Plovdiv, what is it?

If you are already in Sofia, familiarized with the sights of the Bulgarian capital and want to go for a day to a place that will give you a strong feeling of Bulgaria – then a visit to the second largest city in the country – Plovdiv, is probably the best choice.

The city is located on seven hills, like the city of Rome itself, and probably older, in its construction of the “eternal city”. His uninterrupted path through the centuries began in the deep past, when these lands were inhabited by the first known people of history – the mystical and legendary Thracians. The city was known to Greek chroniclers by the name of the Thracian king Eumolpius.

Fiercely trying to subdue freedom-loving and skillful warriors, such as the Thracians, Alexander the Great's father, Philip of Macedon, came here in the 3rd century BC and took the city of Eumolpia - not for long. But what remains of Philip is his name, which he gave to the city - Filipopolis - the city of Philip. The name survived to this day in translation in the language of the Thracians – as Pulpudeva and in the later Slavic pronunciation – Pldin-Plvdiv.

Not only the name of the city, but every step in the territory of the modern city center reveals the evidence of its continuous existence for more than 25 centuries.

Stroll through the old town where the Roman amphitheatre
It is adjacent to the fabulous houses of the second half of the 19th and first half of the 20th century by Plovdiv merchants, artisans, pharmacists, writers, revivalists for the liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman slavery. Some of these houses are built directly on top of the remains of the Roman fortress wall.

Stand over the ancient amphitheater, built on the hillside, which offers a beautiful view of the whole city. Enter the old city again through the preserved Roman gate, over which stands the remarkable house of the late 19th century merchant Georgiadi. And very close to the site of the preserved fortress walls, we will enter the picturesque courtyard of the old church of Saints Constantine and Helena. From the walls of the church, the living eyes of saints look at us, the work of unsurpassed modest masters.

We look behind the fence in the beautiful courtyard of another old house - the merchant Kuyumdzhioglu - it is worth very much to enter the interior - now there is an exposition of an ethnographic museum, and the rooms preserve the life of rich Plovdiv citizens of the first half of the 19th century.

Go down to the main shopping street of the modern city, to the place where a large bazaar was held on Fridays near the old Turkish mosque, and not far from the mosque, under the level of a modern street you can look at the preserved part of the Roman stadium.

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