Address: Zoopark Sofia/Зоопарк-София, entrance off of Simeonovsko Chausse, Vitosha borough
Tel: 868 20 43 [zoosofia.com]
Open: every day, 9.00 to 17.00 (winter); 9.00 to 18.00 (summer)

Outerworldly late-communist cement constructions and a noted lack of animal life could, upon arrival, seem to be all that Zoopark Sofia has to offer. Take a few more minutes to stroll the rambling zoo and disappointment or boredom will be overcome with a charming sense of yesteryear.

When it was constructed in the southern Sofia borough of Vitosha in 1988, the new zoo marked the 100-year anniversary of the original “tsarski” zoo that had been somewhere in Borissovata Gradina – it is said that two stone (or maybe concrete) camels now indicate this former location. With its present situation on the map, it is not as convenient, though a quick trip down Simeonovsko Chausse or buses 67, 73, 83, 88 and 120 take you to either the front or the rear entrance.

Aim for the front entrance, because the sign over the gates is too cute to miss. Ticket prices almost urge you to simply drop a whole 20 leva bill for a family of four – with the remaining 17 leva after tickets are purchased (one lev adults; 50 stotinki students, pensioners, war veterans; children under seven years free entrance) being donated to the place’s upgrading.

Not like there is anything pitiable or insufficient or dangerous about the zoo, it’s simply that it shows its age. Which only adds to its appeal.

Once inside, there is a duck pond, in decent condition, and with a sufficient number and array of water fowl paddling about to reassure any concerns of water quality. By the pond are a few vendors selling popcorn cooked in coconut oil, cheap plastic trinkets and sunglasses, and sometimes a man with mini-motors on which the tots can rent a ride.

The usual list of elephants, kangaroo, bears, cheetahs, wild boars, water buffalo, monkeys, birds and such are said to call the zoo home. To see them all in action, best wait till warmer weather, for when I was there in March, though the day was sunny, most of the animals still seemed to be in hiding, or winter hibernation... It was like walking around a deserted lunar cement jungle.

It does make for a lovely place for a walk, though. Benches (and in sit-able condition, too) scattered around, wide, smooth footpaths that give room for children to run and prams to be pushed, vegetation, a sense of calm and quiet. Interspersed around the park are kiosques selling snacky items like crisps, candy bars, bouillon, coffee, beer, non-alcoholic drinks and chewing gum, with most items being priced reasonable for a modestly resourced family to make the day into a special outing. Meaning, an espresso was 50 stotinki. One little cabin on the backside of the park sells kebapcheta with garnish and the like.

Toilets are paying, and thankfully they are kept clean and stocked, though the cleaning solution can be smelled about 30m away.

There are two structures in Sofia Zoo that are impossible to miss: the bear mountain and the vulture cage. The first summons up the cliffs of doom with the form of its facade recalling the elongate prisms of apatite. Apparently, in the centre of the thing, there is an area where the bears can commune, what. Or maybe that’s just from where their food is delivered.

The second is a massive, hideously fabulous cage topped with by what looks like two slap-job concrete St Louis Gateway Arches that come together at an angle to provide a roof-edge of sorts. In here, vultures and other carrion gnaw at three-metre-long jaws of dead animals, and hop around the branches and (cement?) rocks.

About the food for the animals: zoo director Ivan Ivanov told The Sofia Echo that when he took his position in 1995, many of the animals were starving. (This makes sense, given the economic situation in Bulgaria at the time.) Since then, this has been remedied by possibility for individuals or collectives to donate food for a chosen animal. For example, celebrity chef Uti Buchvarov has adopted the leopard; the Russian embassy’s Russian school has done so for a brown bear.

In total, there are 800 animals (not including insects or fish) of 264 species.

One more thing: as of mid-March, Sofia Zoopark has its very own live butterfly house – making it the first place on the Balkans to have a lepidopterium.