site.btaSofia Celebrates Its Day with LUNAR Festival, Concerts and Performances

The Sofia Municipality is marking the Day of Sofia with a variety of events, the municipality’s press office said.

The Day of Sofia is celebrated under a decision of the Sofia Municipal Council adopted on March 25, 1992. The date coincides with the Orthodox feast day of the Holy Martyrs Faith, Hope and Love and their mother, Sophia, September 17.

The day will begin with a session of the Sofia Municipal Council at 10 am. Greetings will be delivered by Sofia Mayor Vasil Terziev and Sofia Municipal Council Chair Tsvetomir Petrov and citizens will be recognized for their contribution to the city.

At 11.30 am, a ceremonial flag-raising ceremony and a water blessing will take place in front of the St. Sophia Church. The service will be officiated by Bulgarian Patriarch and Metropolitan of Sofia Daniil. Head of State Iliana Iotova will participate in the celebrations at St. Alexander Nevsky Square, where she will receive the guard of honor. Mayor Terziev will address the residents of Sofia.

A series of free city walks organized by Visit Sofia and its partners will also take place today.

The day will also offer an opportunity to travel back in time on a vintage tram, departing on the hour from 4 pm to 7 pm. The route will run from Nadezhda Overpass to Zhournalist Square.

A highlight of the celebrations will be the largest edition yet of the LUNAR video-mapping festival, featuring concerts, theatrical performances, exhibitions, educational games and workshops for children, which will continue through September 20.

One of the city’s most famous spaces, the Largo, together with the facades of the buildings housing the National Assembly, the Council of Ministers, the Presidency, and the Ministry of Education and Science, will be transformed into a large-scale stage for visual arts and LUNAR: “The Lights of Sofia.”