Walking around in Sofia today, I noticed that our sidewalks are, in fact, maybe not as perfect as I remembered them while abroad.
This is a sidewalk from Sofia:
And one from a reference city, which is not Sofia:
Which one would you prefer?
Sidewalks
Cats, good books, AI, and religious walking in the city of Sofia
Veselin.blog 
They both have their charm. The first is less “slick” and more homey. The second is more polished, perhaps, but: how will it weather over time?
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Plus —
cats.
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I don’t know, given how few trees the reference city has, probably no chance that the sidewalk gets ruined by roots or gets covered with leaves.
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Trees are important, but don’t always work well in downtown areas. It depends on if they were an afterthought or planned for.
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Sofia’s sidewalk has so much charm, whereas the other looks very sterile and impersonal. I’d vote for Sofia,especially because of the cats.
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I’d say the little humps and cracks make good places for cats to hang out.
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Sometimes it’s the imperfect paths that tell the most authentic stories of a city’s charm.
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Yes, and this sidewalk is quite hidden 🙂
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I love the first one and the cat makes it extra special. The old country feel is one of the things I love about traveling. As long as their not a danger, leave them as they are. Would the cat let you pet it?
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Nope, it’s not very safe to do that with most strays. Some are very friendly, most aren’t
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That’s what I thought. They look so calm but you can get a very different respsone.
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Well, some of these cats are friendly but it’s still – you don’t want to be scratched by an over affectionate stray cat. They may also have fleas, depending on the carer.
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They probably have fleas and much more. That’s a good move. They are sure pretty and make great photos.
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Interesting comparison! But I feel the two photos tell very different stories — one zooms in on a stray cat and a slice of street life, while the other shows a polished city view. Each has its own kind of beauty, but they’re not quite apples to apples. 😊
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Of course, this is the reference city, it can be viewed in the reflection of the pool. Mud, broken pavement of the exact same type as the one in the cat photo, and even a car parked on the sidewalk.
But the photos above represent the general vibe of the place. Sofia has skyscrapers and bike paths as well, just not in any significant way.
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Ah, that makes perfect sense. Thank you for clarifying! I completely see your point about the overall vibe. I guess I personally have a bit of a bias toward non-glitzy places and more natural surroundings probably because I spent two decades in deserts surrounded by modern architecture and fancy buildings that, after a while, start to feel a little artificial. There’s a certain raw charm in places that aren’t trying too hard to look perfect.🙏🏻🙂
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