Russian Church, Sofia

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 Central Military Club (Bulgarian: Централен военен клуб, Tsentralen voenen klub) is a multi-purpose monument of culture building in the centre of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, located on Tsar Osvoboditel Boulevard and Georgi Rakovski Street. It serves the Bulgarian Army and is administered by the Executive Agency of Military Clubs and Information. The 2010 world chess championship match between Viswanathan Anand of India and Vaselin Topalov of Bulgaria was held in this building that was won by Viswanathan Anand. The foundation stone of the edifice was laid in 1895. The Military Club was designed by Czech architect Antonín Kolář in the Neo-Renaissance style and finished by Bulgarian architect Nikola Lazarov in 1907. The lot and the funding was provided by the Sofia Officers' Assembly. A stone from the battlefield at Slivnitsa from the Serbo-Bulgarian War (1885-1886) was laid in the foundations. The building has three stories and features a coffeehouse, an art gallery, a number of refined halls varying in size, as well as an imposing concert hall with 450 seats. Due to all this, the Central Military Club has always been an important cultural centre of the capital, once exhibiting works by Ivan Mrkvička, Vladimir Dimitrov, Jaroslav Věšín and providing these noted artists with studios. The concert hall has also seen performances by actors and opera singers like Krastyu Sarafov, Nicolai Ghiaurov, Feodor Chaliapin, Boris Christoff, and bands like Ladytron etc.

The Amphitheatre of Serdica (Latin: Amphitheatrum Serdicense; Bulgarian: Амфитеатър на Сердика, Amfiteatar na Serdika) was an amphitheatre in the Ancient Roman city of Ulpia Serdica, now Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. Discovered in 2004 and the subject of excavations in 2005 and 2006, the ruins of the amphitheatre lie on two adjacent sites in the centre of modern Sofia. The amphitheatre was built in the 3rd–4th century AD on top of a 2nd–3rd century theatre, which had been ravaged by the Goths. However, the amphitheatre remained in use for less than a century and was abandoned by the 5th century. The Amphitheatre of Serdica was among the biggest in the eastern part of the Roman Empire and the largest in what is today Bulgaria. It lay outside the city walls of Serdica and hosted fights between gladiators and wild beasts, which were advertised at the entrance of the city.

The Royal Palace (Bulgarian: Царски дворец, Tsarski dvorets), is a historical and architectural landmark in the heart of the Bulgarian capital, Sofia, situated at the Battenberg Square. The palace played a pivotal role in the history of Bulgaria, witnessing the country's journey through monarchy, communism and democracy. Erected in the late 19th century as the royal residence, the palace's architecture blends various styles, with prominent influences from Austrian Neo-Baroque and French Rococo.Today, the palace serves as the National Art Gallery, housing an extensive collection of Bulgarian art, and is open to visitors.

The Italian ambassador in Sofia is the official representative of the Government in Rome to the Government of Bulgaria.

The National Opera and Ballet (Bulgarian: Национална опера и балет) is a national cultural institution in Bulgaria that covers opera and ballet. It is based in an imposing building in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. The first opera company in Bulgaria was founded in 1890 as part of the Capital Opera and Drama Company. The two sections split in 1891 to form the Salza i Smyah theatrical company and the Capital Bulgarian Opera. It was, however, disbanded the next year due to lack of government funding and financial difficulties. The Bulgarian Opera Society was established in 1908 and staged its first test performance. The first full opera was performed in 1909 — Pagliacci by Leoncavallo. The first Bulgarian opera works were also presented in the period, including Siromahkinya by Emanuil Manolov, Kamen i Tsena by Ivan Ivanov and Václav Kaucký, Borislav by Georgi Atanasov and Tahir Begovitsa by Dimitar Hadzhigeorgiev. As the company evolved under the ensemble system and style, the permanent troupe of soloists, choir, orchestra, ballet, technical and production teams produced up to 10 opera and ballet premieres a year, in addition to concert programs. Gradually, the basic repertory of world opera classics was established at the same time as the theatre began to attract Bulgarian composers who created new national works. 20th Century performers such as Nicolai Ghiaurov, Nicola Ghiuselev, and Ghena Dimitrova began their careers within the structure of the National Opera, as did later singers such as Irena Petkova and Kiril Manolov. The institution became a national one in 1922 and changed its name to National Opera. A ballet company was established and gave its first performance in 1928. The opera ceased its activity for a while after the 1944 bombing of Sofia, but was restored shortly afterward with a significant increase of government funding. The National Opera and Ballet's building was designed in 1921 and built for the most part between 1947 and its opening in 1953. In 2000, the company co-organized the Boris Christoff Twelfth International Competition for Young Opera Singers with the idea of attracting a younger audience and supporting young and upcoming singers. The repertoire historically tended to favour the Italian and French repertoire with little Wagnerian tradition, although since 2010, the artistic director of the opera company Plamen Kartaloff began a Ring Cycle with entirely Bulgarian casts. Following the entry of Parsifal and Tristan und Isolde into the repertoire, the complete cycle was performed both in Moscow and Sofia during 2018.

The Monument to the Unknown Soldier (Bulgarian: Паметник на Незнайния воин, Pametnik na Neznayniya voin) is a monument in the centre of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, located just next to the 6th-century Church of St Sophia, on 2 Paris Street. The monument commemorates the hundreds of thousands of Bulgarian soldiers who died in wars defending their homeland. Ceremonies involving the President of Bulgaria and foreign state leaders are often performed here.The monument was designed by architect Nikola Nikolov and opened on September 22, 1981, the 1300th anniversary of establishment of the Bulgarian state.The Monument to the Unknown Soldier features an eternal flame, turf from Stara Zagora and Shipka Pass, sites of two of the most important battles of the Russo-Turkish War of Liberation (the Battle of Stara Zagora and the Battle of Shipka Pass), a sculpture of a lion (a national symbol of Bulgaria) by the noted sculptor Andrey Nikolov, as well as a stone inscription of a stanza (part of The New Graveyard Above Slivnitsa 1885 poem) by the national writer Ivan Vazov: БЪЛГАРИЙО, ЗА ТЕБЕ ТЕ УМРЯХА,ЕДНА БЕ ТИ ДОСТОЙНА ЗАРАД ТЯХ И ТЕ ЗА ТЕБ ДОСТОЙНИ, МАЙКО, БЯХА! O BULGARIA, FOR YOU THEY DIED,ONLY ONE WERE YOU WORTHY OF THEM AND THEY OF YOU WORTHY, O MOTHER, WERE! After the end of the First World War, a group of Bulgarians proposed building the monument. However, strong opposition to the building of this monument arose. Some Bulgarian intellectuals argued that a monument of an unknown soldier is unacceptable since it would imply that the names of the soldiers have been forgotten. "Not a single soldier shall be forgotten who gave his life in this war and in all other wars for the freedom of Bulgaria!".The monument was designed but was not displayed because of the above-mentioned arguments. The lion itself was considered an abuse for a long time because it was sitting. The pose was considered a metaphor of surrender to the national ideas.

The National Art Gallery (Bulgarian: Национална художествена галерия, Natsionalna hudozhestvena galeriya) is Bulgaria's national gallery, and houses over 50,000 pieces of Bulgarian art.

The Saint Sofia Church (Bulgarian: църква „Света София“, tsarkva „Sveta Sofia“) is the oldest church in the Bulgarian capital Sofia, dating to the 4th century. In the predecessor building took place the Council of Serdica held most probably in 343 and attended by 316 bishops. In the 14th century, the church gave its name to the city, previously known as Serdika (Сердика).

Knyaz Aleksandar Dondukov Boulevard (Bulgarian: Булевард Княз Александър Дондуков), shortly referred to as Dondukov, is an important central boulevard in Sofia. It is named after the Russian general and statesman Alexander Dondukov-Korsakov. It lies between the TZUM and the Chavdar bridge. It crosses several other major streets such as the Vasil Levski Boulevard and Georgi Rakovski Street.

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.

Prince Alexander I Square (Bulgarian: площад Княз Александър I, Ploshtad Knyaz Aleksandar I), often called simply Battenberg Square (площад Батенберг) is the largest square of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. It is named after Alexander Joseph of Battenberg (Alexander I of Bulgaria), the first prince of modern Bulgaria. During the Communist rule of Bulgaria, the square was named September 9th Square, after a coup on September 9, 1944, made the country a Communist state. Before 1944, the square was known as Tsar's Square because the former royal palace, now the National Art Gallery was located there. It was the site of the Georgi Dimitrov Mausoleum from 1949 until 1999. It is arguably the most suitable place in Sofia for major open-air concerts such as the concert series "Opera on the Square", demonstrations, parades (including the military parade on St George's Day) and other large-scale events.