His first experience with Bulgaria was the disinfection of his motor vehicle when entering the country from Serbia. The two euro fee and the four border checkpoints were not enough to discourage him and from that day onwards Bulgaria became one of his greatest passions. This passion grew so strong that he published a tourist guide on Bulgaria, got a masters degree on the Balkans and decided to publish a book with illustrations called "Socialist monuments in Bulgaria 1944-1989" that will come out in November 2009, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. This great fan of Bulgaria is called Luca Ponchirol, born in 1956 in Mantua Lombardy, professor in economics and law.

Once in Bulgaria, he decided to explore the country and with a few friends from Italy to set up a travel agency that "has its focus on Bulgaria".  

As part of this project, the idea of the tourist guide was born. And out of his passion for travel and the constant search for interesting facts came the idea about the book of socialist-era monuments.  

"It is a new perspective of Bulgaria and its history which many people fail to notice but which reveals, to those who can appreciate it, unexpected treasures," he says.

If this were a race, the gold medal would have gone to the congressional centre on Bouzdlodja peak, the silver to the monument of the founders of Bulgaria state in Shumen and the bronze to the statute of Hristo Botev with three young freedom fighters in Kalofer (dated about 1876, 1923, and 1944)

"Bulgaria has a unique architectural and monumental heritage. It is covered with archeological remains thrown in all of its parts by the former communist regime," he says.

After the fall of the regime, some of these remains were destroyed, while others were transformed into something else but many of these ghosts from the past which people pass with indifference have remained intact.

"But this is not the situation for the curious traveller," Luca says, explaining where his passion for Bulgarian socialist monuments comes from.

In the light of his interest in this period of Bulgaria’s history, Luca has learned something important during his stay and many trips around the country. "Never talk about politics with Bulgarians unless you know each other well.

This is one of the few things I don’t like about Bulgarians – this old form of nationalism that sometimes stops people from answering questions sincerely," he says.