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Sofia Municipal Gallery of Art
Originally built as a casino, the chunky building at the southern end of the City Garden is now the avant-garde Sofia Municipal Gallery of Art. It stages rotating exhibitions of mostly contemporary Bulgarian and international art over two floors.
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Sofia Synagogue
Sofia's grand synagogue was designed in a flamboyant Moorish style by the Austrian architect Friedrich Gruenanger, and was consecrated in 1909. Built to accommodate up to 1170 worshippers, it is the largest Sephardic synagogue in Europe, and its 2250kg brass chandelier is the biggest in Bulgaria. However, visitors are only admitted if invited or of the Jewish faith.
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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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Sofia Zoo
Although looking a little sad and dated these days, with a collection of bedraggled animals, the zoo does have a few play areas for children, and a couple of simple cafés.
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Sveta Nedelya Cathedral
The magnificent domed Sveta Nedelya Cathedral is one of the city's major landmarks. Built between 1856 and 1863 on the foundations of several older churches, the cathedral's interior is covered with rich, Byzantine-style murals of saints. A glass case to the right of the iconostasis holds the body of Sveti Kral Stefan Milotin, a medieval king of Serbia, wrapped in a velvet robe. The bones are said to have miraculous healing powers.
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Sveta Petka Samardjiiska Church
The tiny Sveta Petka Samardjiiska Church is incongruously located in the underpass below the Tsum Retail Centre. Named in honour of St Peter of the Saddlers, the church was built during the early years of Ottoman rule (late 14th century), which explains its sunken profile and inconspicuous exterior. Inside there are some 16th-century murals, but nothing is explained in any language. It's rumoured that the Bulgarian freedom fighter and national icon Vasil Levski is buried here.
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Sveti Georgi Rotunda
Regarded as the oldest preserved building in Sofia, the Sveti Georgi Rotunda, in the courtyard between the Sheraton Hotel and the Presidency, dates from the 4th century AD. This circular Roman structure, also known as the Church of St George, was largely rebuilt in the 6th century after being knocked about by invading Huns and in the 16th century was converted into a mosque. It was badly damaged by bombing during WWII and only fully opened to visitors again in 1998 after much restoration.
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Sveti Nikolai Russian Church
The gorgeous Sveti Nikolai Russian Church with its glittering mosaic exterior was built between 1912 and 1914 for Sofia's Russian community, and named in honour of St Nikolai, the 'miracle worker'. The design is strongly influenced by Russian architecture, most notably in its five golden onion domes. The surprisingly cramped interior features colourful murals and icons painted between the 11th and 14th centuries.
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Sveti Sedmochislenitsi Church
Set in a leafy garden just off the main road, the Sveti Sedmochislenitsi Church, or 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.
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Vasil Levski Stadium
The Vasil Levski Stadium is the main venue for international football matches, athletics and other big sporting events.
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Yuzhen Park
South of bul Bâlgaria, Yuzhen Park is a vast green sprawl, filled with trees and shady pathways, and is the closest you'll come to open countryside within the city. It's wilder, less managed, more peaceful and less populated than other Sofia parks and has some superb, uninterrupted views towards Mount Vitosha.
