site.btaTourism Associations' March in Sofia Commemorates 130 Years of Organized Hiking in Bulgaria
Hundreds of members of tourism associations and nature lovers from across Bulgaria gathered in central Sofia on Saturday to lay flowers at the memorial plaque in the garden outside the Ivan Vazov National Theatre, the site from which the first organized hike to Cherni Vrah Peak in Mt Vitosha set off 130 years ago this week.
After the tribute, the crowd set off on a procession to the St Nedelya Cathedral, where participants received a blessing from Bishop Ioan of Branitsa.
Ioan said: “Hiking in the mountains is also about admiring the beauty of what God has created, which we, as Christians and human beings, are duty-bound to protect as good stewards.”
According to the bishop, the Bulgarian Tourist Union (BTU) plays a key role in passing on the responsibility of caring for nature as a divine creation. “We must look after the places we visit and improve access to them so more people can witness this beauty,” he said.
BTU Executive Secretary Lachezar Lazarov presented the bishop with a bouquet gathered from the Bulgarian mountains.
The march then continued to the monument of Aleko Konstantinov on Vitosha Boulevard, where BTU Chairman Ventsislav Venev laid a bouquet on behalf of National Assembly Chair Nataliya Kiselova. Aleko Konstantinov (1863-1897), a renowned writer, initiated the tourist movement in Bulgaria.
Saturday’s events were part of a series of initiatives launched earlier in the week to mark 130 years of organized tourism in Bulgaria. The anniversary celebrations are held under the auspices of President Rumen Radev and will continue until Sunday, August 31, in Sofia and in Mt Vitosha, combining commemorative ceremonies, hikes, sporting events, and concerts featuring well-known Bulgarian performers, according to the BTU.
Saturday’s programme concluded with a concert in front of the National Palace of Culture (NDK) featuring Desi Dobreva, Yanitsa Kaneva, Nova Dimitrova, the Preview Music School, former Signal rock band member Hristo Lambrev, and the Ivan Apostolov Tourist Choir from Petrich.
On Sunday, President Rumen Radev is expected to take part in one of the commemorative hiking routes to Cherni Vrah. He will also attend the traditional National Tourist Gathering at the summit.
On August 27, 1895, in response to a call by writer Aleko Konstantinov, 300 nature lovers climbed Cherni Vrah. There, the first meeting of the Club of Bulgarian Tourists was held—an organization known today as the Bulgarian Tourist Union.
/VE/
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