site.btaSamokov among First to Accept New Trends from Europe, Says BTA Director General

For centuries, Samokov has been among the first to accept and build upon innovations from other places in Europe, said BTA Director General Kiril Valchev at the opening of a local conference within BTA's Europe on Balkans: Cohesion Skills project. The conference took place at the BTA National Press Club here on Monday.

Valchev also stated that the first printing press for books in Bulgaria was opened in Samokov by Nikola Karastoyanov in 1828, and the publication of Lyuboslovie, the first Bulgarian magazine, began here from 1842 to 1846 by Konstantin Fotinov, who was a Samokov native. Likewise was Zafir Zograf, known by his pseudonym of Stanislav Dospevski, who was one of the first Bulgarians to receive an academic art education and the founder of the secular realistic portrait, said Valchev.

The history of Bulgarian photography begins with the names of the Samokov native Anastas Karastoyanov, thanks to whom there are photos of many Bulgarian revolutionaries, including Vasil Levski, Stefan Karadzha and Panayot Hitov. Valchev pointed out that in 2017 BTA became a partner of the Anastas Karastoyanov National Award for Photographic Art, established by the Samokov Municipality.

Valchev also stressed that the first Bulgarian winter resort, Borovets, is near Samokov, which was established near the residence of the Bulgarian rulers in 1898, the same year as BTA started publishing news of BTA. He stressed that this is confirmation that the construction of the modern culture of recreation in Bulgaria was developing simultaneously with other European countries, for example the Alpine ski resorts in Austria, Switzerland and Italy, as well as the seaside resorts in Spain, Portugal and Greece and with the transformation of the ancient Greek and Roman mineral baths to modern SPA resorts throughout Europe. BTA's Director General noted that Bulgaria has the advantage of being in first place in terms of the number and flow rate of mineral springs.

Samokov Municipality and the surrounding settlements are one of the major centres not only of winter tourism, but also of year-round mountain tourism, Valchev stated, pointing to Borovets, Govedartsi, Malyovitsa, Gyulechitsa, as well as Belchin and Tsari Mali Grad with the late antique Roman fortress. He added that this is precisely why BTA began organizing forums twice a year to discuss specific messages from around Bulgaria at the beginning of the summer and winter tourist seasons.

Valchec said that these messages are important to say in Samokov in order to keep people from moving, as official population censuses in 2021 showed that the town's population has decreased by about 2,000 people for 10 years.

Valchev noted that thanks to the opening of the BTA's National Press Club here on February 8, 2023, Samokov has been a part of the general national and European conversations. Over the past four years, BTA has tripled its national press clubs and preserved and developed the 14 press clubs opened over the previous 18 years.

Through the Europe on Balkans: Cohesion Skills project, BTA aims to raise public awareness and foster open dialogue about cohesion policy, local achievements, and the implementation of the EU's policy priorities. The project kicked off with a conference in Veliki Preslav in November 2024. Until September 2025, BTA will host discussions at its press clubs in the following cities: Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Varna, Veliko Tarnovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Gabrovo, Dobrich, Kazanlak, Kardzhali, Kyustendil, Lovech, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pernik, Pleven, Razgrad, Ruse, Samokov, Svishtov, Sliven, Smolyan, Sofia, Stara Zagora, Troyan, Targovishte, Haskovo, Shumen, and Yambol. Cross-border conferences will be held in Belgrade, Bosilegrad, Bucharest, Edirne, Skopje, and Thessaloniki. The project builds on the Europe in the Balkans: A Common Future and Europe in Bulgaria: A Common Future projects, implemented by BTA in 2023 and 2024, respectively.