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On major Communist anniversaries, party leaders used to take the salute from atop an austere white mausoleum on the southern side of the square, built to house the embalmed body of Georgi Dimitrov , the first leader of the People's Republic of Bulgaria. Once one of the top "tourist" sights in the capital - with reverential citizens filing through antiseptic corridors guarded by goose-stepping sentries wearing red-braided tunics and plumed hats - the mausoleum stood empty for ten years following the removal of Dimitrov's corpse in July 1990, before finally being demolished by the right-of-centre SDS government. The spot is now occupied by a rather lacklustre arrangement of flowers and shrubs, around which paths lead to the tree-shaded lawns and well-tended flowerbeds of the City Garden ( Gradskata gradina ), favoured preserve of chess-playing senior citizens and office workers on their lunch break. Several fountains splash opposite the Ivan Vazov National Theatre , a handsome Neoclassical edifice, which provides a welcome contrast to the sombre ministerial buildings on either side. Decked out in red, white and gold, it features Gobelin tapestries and Panagyurishte hangings inside. In spring and summer, the pavement immediately in front of the theatre is taken over by a vast outdoor bar. At the southern end of the park, ul. General Gurko is home to the City Art Gallery (Tues-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 11am-5pm; free), with changing exhibitions of contemporary Bulgarian paintings and sculpture.
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