Other sights in Bulgaria
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Summer Palace of Queen Marie
Undoubtedly the prize attraction of Balchik is this lovely palace. It was built in 1924–26 by King Ferdinand of Romania for his English wife, Queen Marie – a granddaughter of Queen Victoria – as a place of solitude and contemplation (Balchik was then part of Romania). Marie, a follower of the Bahá’í faith, called it ‘The Quiet Nest’ and allegedly entertained her much younger Turkish lover here.
reviewed
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A
Church of the Seven Saints
Set in a leafy garden just off the main road, the Church of the Seven Saints, as it’s known in its more tongue-friendly translation, is dedicated to Sts Cyril and Methodius and their five disciples. Originally built as a mosque in 1528, it had already fallen into disuse by the time the Russians came along in 1878 and turned it into an arms depot. After a brief spell as a prison, the structure was restored and remodelled in a style termed Bulgarian National Romanticism, and consecrated as a church in 1903. Inside, the walls are covered in traditional murals of saints, while an image of the Trinity decorates the huge central dome. The gilded iconostasis includes icons…
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House-Museum of Nikola Vaptsarov
The House-Museum of Nikola Vaptsarov is where Nikola Vaptsarov (1909–42), a respected antifascist poet and activist, was born. Influenced by communist ideology while a student, his populist writings led Vaptsarov to be arrested and tortured by the wartime fascist government; he wrote his most famous poem, in fact, while awaiting execution. Period décor in the museum’s rooms, plus photographs, documents and Vaptsarov’s personal belongings are exhibited, while a short video, followed by an audio tape (English, French or German) provides background.
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House-Museum
This unique house-museum, set around a lovely enclosed garden, contains manuscripts and paintings by locally born Milev (1895–1925). Despite losing an eye in WWI, Milev continued to write poetry dealing with social issues, such as Septemvri, about the September 1923 agrarian revolution. The political sympathies of Milev’s work led to it being confiscated by the authorities. The writer was arrested, put on trial, and then kidnapped by the police and murdered.
reviewed
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B
Museum
Ignored by the shopaholics and forgotten by the tour groups is this small museum. Inside a typical wooden Bulgarian National Revival building (constructed in about 1840), it features regional costumes and displays about weaving. All labels are in Bulgarian and German.
reviewed
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Museum & Art Gallery
The town’s museum & art gallery displays extensive archaeological finds including pottery, jewellery and tools from excavations carried out at several Thracian tombs, including the one in Tyulbe Park. All explanations are in Bulgarian, so the brochure (2 lv) in English, French or German is helpful.
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Art Gallery
Opposite the museum, the Art Gallery boasts some 1800 paintings, sketches and sculptures by local, national and foreign artists.
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Museum
This museum dedicated to the leader of the 19th-century rebel movement is set in a lovely building and features several rooms of furniture (including antique weaving equipment) set around a cobblestone courtyard.
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Tomb
In hilly Tyulbe Park, just up from the Kulata Ethnological Complex, is a very large and very locked tomb, built in the 4th century BC for a Thracian ruler. Discovered during the construction of a bomb shelter in 1944, the tomb is now a Unesco World Heritage site. Along the dromos (vaulted entry corridor) is a double frieze with battle scenes. The burial chamber is 12m in diameter, and covered by a beehive dome typical of those built by the Thracians between the 3rd and 5th centuries BC. The dome contains several murals that feature events such as a funeral feast and chariot race.
reviewed
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Art Gallery
Opposite the museum, the Art Gallery boasts some 1800 paintings, sketches and sculptures by local, national and foreign artists.
reviewed
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Ethnographical Museum
The administrative centre of the park is Malko Târnovo, an economically depressed town in the southwest. The Ethnographical Museum contain some displays about the park.
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Museum
This museum dedicated to the leader of the 19th-century rebel movement is set in a lovely building and features several rooms of furniture (including antique weaving equipment) set around a cobblestone courtyard.
reviewed
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Poda Conservation Centre
The Poda Conservation Centre opened in 1998 under the auspices of the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) and is an admirable effort at wildlife conservation so close to the urban sprawl of Burgas.
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Church Museum
The typically colourful interior is splashed with saintly murals, and if you still haven’t seen enough icons, there’s a small church museum attached, with examples going back to the 13th century.
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Bacho Kiro Cave
From the bridge near the car park, a 400m path leads through lush forest to the 1200m-long Bacho Kiro cave, inhabited during the Palaeolithic era. It is a long, well-lit cave, and guided tours are offered, though aren’t really necessary.
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C
Sofia University Botanic Garden
Easily overlooked near the Vasil Levski Memorial, the Botanic Garden is a small, well-manicured plant collection, which includes a glasshouse filled with palms and cacti, a rose garden and various trees and flowers (labelled in Bulgarian and Latin).
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Wine From Bulgaria Museum & Oenology Collection
In the Hindlian House cellar, the so-called Wine from Bulgaria Museum & Oenology Collection conducts wine tastings (10 lv per person for three wines). A braver endeavour, the full tasting of 10 wines, costs 40 lv. Specialist courses are also offered.
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Cherepish Monastery
The 14th-century Cherepish Monastery was, like Chiprovtsi’s, torched, toppled and rebuilt repeatedly during the Ottoman period. Like many other monasteries, it was used by rebels as a hiding place before and during the Russo-Turkish War (1877–78).
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Historical Museum
Inside the Komplex Vodopadi is a Historical Museum, devoted mostly to the 1876 April Uprising and the Russo-Turkish War. The macabre collection of skulls draws attention immediately. Downstairs are artefacts from nearby caves, including Bacho Kiro, and some icons.
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D
Museum
Ignored by the shopaholics and forgotten by the tour groups is this small museum. Inside a typical wooden Bulgarian National Revival building (constructed in about 1840), it features regional costumes and displays about weaving. All labels are in Bulgarian and German.
reviewed
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E
House-Museum of Neofit Rilski
Housed in a former schoolhouse, the House-Museum of Neofit Rilski exhibits manuscripts by, and photos of, Rilski (1793–1881), the father of Bulgarian secular education, who created an early Bulgarian grammar textbook (1835), and a Bulgarian–Greek dictionary.
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Sveti Georgi Monastery
On a dusty road about 2km out of town, heading towards the main bus station, is Sveti Georgi Monastery. Built in 1856, it’s a small complex set in pretty gardens with a quaint, icon-filled church and a belltower covered in saintly frescoes. It’s also possible to stay here.
reviewed
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Sveta Bogoroditsa Church
There’s a small number of National Revival–period homes on the eastern side of town, immediately behind the dominant (but rarely open) Sveta Troitsa Church. If you want to fill in some time, the quaint Sveta Bogoroditsa Church is mildly interesting.
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Velyanov’s House
Velyanov’s House features elaborately painted scenes and woodcarvings from the ‘Bansko School’ of carving, icon and fresco painting. The Bansko Permanent Icon Exhibition has more Bansko School creations. Both museums can be opened on weekends by prior arrangement.
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Museum & Art Gallery
The town’s museum & art gallery displays extensive archaeological finds including pottery, jewellery and tools from excavations carried out at several Thracian tombs, including the one in Tyulbe Park. All explanations are in Bulgarian, so the brochure (2 lv) in English, French or German is helpful.
reviewed