VICE TRAVEL: Sofia, Bulgaria

The VICE Guide To TRAVEL: Sofia, Bulgaria

SOFIA THE PRINCESS

In 2004 Bulgaria was home to 269 registered gun shops and 67 shooting ranges, a staggering statistic considering there are only two in Manhattan. The biggest in Sofia is the VIP Arms and Shooting Complex.

I had spent the previous night watching Lethal Weapon, and was poised for action to shoot bad guys, or at least to do so in my imagination. In the VIP Complex are two shops selling weapons and accessories, a four-corridor shooting range and a restaurant for those who have worked up a gun-slinging appetite.

Who would be my brothers in arms at such a place? VIP's Kalin Dimitrov explained that self-defense is the number one reason Bulgarians own firearms. The second is sports and hunting.

Today, in Bulgaria there are more than 36.8 firearms per 100 people, a figure that is comparable with other Western European countries.

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