City Garden (Sofia)

The Georgi Dimitrov Mausoleum (Bulgarian: мавзолей на Георги Димитров) was a ceremonial tomb on Prince Alexander of Battenberg Square in Sofia, Bulgaria. It was built in 1949 to house the embalmed body of Georgi Dimitrov, the first leader of Communist Bulgaria. After his death in 1950, the second communist leader of Bulgaria, Vasil Kolarov, was buried in the second niche of the east wall of the mausoleum. In 1999, following a heated public debate, it was destroyed by Ivan Kostov's UDF government.

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.

The Bulgarian National Bank (Bulgarian: Българска народна банка, romanized: Balgarska narodna banka, IPA: [ˈbɤɫɡɐrskɐ nɐˈrɔdnɐ ˈbaŋkɐ]) is the central bank of the Republic of Bulgaria with its headquarters in Sofia. The BNB was established on 25 January 1879. It is an independent institution responsible for issuing all banknotes and coins in the country, overseeing and regulating the banking sector and keeping the government's currency reserves. The BNB is also the sole owner of the Bulgarian Mint. The governor is Dimitar Radev. The bank has a key role in Bulgarian economy. Since October 1, 2007 the bank is a member of European system of central banks. The governor of BNB is a member of General Assembly of European central bank. It is the 13 oldest central bank in the world.

The National Archaeological Museum (Bulgarian: Национален археологически музей, Natsionalen arheologicheski muzey) is an archaeological museum in the centre of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. It occupies the building of the largest and oldest former Ottoman mosque in the city, originally known as Koca Mahmut Paşa Camii. The construction started in 1451 under grand vizier Veli Mahmud Pasha but due to his death in 1474 the mosque has been completed in 1494. The museum was established as a separate entity in 1893 as the National Museum directed by Czech Václav Dobruský with its headquarters in the former mosque that previously housed the National Library between 1880 and 1893. The museum was officially opened and inaugurated in 1905, as by then all archaeological exhibits previously kept all over the city were moved there, in the presence of Knyaz Ferdinand of Bulgaria and Minister of Enlightenment Ivan Shishmanov. Several additional halls and administrative buildings of the museum were constructed in the following years, which continues to use the historic stone building of the old mosque despite the often unfavourable conditions, notably the humidity in the summer. The museum has five exhibition halls: Central Hall, Prehistory, Middle Ages, Treasure, and a special temporary exhibition. It is managed by the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.

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.

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 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 Church of St. Nicholas (Bulgarian: Свети Николай Мирликийски чудотворец) is an Eastern Orthodox Church in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia. The church was built in the 13th century by Kaloyan the sebastocrator as a small family church on today's Kaloyan Street behind the Rila Hotel. It is assumed that the church was erected on the site of the surviving parts of the palace complex that had once stood there which was built during the Roman Empire and accommodated Constantine the Great. Today these parts are preserved and can be seen in the authentic underground walls of the temple.Each year hundreds of Sofians visit this small chapel to be blessed by the saints. Its feast day is on December 6.

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.

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.

The Church of Saint George (Bulgarian: Ротонда „Свети Георги“, romanized: Rotonda "Sveti Georgi") is a Late Antique red brick rotunda in Sofia, Bulgaria. Built in the early 4th century as Roman baths, it became a church inside the walls of Serdica, capital of ancient Dacia Mediterranea during the Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire. The Early Christian church is considered the oldest building in modern Sofia and belongs to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. The building, a cylindrical domed structure built on a square base, is famous for the 12th-, 13th-, and 14th-century frescoes inside the central dome. Three layers of frescoes have been discovered, the earliest dating back to the 10th century. Magnificent frescoes of 22 prophets over 2 metres tall crown the dome. Painted over during the Ottoman period, when the building was used as a mosque, these frescoes were only uncovered and restored in the 20th century.

The Stolichna Municipality (Bulgarian: Столична община, romanized: Stolichna obshtina (also transcribed as Stolična obština), lit. 'Capital Municipality') is an obshtina (municipality) in Sofia City Province, Western Bulgaria. It is named after its administrative centre - the city of Sofia, which is also the capital of Sofia City Province and Sofia Province and the capital of Bulgaria as well. The municipality is located mainly in the Sofia Valley, and also in the foots and lower parts of the mountains of Stara planina and Vitosha, Plana, Lozen, Rila. It is home to 1,500,927 inhabitants from which 1.400 million live in Sofia (as of 2016).