Hi! Alive!
Hola. I'm in Sofia right now. On Friday, I was thinking, "okay, must go to bed because I have to get up early and go to Sofia," which led into "...when did I become a person who goes to Sofia, Bulgaria?"
Strange.
Things are going okay. I don't update this blog enough. Let me give a summary.
3 March is the Bulgarian national holiday. I will admit to not being entirely clear on the concept because it's not independence day, which is in September. It commemorates a battle between the Russian and Ottoman armies...that took place in August. Anyway, the battle was at Shipka Pass, the main pass in the Balkan Mountains, the range that seperates the north and south of the country. As it happens, I live really close to Shipka (there's a big monument built on top of the mountains, I can see it from Pavel Banya), so I went with a group of students and teachers from my school for the national ceremony at Shipka. It was pretty cool and really cold, being above the snow line. It was less cool when the 8th graders started singing the same two patriotic songs over and over and over and our bus didn't show up for an hour. Anyway, an interesting experience. Bulgarians love Russia for freeing them from Turkish tyranny. (Not because the Russians were so altruistic, Bulgaria was just a pawn in a greater game.) It's interesting because I know that a lot of Eastern European countries hate Russia for imposing unpleasant communist dictatorships on them. Not so Bulgaria. Lots of Russian flags flying at Shipka.
The other thing going on is Baba Marta, very possibly the most charming Bulgarian holiday. It's pre-Christian, which means that it has no religious significance, so all of my kids celebrate it equally (about 30-40% of my students are ethnically Turkish and Muslim). Baba Marta (literally Grandmother March) is the personification of the month of March and on 1 March everyone exchanges martenitzas, little bracelets made of red and white string. You wear martenitzas until you see the first stork of spring, when you tie the martenitza to a tree. It's supposed to ensure good luck and fertility to the tree. It's very cute because everyone has martenitzas and it's somewhat funny to see the bits of red and white string poking out of the sleeves of the TV news anchors' expensive suits. Anyway, I have yet to see a stork, so I'm wearing three martenitzas at the moment.
So, I was in Sofia for a meeting yesterday, and decided to stay overnight to poke around the city. The first couple times I was in Sofia I didn't really like it - it struck me as dirty and confused, but the more time I spend here, the more I like it. You can get pretty much ANYTHING here. (Except bagels. I'd kill for a bagel.) Yesterday I saw a street vendor selling aspargus. That's the first time in almost a year I've seen asparagus! I'll probably pick up a couple of avocadoes before heading back to Pavel Banya this afternoon. Bulgaria is developing very unevenly, and I imagine most people who come to Sofia would be surprised to know that there are even Peace Corps Volunteers here. It's only when you leave the capital that the disparity and poverty of the country really becomes apparent.
I have lots of pictures, but they're all back in Pavel Banya. I'll post them soon!
Strange.
Things are going okay. I don't update this blog enough. Let me give a summary.
3 March is the Bulgarian national holiday. I will admit to not being entirely clear on the concept because it's not independence day, which is in September. It commemorates a battle between the Russian and Ottoman armies...that took place in August. Anyway, the battle was at Shipka Pass, the main pass in the Balkan Mountains, the range that seperates the north and south of the country. As it happens, I live really close to Shipka (there's a big monument built on top of the mountains, I can see it from Pavel Banya), so I went with a group of students and teachers from my school for the national ceremony at Shipka. It was pretty cool and really cold, being above the snow line. It was less cool when the 8th graders started singing the same two patriotic songs over and over and over and our bus didn't show up for an hour. Anyway, an interesting experience. Bulgarians love Russia for freeing them from Turkish tyranny. (Not because the Russians were so altruistic, Bulgaria was just a pawn in a greater game.) It's interesting because I know that a lot of Eastern European countries hate Russia for imposing unpleasant communist dictatorships on them. Not so Bulgaria. Lots of Russian flags flying at Shipka.
The other thing going on is Baba Marta, very possibly the most charming Bulgarian holiday. It's pre-Christian, which means that it has no religious significance, so all of my kids celebrate it equally (about 30-40% of my students are ethnically Turkish and Muslim). Baba Marta (literally Grandmother March) is the personification of the month of March and on 1 March everyone exchanges martenitzas, little bracelets made of red and white string. You wear martenitzas until you see the first stork of spring, when you tie the martenitza to a tree. It's supposed to ensure good luck and fertility to the tree. It's very cute because everyone has martenitzas and it's somewhat funny to see the bits of red and white string poking out of the sleeves of the TV news anchors' expensive suits. Anyway, I have yet to see a stork, so I'm wearing three martenitzas at the moment.
So, I was in Sofia for a meeting yesterday, and decided to stay overnight to poke around the city. The first couple times I was in Sofia I didn't really like it - it struck me as dirty and confused, but the more time I spend here, the more I like it. You can get pretty much ANYTHING here. (Except bagels. I'd kill for a bagel.) Yesterday I saw a street vendor selling aspargus. That's the first time in almost a year I've seen asparagus! I'll probably pick up a couple of avocadoes before heading back to Pavel Banya this afternoon. Bulgaria is developing very unevenly, and I imagine most people who come to Sofia would be surprised to know that there are even Peace Corps Volunteers here. It's only when you leave the capital that the disparity and poverty of the country really becomes apparent.
I have lots of pictures, but they're all back in Pavel Banya. I'll post them soon!
Labels: 3 mart, baba marta, sofia
posted by Blogaria at 12:26 AM
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