Sofia and the Rila Monastery by Elena and Richard

The beautiful city of Sofia is The Republic of Bulgaria’s cultural, economic, and educational center, with countless museums, astounding works of architecture, religious sites, outdoor markets, and art galleries. Sofia is also one of Europe’s oldest capital cities, settled by Thracians in the 8th Century, BCE. RealTravelers Elena and Richard, who are on a tour of Europe, visited some of Sofia’s most impressive sites, including the Rila Monastery, which is today’s Travel Photo of the Day. Here’s what Elena and Richard had to say about their experience:

“While Sofia itself is not home to any of the 7 wonders, it is filled with many old churches (including the Alexander Nevsky church, one of the largest Eastern Orthodox churches in the world) and is a delight to wander around. In our wanderings, we saw the ruins of the old communism HQ, a Russian church, the ruins of a Turkish public bath and even drank from a warm thermal spring that flowed out a public drinking fountain (and was delicious, by the way).

On our second day we went to the Rila Monastery, located up in the Rila Mountains. The monastery itself is the ‘Jerusalem of Bulgaria’ and the country’s most visited tourist attraction. It was simply gorgeous, complete with a perfect backdrop of a leafy mountain-side and blue sky. Inside the main church, it was incredible to see the amount of detail that went into the frescoes. Speaking of detail, we were disappointed that time did not permit us to see Raphael’s cross — Raphael painstakingly carved the cross with a pin over 12 years, eventually going blind.” (more…)

If you’d like to visit the Rila Monastery, or any of Sofia’s other amazing sites, check out the links below for help planning your trip.

Useful Links:
Sofia Travel Guide
Bulgaria Travel Guide
Explore Sofia