Today, the Bulgarian city Bansko is famous for its mountain peaks, glacier lakes, and exquisite ski resorts. Lovers of mountain ski and snowboard go there in winter, and the lovers of mountain bikes in summer. Tourists enjoy its thermal springs all year round and with summertime comes the time of jazz enthusiasts. They come to Bansko to take part in the International Jazz festival.
The history of the city is as rich in events as the present. It starts in the time of the Roman Empire but until now historians haven’t been able to identify the exact date of the settlement foundation on the territory of the modern city. Later, Bansko was a part of the Osman Empire, survived through the First Balkan War and the Second World War. The city managed to save a lot of architectural monuments and vast collections of artifacts. Everyone can get acquainted with the rich heritage of those times in small local museums, one of which is the Nikola Vaptsarov House-Museum, the great Bulgarian poet and active fighter for peace and justice.
The house where the famous poet was born is located in the central square. It was the first museum in the city after it had opened its doors to the audience in 1952. A few exhibit halls in the spacious two-story building display an ethnographic collection of Nikola Vaptsarov’s photos and personal things. The original interior of the rooms was meticulously restored thanks to the memories of the poet's mother Elena Vaptsarova. The poet’s sister Rayna became the museum’s first tour guide.
The permanent exhibition covers all the poet’s life periods. You can see his cradle where he slept, educational certificate, and the very first notebook, given to Nikola by his mum as a gift. There are also the manuscripts with his poems, first published books and posthumous awards given to the family at different times.