One Day, Three Religions

Sunday, February 4

We woke up to find that we had no hot water and our radiators were cold (we have steam for heat).  We waited a few hours for the hot water to come up.  It never did.  We decided to take a break from the rigors of bathing and go out and get some lunch anyway.  The forecast was for rain on and off that day but since we were already playing it fast and loose we figured we’d take our chances.

We went to one of our favorite street vendors and, of course, it started to rain just as we started to eat.  Fortunately there was an awning to stand under.

Today was Bulgarian Pizza day.  This time we acted like locals and tried it with mayonnaise and ketchup. Their mayo has a lot more vinegar in it but didn’t really add anything.  The ketchup wasn’t bad but why would you do that?  That is an experiment that we probably won’t repeat.

After lunch we started to walk about but the weather really was miserable so we decided to call it a day.  When we got back to the apartment we talked to someone in the building and they told us that there had been an ‘accident’ and that the entire area was without heat and hot water.  We gleaned that the building doesn’t have it’s own boiler and that heat and hot water are centralized services here.  That’s very different from what we’re used to.  Viva la difference!

Monday, February 5

We woke this morning to heat and hot water as usual.  We learned that there is a single company that supplies hot water and electricity to the entire City.  Apparently their pipelines are very old and in poor condition.  They actually schedule outages to do major repairs.  Last year the price of their services increased by 38%.  Ouch!

Today was a beautiful day so we decided to make up for lost time and hit a few hotspots.  Our first stop was lunch!  We happened on a kosher restaurant serving Israeli delicacies.  We each had a plate of humus with falafel balls.  It was delicious.

Next we visited The Sofia Synagogue.  It is the largest Sephardic synagogue in Europe.  The largest synagogue in Europe is an Ashkenazi Synagogue in Amsterdam.  Sephardic Jews come from the Iberian Peninsula (mostly Spain) and Ashkenazi Jews come primarily from Germany.

The Synagogue opened in 1909 and was designed by the well known Austrian architect Fredrich Grünanger.  An elderly member of the congregation gave us a tour.  He told an interesting story of how, in World War II, a bomb fell on a portion of the building.  Fortunately it was a dud and did very little damage.  He said, “Maybe it was a miracle”.

The interior is designed around several religiously significant numbers.  The number eight was represented in the number of sides of the building, the number of lights in the chandeliers and the patterns in the mosaics on the floor.  The number eight is important because that is the age in days when boys are circumcised; there are also eight days of Chanukah.  Twelve, which represents the number of tribes of Israel, was also represented in many design motifs.

(Interior of Sofia Synagogue)

Our next stop was just two blocks away.  It was the Banya Bashi Mosque.  The mosque was built in the 16th century during the time when the Ottoman Empire ruled Bulgaria.  It was designed by a famous architect of the time named Mimar Sinan.  He was the chief architect and engineer for the Ottoman Empire and is considered to be the Michaelangelo of the East.  His most famous work is the Suleiman Mosque in Istanbul.

(Banya Bashi Mosque with Minaret)

As is the custom we were required to remove our shoes before entering the building.  Deborah also was required to cover her hair.  Inside we found a small, round room that was less than 100 feet in diameter.  It had beautiful stained glass windows and brightly colored designs painted on the walls.  It was simply decorated and was not as ornate as we expected.

(Interior of Banya Bashi Dome)

Not to overlook Christianity we then headed for Saint Nedelya, an Eastern Orthodox Church.  The name translates to something like “Saint Sunday” or “Holy Sunday”.  Even the Bulgarians are not sure why it’s named that.  (Don’t worry folks, there aren’t that many churches to visit here – we’ll start talking about something else soon).

The church has a long and interesting history.  It was originally constructed in the tenth century and has been expanded and rebuilt many times since.  In 1925 the church was bombed in an attempt to kill the King of Bulgaria.  Over 150 people were killed but the King, who was expected, was not harmed because he was attending the funeral of one of his bodyguards at the time.

The interior of the church was very impressive.  It is decorated in Byzantine style and covered in frescos.  Icons were on display in every corner and the alter was highlighted in gold.  It cost 5 Лв to take pictures here.

(Main Alter of Saint Nedelya Church)

On our way home we stopped for coffee and dessert and strolled through one of the many parks.  It was a good day.

Distance walked: 7.9 miles