Tickets can be purchased from the cashier desks in the metro station or from ticket machines. Sofia Central Bus and Railway Station is only 30 minutes away if you change lines. You can take also taxi for average price of 10-15 EUR to the center city. Always ask the driver for the price in advance, so you can avoid overcharging. Sofia Central Bus Station http://www.centralnaavtogara.bg/index.php#b provides transfer to the most of the bigger cities in Bulgaria. The most comfortable and the fastest way for travelling to Blagoevgrad is by bus. There are buses to Blagoevgrad going hourly. The average price is 5 EUR and the journey lasts approx. 1 hour 45 min. Sofia Railway Station is just next to the bus station. You can check the schedule on this link http://www.bdz.bg/en/. One-way ticket costs less than 4 EUR. Some trains can be antiquated, not especially comfortable, and journey times are usually slower than buses, on the other side, the scenery is likely to be more rewarding. 2 | P a g e PLACES TO SEE Bulgaria is not famous only for its magnificent sand beaches and summer resorts, but also for its beautiful mountains, old cities and villages with traditional architecture. Here are some tips for the best places to visit: Black Sea coastline has long stretches of sandy beaches dotted with hotels, traditional fishing villages and historical sites. The most famous are Nessebar – known as the Pearl of the Black Sea, Sunny beach, Sozopol, Golden Sands, etc. 3 | P a g e Historical cities – Veliko Tarnovo - the historic capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire between the 12th and 14th centuries, the nowadays capital Sofia, ancient Plovdiv, seaside cities Varna and Burgas. The smallest city in Tsarevets, Veliko Tarnovo Bulgaria – Melnik is home to some of the best wineries in the country. Melnik 4 | P a g e Vitosha street, Sofia Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Sofia 5 | P a g e Ivan Vazov National Theatre, Sofia Ancient Theatre, Plovdiv 6 | P a g e Kapana Festival in Plovdiv Bulgarian National Revival architecture – Tryavna, Koprivshitza, Bozhentsi, Plovdiv are just some of the places with unique architecture from 19th century. Plovdiv 7 | P a g e Mountains – Mountains constitute a significant part of Bulgaria and are dominant in the southwest and central parts. Bulgaria's highest mountains are Rila (highest peak Musala, 2925 m; the highest in the Balkans) and Pirin Mountains, which is home for the most famous ski resort Bansko. The large mountain chain of Stara planina (Balkan Mountains) runs west-east across the entire country, bisecting it and giving the name to the entire Balkan peninsula. Other extensive mountains are the massifs Rhodopes and Strandzha in the south. Seven Rila Lakes Monasteries – Eastern orthodox monasteries belong among Bulgaria’s most valuable cultural heritage and they can be found around whole country. Rila monastery is the biggest monastery in Bulgaria and protected by UNESCO. Rila Monastery 8 | P a g e High above the charming town of Melnik, lies the serene Rozhen Monastery. Bachkovo monastery "Virgin Mary" is the second largest monastery in Bulgaria, Glozhene Monastery will ravish you with splendid location, perched on top of a hill with a beautiful panorama. Other: Shipka Monument/ Buzludzha Monument Belogradchik fortress Cape Kaliakra Devetashka cave Euxinograd Palace Open Air Ethnographic Museum Etara, Belogradchik Fortress Gabrovo Kaliakra Cape 9 | P a g e BULGARIAN CULTURE Contemporary Bulgarian culture blends a formal culture that helped forge a national consciousness towards the end of Ottoman rule, and millennium-old folk traditions. An essential element of Bulgarian folklore is fire, used to banish evil spirits and illnesses. Many of these are personified as witches, whereas other creatures like zmey and samodiva (veela) are either benevolent guardians or ambivalent tricksters. Some rituals against evil spirits have survived and are still practised, most notably kukeri and survakari. Nestinarstvo, a ritual fire-dance of Thracian origin, is included in the list of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. 10 | P a g e Martenitsa is also widely celebrated. It is a small piece of adornment, made of white and red yarn and usually in the form of two dolls, a male and a female. Martenitsi are worn from Baba Marta Day (March 1) until the wearer first sees a stork, swallow, or blossoming tree (or until late March). The name of the holiday means "Grandma March" in Bulgarian and the holiday and the wearing of Martenitsi are a Bulgarian tradition related to welcoming the spring, which according to Bulgarian folklore begins in March. The traditional Bulgarian costume is one of the most typical elements of the Bulgarian folklore culture. It is the traditional clothing, which has a specific meaning in both everyday and festival activities of the Bulgarians. Each region of Bulgaria has its own costume with unique, typical motifs. 11 | P a g e BULGARIAN CUISINE Bulgarian cooking traditions are diverse because of geographical factors such as climatic conditions suitable for a variety of vegetables, herbs and fruit. Aside from the vast variety of local Bulgarian dishes, Bulgarian cuisine shares a number of dishes with Persian, Turkish, and Greek cuisine. Bulgarian food often incorporates salads as appetizers and is also noted for the prominence of dairy products, wines and other alcoholic drinks such as rakia. The cuisine also features a variety of soups, such as the cold soup tarator, and pastries, such as the filo dough based banitsa, pita and the various types of börek. BANITSA This piece of greasy pastry deliciousness can be purchased in bakeries all over the country. Its standard variety includes a filling of feta-like white cheese (сирене, sirene), though varieties filled with onions, cabbage, spinach, mushrooms or pumpkin can also be found. SHOPSKA SALAD This classic Bulgarian salad contains chopped onions, peppers, tomatoes and cucumber, topped with parsley and grated Bulgarian white cheese. Deceptively simple and utterly delicious. 12 | P a g e MUSAKA This dish is enjoyed in many variations throughout the Balkan region. The Bulgarian version involves potatoes, eggs and minced pork meat and is a known favourite of Bulgarian men, among whom it is a popular joke that they cannot marry a woman who is unable to cook the perfect musaka. The whole dish is traditionally covered with thick Bulgarian yoghurt on top. Lactobacillus bulgaricus When visiting Bulgaria, for sure you will hear a lot about their yogurt (in Bulgarian “kiselo mlyako”) with special bacterium, appearing only in Bulgaria. All Bulgarians are proud on their dairy product and eat it daily. Here are some examples of comparative costs in Bulgaria (prices in mid-range restaurants): – Coffee – 0,5-1 EUR – Beer (0,5 l) – 1-2 EUR – Soft drink (0,5 l) – 1-2 EUR – Bottle of water (0,5 l) – 0,25-1 EUR – Bottle of mark red wine (0,75 l) – 5-10 EUR – Dinner – 4-8 EUR – Lunch pack – 2-4 EUR 13 | P a g e BLAGOEVGRAD Blagoevgrad is а city in southwestern Bulgaria, the administrative centre of Blagoevgrad Municipality and of Blagoevgrad Province, with a population of 70,881 inhabitants (as of 2011). It lies on the banks of the Blagoevgradska Bistritsa River. The city is the economic and cultural centre of southwestern Bulgaria. It is located in the valley of the Struma River at the foot of the Rila and Pirin Mountains, 101 kilometres (63 miles) south of Sofia, close to Republic of Macedonia border and 1 hour of driving to Greece.