Rila Monastery. The greatest tourist shrine in Bulgaria. (not without Russian participation)

You will say that the Russians in Bulgaria are everywhere and you will be almost right. Because yes, but not everywhere. There are places where "the foot of a Russian man has not yet set foot".

But Rila Monastery is not from such places - Russian tourists can not be counted here: they go and go. But I wanted to say not about their participation, but about the participation of Russia and the ROC in the life of this big, beautiful and very famous, in the literal sense of the holy place.

The Rila Monastery was founded by the Bulgarian canonized enlightener Ivan Rilski in the10th century, but was built in the 14th century, but at 15 it was burned and restored with the active participation of the ROC. In the monastery there is a large and rich museum, half of the exhibits in which are gifts from the Russian Orthodox Church: entirely gold and silver.

The monastery is located in a very beautiful place in the mountains, near the ski resort of Bansko, 117 kilometers from Sofia.

The altitude of 1147 meters above sea level, it's incredibly easy to breathe here: the air is clean and almost ringing. Around the monastery in the park "Rila Monastery" are hotels and restaurants, and just beyond the incredible beauty of the highlands "Rila Lakes." The park covers thirty-six mountain peaks over 2000 meters high

Rila Monastery is not only an important tourist point on the map of Bulgaria, but also the largest Bulgarian monastery, a cultural and educational facility and for many a very sacred place. In the monastery itself there are the relics of the great Bulgarian enlightener Ivan Rilsky, the miraculous icon of the Mother of God "Odigitria", around which are located 34 boxes with relics of various saints, including Mary Magdalene (1st century AD).

You can get there by car or by tourist bus - I do not know other opportunities, unfortunately, but I believe that they are.

Rila Monastery is a very famous and beautiful place, so I always advise everyone to visit, see, relax, breathe or even just have a good sleep - he sleeps very well in the mountains, he takes off all fatigue for many years like a hand. And, by the way, there is no hangover.

Even if you are not a religious person (like me) - there is something to see and think about. In the cultural and educational and historical sense.

Since the monastery was burned and destroyed many times, the oldest building that has survived here is the tower of Khrelyutov Kula - 1335.

The Cathedral Church "Nativity of the Virgin" was built in the first third of the 19th century.

At the best of times there were 300 monks in the monastery, now it is much smaller.

Not far from the monastery is the monastery of Ivan Rilsky (cave).

Thank you for your time and attention.

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All photos in this blog are taken by me unless otherwise attributed.

With love from Bulgaria @varya-davydova

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