5 friends
else who has a pack of 35 euro flight last
Peuterey a winter with 15 degrees in the sun
All taxi drivers that we were talking about the world and Paolo Rossi
82 2 / 3 bottles of vodka a night
four local evening
The worst kebab ever eaten
The discovery Bulgarian folk-music disc
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The adventure comes after a Bulgarian Sofia Mel asphyxiating pressing against me.
Both he disappeared Columbus have always tried to bring one of our cultural w.end in the Bulgarian capital, but for various reasons has always been shelved.
In July, exhausted from the summer heat, I see the un'offertona Wizzair, 29 to 31 October and return only 35 € ... I think a mirage caused by heat, but it's all true.
usual round of text messages and so on, we book well in 6.
Besides me, the now inevitable dancer one step of the Vale, Giorgiao our Survey of trust, to which Mel's girlfriend gave it two days, Ivo-ski with which I was not a holiday from the time of Valencia (where he was dubbed "el limonator de Valencia") and to close Sauro was still in the old days in Bratislava.
Before leaving the tension and adrenaline are a thousand, the same could prove that the football teams in 80-90 years when Europe faced a team they knew very little, in a new and often hostile.
atmosphere that can shake your legs or cut depending on the character ... and we highlight these situations.
After Sauro pat for working, we are in 5 and we prepare for the trip.
The adrenaline I play a bad joke and now, regardless the weather which gave 15 degrees, as the dreaded port Peuterey winter jacket, which provides protection to -15 ° .. not even go to the North Pole!
We land on time at 15.30 and already I am suffering a document to control the atomic heat. Of course I'll be right
hammered by others who see me just a little 'suffering no shortage of stress if I was OK so covered.
Despite the tactical error recovery starting immediately lucidity and Lev negotiate now taken the first step in the center. With 15 lev
us we bring to our apartment in central Pop Bogomil Str. During the trip
absorbs curious what the environment offers us.
From the radio comes a strange music, a middle Bulgarian folk-disco-pop ... I had never before heard this music, which at first listen with you .. but the second song starts steaming.
It seems as if we were to put on a Fargetta a bit 'of Raul Casadei, Ramazzotti and Laura Pausini all in the same song. From
windows instead the impact is much stronger, the taxi to go into town passes through a Roma camp located near the airport. Among
holes in the road, makeshift stalls, a donkey dragging a cart and made the least worst case really seems to be in another century.
Then as you approach the city seems to make a path history, through the Soviet-style homes and the center in great turmoil to continue the modernization works.
Meanwhile, the taxi driver tries to talk, make conversation .. Obviously the language is a problem and then what we can talk if not football. We speak of the recent players
Stoichkov and Bojinov .. but he starts to talk about Italy that won the World Cup ... we shoot a Buffon, Zambrotta, Cannavaro ... but he does my head and began to say, Zoff, Gentile, Cabrini, Bruno Conti, and of course Paolo Rossi.
On arrival we find Daniel, the friendly manager, who greets us in Italian and accommodate us in truly beautiful and modern apartments. Li
Board Having regard to the location and the excellent price (www.apartmentsinsofia.com).
soaking bags and, curiously, we just sling on city streets.
After 2 years finally return to see the Cyrillic alphabet, while not capendoci nothing a little 'I was not
descend from Maria Louiza Bov., Through the center in Nedelia Sq and continue to the shopping street, Vitosha, the B .
view of the time, I am almost 5 o'clock, slowly begins to get dark and we just crossed the main attractions to get an idea fast.
What strikes us is that, despite being in the center, recently renovated buildings alternate with others that certainly need maintenance. The example
striking is the way to our apartment where our building could easily be confused in any modern city, but all around there are loose electric wires, open manholes, uneven sidewalks, walls crumbling .. the contrast is strong.
shops also reflect this situation well, the top of the Maria Luiza are still quirky shops, selling items that had not seen for years or grocery stores and appliances .. while in the Vitosha bl. Adidas, McDonald's, Nike began to rule the roost.
The new capitalism has not yet eaten at all the central area, but it promises to do so quickly.
cultural postpone the visit until the following day and take in the event of side streets of Vitosha .. looking for a place to drink a beer.
We go in a restaurant-bar, the restaurant is stylish, elegant but not opulent but above all the waitresses are really haunting.
The drink eventually becomes a hearty appetizer, 2 beers apiece, chopping of meats from 500grammi and chips ..
The surprise comes from the account 3.5 € per person!
back refreshed to prepare for the evening, it's time to test the nightlife.
At dinner we find ourselves in the first place, Happy, like a local Hard Rock, many jokes among young Bulgarians.
eat discreetly while Mel and Sommelier of novel tells us about the wines we are distracted by the presence in Bulgaria the room.
Beyond the waiter there are two or three tables of girls not bad.
After a couple of rounds of vodka we begin the long wanderings among the center's premises, it is still early to go in hard so we opt to sample the best of all Mojto Sofia (according to Daniela home).
We end up in the little bar around the former Royal Palace, the place is nice, little, soft lighting, but more couples and pet, let's face it, the Mojto is nothing exceptional.
continue our tour through the premises and we are moving in the Tsar Osvoboditel bl.
It is not even around midnight and there's a lot of people, we pass the Chervilo famous but we continue to the square Narodno.
At night the city is really beautiful, illuminated monuments make it particularly interesting and so after some photos we opt to enter the first club in the right place Narodno Bedroom (hoping that the restaurant's name was not given a chance ....) .
This club, as well as almost all other visitors, remind us very Belgrade.
fact are not very large, or rather tiny and are structured more or less the same.
passed the entrance is the first counter, the walls around a series of tables and banquettes in the middle of many other tables with stools where people take a drink and we dance around. Obviously
all these tables make it almost minimizes the dance floor.
The club is half empty, actually it is still early, we do get the girl at the entrance, and so, to begin to carburetor, take place in the table and we order a bottle of vodka and a range of fruit juices and lemon.
Again, the surprise comes when the bill comes .. 72 leva for all, almost € 7 per person .. that are disbursed Giorgiao which Mr. and offers for all.
Launched by this discovery we begin to move, a toast with the next table, someone starts dancing, joking, laughing ect even if the room does not fill as we hoped.
Given the tactical position on the table (Near the women's bathroom) Giorgiao, Ivoski and the Caribbean (Vale and as always you get more tanned than ever) try to get to know the girls that pass without striking results.
Meanwhile Mel throws down vodka like water that had just careless midnight.
When we see that the club just do not want to fill the bottle and end up doing a jump "on the dancefloor."
Ivoski Here is the great showman, he began to dance with the dancers and two other girls who were on the track ... and to think that so far in my life I had never seen dancing.
I, for the time being, I hold my famous Obed for better times, the rest being studied warily as a jaguar .. and end around there are only few girls have known before.
We are also immortalized by the photographer's official website for the nightlife (www.disco.bg) Bedroom but it seems we want to put to sleep rather than anything else ..
We are hot and loads but no .. Bedroom then we have to move to other destinations.
Take a taxi and in 5 in the same car we go to a place that I had selected before leaving, the Tiffany Club.
Also this restaurant is designed like the other and after a look around us we place as usual at the table ordered the traditional bottle of vodka. The club owner is
to us and says we have is the best table, is actually located in the other half just below the stage to dance .. We are in the middle of the room.
Unfortunately this is not III & IV, but there are more people but more especially girls and the Bedroom.
Vodka begins to make its effect and we begin to erupt around.
The Vale began her dance with one step, always the same and tries to get the dance floor next to the table;
Ivoski breaks loose and takes the stage to dance, first with the Cubist and then, when she beat it, on stage are just him and a brute Bulgarian that moves as the legendary "Ali G".
Mel Meanwhile, following the intake of vodka, looks more and more Krasic, the player of Juventus, so that his hair seem to be made by the same hairdresser.
I finally activated the famous dance-Obe, and I start to speak to a brunette to a nearby table .. alternating dance steps involved in dialogue, until he shows me the faith to Umberto Smaila in "Ocean's Eleven" I try to move the discussion on many other subjects, but without success ...
returned from the other and see Giorgiao Ivoski at the table with two girls and our bottle of vodka almost
over.
After a while, 'it's time to change clubs, a brief "meeting" to decide where to go and go.
Directorate Mascara!
This club is the best place we were, we enter a little after 2 and III & IV.
After the classic patrol around we go get something to drink, I order 5 Whisky Cola and from that moment the memories are increasingly dim.
Among the various situations that the next day I remember the most fun is to see Mel Krasic-throwing ice from the cocktail and take in the Caribbean face Vale.
At a certain point, after the classical dance-Obe, I find myself clinging to a beautiful blonde, and deepen the knowledge and I see George in the Vale position by bouncers who get between us and the guy with the blonde he was talking about before ... but bodyguards! In general I see
then disappear again and Giorgiao Ivoski, probably with some chick, while the other girls stopped by us are not very sociable.
Around 4 we collect the jacket from the wardrobe lady (this is also a feature of all places, there is always an elderly lady in the cloakroom on the 50in, usually very kind and always truccatissima), seems 'get back to sleep but Ivo and the Vale have received a tip from some girls .. go to Night Flight, which by the way is also close to our apartment.
The Night Flight, due to the alcohol level will be immediately renamed the Park to Fly so that the taxi driver will take a bit 'to see where we go.
This club, in my opinion, is very nice, although even here large enough space is mainly occupied by the tables.
Bulgarian folk-music disk goes crazy and you see people scatenatissima and in general the quality of girls is very high!
Mel begins to dance as if it were native Bulgarian, while we know a little 'group of boys and girls who invite us to the table for a drink.
Around 5 and a half, despite the party inside the club wants to finish, we leave the camp and we go to the apartment. By Mel
Giorgiao to bed and I opt to try one of the many kebab present ... a nuclear stuff between meat, onions, spicy sauces, french fries in addition to dry swallowed every drop of alcohol makes you a breath that would kill anyone who crosses.
go to sleep I think it was fun so I never thought of in Sofia.
the morning we get up pretty early, the glorious day seems ideal to visit the city.
Around 11 are already on the road and the priority is to find something to eat. Maria Louiza
down the street the previous evening we avoid the kebabbaro until we arrive at Central Market right next to the main square.
We go for a ride and now I can imagine how this place could have been 20years ago, and how it would be exciting to live it then.
Today is a clean and orderly market, where there is a bit 'of everything from butchers to greengrocers.
We go upstairs and having to choose between "italian restaurant pizzeria" and the Bulgarian chain of burger / kebab we opt for the latter. Fixed
stomach, back where we leave the synagogue in the town we come now, unfortunately, is not open, but we take a ride around.
From there we go back on the main street where we primed in Banya Bashi Mosque (with its minaret that stands out among the buildings) and public toilets.
This area, with the runs and the central fountain is very cute.
Then we continue up the nearby Independence Square.
Here the signs of change in the last twenty years are much more obvious: instead of a statue of Lenin is the statue of Santa Sofia (a bit 'reminds me of the facade of the theater in Vilnius), where there were the old warehouses Tzum there is now a modern shopping mall and the old headquarters of the Communist Party looks like a palace "without personality."
Taking a few steps then there are two churches, the Sveta Petka (very special because it is buried, to see them get off the subway and it appears in front of you .. shame that practically attached to the church there is now a bar with her tables seems its continuation) and Sveta Nedelja (famous for the attack in which he names, practically in the middle of the intersection!)
begins here to curse the choice of Peuterey, there will be 17 degrees and a great sun and I am around with the heavier jacket that has .. Obviously others do not fail to get around this.
The previous evening and the heat beats down, and I continue going to the Presidential Palace and the courtyard where there is the oldest church in the city, the Rotunda of St. George.
We go inside and even though very small is probably the place I was most impressed.
leaving us now in Battenberg Square where stands the Royal Palace, now housing the National Gallery.
The square retains a bit 'the taste of the late 80, with traffic and parked cars, it takes me back a bit' when I was a child when the car in Italy took possession of pedestrian streets and plazas that have become .. a bit 'like in the movie "The country boy" in the cockpit where Corso Vittorio Emanuele in Milan, the car sped without problems.
Cute is also the park where he stands in front of the National Theatre.
Going forward we see the Russian church, which we recognize immediately, and climb to the place known as Sophia, the Orthodox Cathedral of Aleksander Nevski.
To see her is far from impressive and like the pictures, because there are no other buildings around, really stands out.
The inside is a bit 'a disappointment, very dark, I would say a little' bare, perhaps that is so impressive seeing it from outside, an interior so "poor" to leave a bit 'with a bitter taste. The labors
the night and the walk will start to hear and feel the need to make a pit stop.
Leaving the cathedral, however, we can not go to market in the nearby garden. More than
items for sale, for the most medals coins ladles books ect, I like to observe the sellers.
not scream, rant and not even look good when you get close to something they sit as if they did not care to sell.
someone plays chess and other whispering together, laughing and joking ... maybe those tourists who buy items now broken or abandoned at prices 10, 20.50 times higher than they had paid at the time of original purchase. However
between objects There are several interesting cameras 70 years, the helmet-cap leather for bikers and even a vintage airplane pilot's helmet.
Narodno back down in the square we go up at the opening of the Red Army monument in the park Borissova and then decide to return to the Vitosha to drink a few beers the night before where we laugh and impressions that we did Sofia during the day.
Given the short time, the visit was quick, but has allowed us to see what Sofia today and what might become in the future.
Around 5 back in the apartment for a pre-sleep night, disturbed only by Giorgiao that breaks a foot kicking to the step that is to go to the bathroom. A couple of
Oretta and prepare for Saturday night, which promises to be great.
