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Here is a mind map showing our plan when we traveled to Vienna. The main sights and things to be seen and experienced are marked there. Of course, Vienna is such a magnificent city, that you will for sure find a lot more things worth seeing. Still, below is a backbone you can use. Enjoy!

In case you go to Vienna at December, be sure also to check out the Christmas market which is right in front of the Town Hall (Rathaus). There is a lot to be seen!

Chateau de Chillon

If you are fond of medieval castles consider seeing Chateau de Chillon.

The castle is build on a small island in Lake Geneva and has been there for over 1000 years. It is situated very beautifully facing the great Alpes on the other shore of the lake. The castle is very preserved and accessible. You can walk trough it, from dungeons and courtyards, trough great halls and chambers, finally to the chapel and defenses. And if you want to learn the stories that the walls and halls have seen, don’t forget to take an audio guide at the entrance and learn a lot more about this lovely castle.

One of the stories of Chateau de Chillon tells about the famous English writer Lord Byron, and his enprisonment in the dungeons of the castle. You can still see his name carved in the pillar, down in the castles dungeons.

The old pieces of furniture in the chambers reveal a lot about the daily life of the medieval people. You can sink in the old atmosphere. The overall experience is magnificent!

The Chateau is one of the most visited historical monuments in Switzerland. More information about prices and opening times, you can find in the official website of the castle. The easiest way to get to the castle from anywhere in Switzerland is by train and doesn’t that make the trip even more romantic?

What is common for a typical citizen of Sofia is that coffee is not just favorite drink, but daily necessity. And not just the coffee, but the good coffee.

What we did is to make a comparison between three famous coffee shops which are more or less in the same format – Starbucks, Costa Cafe and Onda Coffee Brake. None of this chains is typical Bulgarian but all of them are quite popular there.

Starbucks

This coffee chain is available in Sofia from a couple of months only, but is already quite popular. We all know the coffee there, it is good, atmosphere is modern and dynamic. What we don’t like there is that when the cafe is full it looks too stuffed with people and becomes too noisy. Also, at Starbucks (in Sofia specifically) the sweets are not always the best quality.

Addresses:

• at the corner of the Vasil Levski Blvd and the Fritjof Nansen Street.

• at the corner of the Vasil Levski Blvd and the Gurko Blvd

Costa Cafe

This is the least explored one. The quality of the coffee is not as good as on Starbucks or Onda Coffee Brake, but is good enough. As it seems Costa Cafe is actually more specialized in hot chocolate. They have several types. The atmosphere is quite nice but again too stuffed sometimes. What is really original there is the cups they give for outside consumption. They are thick and it is not easy to get your fingers burned with them.

Addresses:

• City Center Sofia (Aresenalski blv.)
• Kniaz Alexander I street
• at the corner of Sheinovo street and Krakra street

Onda Coffee Brake

This is our favourite coffee chain. It seems to be available in Sofia only, and if you go there we advice you to visit it. The atmosphere is very good, even if the cafe is full with customers. They always play non-commercial music and have happy paintings on the walls. What is more, the quality of coffee there is best of all other mentioned chains. The sandwiches they bake at morning are with very good taste quality and the sweets are very nice.

Addresses:

• Tsar Osvoboditel blv. just opposite the Russian Chuch
• Business Park Sofia
• Mall of Sofia
• Stamboliiski blv.
  

Marks

No coffee can be good in the mouth that does not first send a sweet offering of odor to the nostrils. ~Henry Ward Beecher

If you go to Bulgaria, the old town of Plovdiv is something that has to be seen. It contains remains of a lot of different past centuries and wonderful picturesque views.

Old house in Plovdiv

Plovdiv is one of the oldest cities in Europe. It is a contemporary of Troy and Mycenae, and older than Rome, Carthage or Constantinople. Therefor, there you can see a lot of monuments from previous years such as the ancient Roman amphitheater. Even nowadays, performances have been made there at summer.

Roman amphitheater in Plovdiv

The city of Plovdiv is a modern cultural center. There are a lot of events which take place there such as painting, photography and sculpture exhibitions, theatrical plays, opera spectacles, musicals, etc. However, most of those events are at summer. Summer is definitely the best time to visit Plovdiv.

A list of things to see in Plovdiv:

• Archaeological Museum
• Balabanov House
• Center for Contemporary Art
• Church of Sveta Bogoroditsa
• Church of Sveti Konstantin & Elena
• Ethnographical Museum
• Hindlian House
• Historical Museum
• Nedkovich House
• Night of the Galleries (On 28 September each year, Night of the Galleries sees every Plovdiv gallery open, for free, from 20:00 to 03:00)
• Roman Amphitheatre
• Roman Forum
• Roman Stadium
• Zlatyu Boyadjiev House

Interior in old house in Plovdiv

Besides the numerous events and entertainment in Plovdiv there is also the beautiful old town which presents the Bulgarian culture in the 18th and 19th centuries. The beautiful buildings typical for that time have been made to museums where everyone can see the manner of life in the past days. Going trough the little cobblestone pavement roads makes you feel part of those past centuries.

Street in old Plovdiv