They call it “The Cultural Capital of Bulgaria “, “The Town of the Seven Hills“, Philipopolis, Trimontzium - so many names for one town – Plovdiv. The place, where the Past and the Present walk together hand in hand creating an unique and glamorous atmosphere.
You can see the civilization – beautiful parks, large modern buildings and all the technologies of the 21-th century and then… You make just one step and you enter the Past – narrow cobblestone streets and fascinating, old houses from the time of the Bulgarian national revival.
Plovdiv is one of the oldest cities not only in Europe, but in the world – even older than Rome, Athens, Constantinople, and Troy. It is located on the strategic road (Via Militaris), connecting Istanbul (Constantinople) with West Europe and has been an important defensive, economic and cultural center down the ages. Its unique location has stimulated strong political and cultural influences from East and West civilizations, while maintaining a unique cultural identity. The city is built on 7 hills - Nebet Tepe, Djambaz Tepe and Texim Tepe, Sahat Tepe, Bounardjik (Tepe), Djendem Tepe and Markovo Tepe .
Nebet Tepe, Djambaz Tepe and Texim Tepe are the three hills on which the Old Plovdiv was built. There you can see ruins of Hellenic and Roman fortresses.
Best preserved is Hissar Kapiya – the gateway of the fortress, which was built during the reign of the Roman emperors Trajanus (98-117) and Marcus Aurelius (169-180).
The ancient amphitheater - the most impressive edifice of Roman time – was excavated during reinforcement works at the southern fortress wall (172). It offered almost 7 000 seats once. Nowadays, it is used for staging opera and theatre festivals, concerts, municipal celebrations, etc. The present-day downtown section of Plovdiv lies on the ruins of an enormous Roman stadium, which had a length of 180 m. and was intended for 30 000 spectators. The contests held here were similar to the Greek Olympic Games and dated back to the rule of the Roman emperor Septimus Severus (193-211).
The city's Old Town is preserved as an authentic 19-th century Renaissance open-air museum and features the amazing romantic architecture of that era. Many houses contain mini art galleries, including Balabanov House, Chomakov House, the House of Lamartin, Nedkovich House, the House of Christo G. Danov.  Other museums and galleries in the city include The City Art Gallery, which also has branches in the Old Town, a Museum of Icons, mainly church works from XV and XVI centuries and a Gallery of Mexican Art, which includes Bulgarian work among its contemporary exhibition.
The oldest orthodox churches in Plovdiv are: “St. Constantine and Elena”, “St. Marina”, “St. Petka”, “St. Nedelya”, “St. Bogoroditsa” (“The Holy Virgin”). All of them are architectural monuments of great value, possessing precious iconostases, icons, frescoes, books, etc.
Plovdiv is also famous with the International Fair, which is a great industrial event and is taking place twice a year. International Fair - Plovdiv is the successor of the First Exposition and of its mission as well - to contribute to the prosperity of the Bulgarian people by encouraging the development of the national industry.