A gigantic statue of a Russian soldier watches over the ancient city of Plovdiv, a prominent reminder of the Soviet period in Bulgaria.

A mysterious tunnel hidden in the shadows of a colorful, historic sanctuary.

Ruins of an early Roman Christian church dating back to the 4th to 5th centuries.

"Unity, Creativity, Beauty."

Mysterious standing stone formations looks like a petrified forest.

The remarkably well-preserved final resting place of a powerful ancient Thracian king.

A magnificent, glittering building tucked into a tiny Bulgarian mountain town.

In a long-dry lake bed, these groups of massive stone pillars bear a striking resemblance to clumps of everyone's favorite fungi.

This once-grandiose behemoth of a monument from the socialist era now sits quiet and closed up.

Outstanding, eerie frescoes and decorations fill this 19th-century monastery.

The second-largest Jewish temple in Bulgaria was deserted after World War II, seized by the communist government and then abandoned again.

A collection of art from Bulgaria's time as a communist state.

The site of many battles and tragedies, including the 40 maidens who leapt into the sea.

A flamboyant five-story building in Bulgaria resembles a crawling snail.

An ancient Thracian city where fire rituals were practiced on the largest cult altar in Southeast Europe.

A spectacular Bulgarian cave resembling a devil's head with a waterfall rushing down its throat.

A Bulgarian monument to Russia's role in World War II is constantly being painted in pop culture protest.

The ceiling of Prohodna Cave in northern Bulgaria affords a peek at the sky via two deity-sized-eye-shaped holes.

This massive concrete sculpture is said to be the heaviest communist monument on Earth.

An architectural marvel that spans the Arda River, and has stories of a haunted past.

Bizarrely shaped rock formations in northwest Bulgaria come with equally bizarre legends.

One of the most beautiful bookstores in the world hides a neo-Gothic interior behind an art nouveau facade.

The best place in the world to buy tinned fish.

Catering to broken dolls for almost 200 years, this repair shop is now a charnel house of doll parts.