About Bulgaria

Capital city: Sofia

Official language: Bulgarian

Religion: There is freedom of religious confessions. Traditional religion in the Republic of Bulgaria is Eastern Orthodox Christianity

National holiday: March 3, the day of the Liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman domination (1878)

Currency: the Bulgarian Lev

Money exchange: The Bulgarian Lev is pegged to the Euro. 1 EUR = 1.955 BGN.
You may exchange money in banks and in any of the numerous exchange offices. Some of those offices are opened during the holidays. Euro-checks may be cashed on a lot of banks.

Administrative division: 28 regions, named after their respective regional centers.



State system: a parliamentary republic with a one-chamber parliament (National Assembly), consisting of 240 national representatives, elected for a four-year term of service. The head of state of the republic is the President, elected for a five-year term of service. The Council of Ministers is the main body of executive power.

Relief: most diverse. Average height above sea level is 470 m. Some 31.5% of the countries territory is plain (up to 200 m above sea level), 41% are lowlands and hilly regions (from 200 to 600 m above sea level), and 27.5% are mountains (from 600 to more than 1,600 m above sea level).

Climate: moderate continental with Black Sea influence in the east and Mediterranean in the south.



History

A branch of the Slavs merged with the local Proto-Bulgarians, a Central Asian tribe, in the late 7th century to form the first Bulgarian state in the Balkans. In succeeding centuries, Bulgarian and the Byzantine Empires dominated South-East Europe, but by the end of the 14th century the region was overrun by the Ottoman Turks. Bulgaria regained its independence in 1878 largely due to the intervention of Russia and Romania, who clipped the wings of the declining Ottoman Empire in Bulgaria and elsewhere, and installed a minor German prince as a ruler of the newly independent country. The country's iconic heroes were all freedom fighters to a man: whether Rakovsky, who mixed revolution and literature, Vassil Levski - the Apostle of Freedom, or Hristo Botev, poet and fighter. After a series of bloody and brutal Balkan wars, Bulgaria had the further misfortune to be occupied by the losing side in both World Wars, and fell within the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination was brought to a swift, but for many people illusory end in 1989; though Bulgaria went on to hold its first multi-party election since World War II, essentially socialist policies were pursued until hyperinflation and economic meltdown drove the old guard out of power in 1997. Today, reforms and democratization have brought Bulgaria into the NATO fold, with EU accession celebrated in 2007. During Communist times, the Black Sea was a favorite destination for travelors behind the Iron Curtain. Now, increasing numbers of western Europeans travel throughout the country and many have bought vacation houses near the Black Sea or in picturesque villages.



Holidays

Baba Marta (Grandma Marta), March 1. A very old Bulgarian holiday. People give each martenitsa a type of white-red yarn, as a symbol of health.
March 3 The day Bulgaria celebrates its Russian-aided liberation from 500 years of Ottoman domination (1393-1878).
20th of April - 20 April 1876 is the official start day the greatest uprising of the Bulgarian people against the Ottoman rule.
Gergiovden May 6. St. George and official holiday of the Bulgarian Аrmy.
Ss. Cyril and Methodius Day May 24. The day of St. Cyril (827-869), and St. Methodius (826-884), who created the Cyrillic alphabet. A beautiful holiday - with lots of flowers, music, and joy.
Assumption Day - Golyama Bogoroditsa, August 15. There are big celebrations, especially in the main monasteries, with icons being paraded by the monks.
Reunification Day September 6. The day the two parts of Bulgaria, the independent North and East Rumelia (autonomous in the Ottoman Empire) were reunited.