Bulgaria is a country situated in southeastern Europe, bordering Romania, Serbia, the Republic of Macedonia, Greece, Turkey and the

Black Sea. The land area of Bulgaria is 110,910 square kilometers.

 Bulgaria has a total border of about 2,264 km. Rivers account for about 680 km and the Black Sea coast for 400 km; the southern and western borders are mainly defined by ridges in high terrain. The western and northern boundaries are shared with Serbia and Romania, respectively, and the Black Sea coastline constitutes the entire eastern border.

 The Romanian border follows the Danube for 464 km from the northwestern corner of the country to the city of Silistra and then cuts to the east-southeast for 136 km.

 Bulgaria is a republic

Climate
Considering its small area, Bulgaria has an unusually variable and complex climate. The country lies between the stronglycontrasting continental and Medite rranean climatic zones.

 Bulgarian mountains and valleys act as barriers or channels for air masses, causing sharp contrasts in weather over relatively short distances.

Relief
The relief of Bulgaria is varied. In the relatively small territory of the country there are extensive lowlands, plains, hills, low and high mountains, many valleys and deep gorges. The main characteristic of Bulgaria's topography is alternating bands of high and low terrain that extend east to west across the country.

 From north to south, those bands (called geomorphological regions) are the Danubian Plain, Stara Planina, the Transitional region and the RiloRhodope Massif.

 The easternmost sections near the Black Sea are hilly, but they gradually gain height to the west until the westernmost part of the country is entirely high ground.

 More than two-thirds of the country is plains, plateaus, or hilly land at an altitude less than 600 m. Plains make up 31 % of the land, plateaus and hills 41 %, low mountains 10 %, medium-sized mountains 10 %, and high mountains 3 %. The average altitude in Bulgaria is 470 m.

Danubian plain
The Danubian Plain extends from the western borders to the Black Sea. It encompasses the area between the Danube River, which forms most of the country's northern border, and Stara Planina to the south. It covers the Moesian plate.

 As a result of the rock weathering processes the relief is uneaven with flat rising grounds along the valleys and plateaus to the east. The plateau slopes gently from cliffs along the river, then it abuts into the low northern mountains of the Balkan range.

 The highest point is Tarnov Dyal (502 m) in the Shumen Plateau. The valleys of Vit and Yantra divide the Danubian plain into three parts - western, central and eastern.

Rilo-Rhodope massif
Relatively high mountains occupy the area between the Thracian Plain and Sofia Basin and the Greek border to the south. The western parts consist of three ranges: the Vitosha Mountain south of Sofia, the Rila Mountains further south, and the Pirin Mountains in the southwestern corner of the country.

 They are the most outstanding topographic feature of Bulgaria and of the entire Balkan Peninsula. The Rila range includes Mount Musala, whose 2,925metre peak is the highest in any Balkan country. About a dozen other peaks in Rila are over 2,600 meters.

 The highest peaks are characterized by sparse bare rocks and remote lakes above the tree line. The lower peaks, however, are covered with alpine meadows that give the range an overall impression of green beauty. The Pirin range is characterized by rocky peaks and stony slopes. Its highest peak is Mount Vihren, at 2,915 meters the second-highest peak in Bulgaria. Further east are the extensive Rhodope Mountains.

Stara Planina
The southern edge of the Danubian Plain blends into the foothills of Stara Planina, sometimes thought of as the Bulgarian part of the Carpathian Mountains.

 The Carpathians resemble a reversed S as they run eastward from the Czech Republic and Slovakia across the northern portion of Romania, swinging southward to the middle of Romania and then running westward, where they are known as the Transylvanian Alps

 The mountains turn eastward again at the Iron Gate, a gorge of the Danube River at the Romanian-Serbian border. At that point, they become Stara Planina of Bulgaria.

 Stara Planina originates at the Timok Valley in Serbia and run southward towards the Sofia Basin in west central Bulgaria. From there they run east to the Black Sea. The Balkans are about 600 km long and 30 to 50 km wide.

 They retain their height well into central Bulgaria, where Botev Peak, the highest point in the Balkan Mountains, rises to about 2,376 m. The range then continues at lower altitude to the cliffs of the Black Sea.

Where we live

Pirdop City
Pirdop Valley is situated almost in the geographic centre of Bulgaria.

 Many legends seek for an explanation of the name origin ("The Town of the Storks"), but none has a persuasive truthful roots so far.