I took part in four tours: City, Communist, Jewish and Alternative. All were very enjoyable, informative and delivered in clear language.
Svetla will be fondly remembered as having introduced me to Sofia’s main sites, sights and sounds on my first day in the city. In a short space of time, she imparted so many highlights relating to the country and the city, past and present, in a fun and informed manner. Her animated style and good diction added to my appreciation of the themes she was evoking as we walked through the city downtown.
The Communist Tour was led by Daniel who was an adept guide. He completely dominated his subject and blended together the essential elements of information into simple chunks which he told like a story-teller at each stopover. His command of English afforded him wit and irony in his delivery which added to the compelling story he had to tell. Daniel took a neutral stance on a complicated and sensitive era of Bulgarian history and allowed his audience to make their own judgments.
The Alternative Tour was a self-guided treasure hunt-type activity around downtown Sofia. Equipped with a map and clues, the itinerary took us to hitherto undiscovered parts of the city. It was great fun, like Hercule Poirot analysing all the clues and then deducing the answers. It turned out to be a novel and diverting way to uncover the central neighbourhood.
The final tour of my stay consisted of a walk which had Judaism as its theme. Kris was our skilful guide. The tour concentrated on the vicissitudes of Jewish life over 1000s of years of history, from the evolution of Jewish settlements in Bulgaria right up to the present day. I was particularly gratified to learn that the majority of Bulgarian Jews were saved from the Holocaust by the actions of the King and a vociferous Orthodox Church, not to mention an outraged public opinion. Kris relied on the facts, rather emotions, to help the assembly better understand the subject matter. A very worthwhile exercise.
Thanks to all for some enduring memories of Sofia.
November 2019
