Today I took a long walk for the first time around Sofia City.
We started walking along the yellowstone brick pavement, passed the old Sofia Palace which was the home of the Bulgarian Tsar before Comminist Rule, walked past the exclusive Military Club that will host the prestegious Bulgarian Buisness Leader's Forum Awards on Monday.

The ancient ornate Orthodox Chrisitan Church with golden domes came next..this was a gift from the Russians to the Bulgarians ...quite a gift!!...
I walked a little ahead to find myself in front of a long row of imposing and monumental Communist structures, the Bulgarian National Bank that holds the state gold, the president's bungalow ...we were lucky enough to watch the changing of the guards, quite a show i must say!!! I was very impressed..

The next stop on the agenda was the very chique ,very new-age, very 21st century 'Mall of Sofia' .....after due inspection of all the designer labels.....we decided to move ahead.....next came the very high brow and elite Vitosha Boulevard...this was definetely THE place to be seen...the women there were so well turned out and elegant...breathtaking really....

The Boulevard is one long street of designer opulence...on both sides are all the international brands you can think of...the real estate here is one of the highest in the capital..and as you walk, if you look ahead at the end of the street , just at the horizon is the Vitosha mountain range...so you have the illusion of walking towards the mountains ....we took a diversion mid way to enter a beautiful garden....we got ourselves some Bailey flavour Italian Gelato and walked ahead...The Sheraton Balkan to our left and the Hilton , Kempinski and Palace of Culture ahead and a dilapidated Communist piece of art right in the middle.......

We walked ahead and took the subway and instead of going up....we went further down...I gasped with pure awe and facination...here was this beautiful 15th century Orthodox Christian Church...I bought a candlle for 10 stotinkis and lit it in front of a breathtaking icon of the Virgin.The simplicity and the serenity of the place was amazing....right in the middle of the city!!!! actually right under the middle of the city....
We climbed up and found ourselves right under the black stone and gold 10-15 metres /40 feet statue of Saint Sofia...the patron of the city......

The tour wasn't over yet...the next stop was the ancient baths of Sofia...we drank mineral water from the spring....

A few hundred metres ahead.. I was at equal distances from a church , a mosque and a synagogue...all beautiful and quite an eyefull....
The next on the agenda was the very upmarket and very expensive shopping arcade ...we went on the third floor to look at the restaurant ,...red velvet and decadent gold everywhere and to my utter shock...right in the middle of the restaurant .... there was a live TIGER in a wide and spacious glass enclosure ....and people calmly drinking coffee and chatting all around him...the Bengal Tiger was spread out on one of the rocks in the enclosure...he looked really bored....I was incapable of taking my eyes off him...the sheer oddness and contrast in the environment left me awestruck.....
We walked ahead...now slowly reaching the end....the last stop was the National Theatre....where very Formal Theatre Performances were staged....I could see people walking in dressed to the tee....wow the women here are exceptionally elegant....
Now i find myself back in Narodno Sabranie Square and climbing up to the offfice....A Saturday well spent wouldnt you say! Right out of a fantasy really!!! A REAL SENSORY OVERLOAD...And Tomorrow is another day...Some things are worth waiting for wouldn't you say :-)