Samokov

The town of Samokov is located in the Samokov valley, 62 km southeast from the capital Sofia. The population is 27546 inhabitants after the census in 2001. There are regular bus connections with Sofia, Borovets, Kostenets, Ihtiman and Dupnitsa. The Samokov valley is on an altitude of 900 m above sea level. Surrounded in the north by Lozenska and Plana mountains and the dam lake Iskar, in the west from mountain Verila and in the east and south from the highest mountain in the Balkan peninsula – Rila. You can climb (using also the cabin-lift Borovets – Jastrebets) on the  highest peak Mussala (2925 m) in one day. The climate in Samokov is temperate continental with mountain influence. The average annual temperature is 7,3 degrees C. The amount of the annual rainfalls is approximately 650 mm. The soils are alluvial-meadow  and forest-maroon. Cultivated are potatoes, flax, hops. The textile, food, machine-building and building industry, cattle breeding are developed in the area.Samokov has a long and rich history. It has existed during the XII-XIV centuries upon ruins of older settlements. The name of the town comes after the many small blacksmith manufactures, using the power of the water of river Iskar. 1662 Samokov is mentioned from the traveler Evlija Chelebi. In the XVIII-th and XIX centuries the town is one of the biggest Christian centers of Enlightenment and National Revival. The Samokov art school for woodcarving, murals and icon-painting is well known throughout the country. Its most famous representatives are Hristo Dimitrov, Dimiter and Zahari Zograf, Stanislav Dospevski. The most interesting places, which are worth sightseeing are the Beljova church, the Synagogue, the Bairakli mosque, the Main Metropolitan church “Uspenie na presveta Bogoroditsa”, the Virgin monastery (1772), the Arabian fountain (1662),the memorial culture-house “Otets Paisij”, the church “Sveti Nikola (1861) and many Revival houses from the two periods of XIX-th century: Sarafska, Beljova, Zografska, Drenska, Mandova, Obrazopisova, Gerova.Samokov is a starting point for skiing and hiking in the area of the world famous resorts Borovets and Maljovitsa in Rila mountain.