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During
the Russian- Turkish War in 1828 the town was conquered by the Russian troops
and hold under their rule for some time. An uplift of the national spirit
began in the next decades. Schools, community centres and churches were
built. In 1878 Varna was finally liberated from
Otto- man rule and became the most important Bulgarian seaport town. At the
end of the 19th century it was connected with Sofia by railway. Many factories were
opened, and industrial fishing was developing. Varna quickly established as a seaside
resort as well, enhanced by the European fashion in architecture and
water transport. Entertainment establishments and holiday houses were built. Varna won the fame of a favourite
place for Bulgarian cultural elite. For a short time the city was renamed Stalin.
After 1956 its previous name was reinstated. Varna became a centre of the North Black Sea coast and a starting point for
the design and building of the numerous resorts around it. Marine business
developed - from fishing to the transfer of goods between the East and the
West. Nowadays Varna is an industrial city - the
third biggest one in Bulgaria after Sofia and Plovdiv. Landmarks. The Roman Spa
situate in the centre of the city. They were built in the 2nd century during
the reign of the emperor Antony Pii
and were abandoned in the 5th century during the barbarian invasion. After
much research and restoration they are now preserved and are frequently
visited by tourists and guests of the city. Pottery workshops were opened in
the 14th century, and later on a small residential quarter was built. The
Roman Bath dates back to the 3rd century. It is built on layers of stones and
bricks, bound by a mixture of plaster and crumbled tiles and bricks. The
walls are grouted with water resistant plaster, there are marble tiles on the
floor and some of the premises were panelled in marble. In the 5th century
the building was considerably extended and reconstructed due to the
development of that part of the city. Nowadays it is a sight of tourist and
archaeological interest. The Holy Virgin Cathedral is considered to be an
emblem of the seaside capital of Bulgaria. It rises at the very city
centre across from the theatre alley. Buses start from the square in front of
it to all the vicinities and to the airport. A Revival master in the manner
of Petersburg architecture built the church in 1866. Not until
1910 was it sanctified because its building and icon painting took a lot of
time. The woodcarving of the altar and the Episcopal stall are made by
masters from the Debur school, Macedonia. The central wall paintings
were completed in 1950. The St. Nikola Church is located near the Sea Garden Park and dates back to the 1866. It
has very interesting wall paintings and ancient icons by masters, belonging
to various icon- painting schools in Bulgaria. The Sea Garden Park is another emblem of Varna. It dates from the end of the
19th century, being finally completed in 1908. At that time the idea to place
the busts of outstanding Revival figures in some of its valleys was accepted.
Nowadays there is an amphitheatre; astronomic site, the first in the country,
with an observatory, planetarium and a tower; many playgrounds for children,
and a small channel, where they can practice rowing, as well as a pool for
water wheels and a zoo. The open-air theatre is a place, where various
activities take place. These include the Varna Days of Music, the world
famous International Ballet Competition and Varna Summer – the three arts
competition. The central sea baths and the beach are located beneath the Sea Garden Park. They were built in the
beginning of the century and are equipped with a polyclinic, water- and
mud-cure complex, two quays, several restaurants and disco clubs. The Russian Monument is in Primorski Park. It was erected in honour to
the Russian soldiers who died in Varna in the War of Liberation. The Asparuh Bridge connects the city centre with
the residential quarters Asparouhovo and Galata. It is the longest bridge in Bulgaria and works on it are still under
way. Here the local club for extreme sports organises Bungee jumps. To the
east of the bridge the Bay of Varna and the Cape Galata could be seen. To the west is
the Varna Lake. The Clock Tower was built in
1880 and it rises across the cathedral. Beneath the cathedral is one of the
branches of the Theatre of Drama and the Club of the culture activists. The
Festival Complex is opposite the entrance of the Sea Garden Park. It is a modern building of
aluminium, stone and glass. It has several stages, conference-halls, a big bazaar,
and a sweet shop. Many exhibitions and festivals are held here as well as
ballet and theatrical performances. The Sports Palace is located at the motorway to
the resorts Golden Sands, St. Constantine and Albena. Competitions in over 30
sports games take place there; exhibitions are held; concerts and
performances take place, too. The design of the palace is actual copy of the Palace of Culture in Lagos, Nigeria, built by Bulgarian experts.
The Dolphinarium (Show-House) is one of the favourite attractions for
children and guests of Varna. There are regular performances
and demonstrations with the clever dolphins. Feeding the dolphins and taking
pictures is allowed. Each year new stunts are performed here and the show
gets more attractive, including performances by mime artists, clowns and
actors. The Theatre of Drama is in the city centre. It was built nearly a
century ago after the fashion of Vienna. It houses a theatre, an opera
and philharmonic halls. Its foundations were laid by actors in the French
Army during the Crimean War in 1856. The first Bulgarian theatre performance
of Bulgarian drama was performed here. Not far away is the Puppet Theatre,
where the Golden Dolphin Festival of puppets takes place each year.
MUSEUMS: The Archaeological Museum is housed in a building that
used to be a school during the Revival. Here visitors can see miniature
models of pile dwellings from the Palaeolithic period; the hall to ancient
arts and means of living; the hall to antique arts one of the biggest and most
impressive collections in the country; some objects and church plate from the
early ages of Christianity; objects of cult from the ancient Bulgarian
ethnicity; the hall with exponents from the 13th-14th century, where the
development of crafts at that time could be traced; the hall of Bulgarians
applied arts and a lapidarium, where sarcophagi,
tombstones, steles and tomb columns are displayed. The museum holds some rare
objects from Egypt, Greece, Babylon and the Mediterranean
countries, which were transported to ancient Odessos via the trade routes.
The Museum of National Revival is housed in a building from
1861, which was proclaimed a cultural monument. Patriotic citizens and
scholars arranged the museum exhibition in 1959 and it has been enriched and
extended many times. The original arrangement of St. Archangel Mikhail Church
can be seen on the ground floor. An impressive exhibition shows the struggle
for religious enlightenment, national independence and the epic battles
during the Russian-Turkish War of Liberation. The Naval Museum is in the Sea Garden Park and possesses all the important
documents and equipment of Bulgarian Navy from its foundation in 1878 up to
the present. The great scientist Karel Shkorpil founded it in 1923. There are cannons, old
anchors, and sea vessels and so on in the yard of the museum. The Vladislav Varnenchik Park-Museum is to the north-east of the city,
near the crossroads for Sofia and Dobrich. It was built in honour of the
historical battle in 1444 when Czechs, Poles, Croatians, Hungarians and
Bulgarians tried to resist the Turkish invasion in Europe. A mausoleum to Vladislav Varnenchik was built in 1934 on the foundations of an
ancient Thracian tomb. The Ethnographic Museum is housed in a Revival house
from the 19th century. A typical arrangement of the house of Varna in that time is shown. Many
kinds of jewellery are displayed, as well as clothing, formal national
costumes, everyday life items and goods manufactured goods in the city and
its vicinities. The Museum of Nature and Science was founded in 1960
and it displays species typical of the Bulgarian flora and fauna. Geological
and speleological miniature models show the stages of the formation of the
lithosphere. There is a small board with the main kinds of stones and
minerals. The exponents are displayed in three specialised halls - geology,
flora and fauna. The Aquarium and the Black Sea Museum were opened in 1932 - the first
and the only marine biological station in the country. In 1954 the Scientific
Research Institute on sea related issues, fishing and industrial fishing was
opened with the Aquarium. Hundreds of fish species are gathered here:
molluscs, actinides, crabs, periwinkles as well as species of the fresh water
rivers. A special place is occupied by the natural resources derived from the
Black
Sea,
such as sea salt and oil. The Museum of Medicine is the only one on the Balkan Peninsula. Medicinal plants and herbs are
here on display, as well as surgical and other medical tools and clothing
used in ancient times up till now. It was founded in 1869 as a private
hospital with a small museum. The Museum of Art and History of Varna has an
exceptionally rich collection, one of its exhibits being the Gold Treasure of
Varna - dating back 6000 years ago it is the oldest processed gold found in
the world. 281 tombs were found in a necropolis dating back to the Halcolith Age. One of them contained more than 3000
golden articles (statehood attributes, jewellery, adorning, etc.), of the
total 6 kg weight. The Art Gallery was opened in 1950. It
possesses paintings by the most outstanding Bulgarian artists as well as
pieces of work by numerous foreign artists, donated to the gallery by private
persons. A branch of the museum is the Georgi Veltchev
Museum-House, where canvases by the prominent artist of Varna are displayed. An exhibition of
icon-paintings from the Revival is arranged in the St. Atanas
Church, built in the 13th century near the Roman spa. The church itself is
very original with its mural paintings and icons and with its carved altar
and bishop's throne. There is a collection of wood-cuts, etchings, liturgical
and canon books from Bulgarian Revival. Varna's festivals are large in
number, the most popular of them being: the International Choir Gathering -
at the end of May, International Theatre Holidays - a part of Varna Summer
Festival - in June; part of the aforementioned festival is also the
International Gathering of Orchestras and Classical Music Ensembles - in
July; again as part of the festival is the Jam Session in July and August.
Other important cultural events are: the Folk Festival with international
participants - in August; the International Ballet Competition in August; the
Love is Folly Cinema International Festival - in September; the Golden Rose Festival
of Bulgarian Cinematography; The Gold Dolphin International Festival of
Puppet Theatres, held every year in October.
ACCOMMODATION: For hotel reservations in Varna, please visit
www.VarnaHotels.com
Catering. Varna's most popular luxurious and offering
special cuisine restaurants are: the Indian Maharany
Restaurant, Maggy Restaurant and the Musala
Restaurant with a Viennise Cafe, the Paraklisa Restaurant, the FEB Restaurant, the Morska Sirena Restaurant, a chain of
restaurants Mustang Food Bar, Happy Bar and Grill chain, Loza
Restaurant, Morsko Konche
Restaurant, and the Galateya Restaurant. Middle
class restaurants, numerous private pubs and taverns are available even in
the distant residential quarters of the city. Many of them are open 24 hours,
others - as long as there are clients to be serviced. For those who prefer
cooking for themselves there is a large chain of supermarkets with non-stop
or regular working hours. There are a lot of market places as well. The most
popular one is called Kolhoz. A lot of small pizza
shops and snack bars that offer typically Bulgarian snacks such as sheeted
pastries, cheese buns, dough nuts, boza (soft drink made of millet), and
others. There are a great number of canteens, especially along the beach and
in the Sea Garden Park where fish and seafood are
offered. Every day one can buy freshly caught fish from the local fishermen
at the sea station. Cinemas and theatres. There are about ten cinemas
functioning in Varna. Some of the best are in the
city centre. The best is The Mustang Cinema. It is very comfortable and
offers almost 24 hours of blockbusters. Stoyan Bachvarov
Theatre of Drama is open during the whole holiday season with its three
stages. Varna Opera and Philharmonic Orchestra also have their performances.
The Puppet Theatre is also open throughout the season. As a rule, the
theatres are on holiday during the summer, but in the beginning and at the
end of the summer one can see many performances from all over the world at
the Theatre and the Puppet Theatre Festivals, respectively. Good foreign
theatrical companies are not an unusual event for the city. They perform
attractive non-verbal shows, delivered for foreign guests, especially. In the
open-air theatre pop and folk stars often have concerts, shows and ballet
performances also take place there.
TRANSPORT: The fastest way to get to Varna is by airplane, it takes 50 min
from Sofia to Varna. Varna Airport functions throughout the year.
Planes in both directions fly 6 or 7 times a day during the summer. The
airport phone number is 052 573323; the Balkan Ticket Office answers phone
number 052 222248. The sea station provides sea buses to Balchik, Slanchev
Bryag (Sunny Beach), Nesebar and Burgas. The
railway station phone number is 052 630414. The phone number of the booking
office is 052 632347. Varna is connected to all of the main
railway lines in the country. There are express trains to Sofia and Plovdiv that reach for 7 and 4.30 hours
respectively. Seats are limited so it is advisable to book sleeping car
tickets a week before. The bus station is 1.5 km away from the city centre.
Its phone number is 052 448349. Buses for all the main destinations in the
country start including Sofia from here. The Group Private
Bus Company offers bus lines to all destinations (tel.: 052 256734). Buses
travel to Athens and Istanbul as well as to some cities in
Central and Eastern
Europe. Their bus stop is in front of
the cathedral. Varna's public transport offers over 60
bus lines that travel to various destinations. Some of the buses travel to
the nearby resorts (20 km away from the city). There are trolley buses
available in the city as well. Surrounding areas. The famous village of Vinitsa is situated 10 km north-east of
Varna, where the so called Gagauzi people live - they are Christians who speak
Turkish and have very interesting customs and traditions. It is a favourite
place where the citizens of Varna often go on picnics or for walks, it is also visited by a lot of tourists. The Cape Galata is very attractive to a lot of
tourists who seek solitude among nature. It is situated in the distant part
of the Galata Quarter. There are wide meadows among deciduous groves and
natural water springs with drinking water and rocks convenient for fishing
and cockle catching. The Romantika Resort includes
several hotels (tel.: 052 226317), It offers sports facilities for all kinds
of water sports, cruises and voyages by the local water transport. Around the
Asparuh Bridge near the quarter of the same
name the relics of the rampart of Asparuh can be seen. The great Bulgarian
ruler built them 13 centuries ago in order to resist the raids of the
Byzantine fleet. To the south of the lake of Varna the Dzhanavar
Hill can be visited. A basilica from the early Christian period is built
here. In the 6th century there were fortifications to resist the raids of the
Avari tribe. The Pobitite
Kamuni (Rammed Stones) are
18 km west of the city. They were formed by erosion about 50 million years
ago. Dead cockles, sea species, and fossils are constituents of these stones,
and of the sands around. Some of the stones have zoomorphic and
anthropomorphic profiles. Many of them were place of worship or consecrated
grounds during Thracian, Slavonic, and ancient Bulgarian times. Now they are
an interesting tourist sight and a place where a lot of historic and
adventure films have been made. The town of Devnya is connected by the Varna Canal with the Varna Lake. It is famous for the
industrial production of soda. There are remains of the ancient town of Marcianopolis, the second biggest town in
ancient Bulgaria after Philipopolis.
It was a stronghold against the numerous raids of the tribe of Dacians against the Emperor Trayan.
In 3rd century it was so big that it was difficult to see it even from a
bird's eye. The foundations of the defence walls, the rampart, the turrets,
and the town's forum are in good condition. There are remains of other
buildings as well. The Petrich Kale rises opposite
the railway station of Razdelna on Varna-Sofia
railway line. The fortress was built in 5th century later on it was destroyed
down and rebuilt in 13th - 14th centuries. It was an important defence
fortress in 1444 during the battles of Vladislav Varnenchik.
The rocks near the fortress are perfect for mountaineering.
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