Buzludzha: Bulgaria's Otherworldly Monument
High atop a ridge in the Balkan Mountains sits a striking monument to Bulgaria’s fraught past. The spaceship-like structure, known as “Buzludzha,” was constructed in the 1970s, and served as the seat of the Bulgarian Socialist Party until communism thawed in 1990. It has remained vacant since—and, as such, is a popular destination for visitors drawn to abandoned places. Lately, it’s also become a flashpoint in a debate over the European nation’s attempts to reckon with its troubled history.
