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Interesting Destinations in Bulgaria
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Glavinitsa (Glavinica)
Small Town
Date :: Tue 10/07/2008 @ 08:26
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Glavinitsa is a relatively small town in North Eastern Bulgaria...
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GLAVINITSA 
District: Silistra
ZIP code: 7630
Telephone code: +359 (0) 8636
Population: 1900
 Glavinitsa is a relatively small town in North Eastern Bulgaria, Silistra district. It is situated in the Eastern Danube plain, very close to the towns of Tutrakan and Dulovo, and about 50km away from Silistra. There are sayings that a settlement has been situated here since remote past, but there are no documentary evidences to confirm this. Remains of the past can be found around the land of Glavinitsa left by ancient Thracians and Romans, and decades later – from Muslims, Turks, and Bulgarians. According to the legends the village was hit by a terrible plague which killed many of the local population during the 19th century. The survivors were forced to leave the place and abandon their homes, but years later they returned and brought the village back to life. There is even a more romantic version which tells that the survivors were actually only 2 – young man and woman. They and their family were the one who returned and restored the village. The scattered hills around the today Glavinista were inhabited mainly by Muslim herdsmen. The Turkish name of the village (Asvat kioy) can be translated as the village of the principals, leaders or winners.
The village’s name was changed in 1942 to Glavinitsa. And it was actually declared a town in 1984. This makes it the newest town in the region.
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Guliantsi (Gulianci, Gulyanci))
Small Town
Date :: Tue 10/07/2008 @ 08:25
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The town of Guliantsi is situated in North Bulgaria...
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GULIANTSI 
District: Pleven
ZIP code: 5960
Telephone code: +359 (0) 6561
Population: 3500
 The town of Guliantsi is situated in North Bulgaria, Pleven district. It lies very close to the town of Nikopol and only about 35km from the district center Pleven. History tells us that Guliantsi lies in a region that was inhabited since Antiquity - there was a settlement on the left bank of the Vit River (or Utus like the Thracians called it). It was a stop alongside the Ancient Roman Danube road.
The name Giulian (meaning rose) is given by the Turks who called it thus because of the many red and white roses that covered the house yards in the village and the neighboring fields. Through the years the name was transformed to Giuliande, Giuliantsi to become the present day Guliantsi. The village of Guliantsi was declared a town in 1974.
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Dimovo
Small Town
Date :: Tue 10/07/2008 @ 08:24
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The town of Dimovo is situated in North Western Bulgaria...
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DIMOVO 
District: Vidin
ZIP code: 3750
Telephone code: +359 (0) 9341
Population: 1300
 The town of Dimovo is situated in North Western Bulgaria, Vidin district. It lies in the Danuve plain, very close to the town of Gramada. Interesting to know is the history of the town’s name. Before the Liberation of Bulgaria the town had 2 names in the same time - the Bulgarian – Barzitsa, and the Ottoman – Osmanie. In 1880 the town is renamed to Alexandrovo in honour of the Bulgarian kniaz (prince) Alexander Batemberg. In 1936 it was renamed to Vlaikovo but after the protests of its citizens the previous name Alexandrovo was returned with a little change – Kniaz Alexandorovo. The story ends in 1951 when the town was renamed for the very last time to Dimovo, after the nickname of the local partisan Zhivko Puev – Dimo.
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Dve Mogili
Small Town
Date :: Tue 10/07/2008 @ 08:21
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Interesting place to visit is the Orlova chuka cave.
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DVE MOGILI 
District: Ruse
ZIP code: 7150
Telephone code: +359 (0) 8141
Population: 4500
 Dve mogili is a town in North Bulgaria, Ruse district. It lies in the Danube plain, some 30km away from the town of Ruse and close to the towns Borovo and Byala. Some prehistoric excavations assume human existence on these lands since 40 000 years BC – these are some stone and flint made tools and bones from bear and deer, found in the cave Orlova chukka in the nearby village of Pepelina. Some ceramic frasgments from about 3000-2000 BC were found too. Since then a lot of tribes and peoples have lived in these lands-particularly the Slavs in the beginning of 6th age AD and the Bulgarians come in the 7th century to form the Bulgarian country. 
It is believed that there was a settlement on the territory of the present town even before the falling of Bulgaria under the Ottoman yoke. The village is first mentioned in the Ottoman tax registers and it was referred to as existing since the 15th century. And it is mentioned as it is still called today - Dve mogili – meaning “two hills” – after the geographic landmarks by the town. A later document – from the middle of the 19th century states that the village has 100 houses and 550 citizens.
An important fact is that the famous Bulgarian Filip Totiu spent the last days of his life in Dve mogili.
The annual feast of the town is celebrated on May 11th - when a fair takes place as well as a Children Folk Festival. A lot of groups come from the whole of Bulgaria and abroad.
Interesting place to visit is the above mentioned Orlova chuka cave. It is near the village of Pepelina, less than 5km from the town, 13 500m long (second longest in the country). It was discovered by chance in 1941 and is one of the most beautiful caves in Bulgaria.
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Varbitsa
Date :: Tue 10/07/2008 @ 08:02
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The town is situated in the picturesque Gerlovo hollow.
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VARBITSA 
District: Shumen
ZIP code: 9870
Telephone code: +359 (0) 5391
Population: 3600
 Varbitsa is a town in North Eastern Bulgaria, Shumen district. The town is situated in the picturesque Gerlovo hollow. Near the Ticha dam lake. The good living conditions that the region offers are the main reason for it being populated since antiquity. A lot of peoples have lived on these lands – Thracians, Romans, Slavs, proto-Bulgarians. The Varbitsa pass – one of the main in the country, connecting the south and north part of Bulgaria, is located to the south of the town. The Varbitsa hollow hides a whole lot of historic remains and reveals a number of legends. The excavations in the area show reveal traces of the Thrace civilization, probably from the 4th-3rd century BC. It is believed that the name of the town comes from the old Roman fortress “Fabritsius” which foundations were used in the later building of a medieval fortress called “Urvision” (located in the Gaidar Kamak area). Parts of its guarding walls are still being discovered. The town was mentioned under the name Verigava in 679 by the Byzantine chronologists. The story tells of the first Bulgarian khan- Asparuh and his victories over the Byzantium Empire here. Later he relocated the whole tribe Severi here, to guard over the region and defend it against the Byzantines. Their capital was called Tsika.
The Varbitsa pass is again arena of big war affairs on July 26th 811. Here the Byzantine emperor himself led his army and met the Bulgarian khan Krum in an open battle. The Byzantine army was completely crushed – this one of the worst defeats of Byzantium in its history.
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Byala Cherkva (Biala Tcherkva)
Small Town
Date :: Tue 10/07/2008 @ 07:54
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The inhabitants of Byala Cherkva took active part in the struggles for national liberation.
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BYALA CHERKVA 
District: Veliko Turnovo
ZIP code: 5220
Telephone code: +359 (0) 6134
Population: 2700
 Byala Cherkva is a relatively small town located in North Bulgaria, Veliko Turnovo district, in the central part of the fertile Danube Plain, on the left bank of the Rositsa River. Its closest towns are the neighboring Pavlikeni and Suhindol. It is also 40 km away from Veliko Turnovo, 40 km away from Sevlievo and 25 km away from the historic Dryanovo Monastery. It is near the geographical center of Bulgaria (which is located in the Uzana region near Gabrovo).
The area of Byala Cherkva was first inhabited by the Thracians who came here attracted by the fertile and beautiful land. Later inhabitants of the region - Romans, Slavs, Proto-Bulgarians and Ottoman Turks - left a heritage of their own – different fortresses, settlements, monasteries, roads, coins, ornaments and tools. The Roman road from Nicopolis ad Istrum (the village of Nikiup) to Melta (Lovech) and Serdika (Sofia) passed through the region. The first recorded Bulgarian settlement - Belinska Byala Cherkva - emerged on the opposite bank of the Rositsa River, in the area now called Selishte. According to the legends its inhabitants took part in the first uprising against the Ottoman rule - the Turnovo Uprising in 1598, after which the Turks burnt down the whole village. The present Byala Cherkva was founded on the site of the small village of Murad Bey, which was founded by the Turk feudalists in the 15th century to bring an economic revival to the landed estate, donated to an Ottoman feudal lord. Christians from the destroyed medieval settlement Belinska Byala Cherkva and the other nearby villages settled here in 16th and 17th centuries. Bulgarians gradually started to prevailin its populaton. The name Byala Cherkva was restored after the National Liberation in 1878. 
They built the first church - St James' - in 1832, building in it pillars from the antique town Nicopolis ad Istrum. A second church that still exists, was built in 1866. The first religious school (a primitive semi-religious school) in the village was opened in 1835. A new school building was finished in 1858, and the first secondary school in the region was opened in 1874.
The inhabitants of Byala Cherkva took active part in the struggles for national liberation. A revolutionary committee lead by Bacho Kiro was founded here in 1872 and serious preparation for an uprising started. A hundred rebels under the command of Bacho Kiro participated in the April Uprising in 1876, where a detachment was formed under the command of Priest Hariton and Bacho Kiro. Unfortunately the detachment was defeated after nine days of heroic fighting with the Turks in the Dryanovo Monastery. 75 young men from Byala Cherkva fell dead in the ruins of the monastery. Bacho Kiro escaped, but was caught later and was brought to trial in an Ottoman court. He was hanged on 28 May 1876. Another three inhabitants of Byala Cherkva fought in the detachment of another revolutionary leader - Hristo Botev - in 1876.
 The name of the village was Gorni turcheta till 1879 when it was renamed to its current name. After the Liberation ByalaCherkva still continued to play an important role in the Bulgarian cultural and political life. For example here Tsanko Tserkovski founded a Youth Educational Society, which lay the beginning of the organized agrarian political movement in Bulgaria. Byala Cherkva was the birthplace of many famous Bulgarians - Bacho Kiro, Tsanko Tserkovski, Raiko Daskalov, etc. Byala Cherkva was declared a town in 1976 in honour of the 100th anniversary of the April Uprising. The official feast of the town is celebrated every year on May 11th.
Interesting places to visit are:
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Brezovo
Small Town
Date :: Tue 10/07/2008 @ 07:29
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The modern history of the town goes back to the time of the Ottoman yoke.
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BREZOVO 
District: Plovdiv
ZIP code: 4160
Telephone code: +359 (0) 3191
Population: 1900
 Brezovo is a town located in South Bulgaria, Plovdiv district. It lies about 40km away from Plovdiv, 30km away from the town of Chirpan and some 50km away from the town of Kazanlak.
The first vestiges of a life in these lands appear to be from about 4000 years BC. The modern history of the town goes back to the time of the Ottoman yoke. The settlement becomes a major factor in the region due to its very good location – it lies on the roads from Plovdiv to Kazanlak and from Chirpan to Karlovo. There was also an old caravan road connecting Sofia and Burgas, and another one, probably with Roman origin, that was going to Konstantinopol (nowadays – Istanbul). According to the legend, the settlement arouses around an old Turkish farm and was first inhabited by Bulgarians, Turks, gypsies and Greeks who lived here in a relative harmony. But later the village is depopulated by a plague. Several years later some Bulgarian families from the region of Liaskovets (near Veliko Turnovo) come and settle here and laid the foundation of the future town. 
The village of Brezovo was declared a town in 1969.
Interesting places to visit are:
- The Granite oak – the oldest tree in Bulgaria with probable age of 1600 years (older than the country itself!), located some 10km from the town
- The house of the famous artist Zlatiu Boiajiev
- The building of the first secular school on the town, which is now transformed into a museum. Vasil Levski formed a secret local revolutionary committee here during his missions, in 1870-1871.
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Breznik
Small Town
Date :: Tue 10/07/2008 @ 07:20
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Braznik was probably among the first five Bulgarian towns.
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BREZNIK 
District: Pernik
ZIP code: 2360
Telephone code: +359 (0) 7751
Population: 4000
 Breznik is a town located in the Western part of Bulgaria, Pernik district. It lies very close to the towns of Pernik and Bankya.
Bregovo has a very long story. History tells us that it was probably among the first five Bulgarian towns – Nish, Plovdiv, Sredets and Srem are the others.  The historical evidences show remains of the Thrace civilization from 1st millennium BC. The discovered consecrated plates, plastic figures, coins, etc. show that there was very intensive life on these lands during the Roman epoch. There are some  ruins from the Second Bulgarian Kingdom and the Ottoman yoke, but they are not well preserved. A lot of churches, monasteries and monuments represent the important role of the settlement during the Bulgarian national revival. Among these are the church St.Petka, the secular school, the Tsarnogor and Bilin monasteries, the remains of medieval churches, the houses with architectural and art importance, etc.
The first secular school in the settlement was found in 1869.
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Bregovo
Small Town
Date :: Mon 10/06/2008 @ 11:03
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Bregovo is the town in Bulgaria that lies on the most north-western point in Bulgaria...
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BREGOVO 
District: Vidin
ZIP code: 3790
Telephone code: +359 (0) 9312
Population: 2700
 Bregovo is the town in Bulgaria that lies on the most north-western point in Bulgaria. It is located in the Vidin district, on the border with Serbia, about 30km away from the town of Vidin. The town is only 6km away from the outfall of the Timok River. Bregovo was declared a town in 1974. The name of the town was first mentioned in  the Ottoman registers in 1560. It is derived from the word “breg”, meaning "shore" (which come form the Timok shore). The first secular school in the settlement was built in 1864, a post office followed in 1879, and a custom house emerged in Bregovo in 1895. A community centre was opened in 1897.Most of its population speaks Bulgarian and Romanian languages. There are great similarities in the life and culture on the both banks of the Danube river, and hence – very good relations between the people living on the Bulgarian and the Romanian shores of the river.
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Borovo
Small Town
Date :: Mon 10/06/2008 @ 10:57
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Borovo is best known for the Thracian silver treasure...
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BOROVO 
District: Ruse
ZIP code: 7174
Telephone code: +359 (0) 8140
Population: 2400
 Borovo is located in the North-Eastern part of Danube plain, about 50km away from the town of Ruse and very close to the town of Byala.  The first accounts of the settlement go back to 1657, when it was mentioned in the Ottoman documents by the name Chiflik monastery. It was afterwards called Gorna Manastiritsa, Gorno Manastirtsi, Gorazd, etc. Borovo is best known for the Thracian silver treasure found nearby in a Thrace tomb from the 4th century BC in 1974. It was called “the Borovo treasure”.
There is a History Museum in the town that exposes more than 10 000 subjects from the traditional Thracian, Roman, Greek, and Slavonic customs and culture – coins, pottery, tools and clothes.
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Bolyarovo (Boliarovo)
Small Town
Date :: Mon 10/06/2008 @ 10:46
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The village of Bolyarovo was founded during the Revival.
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BOLYAROVO 
District: Yambol
ZIP code: 8720
Telephone code: +359 (0) 4741
Population: 1300
Bolyarovo is located in South Eastern Bulgaria, in the south part of the Yambol district upon the north slopes of the Strandja Mountain.
There was human presence in these lands in early antiquity. Traces of Thracian settlements have been discovered around the nearby villages Krainovo, Iglika, Popovo, Dennitsa and Kamen Vruh. There are traces of ancient copper-ore works in the Trofalashkite Dupki area.
The village of Bolyarovo was founded in the national revival period as the landed estate of an Ottoman pasha. Although it was away from the country's large centres, the Bolyarovo region took part in the manifestations of the Bulgarian movement for national liberation. The local population has preserved to our day the memories of the several local people killed by the Ottomans in the struggle for liberation.
The village was first known as Pashakioy but was later renamed to Bolyarovo in 1934. It was proclaimed a town in 1974. The town was first part of the Yambol district, then added to the Burgas district, and since the latest administrative division of the country in 1999 is once again part of the Yambol district.
Interesting places to visit are:
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The ethnographic museum in the town
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The house-museum of Stefan Karadja, in his native nearby village of Stefan Karadjovo
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The church St.Dimitar
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The plaque of Indje voivoda in the village of Popovo
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Bozhurishte (Bozhourishte, Bojurishte)
Small Town
Date :: Mon 10/06/2008 @ 10:41
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It is among the youngest towns in the country...
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BOZHURISHTE 
District: Sofia-Okrag
ZIP code: 2227
Telephone code: +359 (0) 7112
Population: 5200
 Bozhurishte is a town in Western Bulgaria, less than 5km away from the capital Sofia. It is among the youngest towns in the country, being established in January 1897. The settlement was being formed around some military barracks. Its name comes from the word “bojur” meaning peony, since there were many peonies on these lands. The town is known as a pioneer of the Bulgarian aviation and airplane construction. In 1914 north of the railway station in the city of Sofia was  established the first aviation school which was moved in the same year in Bozhurishte and was set up as the first center for flying personnel. The first Bulgarian airport (military) was built in the town. Three are the symbols of the town: the horse - symbolizing the horse-breeding and the horse riding; the plane - the cradle of the Bulgarian aviation; the peony - coloring the region every spring, and giving the name of the town. Bozhurishte is also known for being among the towns with the clearest atmosphere in the country.
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Boboshevo
Historical Point of Interest,Small Town
Date :: Mon 10/06/2008 @ 10:15
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There are a lot of churches and monasteries in close proximity to the town...
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BOBOSHEVO 
District: Kiustendil
ZIP code: 2660
Telephone code: +359 (0) 7046
Population: 1400
 Boboshevo is a town in Western Bulgaria, Kiustendil district. It lies on the Struma River some 20km away from the towns of Dupnitsa and Blagoevgrad and 40km away from Kiustendil. It is only about 75km to the South of the capital Sofia. Boboshevo lies in the lowest part of the southwestern ridge of the Rila Mountain. Because of its favourable position and mild climate, the area of Boboshevo has been populated ever since Antiquity.There are a lot of churches and monasteries in close proximity to the town. The nearby village of Skrino is the birthplace of St.Ivan Rilski – the spiritual patron of the Bulgarian people during the Ottoman invasion. He made his first steps in faith in the nearby St.Dimitar monastery. Then he continued to study the scriptures in the nearby caves. Later  Ivan Rilski put the beginning to the famous monastery – the Rila monastery – one of the symbols of Bulgaria. The Ruen monastery was built here in 2003. It is located in the neighbourhood of the village Skrino and is named after St.Ivan Rilski. A steep path starts from the monastery and leads up in the mountains to the cave where St Ivan Rilski probably lived. People are not allowed to visit the monastery in Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
The St.Dimitar monastery’s beginning was put in the 10th century – it is one of the oldest in the country. It was a very important spiritual and intellectual point of gathering. The monastery lies about 4km away from the town of Boboshevo. It was ruined in the time of the Ottoman invasion but rebuilt later – in 1488.  Unfortunately, the only part of the monastery that has survived till now is the monastery’s church with its unique 15th century old mural paintings.
The whole region of Boboshevo was a very important religious center in the period 15-17th century. A lot of churches from that period have survived till now. The “St. Petka” church in the nearby village of Vukovo is dated back to the 16th century and its wall paintings are among the most precious examples of the art from this period. The oldest church in the region is St.Todor in the Selishte area.
And in the town itself the “Assumption of Holy Mary” is still a working church. Its unique architecture reminds very much of the Rila monastery.
A Neolithic settlement with valuable objects of the early 5th millennium BC was uncovered during excavations in the nearby Slatino village. There were more than 500 ceramic objects, qualified as true masterpieces of fine art, but the most important finding was of an oven model with a lunar calendar painted on its bottom which is the oldest of its kind found anywhere in Europe.
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Beloslav
Small Town
Date :: Mon 10/06/2008 @ 10:04
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Beloslav lies in the North Eastern part of Bulgaria.
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BELOSLAV 
District: Varna
ZIP code: 9150
Telephone code: +359 (0) 5112
Population: 8000
 Beloslav lies in the North Eastern part of Bulgaria, Varna district. The nearest towns are Varna (only about 20km away from it), Devnia and Provadia. It’s interesting to note that the town lies on the two shores of the deep navigable canal Varna-Devnia. The town is surrounded from 4 sides by hills.The previous names of the settlement are Gebedje, Belovo and Belevo, but the oldest known so far is Krushevo. It was burned down and deserted by the Turks in the end of 18th century. The legend goes on that in the first half of 19th century, two brothers – Sava and Yanaki were returning to their native village of Erkech, following an exile in Russia. Their way passed through deserted village and they decide to built here their houses and thus put a beginning to a new village. They called it Gebedje, the meaning of which is not exactly sure. Some considered this meant “A pregnant woman” since the hills surrounding the village looked a lying pregnant woman.
The pride of the current town of Beloslav is the church, built in 1936 and recently rebuilt.
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Batanovtsi (Batanovci)
Small Town
Date :: Mon 10/06/2008 @ 09:54
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Batanovtsi is a town in Western Bulgaria.
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BATANOVTSI 
District: Pernik
ZIP code: 2340
Telephone code: +359 (0) 7712
Population: 2500
 Batanovtsi is a town in Western Bulgaria. It is located very close to the towns of Radomir and Pernik. The previous name of the settlement was Temelkovo (between 1950 and 1991), in honour of a famous communist activist Temelko Nenkov. The current name Batanvtsi comes from Batan voivode – a famous haidouk who lived in these lands during the Ottoman yoke. Batanvtsi is a relatively small town, maybe the most interesting building in the whole town is the train station – which was built in connection with the local cement factory Granitoid – the first of its kind in the country. Unfortunately for the town, the factory has now been closed.
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Banya (Bania)
Small Town,Spa Resort
Date :: Mon 10/06/2008 @ 09:23
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It is also known as “Karlovo mineral baths”.
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BANYA
District: Plovdiv
ZIP code: 4360
Telephone code: +359 (0) 3132
Population: 3700
 Banya (meaning “a bath” in Bulgarian) is a town in South Bulgaria, Plovdiv district. It lies some 10km away from the town of Karlovo and about 50km away from Plovdiv. It is also known as “Karlovo mineral baths”.  The mineral water springs are probably the main reason for the establishing of the settlement. Banya has one of the very few whole year working outdoor mineral water pools in the country. Among the other main local industries are wine producing, and the production of rose, peppermint and lavender oil. Very important persons for the town development were the Bagarov brothers – they have given a  strong push to the local wine and oil producing. The house of Ivan Bagarov is currently among the most luxury restaurants in the region. His brother’s house was visited by King Boris III in 1927 during his treatment in the local mineral springs. The King was so satisfied after his healing and fascinated by the local nature that he ordered the building of a house for him in the town that later called “Our House”. Especially for him the “King’s baths” have been built.
The feast of the town is on August 30th, but is traditionally celebrated on the last Saturday of August.
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Aprilitsi (Aprilci)
Historical Point of Interest,Small Town
Date :: Mon 10/06/2008 @ 09:16
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It lies in a lovely valley with an outstanding view.
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APRILTSI 
District: Lovech
ZIP code: 5641
Telephone code: +359 (0) 6958
Population: 3300
 The town of Apriltsi is situated some 200 km to the north-east of Sofia, very close to the towns of Sevlievo and Troyan. It lies in a lovely valley with an outstanding view. The valley is bounded by the North Djendem Reserve, the Triglav, Maragidik, and Botev peaks (the highest peak in the Stara Planina Mountains).
The first citizens of the town came from Tarnovo region – people who have escaped from the Ottoman invasion. But there are evidences for human existence in these lands since the times of the Thrace civilization. The first school in the town was found in 1812 and in 1850 – the first secular school was established. In 1872 Vasil Levski organized here one of his secret committees.  The town was actually created in 1976 after the unification of 4 villages – Novo selo, Ostrets, Vidima and Zla reka. It was formed in commemoration of the heroes from the so called April uprising from 1876.
The town tries to become an attractive mountain resort with renovated recreation facilities, new hotels and restaurants, swimming pools.
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