Tourist in town....what to do?

Sent off for some brochures from Bulgaria Tourist Information during a quiet night in the election campaign, and today I received a town map, places to visit and some vouchers...feeling at home already. Got to give it to the Bulgarian Tourist Board for their efficiency. Having said that still trying to locate the Snooker clubs in town, which will obviously have to take a priority, given that there is a major snooker tournament on.

Given my past experience in EBSA International competition, it is fair to say that after the round robin matches there is a fair bit of 'leisure' time between matches. Have decided that my snooker cue can take the place of my 3 wood in this instance and I may take in the odd 9 holes. It's either that or spend my free time at the casino or in the bar (where is my 'brother' Brendan Thomas when you need him?).

Sofia - whats going on?

I finally received notification from NIBSA Secretary yesterday that my nomination has been sent through to EBSA ahead of this years European Championships in June. Thanks Brian. Once confirmed, I quickly had a peek at www.skyscanner.net to check out flights and prices. Once completed, it was down to a bit of 'research' on Sofia, and Bulgaria ahead of the trip.

Church of St Nedelya & Goddess Protector

This gets quite a mention in most of the sites I have looked at, Sveta Nedelya (not pictured) is apparently a typical example of neo-Byzantine architecture. There has been a church on site since medieval times, although the present building dates from the mid-19th century. In 1925, the church was largely destroyed when Communist rebels exploded a bomb during a funeral service, attended by Tsar Boris III and his cabinet ministers, killing 123 people. Nice.

The square, Ploshtad Sveta Nedelya, used to be named after Lenin and a statue of the Communist leader once stood here. It has since been replaced by a 24m (79ft) bronze statue of the goddess protector of the city, Sofia (above), holding the symbols of wisdom and fame, a much better view than Lenin I think.

First impressions of Sofia are very good. Will have to get my Daughter Joanne and her friend Morgan to do a little bit more research for me, its going to be an awesome trip, so long as I remember to bring my Snooker Cue, it is a tournament after all!