Sredets, Sofia

The Sveti Sedmochislenitsi Church (Bulgarian: църква „Свети Седмочисленици“) and formerly The Black Mosque (Turkish: Kara Camii) is a Bulgarian Orthodox church in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. It was created between 1901 and 1902 as an Ottoman mosque later converted into orthodox Church, and was inaugurated on 27 July 1903. The church is named after Cyril and Methodius and their five disciples, known in the Orthodox Church collectively as the Sedmochislenitsi. The Black Mosque (Bulgarian: Черна джамия, romanized: Cherna dzhamiya; Turkish: Kara Camii) was built in 1528 on the order of Suleiman the Magnificent with the intention to be more impressive and beautiful than the Christian churches in the city. The mosque is popularly attributed to the famous Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan, although this is uncertain. It was constructed at the place of a former nunnery of the Rila Monastery and an Early Christian temple from the 4th-5th century, the ruins of which were excavated in 1901. An even older construction, a pagan temple of Asclepius from Roman Serdica, was also discovered in the mosque's foundations. The 25 m-long mosque had a square shape and a large lead-covered dome. The mosque was initially known as the Koca Mehmed Pasha Mosque after Mehmed-paša Sokolović. Another name was the İmaret Mosque after the imaret, a kitchen for the poor located in the vicinity, the ruins of which were found in 1912. A madrasah, a Muslim religious school, was located in what is now the small garden between the modern church and the Count Ignatiev School. The madrasah was later used as a prison after the Liberation of Bulgaria. Other Ottoman constructions nearby included a caravanserai and a hammam. The mosque received its more popular name, the Black Mosque, after the dark granite from which its minaret was made. The minaret collapsed during an earthquake in the 19th century and the mosque was abandoned by the Ottomans after the Liberation of Bulgaria in 1878 to become used as a military warehouse and prison. The architect who suggested the conversion of the once Ottoman mosque into a Christian church was the Russian Alexander Pomerantsev, responsible for the Upper Trade Rows on Red Square, among other buildings. The Bulgarian architects Yordan Milanov and Petko Momchilov designed the dome, the narthex and the bell tower in a traditional Bulgarian style, inspired by the movement of Romanticism. Only the central hall and the dome of the former mosque were preserved, with four oval bays, a narthex and an altar section being added. The construction works took a year, between 27 May 1901 and 6 May 1902, but the complete inner decoration did not finish until 1996. Young artists painted the icons and among the first donors were Tsar Ferdinand (recognized as the primary church donor in 1905) and Ivan Evstratiev Geshov. Famous Bulgarian statesman Petko Karavelov also contributed significantly to the church's construction and was buried nearby in January 1903. The large candlesticks in front of the altar were cast in 1903 from obsolete police badges from Eastern Rumelia and the Principality of Bulgaria (i.e. before the Unification in 1885). An electric clock, still in use, was created by the noted watchmaker Georgi Hadzhinikolov and fit to the western façade in the 1930s. The small garden and the square close to the church were also built in the period. In the grounds of the Sveti Sedmochislenitsi is buried alongside his wife Petko Stoichev Karavelov (Bulgarian: Петко Каравелов) (24 March 1843 – 24 January 1903) a leading Bulgarian liberal politician, who served as Prime Minister on four occasions.

The Aleko Konstantinov State Satirical Theatre (Bulgarian: Държавен сатиричен театър „Алеко Константинов“, Darzhaven satirichen teatar „Aleko Konstantinov“), commonly known as the Satirical Theatre, is a theatre in Sofia, Bulgaria, located on Georgi Rakovski Street, known as "Sofia Broadway". It was established in 1957 and named after writer Aleko Konstantinov, author of the satirical series Bay Ganyo. From 1974, the theatre put on a very successful production of Stanislav Stratiev's The Roman Bath, which was put on for more than ten years. In 2005 the theatre put on a production of Ana Vaseva's D.L..

The Krastyo Sarafov National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts (Bulgarian: Национална академия за театрално и филмово изкуство „Кръстьо Сарафов“, usually abbreviated as НАТФИЗ, NATFA) is an institution of higher education based in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. It is the first Bulgarian university in the field of theatre and film arts. It was founded in 1948, being the only public and state-run institution of its kind in the country. The Academy enrolls about 120 new students every year, including 20 international students. It is located in three adjacent buildings in downtown Sofia, which are: a Training Drama Theatre (since 1957), a Training Puppet Theatre (since 1966), a cinema and video hall and an educational audiovisual centre, as well as an academic information centre that stores 60,000 volumes of Bulgarian and international literature. NATFA has a student dormitory in Studentski grad.

St. Patriarch Evtimiy (Bulgarian: Св. Патриарх Евтимий) is a Sofia Metro station on M3 line. It was opened on 26 August 2020 as part of the inaugural section of the line, from Hadzhi Dimitar to Krasno Selo. The station is located between Orlov Most and NDK II.

Patriarch Evtimiy Square (Bulgarian: площад „Патриарх Евтимий“, ploshtad Patriarh Evtimiy), more popularly known as Popa (Попа, "The Priest"), is a small urban square and a busy intersection in the centre of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. The square was named after Evtimiy of Tarnovo, Patriarch of Bulgaria from 1375 to 1393 and one of the most important figures of medieval Bulgaria; a monument to Evtimiy by sculptor Marko Markov has adorned the square since 1939. Patriarch Evtimiy Square is located at the crossing of the car-free Graf Ignatiev Street, Vasil Levski Boulevard and Patriarch Evtimiy Boulevard, which branches off Vasil Levski at the square. Due to its central location, between Sofia University and Orlov most to the east and the National Palace of Culture to the west, it is a very popular meeting point, particularly for teenagers and young adults.The Odeon Cinema lies in the western part of the square and the Bulgartabac headquarters lie to the south of it. Other nearby landmarks include Slaveykov Square to the north along Graf Ignatiev Street and the Vasil Levski National Stadium to the southeast. The square is well connected to many parts of Sofia through the nearby tramway, trolleybus and bus stops; many routed taxicabs of the marshrutka network also pass near the square. St. Patriarch Evtimiy Metro Station of Sofia Metro is located under the square.

Georgi Rakovski Street (Bulgarian: Улица Георги Раковски, Ulitsa Georgi Rakovski), usually called with its old name Rakovska, is an important street in the capital of Bulgaria, Sofia, located in the central area of the city. It is named after the famous Bulgarian revolutionary Georgi Sava Rakovski. It lies between the Slivnitsa Boulevard to the north and Evlogi Georgiev Boulevard to the south. The street passes along some of Sofia's major landmarks such as the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Central Military Club and between the Slaveykov Square and Knyaz Aleksandar Dondukov Boulevard are located many of the theatres in Sofia and it is nicknamed the Theatre Street or Sofia's Broadway: Municipal Theatre Revival Aleko Konstantinov Satirical Theatre Funny Theatre Capital Puppet Theatre Ivan Vazov National Theatre Theatre 199 Theatre Tear and Laugh Bulgarian Army Theatre National Opera and BalletThere are several ministries along the street or very close to it — the Ministry of Economics and Energetics and the Ministry of Finance.

Slaveykov Square (Bulgarian: Площад Славейков) is one of the most popular squares in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. It is named after Bulgarian writers Petko and Pencho Slaveykov, father and son. A sculpture of the two sitting on a bench is one of its main landmarks. A square called Kafene Başi is first mentioned to have existed at the modern place in 1515. A coffeehouse, a mosque, and two Turkish police stations were situated there. In the 17th century, the square was an important crossroad stretching from modern Sveta Nedelya Square to Vitosha Boulevard and featured a fountain. After the liberation of Bulgaria, the square was extended, and many one- and two-story houses with gardens were erected on the site, one of which belonged to Petko Slaveykov, whose name the square later took. During the 1920s and 1930s, Slaveykov Square formed its modern appearance, with five- to seven-storey buildings featuring a shop on the ground floor. The first significant constructions appeared in this period — the Teachers' Fund (1924). the Ministry of Public Works (1928), and the French Institute (1934). After 1944, the automobile traffic around the square was gradually limited, and it turned into a pedestrian area. In the years following 1990, the square became a preferred place for booksellers, and many bookshops emerged on it. This is probably because the Sofia City Library is at the square.

The Ivan Vazov National Theatre (Bulgarian: Народен театър „Иван Вазов“, Naroden teatar „Ivan Vazov“) is Bulgaria's national theatre, as well as the oldest and most authoritative theatre in the country and one of the important landmarks of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. It is located in the centre of the city, with the facade facing the City Garden.Founded in 1904 by the artists from the Salza i Smyah company, it was initially called simply the National Theatre, but before being named after the prominent writer Ivan Vazov it also bore the name of Krastyu Sarafov between 1952 and 1962. Vazov's play The Outcasts was the first to be performed at the theatre when it opened. The theatre's Neoclassical building, designed by famous Viennese theatre architects Hermann Helmer and Ferdinand Fellner, was finished in 1906 and opened on 3 January 1907. The building was extensively damaged by a fire in 1923 during an anniversary celebration, but was reconstructed in 1929 by German architect Martin Dülfer. A theatrical school was established as part of the National Theatre in 1925. The bombing of Sofia in World War II caused considerable damage to the building, but it was reconstructed in 1945. Another reconstruction followed in 1971–1975, and a €100,000 restoration project was implemented in 2006.The Ivan Vazov National Theatre has a well-equipped main stage with 750 seats, a smaller 120-seat stage and an additional 70-seat one on the fourth floor. The building's facade is depicted on the obverse of the Bulgarian 50 levs banknote, issued in 1999 and 2006.The theatre has been host to productions from notable theatre directors such as Alexander Morfov who has been the Chief director since 1993.

Lycée Français Alphonse de Lamartine de Sofia (LFAL, in Bulgarian: 9-та френска езикова гимназия „Алфонс дьо Ламартин", ФЕГ) is a selective French language school in Sofia, established in 1961 under the name 9th French Language School Georgi Kirkov. Since the early 1990s, it has been named after the French nobleman, poet, diplomat and politician Alphonse de Lamartine, who visited and resided in the Bulgarian lands in 1832. The Lycée is the only Bulgarian school to offer bilingual French-speaking course to all its students and has been the described as "the most important French-speaking secondary school in Bulgaria" as well as "the heart of the academic Francophonie in Bulgaria" by the Agency for French Education Abroad. It is regarded as one of the most prestigious schools in Sofia and its students have consistently ranked among the top performers in the national matriculation exams.As of the 2020–2021 academic year, the school had 987 students and 83 staff members, with a student-teacher ratio of 1:14.

The City Garden (Bulgarian: Градска градина, Gradska gradina) is Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria's oldest and most central public garden, in existence since 1872. It is located between Tsar Osvoboditel Boulevard to the north, Knyaz Alexander Battenberg Street to the west and Joseph Vladimirovich Gourko Street to the south, in the historical centre of the city. Originally arranged in the last years of the Ottoman rule of Bulgaria, it was radically transformed immediately after the Liberation of Bulgaria in 1878 and the choice of Sofia as the capital the following year under the city architect Antonín Kolář on the initiative of the temporary governor Pyotr Alabin. The alley network was reorganized, new plants were added, as well as a low wooden fence, a coffeehouse and a kiosk for musicians. The garden was initially named the Alexander II Garden in honour of Russian tsar Alexander II, who initiated the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78, which led to the Liberation of Bulgaria. Until the end of the 19th century the City Garden was repeatedly reorganized and further developed. Among the noted gardeners that worked on it were Karl Betz, Daniel Neff and Iliya Todorov, who shaped the garden's appearance that it would retain until the Second World War. The construction of the now-demolished Georgi Dimitrov Mausoleum soon after the beginning of Communist rule of Bulgaria after the war was followed by multiple fundamental reorganizations, such as in 1951 and 1959 by Sugarev and R. Robev, 1976 and 1978 by A. Agura. These led to the orientation of the garden not towards the former royal palace as previously, but towards the Ivan Vazov National Theatre. The new composition was often in conflict with the initial planning and the City Garden lost territory and key architectural elements in the period. Today the City Garden is not only a popular retreat for the residents of the capital, but also a favoured place for amateur chess players, who can be regularly seen in the small garden in front of the National Theatre. It was also the place where a group of around 300 people gathered on 27 August 1895 to climb Cherni vrah in Vitosha led by the writer Aleko Konstantinov on what is regarded as the birth date of tourism in Bulgaria.

The National Museum of Natural History (Bulgarian: Национален природонаучен музей, Natsionalen prirodonauchen muzey; abbreviated НПМ, NMNHS) of Bulgaria is a natural history museum located in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, on Tsar Osvoboditel Boulevard, next to the Russian church. Founded in 1889, it is affiliated with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, and is the first and largest museum of this kind in the Balkans. The Museum's collection includes over 400 stuffed mammals, over 1,200 species of birds, hundreds of thousands of insects and other invertebrates, as well as samples of about one quarter of the world's mineral species. The National Museum of Natural History was founded in 1889 as the Natural History Museum of Knyaz Ferdinand of Bulgaria, with various foreign and Bulgarian specialists (e.g. Ivan Buresh, director from 1913 to 1947) serving as its directors until 1947, when the museum became part of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences' Zoological Institute. The Museum became autonomous as a separate institute within the system of BAS in 1974. In 1992, the Asenovgrad Palaeontology Museum, an NMNH branch in Asenovgrad, was formed. Currently the museum publishes Historia naturalis bulgarica journal.

The Memorial Tomb of Alexander I of Battenberg (Bulgarian: Гробница паметник „Александър І Батенберг", Grobnitsa pametnik „Aleksandar І Batenberg"), better known as the Battenberg Mausoleum (Мавзолей на Батенберг, Mavzoley na Batenberg) in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, is the mausoleum and final resting place of Prince Alexander I of Bulgaria (1857–1893), the first Head of State of modern Bulgaria. Commissioned to the Swiss architect Hermann Mayer, designed in the eclectic style (with prominent elements of Neo-Baroque and Neoclassicism) and opened in 1897, the mausoleum measures 11 metres in height and 80 square metres in area. The interior was painted by the noted Bulgarian artist Haralampi Tachev. The Battenberg Mausoleum is located at 81 Vasil Levski Boulevard. It was partially restored in 2005. When Alexander died in exile in Graz, Austria in 1893, he was initially buried there. However, in accordance with his wish, his remains were transferred to the Bulgarian capital. He was given a state funeral attended by the new prince, Ferdinand of Bulgaria, Alexander's widow Johanna Loisinger, and a great number of Bulgarians. Following a service in the St Nedelya Church his body was moved to the Church of St George and subsequently to the newly constructed mausoleum in the centre of the city. The mausoleum was closed between 1947 and 1991, during the period of Communist rule in Bulgaria, but was subsequently reopened for the public. Today it also exhibits some of Alexander's private possessions and papers, donated by his wife in 1937.