I knew I loved my old apartment in downtown Sofia for a reason. The location was great. It was quirky. My landlord and his wife were bubbly and incredibly friendly regularity inviting me over for dinner even though I didn't speak Bulgarian and they didn't speak English.

But I'd forgotten about the the view until this morning.

I was skimming through my google reader when I came across <a href="http://stara-sofia.blogspot.com/2012/04/blog-post_05.html" target="_blank">this entry from the blog Stara Sofia </a>(that's old Sofia for anyone who doesn't speak Bulgarian) about the house across the street from my first apartment in Sofia. I've been feeling very nostalgic ever since I saw the post.

I used to stand on my balcony, drink coffee and look at this house. I could see into the yard from my second floor apartment so I watched an elderly man plant flowers one afternoon. After a few weeks it was clear to me that no one lived on the top floor because the curtains never moved and no lights ever turned on.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29050866@N06/2738388219/" title="View from my kitchen toward the right by karolinka.sofia, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3269/2738388219_2919783dd7_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="View from my kitchen toward the right"></a>
I daydreamed about what the apartment must look like with the round window at the top of the house. I imagined hunting down the owners and purchasing the apartment. Then one day a life time of old furniture, mattresses and garbage came down the stairs and to the curb and the curtains changed position. I wondered who owned the apartment but to the best of my knowledge and superior spying skills I only ever saw men who looked like workers coming and going.

Then I started wondering how old the building was. It was beautiful but in disrepair. I felt sad that the house was just crumbling away and I was watching it happen. I wondered how old my building was. It wasn't nearly as nice or interesting architecturally as the one across the street.

Today I was reminded of all of these past musings. The post on Stara Sofia suggests that the house was built around 1907 and that the upper floors were added later. It was also subdivided into apartments at some point. I know this because I am creepy and walked in the front door one day when it was ajar to see what their foyer was like.

I am so happy to see that the house has been refurbished and has a new coat of paint. It looks beautiful. I'll have to go by and take some pictures of my won.