We had a three-day weekend and decided to spend it in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Some fancy pants graffiti.
A church that looks like the old standard style but with modern elements.
A glimpse of a Sofia square and street.
Another square. That building is under construction, but the temporary facade is pretty.
It's a statue of Sofia, which is a little embarrassing as it turns out. It replaced a statue of Lenin. I guess you can't have a column with nothing on it. People will ask questions. The embarrassing bit comes in with the fact that the city of Sofia is named after Saint Sofia church and therefore the saint, Sofia. Sofia is a saint in the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic traditions. The statue of Sofia however, is littered with pagan imagery and for this reason it sort of embarrasses the people of Sofia.
Banya Bashi Mosque is curently the only functioning mosque in Sofia.
I really liked this fountain and it's crazy whirling top spray.
This is the Church of Saint Nicholas the Miracle-Maker.
It's also known as "The Russian Church."
It was built in 1914 on top of the ruins of the Saray Mosque which was destroyed when Russia liberated Bulgaria from the Ottoman Empire in 1882.
It was built to be the official church of the Russian Embassy which was housed next door.
We went inside but were not permitted to take photos.
First view of St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.
St. Alexander Nevsky is one of the largest Eastern Orthodox cathedrals in the world and also a main attraction for the city of Sofia.
It was built in 1912 and built to honor the Russian soldiers who died in the Russo-Turkish War.
Once again, photos were not permitted, but here's a layout of the inside. There was also a relic and art museum in the crypt. It also didn't allow photos which is really a shame because I had a lot of snarky comments that you now don't get to enjoy.
Next to the cathedral were women selling their needlework and other odds and ends.
You totally can't read the inscription on that stone, but this is the grave of Ivan Vazov the Patriarch of Bulgarian Literature.
Pisa has a leaning tower. Sofia has a leaning pine tree.
Our next stop was the National Gallery for Foreign Art or the Quadrat 500. This is only odd because the art we saw was all by Bulgarian artists. That was cool because we got to see how Bulgarian art changed through the ages, but confusing because it's supposed to be the Foreign Art museum.
Khan Asparuh and his Entourage March to the Danube River by Nikolay Pavlovich (1867)
What's important are the two old dudes carrying demon babies.
I zoomed in on them just to make sure you don't miss them. It's super random.
A Florentine by Konstantin Velichkov (188)
He looks so happy! Maybe it's because he's in Florence and he' not in Naples...
Portrait of Princess Marie Louise by Ivan Mrkvička (1900)
This thing was HUGE. Like 8 feet tall.
Also Marie Louise was the second wife of Napoleon and sister to Marie Antoinette.
The Blue Shawl by Pieter van Hanselaera (1828)
I don't know about you, but the first thing I notice ISN'T the shawl (which looks like she has jeans wrapped around her neck). I notice the whimsical turban like hat she's wearing.
The Annunciation from 15th century Portugal
I thought this relief style was neat. That is all.
Apollo and the Muses by a French Master (18th Century)
Also titled "Anyway, here's Wonderwall."
Male Portrait by George Papazov (1935)
The museum has a sculpture garden thing going on in its inner courtyard.
Look at the cute little family of fire extinguishers!
Nothing snarky about the next three paintings by Nikolay Rainov. I find them fascinating.
Stylized Nature (1922)
Japanese Landscape (1920s)
After Sunset (1920s)
Fear by Lyuben Gaidarov (1980s)
Self-portrait by Vladimir Dimitrov-Maystora (1913)
Apparently my father-in-law had a previous life as a Bulgarian artist.
Reapers at Lunch by Vladimir Dimitrov-Maystora (1930s)
The Old City of Provdiv by Tzanko Lavrenov (1938)
At the Fountain by Dimitar Kazakov (pre 1976)
I think the people are saying their last words before the goat hoards devour them.
To the Slaughterhouse by Zlatyu Boyadzhiev (1960)
The black snake like thing on the bottom is all the livestock going to the slaughter house.
It's such a depressing name/theme for such a cheery painting.
At the market by Christo Javacheff-Christo (1953)
Blood Tax (Conversion to Muhammadanism) by Yoan Leviev (1966)
Pateralism by Kiril Petrov (1962)
Goya by Georgi Trifonov (1991)
When we got into the modern art part of the museum, Dan decided he had had enough. Things had gotten weird and confusing. So we left the museum.
There is an icon market near St. Alexander Nevsky.
Some of the icons have amazingly ridiculous facial expressions.
I did not get one. They were expensive.
This is a statue of Tsar Samuil. He was the Tsar of the First Bulgarian Empire (reign 997-1014).
I noticed the statue because of his eyes.
He is totally done with your shit. Look at that face. I mean really. He is about to beat your ass.
Apparently the eyes light up at night, or used to anyway. I can't imagine how terrifying that is.
On that note, this concludes our adventures for today.
