St. Thomas Island, also known as the Island of Snakes, is a Bulgarian island in the Black Sea, located 15 km south of the city of Sozopol, with an area of about 3000 square metres. It is the only place in Bulgaria where wild aloe vera grows, which was brought from Bratislava and cultivated On the orders of Tsar Boris III in 1933, this plant has covered most of the island ever since. The island of St. Thomas was named after the church dedicated to St. Thomas, which was located there at one time. The name of the Island of Snakes came from the gray water snakes that inhabit it.