fbpx

Free Sofia Tour's Blog

December 14, 2023

Sofia’s Lost Communist Heritage: Tracing Bulgaria’s Complex Past

This week we are witnessing the historical event that is the removal of one of Sofia’s most controversial monuments – The Monument of the Soviet Army, after years of debate. That’s why in this article, we are going to take a look back at Sofia’s lost communist heritage. From the end of World War II until the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, Bulgaria was under communist rule, deeply entwined with the Soviet Union’s political ideology. Sofia, as the country’s political center, became a canvas for grand architectural projects and ideological symbols reflecting the ethos of the time. Following the collapse of the regime, a lot was removed from Sofia’s administrative and historical center, symbolizing the beginning of a new era. While some landmarks were removed in the early 90s, right after the political changes, we’ve seen this trend continue through the 2010s and even in late 2023. Here’s our list of famous symbols of Bulgaria’s communist regime that are no longer. The Red Star The red star that […]
April 15, 2020

Bulgaria’s 8 Most Legendary Communist Monuments

You might have heard that Bulgaria was once a socialist country, and a part of the Cold War Eastern Bloc. Part of the heritage from that period that foreigners seem to find most fascinating are the communist-era monuments. Here, you are in luck, since Bulgaria is one of the few countries where this cultural heritage is still well materialized by many typical artifacts from that period. The monumental architecture of the 1970’s and 1980’s is a result of a massive cultural policy of the state during the socialist period. Typically, monumental art from the last decades of the 20th century resulted in landmarks that illustrate historical events, using specific historical images. So, if you are a fan of brutalist art or are in search of unique Instagram opportunities, here’s a list of Bulgaria’s most legendary and impressive communist monuments: 1. The Memorial Home of the Bulgarian Communist Party (Buzludzha) There is an incredible amount of communist monuments still preserved in Bulgaria. However, this is by far the most famous one. […]
March 25, 2019

365 Sofia Tours 2019/2020 Winter and Summer Schedules

Welcome to Sofia! It doesn’t matter whether you are here in summer or winter! Our tours run 365 days a year! Here’s our full schedule: Free Sofia Tour – 3/4 times a day! Free Sofia Tour is the general sightseeing walk around the main historical landmarks in the center of Sofia. In just 2 hours you will get acquainted with what Sofia has to offer – the perfect introduction to any trip to Sofia. We know how tight your schedule is when visiting a new city. That’s why we decided to give you plenty of opportunities to explore Sofia with us. Free Sofia Tour in English runs every single day as follows: November – March: 11AM, 2PM, 6PM April – October: 10AM, 11AM, 2PM, 6PM We will be waiting for you in front of the Palace of Justice. Our tours run 365 days a year, no matter the weather conditions (including all national and religious holidays). Free Sofia Tour in Spanish! Free Sofia Tour en Español- 5 days a week! […]
December 31, 2015

Christmas or New Year’s? A Communist Take

Christmas in Bulgaria during communist times If you have read our 5 Bulgarian Christmas facts and traditions post, you already know how we celebrate Christmas in Bulgaria nowadays. But during the 45 years of Communism in our country (1944 – 1989) things were quite different. The reason: communist countries were officially atheist, so it was seen as completely inappropriate to celebrate religious holidays. Informally, however, most people would still celebrate secretly at home with their families. So, the communist government had to come up with ideas to discourage the people to celebrate Christmas, Easter and other religious holidays. In this blog post we would talk about… Four ways to discourage celebrating Christmas during the Communist period: The power of TV How do you create a situation where people would prefer to stay home on Christmas Eve, rather than go to church? Easy! The Communist party came up with the idea to broadcast movies from Western countries (the USA, the UK, France, Italy etc.) on national television. These were otherwise almost […]
May 11, 2015

The 365: Communist Tour of Sofia

This year the 365 Association, which stands behind the Free Tours of Sofia and Plovdiv, is launching two new and exciting projects: the 365: Communist Tour (link for the tour) and Culture Tour (link for the tour). The idea behind starting a 365: Communist Tour actually arose out of the experience of our guides doing the Free Sofia Tour. On many occasions our guests show a deeper interest in the topic and have asked about what it was like in Bulgaria during that period, wanting to learn more about the story of our side of the Cold War. The 365: Communist Tour – Communism and Europe The Cold War is, of course, something that practically affected the whole world in the previous century. It has been over 25 years since communism officially disappeared in Europe. It is natural that memories are already starting to fade away or get distorted. At the same time, most people still have strong opinions on the topic. If you just talk to a local about it, you […]