Crossing a suspension bridge above a forest is the only way to reach this 12th-century monastery.

Not far from a popular beach, an unfinished, abandoned mansion for Bulgaria's last communist dictator.

These natural cliffs look like they are a part of an old castle complex.

The social hall of this former factory is a Communist-era time capsule.

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

A mountain pass in Bulgaria's Balkan Mountains was the site of four historic battles.

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

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

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.

This tiny Bulgarian town offers a stunning location in the mountains and a storied history.

Underneath this Byzantinian church lies a necropolis filled with ancient tombs and the ruins of previous churches.

A vast Communist-era exhibition space in the Bulgarian capital.

Eastern Bloc nostalgia, anybody?

A striking symbol of the Bulgarian capital.

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

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

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

An unusual cave filled with rare alien-looking aragonite formations.

An abandoned 19th-century iron factory perched along the outskirts of an idyllic village.

The ruins of a 13th-century monastery that long served as a place of refuge from wars and raids.

Climb around the high waterfalls on series of iron ladders and bridges within the wildest gorge in the Slovak Paradise.

A unique hotel for the artistic soul.

Climbing to the top of the cathedral's bell tower offers sweeping views of these medieval ruins.