tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80164356815213699042024-03-14T00:00:21.498+02:00Window to BulgariaBrianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.comBlogger184125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-63497428064315849192013-01-25T22:39:00.000+02:002013-01-25T22:39:41.183+02:00Why I Love BulgariaIf I had a dollar for every time I had this conversation
with a Bulgarian, I’d have more than enough money to replace the camera I
ruined when I took an impromptu dip in the <st1:place>Grand Canal</st1:place>
in <st1:city>Venice</st1:city>:<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Bulgarian guy, “О, знаеш български (Oh, you know Bulgarian). Откъде знаеш български (How do you know Bulgarian)?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Me, “<span class="shorttext"><span lang="BG">Аз живея тук</span> (I live here).”</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Bulgarian guy, eyes rolling, “Сериозно (Seriously)? Защо (Why)?”</div>
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<span class="shorttext"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="shorttext">Me, “</span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">Защото</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">аз</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">съм</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">доброволец</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">от</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">Корпус</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">на</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">мира</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">и</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">преподавам</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">английски</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">език</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="BG">тук</span><span lang="BG"> </span>(Because I
am a Peace Corps volunteer, and I teach English here).”</span></div>
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<span class="shorttext"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="shorttext">Bulgarian guy, “</span>О, бр<span class="shorttext"><span lang="RU">аво</span> (Oh,
bravo). </span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="BG">Обича</span></span>ш<span class="shorttext"><span lang="BG"> ли </span></span><span class="hps"><span lang="BG">България</span> (Do you like </span><st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region><span class="hps">)?”</span></div>
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<span class="hps"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="hps">Me, “Да, </span>много (Yes, very much).”</div>
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<span class="shorttext"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="shorttext">Now, at this point, the conversation
would usually take one of two turns. Half the time, the guy would extol the virtues of </span><st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region><span class="shorttext"> and try to get to me to acknowledge how much better </span><st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region><span class="shorttext"> is than the </span><st1:country-region>U.S.A.</st1:country-region><span class="shorttext"> The rest of the time, the conversation would continue along
these lines:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="hps"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="hps">Bulgarian guy, “</span><span class="hps"><span lang="RU">Как</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="hps"><span lang="RU">можеш</span><span lang="RU">
</span></span><span class="hps"><span lang="RU">да</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="hps"><span lang="RU">обичаш</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="hps"><span lang="RU">България</span> (How can you love </span><st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region><span class="hps">)?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Me, “Как не (How not)?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="hps"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="hps">Bulgarian guy, “</span><span class="hps"><span lang="RU">Как</span><span lang="RU"> </span></span><span class="hps"><span lang="RU">да</span><span lang="RU"> </span>(How
yes)?”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="hps"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="hps">No matter how I answered that question, my
answer was always unsatisfactory.</span><br />
<span class="hps"><br /></span>
<span class="hps">I’ll try one last time. This, in addition to
my many Bulgarian friends, is why I love </span><st1:country-region>Bulgaria:</st1:country-region><br />
<br />
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Yeah. I get it. Bulgaria is far from perfect. But if it wasn't a country with some problems, we'd never have been there in the first place. And I gave up looking for utopia a long time ago. And, all things considered, it<span class="hps">’s rather remarkable to think about everything I was
able to see and experience in three years in Bulgaria, living on a little
more than $300 per month, working full-time as a teacher, and relying almost exclusively on public
transportation to get to and from places.</span> And I'll ask again, “How can you not love Bulgaria?”</div>
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To everyone who made my three years in Bulgaria so special and memorable, thank you. I hope to see you again someday soon.</div>
Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-87319834339709578912013-01-19T19:14:00.001+02:002013-01-26T05:53:41.411+02:00The Top 50 Things to Do, See, and Experience in Bulgaria<span style="font-family: inherit;">What seems like a lifetime ago, I enrolled in a course in
university titled “Introduction to Bulgarian Civilization.” The course was
being taught by a visiting professor from the University of Sofia. It was the
fall of 1990, and <st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region>,
like most of the other former Soviet Bloc countries, had just ushered out
Communism and held its first free elections in decades. I was too immature and
foolish to grasp the significance of this or to appreciate the opportunity to
learn about it from someone who had lived through it. I enrolled in the class
not because I wanted to learn but because it met a general education
requirement I needed to fulfill in order to graduate and because some of my
friends were in the class and said it was going to be easy.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like many of my university classes, the class didn’t have an
attendance requirement. As a result, I never went. That’s not entirely true. I
did go one time just to see if what my friends had said was true and to grab a
syllabus, once to find out what would be on the midterm, another time to find
out what would be on the final, and, of course, I showed up for the actual
midterm and final. But that was it. One of my friends was nice enough to share
his notes from class with me, and that was all I needed. To prepare for the
midterm, four of us hopped in one of the guy’s SUV, drove from Los Angeles to
Tijuana, Mexico, studied all the way there, partied until after sunrise in
Tijuana, hopped back in the car, drove back to L.A. studying along the way
between naps, and arrived back on campus extremely hungover (maybe even still
drunk) but just in time to take the test. I got an A on the test and an A in
the class, but I didn’t learn much of anything. The only thing I really
remembered about the class (besides the trip to <st1:city>Tijuana</st1:city>)
was how nice the professor was, how proud she was of <st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region>,
and how optimistic she was regarding <st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region>’s
future.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I hadn’t given much thought to that class or to <st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region>
until I learned from a Peace Corps recruiter that I would be receiving an
official invitation to serve in one of the countries in <st1:place>Eastern
Europe</st1:place>. A little research quickly revealed that <st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region>
was on the short list of places I might go. And when my official invitation
arrived, I couldn’t help but laugh upon learning that I had been invited to
serve in <st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region>.
After more than three years of living in <st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region>,
I know a lot about the country, its people, its culture, and its history – much
more than I ever could have learned in a classroom.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">There are still things I want to see and places I want to
go, but, in my experience, these are the top fifty things to do and see in <st1:country-region>Bulgaria</st1:country-region>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">50. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/04/rusenski-lom-nature-park-and-ivanovo.html">Rusenski Lom Nature Park and the Ivanovo Rock Churches (Природен парк „Русенски Лом” и Ивановски скални църкви)</a>. There are more interesting rock monasteries in other countries, but these are worth visiting if you've never seen one.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iLdU5r2gRFs/UPmQN25ZiAI/AAAAAAAAFcc/vzbFvU-Rz9A/s1600/fbb3%2BBulgaria%2B13481.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iLdU5r2gRFs/UPmQN25ZiAI/AAAAAAAAFcc/vzbFvU-Rz9A/s400/fbb3%2BBulgaria%2B13481.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
49. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/04/blog-post_13.html">Bachkovo Monastery (Бачковски манастир)</a>. Bulgaria's "second" monastery, Bachkovo is located in a serene and inspiring setting just a short drive from Plovdiv. The setting and close proximity to Plovdiv, along with some good prices on traditional Bulgarian handicrafts near the entrance, make it worth a quick stop.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qNdc6iE981o/UPmQYDrWFbI/AAAAAAAAFco/TUBEH3cIn2k/s1600/fbb6%2BBulgaria%2B3580.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="284" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qNdc6iE981o/UPmQYDrWFbI/AAAAAAAAFco/TUBEH3cIn2k/s400/fbb6%2BBulgaria%2B3580.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
48. <b>Go Spelunking</b>. There are are more impressive caves in many other places, but, for those who enjoy spelunking, <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/05/blog-post.html">Ledenika Cave (Леденика пещера)</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devil%27s_Throat_Cave">the Devil's Throat Cave (Пещера Дяволското гърло)</a>, and <a href="http://bulgariatravel.org/en/object/370/Yagodinska_peshtera">Yagodina Cave (Ягодинска пещера)</a> are all worth visiting.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o1h4s75CbnY/UPrMU-1i3JI/AAAAAAAAFtU/d1DC8a1swf8/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B3712.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o1h4s75CbnY/UPrMU-1i3JI/AAAAAAAAFtU/d1DC8a1swf8/s400/fbBulgaria%2B3712.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
47. <b>Sunflower Fields</b>. In late summer, much of Bulgaria is carpeted in fields of gold. The sunflower fields run from the Serbian border to the Black Sea and are nothing if not stunningly beautiful.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5M6ZSykl-RQ/UPmsnuqPQKI/AAAAAAAAFf0/cODckxKnfjk/s1600/fbc18%2BBulgaria%2B082.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="252" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5M6ZSykl-RQ/UPmsnuqPQKI/AAAAAAAAFf0/cODckxKnfjk/s400/fbc18%2BBulgaria%2B082.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
46. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/09/blog-post_20.html">Shop at a Local Market</a>. Every town has its own market or markets. Some
are only open once or twice per week while others are open every day. They're all fun to shop at and vary considerably depending on the season.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UZAL-rdcHOw/UPmxarXQmmI/AAAAAAAAFiQ/VY4ShdzcVM4/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B1490.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UZAL-rdcHOw/UPmxarXQmmI/AAAAAAAAFiQ/VY4ShdzcVM4/s400/fbBulgaria%2B1490.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
45. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/08/mount-vitosha.html">Vitosha (Витоша)</a>. It's not Bulgaria's most beautiful mountain, but Vitosha is the only one you can easily reach walking from Sofia. Second home to nature-loving Sofians, it's busy at all seasons yet does provide a quick escape from the nation's capital.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kObx1ZovK1M/UPnuRQtC0kI/AAAAAAAAFkE/F-VgkXawjdY/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B977.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kObx1ZovK1M/UPnuRQtC0kI/AAAAAAAAFkE/F-VgkXawjdY/s400/fbBulgaria%2B977.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
44. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/09/today-was-first-day-of-school.html">The First Day of School</a>. The first day of the new school year is probably more interesting and enjoyable for teachers than for non-teachers, but it is an event that captures some of the cultural differences between Bulgaria and the U.S.A.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-65OSSaGoxgw/UPmxM1Q0u2I/AAAAAAAAFiE/FkjwsPY-4ZI/s1600/fbc37%2BBulgaria%2B11228.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-65OSSaGoxgw/UPmxM1Q0u2I/AAAAAAAAFiE/FkjwsPY-4ZI/s400/fbc37%2BBulgaria%2B11228.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">43. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/06/graduation-and-senior-ball.html">Graduation and the Senior Ball</a>. Maybe it was because I taught these kids and was overjoyed to see them graduate, but the senior ball is actually a blast.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-R2LxvAtVAt8/UPn4RqitDQI/AAAAAAAAFlI/eht0TVf8X7Q/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B9395.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="267" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-R2LxvAtVAt8/UPn4RqitDQI/AAAAAAAAFlI/eht0TVf8X7Q/s400/fbBulgaria%2B9395.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">42. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/03/gypsy-bride-market.html">The "Gypsy Bride Market"</a>. Not at all what it's reported to be by the media, visiting this event feels like crashing someone's family reunion.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WzAxVrXl2Tg/UPmP8vJYSeI/AAAAAAAAFcQ/o_Rt5_lqTew/s1600/fba27%2BBulgaria%2B13216.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WzAxVrXl2Tg/UPmP8vJYSeI/AAAAAAAAFcQ/o_Rt5_lqTew/s400/fba27%2BBulgaria%2B13216.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">41. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/06/at-days-end.html">Wait for the Shepherds</a>. In villages and small towns all across Bulgaria, grandmas and grandpas end their days sitting around and gossiping while waiting for shepherds and goat herders to return with their flocks of sheep and herds of goats. Joining them and witnessing this daily ritual transports you back in time and gives you an entirely new perspective about a lot of things.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VxNkvat86wY/UPn5maqs7hI/AAAAAAAAFlk/-0OvbNhfas4/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B4806.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VxNkvat86wY/UPn5maqs7hI/AAAAAAAAFlk/-0OvbNhfas4/s400/fbBulgaria%2B4806.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
40. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/12/what-is-bulgarian-national-pastime.html">Sit on a Bench</a>. Seeing all the bench sitters took me back to my childhood and made me happy. Following suit and sitting on a bench with friends and chatting the afternoon away made me even happier.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n149zUWuRsI/UPn7B2oQcjI/AAAAAAAAFm8/hOFdyNqGx6A/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B7391.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n149zUWuRsI/UPn7B2oQcjI/AAAAAAAAFm8/hOFdyNqGx6A/s400/fbBulgaria%2B7391.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">39. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/06/blog-post_116.html">Balchik (Балчик)</a>. Home to the former summer
residence of Queen Marie of <st1:country-region><st1:place>Romania</st1:place></st1:country-region> and Bulgaria's best botanical gardens, Balchik is otherwise a fairly quaint, little fishing village.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L5mMX1L06GU/UPmPziRRLtI/AAAAAAAAFcE/cn4iOxGT1A4/s1600/fbb44%2BBulgaria%2B5069.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="284" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L5mMX1L06GU/UPmPziRRLtI/AAAAAAAAFcE/cn4iOxGT1A4/s400/fbb44%2BBulgaria%2B5069.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">38. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/08/marvelous-bridges.html">The Marvelous Bridges (Чудните мостове)</a>. Arguably the most impressive of Bulgaria's unique rock formations after Belogradchik, the Marvelous Bridges would undoubtedly be more popular if they were easier to reach.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FvBivzPtaiA/UPmx17xc6fI/AAAAAAAAFic/kXqPwhBlxDc/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B14210.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FvBivzPtaiA/UPmx17xc6fI/AAAAAAAAFic/kXqPwhBlxDc/s400/fbBulgaria%2B14210.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">37. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/12/blog-post_14.html">Learn to Weave a Carpet in Chiprovtsi (Чипровци)</a>. Just because I couldn't master a loom doesn't mean you can't.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GHrnlFi0zlI/UPmx_QYvmAI/AAAAAAAAFio/ezz7G80bSi0/s1600/fbd35%2BBulgaria%2B7653.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="264" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GHrnlFi0zlI/UPmx_QYvmAI/AAAAAAAAFio/ezz7G80bSi0/s400/fbd35%2BBulgaria%2B7653.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">36. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/06/kazanlak.html">The Rose Festival in Kazanlak (Празник на Розата в Казанлък)</a>. Bulgaria produces approximately 70% of the world's rose oil. The annual festival in Kazanlak, which is in the heart of Bulgarian rose country, celebrates all things related to roses.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XIAAgS4I13M/UPmp-YoOgeI/AAAAAAAAFds/8feRkUI63hc/s1600/fbb54%2BBulgaria%2B9559.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="256" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XIAAgS4I13M/UPmp-YoOgeI/AAAAAAAAFds/8feRkUI63hc/s400/fbb54%2BBulgaria%2B9559.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">35. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/09/blog-post.html">National Folk Art Festival in Koprivshtitsa (Национален Събор на Народното Творчество в Копривщица)</a>.
There are smaller, annual music festivals, but this festival, which
occurs every fifth year, is the most famous and highly respected.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UtPpvo5ms3s/UPmPeGz5WEI/AAAAAAAAFbs/RE9W06aWzso/s1600/fbc9%2BBulgaria%2B5580.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="302" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UtPpvo5ms3s/UPmPeGz5WEI/AAAAAAAAFbs/RE9W06aWzso/s400/fbc9%2BBulgaria%2B5580.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">34. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/06/blog-post_14.html">Varna (Варна)</a>. See what I wrote about Bourgas.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NbJGa8uWb_w/UPnuGMbHWNI/AAAAAAAAFj4/a2Om-iepNLk/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B5107.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="252" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NbJGa8uWb_w/UPnuGMbHWNI/AAAAAAAAFj4/a2Om-iepNLk/s400/fbBulgaria%2B5107.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">33. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/05/blog-post_1485.html">Nessebar (Несебър)</a>. Steeped in history, Nessebar is a cool place to see ... outside the tourist season when it is heaving with people and ridiculously overpriced.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CrCKtybV_2o/UPmPTYEpz4I/AAAAAAAAFbg/GYBYVyy-fqg/s1600/fbb18%2BBulgaria%2B4112.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="255" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CrCKtybV_2o/UPmPTYEpz4I/AAAAAAAAFbg/GYBYVyy-fqg/s400/fbb18%2BBulgaria%2B4112.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">32. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/11/blog-post_06.html">Sofia (София)</a>.
I like Sofia, but it's a strange city that takes some time to get used
to and get to know. There are other cities in Bulgaria that are more
enjoyable to visit, but Sofia has plenty of interesting attractions in
its own right.</span></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9hQYmFMjJxo/UPmPpFZk8SI/AAAAAAAAFb4/FIsrBbk4Qs4/s1600/fbd20%2BBulgaria%2B1340.2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="267" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9hQYmFMjJxo/UPmPpFZk8SI/AAAAAAAAFb4/FIsrBbk4Qs4/s400/fbd20%2BBulgaria%2B1340.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> 31. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/04/easter-in-bulgaria.html">Easter (Великден)</a>. Easter celebrations in Bulgaria are the same as they are elsewhere, only they're different.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YM_UiXTzxNQ/UPmPGpNTyGI/AAAAAAAAFbU/xJuOTRzQzeQ/s1600/fbb1%2BBulgaria%2B3135.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YM_UiXTzxNQ/UPmPGpNTyGI/AAAAAAAAFbU/xJuOTRzQzeQ/s400/fbb1%2BBulgaria%2B3135.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">30. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/12/blog-post_27.html">Christmas (Коледа)</a>. I don't think I've ever eaten as much meat in one day as I did on Christmas Day my first year in Bulgaria.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nq7l244MctQ/UPn9Sk9DNeI/AAAAAAAAFog/TYObNhufdG4/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B2157.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="295" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nq7l244MctQ/UPn9Sk9DNeI/AAAAAAAAFog/TYObNhufdG4/s400/fbBulgaria%2B2157.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">29. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/09/tale-of-two-weddings.html">A Bulgarian Wedding</a>. Bulgarians know how to party, and the biggest and best parties of all are often weddings.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mXk9k3qWbBs/UPmO-D7NePI/AAAAAAAAFbI/3Kb-HO6gY9M/s1600/fbc24%2BPhotos%2B220.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mXk9k3qWbBs/UPmO-D7NePI/AAAAAAAAFbI/3Kb-HO6gY9M/s400/fbc24%2BPhotos%2B220.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">28. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/06/blog-post.html">Rila Monastery (Рилски манастир)</a>. Bulgaria's most overrated tourist destination is still a very cool place.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5cVvs8R-c9o/UPmO1P5hCBI/AAAAAAAAFa8/fyjd8VjHwb8/s1600/fbb32%2BBulgaria%2B4732.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5cVvs8R-c9o/UPmO1P5hCBI/AAAAAAAAFa8/fyjd8VjHwb8/s400/fbb32%2BBulgaria%2B4732.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">27. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/03/st-theodores-day-or-horse-easter.html">St. Theodore's Day (Тодоровден)</a>. Amateur horse races. Enough said.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E3srdOswtbw/UPmOrtQ75CI/AAAAAAAAFaw/pXSP3oq5CWk/s1600/fba22%2BBulgaria%2B13006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="252" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E3srdOswtbw/UPmOrtQ75CI/AAAAAAAAFaw/pXSP3oq5CWk/s400/fba22%2BBulgaria%2B13006.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">26. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/05/blog-post_11.html">Bourgas (Бургас)</a>. The rivalry in Texas between Dallas and Houston reminded me of the rivalry between Varna and Bourgas. Like Dallas, Varna is a bit flashier and more pretentious. Bourgas, like Houston, is a bit grittier, more blue collar, and more real. I like Houston more than Dallas, and I like Bourgas more than Varna.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LiM4sx7ZG98/UPnt5ZMzYaI/AAAAAAAAFjs/sNwqlTzzFKM/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B4188.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LiM4sx7ZG98/UPnt5ZMzYaI/AAAAAAAAFjs/sNwqlTzzFKM/s400/fbBulgaria%2B4188.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">25. <a href="http://www.bulgariaski.com/">Go Skiing</a>. World class skiing at a fraction of the price you'd pay elsewhere. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/01/blog-post_31.html">Bansko</a> (Банско), Pamporovo (Пампорово), Borovets (Боровец), and Vitosha (Витоша) are the most popular destinations.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xKbb1JiSRBM/UPq8oqzb6XI/AAAAAAAAFpw/Z_abAQ3lWPI/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B7606.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xKbb1JiSRBM/UPq8oqzb6XI/AAAAAAAAFpw/Z_abAQ3lWPI/s400/fbBulgaria%2B7606.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">24. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/06/blog-post_08.html">Veliko Turnovo (Велико Търново)</a>. Despite a wicked case of food poisoning on my first visit, I always enjoyed my time in Veliko Turnovo.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iBzoVNcTOg8/UPmOi04U0JI/AAAAAAAAFak/fbzfKsAdcIE/s1600/fbb37%2BBulgaria%2B4891.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iBzoVNcTOg8/UPmOi04U0JI/AAAAAAAAFak/fbzfKsAdcIE/s400/fbb37%2BBulgaria%2B4891.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">23. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/11/silence-of-lambs.html">Bayram</a>. Perhaps I found Bayram so interesting because I'd been rather ignorant of its importance to Muslims before living in Bulgaria. Regardless, it's a very cool holiday.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iIo5KFEIDpM/UPq8v03arTI/AAAAAAAAFp8/96I-QRcDImA/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B12090.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iIo5KFEIDpM/UPq8v03arTI/AAAAAAAAFp8/96I-QRcDImA/s400/fbBulgaria%2B12090.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">22. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/05/blog-post_3777.html">Sozopol (Созопол)</a>. A bit like Nessebar, only cooler, and with a fraction of the tourists.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NH2vrTOTScU/UPmwqFun0WI/AAAAAAAAFh4/POnMxRhB9JY/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B4374.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="307" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NH2vrTOTScU/UPmwqFun0WI/AAAAAAAAFh4/POnMxRhB9JY/s400/fbBulgaria%2B4374.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">21. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/10/balkan-mountains.html">The Balkan Mountains (Стара планина)</a>. Probably deserves to be higher, but I honestly didn't get to explore as much of this mountain range as I would have liked. Some day I'd love to hike all the way across Bulgaria from the Serbian border to the Black Sea on the <a href="http://www.walkingworld.com/home/index.asp?id=32&nid=183">Kom-Emine Track</a>.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NKHzoyuOPu4/UPmwgaS_JeI/AAAAAAAAFhs/hChIIShSqy0/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B14619.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NKHzoyuOPu4/UPmwgaS_JeI/AAAAAAAAFhs/hChIIShSqy0/s400/fbBulgaria%2B14619.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">20. <b>Drink a Two Liter Beer in the Park</b>. Warm spring days in Bulgaria are made for people watching in the park with friends and two liter bottles of beer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">19. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/11/melnik-and-rozhen-monastery.html">Melnik and Rozhen Monastery (Мелник и Роженски манастир)</a>. The trek from Rozhen Monastery to Melnik is quite possibly the best two hour walk in the country, in part because of the scenery and in part because at the end of the walk is a pleasant, little town with delicious food and more homemade wine than you can possibly drink.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5VXSXCDrR3A/UPmOXJ03KWI/AAAAAAAAFaY/8h4_WbdhxbM/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11876.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="258" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5VXSXCDrR3A/UPmOXJ03KWI/AAAAAAAAFaY/8h4_WbdhxbM/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11876.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">18. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/11/blog-post_23.html">Plovdiv (Пловдив)</a>. Of all of Bulgaria's large cities, Plovdiv is easily my favorite. Roman ruins, national revival architecture, a modern pedestrian walkway loaded with heaps of stores and good restaurants, and plenty of other attractions make Plovdiv a great place to visit.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZQIusOEcfc4/UPmOJxNQ5ZI/AAAAAAAAFaM/wrDXAS3kXZQ/s1600/fbd27%2BBulgaria%2B1715.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZQIusOEcfc4/UPmOJxNQ5ZI/AAAAAAAAFaM/wrDXAS3kXZQ/s400/fbd27%2BBulgaria%2B1715.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">17. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/08/belogradchik.html">Belogradchik (Белоградчик)</a>. It's just an old fortress and some even older rocks, but it's really, really cool.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pmPsBmoFhKQ/UPmrCyvzJqI/AAAAAAAAFew/8SKLXdSWQyw/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B366.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="220" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pmPsBmoFhKQ/UPmrCyvzJqI/AAAAAAAAFew/8SKLXdSWQyw/s400/fbBulgaria%2B366.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">16. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/10/pirin-mountains.html">Pirin Mountains (Пирин)</a>. Inclement weather ruined plans to climb Vihren and hike across Koncheto, but what little I did see of the Pirin Mountains was impressive. It's a mountain range I'd love to explore more.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0nCMu1HirAs/UPmN5P5A5sI/AAAAAAAAFaA/0PuWOFz342E/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B14375.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0nCMu1HirAs/UPmN5P5A5sI/AAAAAAAAFaA/0PuWOFz342E/s400/fbBulgaria%2B14375.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">15. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/10/september-birding-in-bulgaria.html">Go Birding</a>. With more than 400 species either residing in Bulgaria or passing through in migration, the country is unquestionably one of the best places in Europe to watch birds.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q_N0x_jlKng/UPmNs2Ryl1I/AAAAAAAAFZ0/Vsl0RteY71U/s1600/fbBlack-headed%2BBunting%2B9239.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q_N0x_jlKng/UPmNs2Ryl1I/AAAAAAAAFZ0/Vsl0RteY71U/s400/fbBlack-headed%2BBunting%2B9239.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">14. <b>Enjoy the Fresh Food</b>. A Bulgarian friend of mine relayed the story of another friend who had visited the U.S.A. When asked, "How was the food?," the friend who had visited the U.S.A. responded, "It was O.K., but everything tasted like watermelon. I ate an apple, and it tasted like watermelon. I ate tomatoes, and they tasted like watermelon. I ate a cucumber, and it tasted like watermelon. I ate strawberries, and they tasted like watermelon. Everything I ate tasted like watermelon. I think if I ever go back, I'll just eat watermelon." It's not that bad, but the fresh fruit and veggies in Bulgaria do taste better. On my parent's first night in Bulgaria, we were served a salad with homegrown veggies. Afterward, my dad asked the hostess, "What was that pink fruit in the salad? Was it a melon of some sort? It was absolutely delicious." She responded with a smile and said, "No. That was tomato."</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f_bgiBwa0a4/UPrJaBf9V4I/AAAAAAAAFsE/bCSuOwrwZXM/s1600/fbc41%2BBulgaria%2B11213.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="313" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f_bgiBwa0a4/UPrJaBf9V4I/AAAAAAAAFsE/bCSuOwrwZXM/s400/fbc41%2BBulgaria%2B11213.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">13. Take a Train Ride. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">They are often old and slow, but trains are the
preferred means of transportation for many Bulgarians and a great way to
see the country. Two of Bulgaria's best train rides are </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/05/iskar-gorge.html">the one that covers the stretch between Sofia and Mezdra through the Iskar Gorge</a> and <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/02/septemvri-dobrinishte-narrow-gauge.html">the Septemvri — Dobrinishte Narrow Gauge Train Line</a>.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NRm95rz31eo/UPrpebVxsBI/AAAAAAAAFvc/opjoPjZeTd4/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13519.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NRm95rz31eo/UPrpebVxsBI/AAAAAAAAFvc/opjoPjZeTd4/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13519.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">12. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/03/blog-post.html">Baba Marta Day (Ден на Баба Марта)</a>. My favorite Bulgarian holiday, and one of my favorite holidays period, is Baba Marta Day. It's a day that makes everyone happy. Any such day is a great day.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JexhzSvkBcY/UPmNZXUmDlI/AAAAAAAAFZY/pR9gUw7G38c/s1600/fba19%2BBulgaria%2B8059.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="262" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JexhzSvkBcY/UPmNZXUmDlI/AAAAAAAAFZY/pR9gUw7G38c/s400/fba19%2BBulgaria%2B8059.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">11. <b>Learn to Prepare Bulgarian Dishes</b>. Are they Greek, Turkish, Bulgarian, Balkan? Does it matter? Your life will be better if you start incorporating dishes like <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/08/blog-post_09.html">banitsa (Баница)</a>, <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/08/blog-post_30.html">Shopska salad (Шопска салата)</a>, <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/06/recipe-11.html">tarator (таратор)</a>, and <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/11/recipe-17-french-fries-with-cheese.html">French fries with cheese (пържени картофи със сирене)</a> into your diet. Trust me.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IFk0yAjqV-w/UPrDnoTTs-I/AAAAAAAAFrA/IToZ86YobMg/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B5471.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IFk0yAjqV-w/UPrDnoTTs-I/AAAAAAAAFrA/IToZ86YobMg/s400/fbBulgaria%2B5471.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">10. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/06/seven-rila-lakes.html">Seven Rila Lakes (Седемте рилски езера)</a>. I'd be surprised if there aren't more beautiful hikes in the Rila Mountains, but the Seven Rila Lakes ease of access, renown, and natural beauty can't be beat.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gu0pSZUgDhI/UPmNQwBYBRI/AAAAAAAAFZQ/WeX5em56IWA/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B10452.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="258" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gu0pSZUgDhI/UPmNQwBYBRI/AAAAAAAAFZQ/WeX5em56IWA/s400/fbBulgaria%2B10452.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">9. <b>Go "Na Gosti (на гости)"</b>. I'm not sure what part of speech the phrase "на гости" is, all I know is how much fun it is. When you step into a Bulgarian home as a guest, be prepared to stay a while. The concept of time goes out the window. Never seen it take several hours to eat a salad (and drown several bottles of rakia)? Then you've never gone на гости.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-w-mNLz3cfA0/UPrSzPvH5rI/AAAAAAAAFuY/ks28R4EU2lc/s1600/fbd37%2BBulgaria%2B668.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="292" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-w-mNLz3cfA0/UPrSzPvH5rI/AAAAAAAAFuY/ks28R4EU2lc/s400/fbd37%2BBulgaria%2B668.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">8. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/01/kalofer.html">Jordan's Day or the Epiphany in Kalofer (Йордановден и Богоявление)</a>.<span style="line-height: 24px;"> </span><st1:country-region><st1:place>Jordan'</st1:place></st1:country-region>s Day is one of several Bulgarian name days with very specific
traditions, and the horo is a traditional and communal Bulgarian dance. One of
the highlights of the annual Jordan's Day festivities in Kalofer is
the men's horo, which combines Bulgarians' sense of community and pride with
Bulgarian tradition as well as anything I witnessed.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4U3gzDHsSzg/UPmNFh1obEI/AAAAAAAAFZE/lxazJJ_paaM/s1600/fba3%2BBulgaria%2B12321.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4U3gzDHsSzg/UPmNFh1obEI/AAAAAAAAFZE/lxazJJ_paaM/s400/fba3%2BBulgaria%2B12321.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">7. Black Sea (Черно море). Everyone has their favorite stretch of sand along the Black Sea coast. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/07/cleaning-up-shabla.html">My favorite place to lay down a towel</a> is in far northern Bulgaria just south of the Romanian border. It's a relatively unspoiled and undeveloped area that I hope remains that way.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AEY6PBzWxbY/UPmM7JdVElI/AAAAAAAAFY4/LOhmRQOW6RM/s1600/fbBS29%2BBulgaria%2B6903.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AEY6PBzWxbY/UPmM7JdVElI/AAAAAAAAFY4/LOhmRQOW6RM/s400/fbBS29%2BBulgaria%2B6903.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">6. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/10/rhodope-mountains.html">Rhodope Mountains (Родопи)</a>. Bulgaria is a mountainous nation, and my favorite of the Bulgarian mountain ranges is the Rhodope Mountains. Visit them. You won't be disappointed.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hwerlDsyOC8/UPmMseiqCkI/AAAAAAAAFYs/5McAacUPU1Q/s1600/fbBulgaria%2BB10170.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hwerlDsyOC8/UPmMseiqCkI/AAAAAAAAFYs/5McAacUPU1Q/s400/fbBulgaria%2BB10170.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">5. <b>Experience Village Life</b>. Bulgarians have a love/hate relationship with Bulgarian villages. I just love them. It's tough to pick favorites, but a few of mine are <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/06/yagodina.html">Yagodina (Ягодина)</a>, <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/10/blog-post.html">Srebarna (Сребърна)</a>, and <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/09/blog-post_6772.html">Gorno Dryanovo (Горно Дряново)</a>.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-usH7pVczZxQ/UPrJqyx5MCI/AAAAAAAAFsQ/Hz6da1TGmmk/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13351.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-usH7pVczZxQ/UPrJqyx5MCI/AAAAAAAAFsQ/Hz6da1TGmmk/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13351.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">4. Kukeri (Кукери). Dating back to ancient pagan times,
when it was believed the masks and costumes had the power to protect their
wearers against evil (hence the more frightening the getup the better), kukeri festivals are popular throughout Bulgaria. The largest and arguably most impressive of the kukeri festivals is the one that takes place in Pernik called the <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/01/surva-international-festival-of.html">Surva International Festival of Masquerade Games</a>.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5pqB3iXmfs0/UPmMgSWsSUI/AAAAAAAAFYg/_0bp7pOlOnE/s1600/fba9%2BPernik%2B048.2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="270" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5pqB3iXmfs0/UPmMgSWsSUI/AAAAAAAAFYg/_0bp7pOlOnE/s400/fba9%2BPernik%2B048.2.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/06/buzludzha.html">Buzludzha (Бузлуджа)</a>. There are few places on earth where politics, history, art, and emotion are on display in a more visible way than at Buzludzha. It's a surreal and amazing place and, while it's still standing and accessible, should be at the top of any visitor's list of places to see.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PA05Co9nEjI/UPmMWmtuc3I/AAAAAAAAFYU/TmI4DGCOLfY/s1600/fbb50%2BBulgaria%2B9472.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PA05Co9nEjI/UPmMWmtuc3I/AAAAAAAAFYU/TmI4DGCOLfY/s400/fbb50%2BBulgaria%2B9472.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2. <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2013/01/how-to-make-rakia.html">Learn to Make Rakia</a>. Rakia is hardly unique to Bulgaria, but it is so central to Bulgarian life that nothing is more Bulgarian than making your own rakia and sharing it with your friends.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nzR7iGzwzQw/UPmMLJZVkcI/AAAAAAAAFYI/67RRo6dAFLA/s1600/fbd36%2BBulgaria%2B11961.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nzR7iGzwzQw/UPmMLJZVkcI/AAAAAAAAFYI/67RRo6dAFLA/s400/fbd36%2BBulgaria%2B11961.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1. <a href="http://www.omniglot.com/writing/bulgarian.htm">Learn Bulgarian</a>. I'm not fluent in Bulgarian, but I can understand and speak enough of the language to get by reasonably well. Being able to communicate, at least on some level, with all Bulgarians makes the country much more interesting and enjoyable. And the joy of sitting in a small cabin on a three hour train ride with five Bulgarians and just listening to everything they say only to chime in in perfect Bulgarian as the train pulls into its final stop cannot be overstated. Even if you can't read Cyrillic or understand or speak Bulgarian, I can't recommend the place enough. Just go and enjoy!</span></div>
Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com35tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-22308287131555256022013-01-14T18:26:00.001+02:002013-01-16T17:59:38.520+02:00Final Thoughts on Peace Corps Service<span style="font-family: inherit;">A
little more than two months after my Peace Corps service ended, I returned to Bulgaria
for a few days to pack up my belongings and to see my former colleagues and
students and some of my friends. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but what I saw
and experienced made me feel pretty good.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-B-nh_Qaw-H4/UPQwU2qrnlI/AAAAAAAAFWY/XB4ZaJmkDrg/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B14284.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-B-nh_Qaw-H4/UPQwU2qrnlI/AAAAAAAAFWY/XB4ZaJmkDrg/s200/fbBulgaria%2B14284.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">First,
the little old school at which I had taught for three years was in the middle
of a major facelift. It was pretty cool seeing a school that just a few years
earlier was on the verge of being closed for good being brought back to life.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Second,
with the exception of a few teenagers pretending to be cool, every single
person I encountered who I had met during my three years at site met me with a
huge, genuine smile and friendly handshake. In a country where smiles are few
and far between, those shared smiles really meant a lot.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OCiCGgAzyzA/UPQvYcT7CcI/AAAAAAAAFWI/3E6rwDAMPTg/s1600/fbDSC09029.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OCiCGgAzyzA/UPQvYcT7CcI/AAAAAAAAFWI/3E6rwDAMPTg/s200/fbDSC09029.jpg" width="134" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">Finally,
saying goodbye to those who were closest to me during my three years was as
difficult for them as it was for me. On my first day back, Baba Ristena brought
me a large bag full of peppers, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Her pain was obvious
when I told her I couldn’t accept them because I had given away my knives and
cutting board and would be leaving early the next morning and wouldn’t have
time to eat them. When that next morning came, saying goodbye to her was gut-wrenching.
Almost seventy years earlier, she had been forced to take shelter from American bombing
raids over Bulgaria. Fed a strict diet
of anti-American propaganda during the Cold War, she had every reason to
dislike me when I moved into her guesthouse. But for three years, she cared for
me, nurtured me, and fed me like one of her own. And as the tears rolled down
her face, and she held me tight while trembling in my arms, and all she could
say was, “Oh, Brian,” it was both heartbreaking and heartwarming.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Peace Corps service is about many things, nothing more important than
those shared smiles and tears.</span>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-26921264242537895972013-01-10T20:56:00.002+02:002013-01-11T19:27:33.012+02:00How many Peace Corps volunteers does it take to change a light bulb?Early
on in my service, I was told a joke by another Peace Corps volunteer who was at
the end of his service. The joke went something like this.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 1.0in; margin-right: 1.0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Question:
How many Peace Corps volunteers does it take to change a light bulb?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 1.0in; margin-right: 1.0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 1.0in; margin-right: 1.0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Answer:
None. Peace Corps volunteers can’t and don’t change anything.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The guy who told the joke had left Bulgaria
disappointed, disillusioned, and disheartened. When he told it, I felt a bit
sorry for him and resolved not to leave feeling the same way. But as my Peace
Corps service came to an end there was a point when I couldn’t help but
thinking maybe he was right and maybe the joke wasn’t a joke at all but a
painful truth most of us are simply too proud to admit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you’ve followed this blog closely, you know my primary
assignment was to teach English. I haven’t written much about my work as an
English teacher because that wasn’t and isn’t the purpose of the blog. But some
background is necessary for the purposes of this post.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For starters, it’s extremely difficult teaching within the
Bulgarian education system. Schools are funded based on enrollment. This gives
students an unhealthy amount of control. If they are unhappy, they complain to
their parents. Their parents then complain to their class teachers or the
principal and threaten to pull their kids out of the school. Always needing
students to hit certain numbers, the schools acquiesce to the students’
demands. It’s a classic case of the inmates running the asylum.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s even more challenging teaching at technical schools
such as the one at which I taught. My school had an enrollment of approximately
150 students, most of whom were studying to become car mechanics. For three
years, my job was to teach those students, every single one of them, English.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Much like an American high school, the school catered to
students in grades 9-12. Class sizes varied from the high teens to the high
twenties. The school was predominately male, and nearly 20% of the students
were from minorities (mainly Roma or Gypsies but a few Turks). Many of the students
came from the surrounding villages, and almost all of the students came from
families of limited means. Their level of English ranged from virtually nil to
conversationally fluent and all levels in between. And these ranges of
knowledge and ability were reflected in almost every class, as students are
never separated from their classmates.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Due to a lack of funding, the school had no English
textbooks. There were no lesson plans in place, so everything had to be created
from scratch or cobbled together using whatever resources I could find. The
ranges of interest in learning English matched the students’ ability levels,
with many students having no interest whatsoever in learning English, most
having minimal interest in learning it, and a select few truly having a real
desire to study and learn. One of the biggest challenges I faced was developing
lessons that motivated students from all levels of interest and ability.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
My
last day of teaching in Bulgaria
is what triggered my thoughts concerning the joke about what Peace Corps
volunteers change. A vocal minority of 10<sup>th</sup> grade students,
empowered by the flawed system I just described, were upset with their final
grades and yelling at me. I had been more than generous just passing most of
them, but that’s not how they saw it. This was in sharp contrast to the 11<sup>th</sup>
graders and 12<sup>th</sup> graders, with whom I’d worked for three years and
who, with few exceptions, had thanked me for not only their final grades but
also for being their teacher.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Anyway, in
an attempt to diffuse the situation with the 10<sup>th</sup> graders, I called in the school counselor. But her
words fell on deaf ears as well, and the kids only grew louder, more
emboldened, and more disrespectful.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
The
next step was to bring in the principal. She yelled. The students yelled back.
Everyone yelled some more. Ultimately, the principal got in the last word, but,
although there was some resolution, the kids were seething and wouldn’t even
look me in the eye. Recognizing we (the school) had erred in not disciplining
them sooner, the principal then gave me a list of students she would like to
see fail to be taught a lesson. Two of them ended up failing, but I couldn’t
help but thinking so had I.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
had come to Bulgaria
to promote world peace and friendship, and here was a group of students who
despised me. Or so it seemed. It bothered me enough that I had failed to teach
them much, if any, English, but to spend two years together and not become
friends? I considered that an epic failure.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
A
few hours later, I walked home alone. Feeling dejected and somewhat betrayed, I
couldn’t imagine a worse way to finish my tenure as a teacher in Bulgaria.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Along
the walk, the potholed road and cracked sidewalks jumped out at me. Despite
repeated cries from the locals to fix these things, there had been no progress
made during the three years I’d been living at site. When I asked people how
long things had been in such condition, I always got the same response – a
brief chuckle followed by, “завинаги (forever).”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
“Ridiculous,”
I thought to myself. The town was full of obvious, embarrassing, dangerous, and
easy to remedy problems. Problems that everyone in the town was aware of and
that most community members wanted fixed. Potholes and cracked sidewalks were
simply the most glaring. And, even though the problems had been known
“forever,” no progress appeared imminent.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
No
wonder so many of my kids, when asked to do anything that even remotely
challenged them, would respond by saying either “не мога (I can’t)” or “не
искам (I don’t want to).” They had been indoctrinated into a culture of
unabashed apathy that both accepted and expected things to never change for the
better. And the defeatist attitude that permeates the culture seemed intent on
making me its next victim. How could any of us, as Peace Corps volunteers, be
expected to come here and make any real difference whatsoever when known
problems had been staring the community in the face “forever” without anything
ever being changed?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With that on my mind, I opened the gate leading to my house,
walked silently past Baba Ristena as she tended to her garden, opened the door
to my house, closed the door behind me, locked it, walked over to the bed, sat
down, took in a deep breath, and sighed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Then
I started thinking about things that had changed during my three years at site,
and it made me even more depressed. The sad reality was I had had absolutely
nothing to do with the only “positive” changes I could think of. The other
changes, the “negative” ones, were the types of changes that would not have
occurred had I been a more effective volunteer. At least that’s how I felt.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
And
then I heard someone calling my name. It was Baba Ristena. I looked out the
window, and there she was, standing outside my door, hunched over as always. I
unlocked the door, opened it, and said, “Здрасти (Hi).” She smiled, revealing
an imperfect smile and a few missing teeth, and slowly pulled her right hand
out from behind her back. She reached out and handed me a cucumber, the first
one her garden had produced this year. Her smile grew, her eyes twinkled, and
she said, “Заповядайте (Here you go).” I thanked her, but she just giggled, wandered
back to the garden, and went back to work. It was almost as if she knew how
much her gesture had meant to me. But there was no way she could have known.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
This
is a woman who, as a child, lived through Allied bombing raids over Bulgaria
led by American and British forces during World War II. Until she met me, her
primary association with America
was of those raids and, to a lesser extent, of what she had learned about America
through Cold War propaganda. I’d never meet the little girl who watched in
terror as Sofia was set “on fire,”
who studied in a school whose windows had been covered with black paper, who
was regularly evacuated from that school when warning sirens sounded, and who
was forced to take shelter as bombs – American bombs – fell from the sky above.
Nor would I ever meet the person who was fed a heavy diet of anti-American
propaganda for more than forty years. I’d only meet a stubborn, tireless,
headstrong баба (grandmother) in the sunset of her life.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Not
surprisingly, her feelings toward me were anything but warm and fuzzy when we
first met. Things got worse when, after more than a week at site living out of
my luggage, I simply asked when I could expect to get some furniture in which
to store my clothes and other belongings. It turned out that Baba Ristena had a
wardrobe that was intended for me, but it was packed at the back of an
inaccessible room and had not been accessed more than a couple times in over
twenty years. The wardrobe was a treasure trove of memories, many of which were
thrown away during the cleanout process, and witnessing her life being
discarded before her eyes proved to be more than Baba Ristena could bear. Her
torment and suffering were obvious, and tears ran freely down her face. When I
heard her say, “Всичко за американец (All for an American),” I figured all was
lost between us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
But,
in the three years that had passed, she had overwhelmed me with her kindness
and generosity, providing me with more peppers, cucumbers, and tomatoes than I
could ever hope to eat. Giving me, and no one else, some of the few pears her
small pear tree produced each year. Demanding that I help myself to the fruits
and veggies from her garden and eat more lettuce, strawberries, blackberries,
grapes, and apples. Presenting me with a hand-knit scarf for my birthday. And,
then, after one of my worst days in Bulgaria,
there she was handing me her very first cucumber of the year.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Three
years earlier, I would have taken the cucumber and remained in a funk, thinking
only of my failures as a volunteer and teacher. Back then, I hated cucumbers
and had no understanding of how central they are to Bulgarian life. I probably
wouldn’t even have eaten it. But three years later, I can’t imagine life
without таратор (tarator) and Шопска салата (Shopska salad).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Anyway,
as Baba Ristena resumed her work in the garden, I closed and locked the door
and returned to my bed. Sitting there, clutching the cucumber, I thought of
some of the other positive things that had happened because I had served as a
Peace Corps volunteer.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
thought of my family members and friends who had come to Bulgaria
only because I was here and how all of them had left this place with wonderful
memories and more than positive impressions.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
thought of other family members and friends who, for various reasons, couldn’t
make it over here but who read my blog and as a result came to see Bulgaria
as a real place with real people as opposed to just a name on a map.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
thought of Petko and Valya and how one day they would tell their son the story
of how once upon a time an American came to Slivnitsa, and how they first met
at some conversational English classes he taught, fell in love, got married,
and brought him into this world.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
thought of my colleague, Slavkov who, upon learning that the school was getting
a volunteer, supposedly remarked, “Great. We kissed Russia’s
ass for fifty years, and now we’re going to have to kiss an American’s ass for
two.” As with Baba Ristena, things were tough between us in the beginning. He
was cordial but nothing more. Now, he always greets me with a big smile. We
worked together to digitize many of the posters he uses for teaching, and I
picked grapes with him last fall which he turned into rakia and wine. Over the
course of three years, we became more than colleagues, we became friends.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
thought of my Bulgarian friends who had told me I was at least 50%, 75%, or
even 90% Bulgarian.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
thought of Emo, one of the 12<sup>th</sup> grade students I taught my first
year here and how he went from calling me a feminized version of my name and a
“homosexual bitch” to going out of his way to honk at me, stop his car, and
say, “Hello” whenever he sees me walking around town.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
thought of my many neighbors and students and former students who always greet
me with kind words and warm smiles.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
thought of all the neighborhood dogs that used to bark at me whenever I walked
by but no longer do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
thought of a remote-controlled car racing track that had come about as the
result of connections we made during an unsuccessful attempt to secure funding
from the Dimitar Berbatov Foundation for another project.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Without
a doubt, a lot had changed in three years. Many of those changes had been
nothing but positive. But those changes were primarily second and third goal
changes. They weren’t things anyone other than a current or former Peace Corps
volunteer could relate to or truly appreciate and grasp the significance of.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
And
sure. The mission of the Peace Corps is, and my personal mission was, to
promote world peace and friendship. But I wasn’t just here to share with
Bulgarians a bit about Americans and American culture and to learn about Bulgaria
and to share what I’d learned with my friends and family. I was also here to
work, and my primary assignment was to teach English at the Professional
Gymnasium for Transport, Nikola Ionkov Vaptsarov, in the town of Slivnitsa.
And, as I thought about my few successes and many failures as a volunteer, I
kept thinking that my biggest failure had been in the work I had done and was
supposed to have done at my school.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
The
next day, after a restless night, I woke up trying to think of something
positive, truly positive that I had accomplished for my school.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
The
first thing that came to mind was the new technology center that came about as
a result of the generosity of friends and family. It was a project that met all
three Peace Corps goals and brought about a certain level of satisfaction and
pride.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Then
I thought about when I’d returned from a short vacation with friends and the
principal rushed up to me with a huge, genuine smile, told me how terrible
things had been in my absence, and told me how glad she was that I was back.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Next,
I thought about how just a week or so earlier I had sat in the classroom with
complete satisfaction as my kids took their final exams in utter silence,
knowing and respecting the rules I had established.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
But
none of this was enough to make me feel good about my service, and I dreaded
returning to school later that day for the final school-related activities of
the year.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
At 2:00 p.m., we were scheduled to have a wrap-up
of an after school project we had started thanks to financing from the E.U. and
the Bulgarian Ministry of Education. There was an English club, a dance club, a
drama club, a life skills club, and a science club, among others. I had helped
with the English club and provided minimal assistance with a few of the other
clubs, but, by and large, this project had been driven by the school counselor
and a couple teachers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Knowing
how Bulgarian time works, I left my house around 2:10
p.m. and reluctantly headed up to the school. Arriving around 2:15, I expected to see a few of the “good”
kids, the counselor, the teachers who had worked on the project, and perhaps
the principal. But when I reached the second floor, I was shocked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Not
counting the 12<sup>th</sup> graders, who had graduated several weeks earlier,
our school was down to perhaps 100 students. Even though school was technically
out and all of the final grades had been written, more than half of those
students were there, either participating or watching intently and behaving.
All of the teachers, the principal, and a representative from the Ministry of
Education also were there. One of the teachers was videotaping the entire thing
with the video camera we had purchased in connection with the new technology
center, and the new laptop we had bought was being used to pump in the music.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Stunned
and slightly embarrassed, I slid down next to a couple students sitting in the
back row. I sat and watched in awe as the theater and dance groups performed
and the kids not performing continued watching, perfectly behaved. “Where the
hell am I,” I thought, “and what happened to the school I had taught at for
three years?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
When
the performances ended, one of the teachers gave a short speech and presented
the representative from the Ministry of Education with a small gift, which was
quickly returned to the principal. Then I was summoned to the front and
presented with a large plate of food and likewise thanked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
With
the formalities out of the way, kids rushed up to have their photos taken with
me, including many of the kids who had pretended to be mad at me the day before
(it was all an act, designed to see how far boundaries could be pushed). Then
the crowd thinned and the cleanup process began. Still taken aback by what I
had witnessed, I stayed around to help clean up and to try and make sense of it
all.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
As I
was doing this, I noticed a wall of photos. The photos were of some of the
things that we had done during the year. And that’s when it hit me. I stood
there looking at the photos and started to tear up when my counterpart, the
school counselor, came up to me with a big smile on her face. Speechless, I
choked back the tears and pretended to be unfazed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Then
she asked me, “Well, what did you think?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Still
overwhelmed with emotion but hiding it well, I said to her, “It was amazing,
and I really can’t believe it. After three years, this place finally feels like
a school – a real school. Kids were having fun being kids … and learning. Did
you see them? Did you see how many kids were here?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
She
smiled even more broadly and said, “You should be proud, Brian. None of this
would have happened if you weren’t here.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
When
I came to Bulgaria,
I didn’t have any preconceived notion that I’d change the world with my charm
and brilliance. My goals, as expressed in my aspiration statement, were quite
simply “to leave Bulgaria
with new friends, fond memories, and the respect of the community I served.”
When I applied to extend my service, I did so for several reasons, but the
primary reason was this:
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 1.0in; margin-right: 1.0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
[S]omewhere
along the line during the twenty three months I’ve been here Bulgaria
became my home – more of a home than some of the other places I’ve lived, less
of a home than others, but a home. Eventually, it will be time for me to move
on and find a new home. For now, however, I’d like to continue working to make
this one better.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Looking
back at the past three years, it’s easy to be critical. Without question, I
failed far more often than I succeeded. I learned far more than I taught. I
took far more than I gave. I was helped far more often than I provided
assistance. And many more of my neighbors remained strangers than became
friends.<br />
<br />
And
if you came to Slivnitsa, you’d be hard pressed to find any evidence that I'd
even lived there. The town looks much the same as it did three years ago and
eerily similar to many other towns of comparable size. Its failures – the
abandoned factories and administrative buildings, the hotel that once was, the
hospital and other buildings that were started but never finished – are far
more prominent than its successes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
But
what we see is only half of reality. We cannot read minds or see the internal
processes that lead to change. And sometimes we are too close to even see
changes as they occur. We focus on potholes and cracked sidewalks without
understanding anything about other more pressing needs and budget shortfalls. But Peace Corps volunteers aren’t and shouldn’t be in places to fix those types of things anyway. We are or should be
abroad to share thoughts and ideas, stimulate minds, raise questions, and inspire
and motivate. These are things that are, by and large, immeasurable and
imperceptible.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I
got lucky. I was able to see some of the seeds I had planted begin to germinate
at my school. And I witnessed changes among some of my students, colleagues,
neighbors, and people like Baba Ristena. But, even if I hadn’t observed any of those
things, as the first, last, and only volunteer to have served in the town of Slivnitsa,
I would have left this place as I am leaving it – with everything I wanted to
leave with and without any regrets.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
In
some ways, the old joke is true; Peace Corps volunteers can’t and don’t change
anything … at least not alone. But that doesn’t mean we should stop trying.</div>
Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-16254655376201446682013-01-10T06:53:00.002+02:002013-01-10T06:53:41.469+02:00How to Make Rakia (Ракия)Ракия
(Rakia). Bulgarian moonshine. Firewater. White lightning. Whatever you call it,
it’s the lifeblood of Bulgaria.
It brings people together and connects them. Seriously.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
I’m
a beer drinker. Under certain circumstances, I like wine. Hard alcohol has never
been and will never be my thing. But friendships in Bulgaria
are often made at the table over a glass or several glasses of rakia. It’s how
colleagues and acquaintances gain each other’s trust and become friends. As a
result, despite only once actually paying for rakia (at a small hut in the Pirin
Mountains), I almost never turned
down a glass when it was offered. I also made it a priority to learn how to
make the stuff.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
Ask
any self-respecting Bulgarian who makes his own rakia, “Who makes the best rakia?”
and he’ll tell you he does. The pride Bulgarians take in their rakia used to
amuse me. But, having made my own rakia, with a lot of help from a master, I
now completely understand it. Whose rakia is the best? Mine!<br />
<br />
Want
to make it yourself? <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MnXSFq9qfg&feature=youtu.be">Watch this video</a> and/or follow these instructions:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GyQD-MvLm6A/UO3UOQX_bbI/AAAAAAAAFUM/nLpV1I1C6Y0/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11446.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="128" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GyQD-MvLm6A/UO3UOQX_bbI/AAAAAAAAFUM/nLpV1I1C6Y0/s200/fbBulgaria%2B11446.jpg" width="200" /></a>1. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Select a Fruit.</b> Rakia is typically made
from fruit, so the first thing you need to do is choose one. Grape and plum
rakias are the two most traditional varieties, but Bulgarians make rakia out of
whatever is readily available and cheap – apple, pear, peach, apricot, and
cherry rakias are all popular in certain parts of the country. Other varieties
are made less frequently.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UKc3T39kIvw/UO3UyO8iVrI/AAAAAAAAFUY/sar63xp34KQ/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11374.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UKc3T39kIvw/UO3UyO8iVrI/AAAAAAAAFUY/sar63xp34KQ/s200/fbBulgaria%2B11374.jpg" width="134" /></a>2. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Pick and Gather the Fruit.</b> Once you’ve
selected a fruit, you have to “pick” it. Picking a fruit is often as simple as
going to the market and buying as much of it as you need. But grape vines and
fruit trees grow aplenty in Bulgaria,
and most Bulgarians hand-pick the fruit they use to make rakia. With grapes,
this means waiting until the right time in fall and bringing together friends
and family for a grape-picking weekend. With other fruits, Bulgarians typically
wait until the fruit is slightly overripe and then they shake the fruit out of
the tree by vigorously shaking the branches and/or swatting at the branches
with a long stick. Only the fruit ripe enough to make rakia falls out of the
tree, after which it is all collected.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p0G9eaUepBk/UO3VwA_Z6uI/AAAAAAAAFUw/vookU46wA-Q/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11534.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p0G9eaUepBk/UO3VwA_Z6uI/AAAAAAAAFUw/vookU46wA-Q/s200/fbBulgaria%2B11534.jpg" width="134" /></a>3. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Make Juice.</b> Once you’ve collected the
fruit, you mash it up, make juice, and dump it into a large barrel. The mashing
process can be done by machine or the old-fashioned way – by foot.<br />
<br />
4. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Measure the Sugar Content and Add Dissolved
Sugar as Necessary.</b> After the fruit has been mashed into juice, you measure
the concentration of sugar in the juice with a saccharometer (захаромер). An
ideal reading for making rakia is 23°, and a sugary water solution of
approximately three pounds of sugar to every gallon of water should be added to
the mash until the ideal sugar level is attained.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-75iO4DPKShs/UO3WJq8FvoI/AAAAAAAAFU8/tXSTqIj4lYc/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11532.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-75iO4DPKShs/UO3WJq8FvoI/AAAAAAAAFU8/tXSTqIj4lYc/s200/fbBulgaria%2B11532.jpg" width="200" /></a>5. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Stir the Juice and Allow it to Ferment.</b>
The fruit juice will settle to the bottom, and the fruit skins will harden and
float to the top of the mash. To make sure the juice ferments, it is necessary
to push the fruit skins down and stir the juice once daily. The amount of time
for proper fermentation depends in large part on the weather, but fermentation
generally takes around three weeks. You might notice that thousands upon
thousands of fruit flies are attracted to the mash. Don’t fret. Believe it or
not, fruit flies assist greatly in the fermentation process. As a matter of
fact, the Bulgarian word for fruit fly, муха-винарка, takes its name from the
Bulgarian word for wine, вино, and literally translates to wine fly. Not
surprisingly, more than one Bulgarian friend of mine hopes someday to be
reincarnated as a муха-винарка.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NWwOorXpi-E/UO3WimnPCoI/AAAAAAAAFVI/aQphRaSrNMA/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11961.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NWwOorXpi-E/UO3WimnPCoI/AAAAAAAAFVI/aQphRaSrNMA/s200/fbBulgaria%2B11961.jpg" width="200" /></a>6. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Distill the Fermented Juice.</b> Distillation
day is one of the most enjoyable days of the entire process; it is the day when
rakia begins to flow. There isn’t much to the distillation process, although
some people do a double distillation while others only do a single
distillation. Regardless, the initial steps are the same. The mash is dumped
into a still, which is sealed with a flour mixture to insure the still is air
tight, and then a fire is lit under the still and distillation commences. Then
you sit and wait. It typically takes about an hour before the first alcohol
fumes begin to separate from the mash. This steam then makes its way through
the sealed pipes before working its way through a cooling condenser and
emerging as rakia. As the alcohol collects, measurements are taken. When I made
rakia, we did a double distillation. On the first distillation, our rakia
started with an alcohol content of around 60%, and we stopped the distillation
when the alcohol content dropped to 20%. We then emptied and cleaned the still,
dumped the alcohol we had produced into the still, and started a second
distillation. On the second distillation, our rakia started with an alcohol
content of 75%, and we stopped the distillation when the alcohol content
dropped to 40%. The finished product was a potent 124 proof rakia (62% alcohol).<br />
<br />
7. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Age the Rakia.</b> Once distillation is
complete, your rakia is ready to drink. Some Bulgarians do nothing more, but
most prefer to age and dilute their rakia to make it more pleasurable to drink.
Rakia may be diluted by adding distilled water until the desired alcohol
percentage is attained. It may be aged as long and in whatever manner you see
fit, but most Bulgarians only age their rakia long enough to give it some color
and a little taste. We aged our rakia in oak chips for a month and added
distilled water to make it more drinkable at 90 proof (45% alcohol).<br />
<br />
8. <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Enjoy.</b> Of course, the final step of the
rakia making process is drinking it and sharing it with friends. Хайде
наздраве! </div>
Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-56797286288423948032012-12-08T18:50:00.000+02:002013-01-19T03:30:13.556+02:00What is the Bulgarian National Pastime?<span style="font-family: inherit;">“How
do Bulgarians pass the time?” is a common question I’ve received from friends
and family who have never visited Bulgaria.
As is the case anywhere, most people spend their time working, eating, attending to personal issues, and
sleeping. When they do have some free time, Bulgarians do different things; they
have diverse interests and spend their time doing what interests them and is
within their means. Many Bulgarians spend time watching Turkish soap operas and other rubbish on televi</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">sion</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">.
More spend time gardening and p</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">reserving the fruits of their labor for<span style="font-size: small;"> the harsh winter</span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">. And even more spend time sitting around smoking cigarettes
and drinking coffee, beer, wine, and/or alcohol, especially rakia. But something
almost every Bulgarian does with some regularity is sits on a bench, chats with
friends, and watches the world go by. Indeed, there is nothing more intrinsically
part of Bulgarian culture than bench sitting.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">And it’s one thing that I really loved about </span><span style="font-size: small;">Bulgaria</span><span style="font-size: small;">. As a kid, I spent part of every summer visiting my grandparents in </span><span style="font-size: small;">Wisconsin</span><span style="font-size: small;">. They, like most of
their elderly neighbors, spent their evenings sitting on their front porch
gossiping and chatting up passersby. Bench sitters in </span><span style="font-size: small;">Bulgaria</span><span style="font-size: small;"> reminded me of my grandparents and those days gone by from my youth.</span></span><br />
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Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-37652866847484542752012-10-24T22:25:00.003+03:002012-10-24T22:25:50.863+03:00Стара планина (Balkan Mountains)<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balkan_Mountains">The Balkan Mountains</a> (Стара планина <span lang="sr">in Bulgarian, which literally means Old Mountains) run from the Serbian border straight through the heart of Bulgaria all the way to the Black Sea. I contemplated hiking the <a href="http://visitcentralbalkan.net/en/pages/read/t:tourism/c:itinerary/s:hiking/p:information-1/o:international-hiking-trail-e3-kom-emine">Kom-Emine trail</a> from beginning to end all the way across Bulgaria upon the completion of my service but decided against it after drowning my camera in the Grand Canal in Venice. I did, however, convince some friends to climb <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botev_Peak">Връх Ботев</a> (Botev Peak), the highest peak in the Balkan Mountains.</span><br />
<br />
<span lang="sr"></span>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-I_JjvLuD-58/UIg-wxF4VjI/AAAAAAAAFPU/2KGxpj60yF4/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B14762.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-I_JjvLuD-58/UIg-wxF4VjI/AAAAAAAAFPU/2KGxpj60yF4/s400/fbBulgaria%2B14762.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-81520215175933216222012-10-19T17:33:00.003+03:002012-10-19T17:33:31.822+03:00Пирин (Pirin Mountains)Other than a couple trips to <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/01/blog-post_31.html">Банско</a> (Bansko), I really hadn't seen much of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirin">Пирин</a> (Pirin Mountains) until this summer. And then foul weather prevented us from doing all of the hikes we wanted to do. I may return to do a few of them when I'm back in Bulgaria in a week or so. With scenery like this, it's hard to pass up that chance.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jM0jEmVI2co/UIFkMpPYXnI/AAAAAAAAFIM/j2EwuA-iw2k/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B14516.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jM0jEmVI2co/UIFkMpPYXnI/AAAAAAAAFIM/j2EwuA-iw2k/s400/fbBulgaria%2B14516.jpg" /></a></div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-27430365743641301142012-10-19T17:02:00.001+03:002012-10-19T17:02:55.989+03:00Родопи (Rhodope Mountains)It's no mystery that the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhodope_Mountains">Родопи</a> (Rhodope Mountains) are probably my favorite place in Bulgaria. The people are incredibly hospitable, the scenery is spectacular, the pace of life is slow, the food is fresh and delicious. There is little not to like. So when friends came to visit a few months ago, I was more than happy to show them a few of the places in the Rhodope Mountains I've grown to love: <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/09/blog-post_6772.html">Горно Дряново</a> (Gorno Dryanovo), <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/09/blog-post_6892.html">Ковачевица</a> (Kovachevitsa), <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/06/yagodina.html">Ягодина</a> (Yagodina), <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/06/gyovren.html">Гьоврен</a> (Gyovren), and <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/10/blog-post_06.html">Широка лъка</a> (Shiroka Laka).<br />
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Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-62062826457941941602012-10-19T15:50:00.001+03:002012-10-19T15:50:19.999+03:00Трявна (Tryavna)I visited <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tryavna">Трявна</a> twice during my service. The first visit was only for a couple hours, and half the time was spent eating lunch. The second visit coincided with our close of service conference, and there wasn't much free time to explore the town. It's a very relaxed place which I wish I would have gotten to know better. Among other things, it's home to a small, Belgian micro brewery, which produces some of the best beer brewed in Bulgaria.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3vcO5hUILWY/UIFL7hFMr2I/AAAAAAAAE_I/A4kOqyV--PI/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B9234.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="250" width="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3vcO5hUILWY/UIFL7hFMr2I/AAAAAAAAE_I/A4kOqyV--PI/s400/fbBulgaria%2B9234.jpg" /></a></div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-86112563987682384702012-10-19T15:25:00.003+03:002012-10-19T15:27:38.029+03:00Шипка (Shipka)My Peace Corps service ended almost two months ago. I've been traveling around Eastern Europe and the Caucasus trying to unwind and make sense of it while contemplating the next chapter in my life. I'll return to Bulgaria in a week or so to see friends and pack up for the return trip home. Between now and then, I'll be adding a few more photos and, hopefully, putting the finishing touches on this blog. This is the first of such posts.<br />
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<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shipka_%28town%29">Шипка</a> (Shipka) is known for being located close to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shipka_Pass">Шипченски проход</a> (Shipka Pass), site of a series of famous battles during the Russo-Turkish War in 1877 and 1878. It's also known for its church, the Memorial Temple of the Birth of Christ, whose golden domes can be seen for miles. Time constraints permitted only a visit to the church.<br />
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Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-83438561412807169672012-08-26T17:55:00.004+03:002012-08-26T17:55:22.580+03:00Асенова крепост (Asen's Fortress)I first saw <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asen%27s_Fortress">Асенова крепост</a> (Asen's Fortress) when I visited <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/04/blog-post_13.html">Бачковски манастир</a> (Bachkovo Monastery) a few years ago. I'd been wanting to get up and see it ever since. A few months back, I finally did.<br />
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A shot of the fortress, perched precariously on a rocky ledge.<br />
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A couple closer shots of the church.
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At the top.
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A view toward Asenovgrad.
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A view in the other direction.
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Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-11429201474684869702012-08-26T11:36:00.000+03:002012-08-26T17:57:13.775+03:00Чудните мостове (The Marvelous Bridges)I'd been wanting to visit <span lang="bg"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvelous_Bridges">Чудните мостове</a> (the Marvelous Bridges) since first seeing photos of them. Unfortunately, their remote location made that almost impossible given the prohibition against me driving in Bulgaria. But when some friends came to visit and rented a car, they were more than happy to take a detour to see this natural wonder. We all agreed it was a wise decision.</span><br />
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<span lang="bg">The detour. </span><br />
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The natural bridges.
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A rainbow on the way out.
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Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-32739143017689968672012-08-26T10:36:00.000+03:002012-08-26T10:36:16.345+03:00Долен (Dolen)After a few unsuccessful attempts at hiking to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolen,_Blagoevgrad_Province">Долен</a> (Dolen), we ultimately gave in and had a friend drive us there. <span lang="bg">Долен is a small village that combines aspects of <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/09/blog-post_6772.html">Горно Дряново</a> (Gorno Dryanovo), <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/09/blog-post_01.html">Лещен</a> (Leshten), and <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2010/09/blog-post_6892.html">Ковачевица</a> (Kovachevitsa). Divided in two, the new part of the village is something like a mini version of Gorno Dryanovo, while the old part - an architectural reserve - is something of a mix between Leshten and Kovachevitsa. If you want to escape the rat race, you really can't go wrong spending time in any of these places.</span><br />
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Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-49823134649868684892012-08-24T07:49:00.000+03:002012-08-24T07:49:15.241+03:00Крушунските водопади (Krushuna Falls)Located about thirty minutes from the town of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lovech">Ловеч</a> (Lovech), <a href="http://www.maarata.com/?act=index">Крушунските водопади</a> (Krushuna Falls) is perhaps the most photographed series of waterfalls in Bulgaria. It's a beautiful place, but it doesn't warrant nearly as much attention as it receives. In fact, I suspect the main reason it's so popular is because it's so easily accessible. In my opinion, there are lots of other things in Bulgaria worth seeing before Krushuna Falls, and it's hard to justify making a special trip to visit the place. But, if you're already in the area, it's worth a quick stop.<br />
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Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-55675011232955898362012-08-22T18:44:00.001+03:002012-08-22T18:44:19.234+03:00Snapshots of BulgariaThe Peace Corps will be in Bulgaria for another year or so. Among other things, the final year is about leaving behind a legacy of sorts. One project currently being undertaken in this regard is <a href="http://snapshotlegacy.posterous.com/155922094">Snapshot Legacy.</a><br />
<br />
Snapshot Legacy is a personal legacy project for Peace Corps volunteers and Returned Peace Corps volunteers who have served in Bulgaria. Through a collection of photos and essays, Snapshot Legacy allows volunteers to share their unique day-to-day reality in Bulgaria. I encourage you to check it out. Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-51529064543688137642012-07-30T21:15:00.001+03:002012-10-19T15:30:53.679+03:00A few things I will miss about Bulgaria<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
In exactly one month my Peace Corps service will be over,
and I will be relaxing in <st1:city>Bucharest</st1:city>.
I’ve got several things to blog about between now and then, but let’s start
with things I’ll miss when I leave <st1:country -region="-region">Bulgaria</st1:country>.
It goes without saying that I’ll miss lots of people, but here are a few of the other
things I’m really going to miss.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><b>Public transportation</b></u>. Lots of other volunteers complain
about the buses and trains. I love them. They have taken me to the four corners
of <st1:country -region="-region">Bulgaria</st1:country> and
all places in between. The public transportation here is far superior to what we
have in the <st1:country -region="-region">USA</st1:country>.</div>
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<u><b>Train rides</b></u>. I love train rides, and it is definitely my
preferred means of transportation here.</div>
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<b><u>Spring</u></b>. I’ve written before about how much I’ve enjoyed
spring in <st1:country -region="-region">Bulgaria</st1:country>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<b><u>White Storks</u></b>. Symbolic. Iconic. Awesome.</div>
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<b><u>Woodstoves</u></b>. I’m particularly going to miss the smell of the
smoke in Bulgarian villages from woodstoves from autumn through early spring.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><u>Shepherds and goat herders</u></b>. A field or hillside without a
shepherd or goat herder will forever look incomplete to me after living here.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u>Little Owls</u></b>. In every village, Little Owls sit on rooftops
and bark away at dusk.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><b>Seasonal markets</b></u>. First come the mandarins, then come the
strawberries, cherries, raspberries, apricots, watermelons, melons, peaches,
and finally the apples and grapes. The vegetables have their seasons too, with
cucumbers and tomatoes (I know it’s technically a fruit) dominating the summer
months, peppers the late summer and fall, pumpkin and zucchini fall, and
potatoes and cabbage late fall through early spring. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><b>Fresh fruits and veggies from the garden</b></u>. <span style="font-family: inherit;">There is nothing
like a Шопска салата made from fresh cucumbers and tomatoes straight from the garden.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><u>Walking down the street and picking fruit</u></b>. Fruit trees are
everywhere. The ones with branches hanging over the sidewalk are fair game.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u>Two liters</u></b>. A two liter bottle of beer costs about $2. There
is no better way to spend an afternoon than sitting in the park with friends,
drinking a two liter, and people watching.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><u>Freedom</u></b>. There might be open container laws, but they aren’t
enforced. You can freely walk down the street or ride the train with a bottle
of beer, booze, or wine without a care. You can raise livestock, walk them down
the street whenever you want, and kill them in your backyard without worry.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<b><u>Black Redstarts</u></b>. One of these guys has awakened me with his
song from spring to fall for the past three years.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<u><b>The distant sound of a train whistle piercing the frozen
air</b></u>.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<u><b>Feasting on home-grown, farm-raised chicken, rabbit, goat,
pig, and lamb</b></u>.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><u>Horse and donkey carts and the clickety clack of the animals' hooves on the pavement</u></b>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><u>The concept of на гости</u></b>.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><b>The smell of peppers roasting</b></u>. </span><br />
<u><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></u>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><b>Дюнери</b></u>. On a Peace Corps living allowance, there is nothing better. Why Bulgarians eat at McDonald's and KFC is beyond me.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7LUl_dk-VD8/UBbVBAZ4OtI/AAAAAAAAE0Y/bC7xSspzVz8/s1600/74_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7LUl_dk-VD8/UBbVBAZ4OtI/AAAAAAAAE0Y/bC7xSspzVz8/s400/74_n.jpg" width="293" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by Lori Joas.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-9034280350553000662012-05-09T14:58:00.000+03:002012-05-09T14:58:21.005+03:00Искърското дефиле (The Iskar Gorge)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
My favorite train ride in Bulgaria covers the stretch of track between <a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8016435681521369904#editor/target=post;postID=7612783048697839243">София</a> (Sofia) and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mezdra">Мездра</a> (Mezdra) along река Искър (the Iskar River) and through Искърското дефиле (the Iskar Gorge). Wanting to take in the scenery at a slower pace, I recently spent a couple days walking the stretch between Лакатник (Lakatnik) and Люти брод (Lyuti Brod). I'm too much of a hack to do the place justice with photos, but you can get an idea of the beauty of the place and how enjoyable my two walks were.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LT1sBh0XxTg/T6oq3Br9rUI/AAAAAAAAEvk/dIdKXeNQGck/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13966.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LT1sBh0XxTg/T6oq3Br9rUI/AAAAAAAAEvk/dIdKXeNQGck/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13966.jpg" width="263" /></a></div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-62111051989384128932012-05-09T14:21:00.000+03:002012-05-09T14:25:24.732+03:00Getting Laid in Bulgaria (Warning: Graphic Content)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Help her tidy up for the little ones. Snuggle a little. Sing and dance for her. And it's "Wham, bam, thank you ma'am."</div>
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Not what you were expecting? Such is life.</div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-2341848683581583492012-04-20T19:45:00.000+03:002012-04-21T13:35:21.612+03:00Природен парк „Русенски Лом” и Ивановски скални църкви (Rusenski Lom Nature Park and the Ivanovo Rock Churches)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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Last week was spring break in Bulgaria. I was low on funds and the weather wasn't the best, so I didn't see as many new places in country as I would have liked. I did, however, make a cross-country trip to <a href="http://bulgariatravel.org/en/object/93/Park_Rusenski_Lom">Природен парк „Русенски Лом”</a> (Rusenski Lom Nature Park) and <a href="http://bulgariatravel.org/en/object/10/Ivanovski_skalni_cyrkvi">Ивановски скални църкви</a> (the Ivanovo Rock Churches). I'll write briefly about those places in a minute, but I want to start with something else.</div>
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In four months and a few days my time in Bulgaria as a Peace Corps volunteer will end. Last year at this time I wasn't ready for it to end, and, as a result, I agreed to extend my service. But now, the time is right.</div>
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Once upon a time, I met a girl. We had fun together and soon entered into a relationship. The relationship worked, and we stayed together for days which turned into weeks which turned into months which turned into years. It wasn't anything I had ever planned, it just sort of happened. Life was good, and, even though I knew deep down we weren't right for each other, things were too comfortable to sever the relationship and move on. As a result, we probably stayed together longer than we should have.</div>
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During the nearly fifteen hours I spent on trains going to and from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivanovo,_Rousse_Province">Иваново</a> (Ivanovo), I realized my relationship with Bulgaria is very much like my relationship was with that girl. Life is good, and I'm comfortable here. But we're just not right for each other, and prolonging the relationship merely because it's comfortable just doesn't make sense. It's time to get out of the comfort zone and search for a better match.</div>
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Anyway, I digress ... back to Rusenski Lom Nature Park and the Ivanovo Rock Churches.</div>
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After securing lodging for the night, we wandered off, against our hostess's advice and blessing, in a light mist. We got wet and didn't see much other than some views like this one. But after six hours on the train, it was a good way to stretch the legs and to get our bearings.</div>
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Day two brought nicer weather, and we took full advantage. Some nice folks drove us to the village of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherven_(fortress)">Червен</a>. We started at the medieval fortress overlooking the village and hiked more than 20 kilometers along the river to one of the rock churches. Here are some shots of and from the fortress.</div>
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The hike through the gorge was pleasant enough, highlighted by blooming fruit trees, dramatic cliffs, soaring vultures (the northernmost breeding pair of Egyptian Vultures in Europe) and Black Storks, numerous Hoopoes, and singing wrens, robins, tits, and finches, among others.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zLKZ3nHyq0o/T5EJcObcwyI/AAAAAAAAEhE/gcqeowgZJYg/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13411.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zLKZ3nHyq0o/T5EJcObcwyI/AAAAAAAAEhE/gcqeowgZJYg/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13411.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Fjaei1mB1Ck/T5EJcX9etEI/AAAAAAAAEhQ/tM7-S4g_Sq0/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Fjaei1mB1Ck/T5EJcX9etEI/AAAAAAAAEhQ/tM7-S4g_Sq0/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13415.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-osWltkjXD3Q/T5EJc_U55HI/AAAAAAAAEhc/ECC-7zlmEkg/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13424.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-osWltkjXD3Q/T5EJc_U55HI/AAAAAAAAEhc/ECC-7zlmEkg/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13424.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TdDLa-CjnR8/T5EKp6xNWDI/AAAAAAAAEho/SlZ9-hSRJXU/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13450.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TdDLa-CjnR8/T5EKp6xNWDI/AAAAAAAAEho/SlZ9-hSRJXU/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13450.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dnCMTthyun8/T5EKqeGJZyI/AAAAAAAAEh0/QLNpqXGu3PY/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13451.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="249" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dnCMTthyun8/T5EKqeGJZyI/AAAAAAAAEh0/QLNpqXGu3PY/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13451.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nFZmCGckjkM/T5EKrLEv2UI/AAAAAAAAEiA/9mRR0hkT94A/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nFZmCGckjkM/T5EKrLEv2UI/AAAAAAAAEiA/9mRR0hkT94A/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13457.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gKq7UwmEhRM/T5EKrjObc2I/AAAAAAAAEiM/MsNCrCIuw9A/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13469.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gKq7UwmEhRM/T5EKrjObc2I/AAAAAAAAEiM/MsNCrCIuw9A/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13469.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Lcj1C0GZKdI/T5EKsQi397I/AAAAAAAAEiY/rw2hY1FM_1s/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13473.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Lcj1C0GZKdI/T5EKsQi397I/AAAAAAAAEiY/rw2hY1FM_1s/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13473.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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This is the rock monastery "St. Archangel Michael."</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_6Q5XKN_0ow/T5ELHm_L9fI/AAAAAAAAEik/ycgzEHgJ7Ro/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13509.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_6Q5XKN_0ow/T5ELHm_L9fI/AAAAAAAAEik/ycgzEHgJ7Ro/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13509.jpg" width="272" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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And these are some of the monastery's famous paintings.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6CMWs7HDLXc/T5ELH3z5SyI/AAAAAAAAEiw/cgBtTCLEEz8/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13478.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6CMWs7HDLXc/T5ELH3z5SyI/AAAAAAAAEiw/cgBtTCLEEz8/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13478.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SlZrrlzoas0/T5ELIReRSFI/AAAAAAAAEi8/f123-crfm3E/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13481.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SlZrrlzoas0/T5ELIReRSFI/AAAAAAAAEi8/f123-crfm3E/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13481.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mTN1QI4zndw/T5ELIiuhFRI/AAAAAAAAEjI/4DdWLJ0ZN8w/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13484.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mTN1QI4zndw/T5ELIiuhFRI/AAAAAAAAEjI/4DdWLJ0ZN8w/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13484.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-wYITJ6Myw/T5ELJK-QuJI/AAAAAAAAEjU/shVVw817iSE/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13485.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="261" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-wYITJ6Myw/T5ELJK-QuJI/AAAAAAAAEjU/shVVw817iSE/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13485.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oAI_UNK9BCw/T5ELf83uPTI/AAAAAAAAEjg/bK8gp984jPc/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13487.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oAI_UNK9BCw/T5ELf83uPTI/AAAAAAAAEjg/bK8gp984jPc/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13487.jpg" width="267" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SeC63B8zpmc/T5ELgOYJSoI/AAAAAAAAEjs/r37CpY5hIUo/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13497.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SeC63B8zpmc/T5ELgOYJSoI/AAAAAAAAEjs/r37CpY5hIUo/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13497.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KJcV4_KhHHY/T5ELgWFR43I/AAAAAAAAEj4/kQqe8YZoCsY/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13498.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KJcV4_KhHHY/T5ELgWFR43I/AAAAAAAAEj4/kQqe8YZoCsY/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13498.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-miMbvdqtbUk/T5ELg4mEf3I/AAAAAAAAEkE/c9mj9r8a64g/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13503.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-miMbvdqtbUk/T5ELg4mEf3I/AAAAAAAAEkE/c9mj9r8a64g/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13503.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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While most people visit the park for the rock churches, these are some of the things I found just as interesting.</div>
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A small pig farm on the outskirts of one of the villages ...</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RF-jPpSnbG8/T5EMGlRQEpI/AAAAAAAAEkQ/E0gb81x2G90/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13425.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RF-jPpSnbG8/T5EMGlRQEpI/AAAAAAAAEkQ/E0gb81x2G90/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13425.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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a small cave used to dry grass ...</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eJ6joUDbCmw/T5EMHO8wmrI/AAAAAAAAEkc/BwZ5mtJfRf4/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13433.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eJ6joUDbCmw/T5EMHO8wmrI/AAAAAAAAEkc/BwZ5mtJfRf4/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13433.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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an old-fashioned well in one of the villages ...</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X44fny2OsA4/T5EMHRpPYfI/AAAAAAAAEko/1rRbGpfWV0E/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13440.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X44fny2OsA4/T5EMHRpPYfI/AAAAAAAAEko/1rRbGpfWV0E/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13440.jpg" width="279" /></a></div>
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an old school saw ...</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-41lTYZAfWaY/T5EMHqSPZoI/AAAAAAAAEk0/a2hYIr9sXME/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13441.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-41lTYZAfWaY/T5EMHqSPZoI/AAAAAAAAEk0/a2hYIr9sXME/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13441.jpg" width="271" /></a></div>
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a friendly shepherd with his flock ...</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xNk1hFIKfRQ/T5EMIDPg1aI/AAAAAAAAElA/Piv63MpnLwc/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13428.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xNk1hFIKfRQ/T5EMIDPg1aI/AAAAAAAAElA/Piv63MpnLwc/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13428.jpg" width="283" /></a></div>
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and, quite possibly, the perfect ping pong table and game.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pDCISE0btNs/T5EMWrVTlNI/AAAAAAAAElY/-gawqusJEN0/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13351.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pDCISE0btNs/T5EMWrVTlNI/AAAAAAAAElY/-gawqusJEN0/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13351.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Even though it's time to move on, I sure am going to miss this place.</div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-40787717030171660092012-03-13T22:09:00.000+02:002012-03-14T11:29:36.887+02:00Blood on the Doorsteps<span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">Yesterday,
after my classes, I went into town to get a sandwich for lunch. After filling
up, I returned to school to check on a few things we've been working on.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I
was met at the front door of the school by two students who made it a point to
show me some blood on the doorsteps. There had been a fight, "a very good
fight," they told me, between two of the other students.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Details
as to exactly what happened remain sketchy, but this much is known. The fight
involved two boys, an 11th </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">grader and a 12th </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">grader. They
had gotten into a small fight on their way home the preceding Friday. They
didn't get out of their systems whatever they needed to get out on Friday and
brought their hostilities with them to school on Monday. The boy whose blood
was on the doorsteps was injured pretty badly, and he was in, and might still be
in, the hospital because of some serious damage to one of his eyes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It
wasn't my responsibility to monitor the hall or the front of the school, but I
couldn't help but thinking, "Would this have happened had I been around? And,
what, if anything, would I have done had I been there?"</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Teenage
boys get in fights. I got in a couple fights as a teenager, and, even though
I've diffused more than a few fights among students, I'm always tempted to just
let the kids duke it out, particularly when one of them needs nothing more than
a good ass whipping. But, as a teacher, one of our roles is clear – to do our
best to provide our students with a learning environment in which they feel
safe – and I always end up throwing myself in the middle of whatever scrap
might be about to erupt into something more serious.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In
such situations, there is no moral dilemma. I know I'm doing the right thing. I
don't feel good or bad about it. It's just something I do instinctively without
emotion or feeling.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I had a very different feeling a few months ago when I
dealt with a slightly different issue. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I
was teaching after school English to a couple elementary school kids. One of
the kids, a boy, asked if he could go to the bathroom. I let him go, but he
came back crying. When I asked him what was wrong, he initially refused to
answer. After calming him down and telling him everything was going to be fine,
he told me that one of our students, a 9th </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">grader who was playing
ping pong in the hall in front of the bathroom, had pushed, hit, and bullied
him.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This
infuriated me, and I went out and confronted the 9th </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">grader. When I
first approached, he knew why I was coming and just started laughing. This
infuriated me even more, and I grabbed him and asked him what he had done. At
first he denied doing anything and said he and the other boy were friends.
After yelling at him until he had no doubts I didn't find anything remotely amusing about what he'd done, I dragged him into the room where we were studying
English and demanded that he apologize to the other kid. He did so, and genuinely,
but I was still seething.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Later
that afternoon, I encountered the 9th </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">grader on my walk home. At
first when I saw him I felt nothing but anger. But as I got closer I saw in him
the same fear I had seen in the younger boy earlier. At that moment, I realized I had bullied
and intimidated the 9th </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">grader in exactly the same way he had
bullied and intimidated the young boy. And I felt like shit.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In an attempt to salvage the situation, I met with the 9th grader and the school counselor the following day. I explained to him why I was so upset and why his behavior was unacceptable. He listened calmly and understood completely. But sadly, his behavior hasn't changed. My actions in "authority posturing" or whatever else you want to call it only reinforced the idea in his mind that you get your way by pushing around those who are in a position of comparative weakness.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">No question. Teachers have a duty to protect their students, especially the younger and weaker ones. But students must be protected not only by the teachers but from them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'd
like to believe that international politics is somehow more complicated than
this, but it's really not:</span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Emotion in decision making must be minimized. At best, emotion clouds reason. At worst, it eliminates reason altogether.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">The old saying, "Do as I say, not as I do," just doesn't fly.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">When your conscience tells you you've done or are doing something wrong, you should listen to it and change your behavior. This goes for individuals as well as countries.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Might isn't right, and the time for "bullying" to end has long since
passed.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-67655187105549558852012-03-12T09:02:00.000+02:002012-03-12T09:02:20.137+02:00Groundhog DayIf you've seen the movie <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107048/">Groundhog Day</a>, you get a small idea of what winter was like here this year. Every day, I'd wake up, look out the window, and see snow falling and a couple fresh inches of powder on the ground. Or so it seemed. Since Баба Марта popped in, snows have become somewhat less frequent, and it's no longer accumulating to the same degree. But it's still happening. Snow is still falling.<br />
<br />
I'm trying to say positive. One good thing about winter? Frozen waterfalls. This is <a href="http://bg.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%91%D0%BE%D1%8F%D0%BD%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8_%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%BF%D0%B0%D0%B4">Боянски водопад</a> (Boyana Waterfall), the largest waterfall on <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2009/08/mount-vitosha.html">Витоша</a> (Mount Vitosha).<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5lBVpXPBRGc/T12ePugzBLI/AAAAAAAAEcM/sNTZaN7rw0E/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11998.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5lBVpXPBRGc/T12ePugzBLI/AAAAAAAAEcM/sNTZaN7rw0E/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11998.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zMRbT89UNSE/T12ePsjVzwI/AAAAAAAAEcU/REZDyNS4sQM/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B12005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zMRbT89UNSE/T12ePsjVzwI/AAAAAAAAEcU/REZDyNS4sQM/s400/fbBulgaria%2B12005.jpg" width="267" /></a></div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-53509369174118497512012-03-11T14:26:00.001+02:002012-03-11T14:26:42.060+02:00Birthdays, Women, Wine, and Valentines<span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">Last
year, I wrote about </span><a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/03/big-4-0.html" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">some of the differences between how Bulgarians and Americans celebrate birthdays</a><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">. What I didn't mention is that my birthday falls
on a very important day in </span><st1:country-region style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><st1:place>Bulgaria</st1:place></st1:country-region><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">
(and many other places around the world) – </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Women's_Day" style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">International Women's Day</a><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">. Largely
an afterthought in the </span><st1:country-region style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;"><st1:place>U.S.A.</st1:place></st1:country-region><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">,
International Women's Day is a big deal here: combine Mother's
Day and Valentine's Day and you pretty much have International Women's Day. As such, it's not a great day to have a birthday.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Bulgarians
also celebrate Valentine's Day, but February 14</span><sup style="font-family: inherit;">th</sup><span style="font-family: inherit;"> is equally well
known in </span><st1:country-region style="font-family: inherit;"><st1:place>Bulgaria</st1:place></st1:country-region><span style="font-family: inherit;">
for another celebration – <a href="http://bg.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A2%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%84%D0%BE%D0%BD_%D0%97%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B5%D0%B7%D0%B0%D0%BD">Трифон Зарезан</a> (St. Trifon's Day). On Трифон Зарезан,
grape growers theoretically go out and prune the vines in their vineyards, pour
some wine over the vines for good luck, and then proceed to celebrate by drinking lots and
lots of wine. The folks who I know who celebrate Трифон Зарезан generally skip
all but the last step. Since I didn't have a valentine and wasn't up for a
night of heavy drinking, I didn't celebrate anything on February 14</span><sup style="font-family: inherit;">th</sup><span style="font-family: inherit;">.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Last fall, however, I did return to <a href="http://windowtobulgaria.blogspot.com/2011/06/krainitsi.html">Крайници</a> (Krainitsi) to help some friends pick their crop of grapes. Between eight of us, we picked approximately 700 kilograms (1,500
pounds) of grapes. Those grapes were subsequently used to produce a winter's supply of
red wine and 150 liters of Bulgaria's national drink, rakia. At some point, I'll provide step by step instructions
on how to make rakia. In the meantime, here are some photos from our weekend of
grape picking. Let's hope 2012 is equally productive.</span><br />
<br />
The process was fairly simple. From 8:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m., we picked grapes. We picked big purple grapes, pink grapes, white grapes, green grapes, tiny purple grapes ... at least seven varieties in all.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TeuZW7R7Pn0/T1yNxWkRv-I/AAAAAAAAEVo/11x937qC_5k/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11374.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TeuZW7R7Pn0/T1yNxWkRv-I/AAAAAAAAEVo/11x937qC_5k/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11374.jpg" width="267" /></a></div>
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The grapes went from the vines to buckets ...</div>
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yNp76rlC_q8/T1yOkJDskaI/AAAAAAAAEWk/8U15T_7d0j0/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yNp76rlC_q8/T1yOkJDskaI/AAAAAAAAEWk/8U15T_7d0j0/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11457.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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and from buckets to crates ...</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SwqenkWMsFA/T1yOkNxm1zI/AAAAAAAAEWw/4Q4PC07ZjoU/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11466.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SwqenkWMsFA/T1yOkNxm1zI/AAAAAAAAEWw/4Q4PC07ZjoU/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11466.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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then the barrels were prepared ...</div>
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and the grapes were mashed ...</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4IBqQgL8cGY/T1yPnRbtX0I/AAAAAAAAEYM/VOcMFyomEoE/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11527.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4IBqQgL8cGY/T1yPnRbtX0I/AAAAAAAAEYM/VOcMFyomEoE/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11527.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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and then transferred to the barrels.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zN3r06Z3F4k/T1yQUiQAw8I/AAAAAAAAEZA/Hc5vmgbkGWo/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11533.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zN3r06Z3F4k/T1yQUiQAw8I/AAAAAAAAEZA/Hc5vmgbkGWo/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11533.jpg" width="400" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J0-48vZX4Vc/T1yQUTdNyOI/AAAAAAAAEYw/fJfYWsX7Mrc/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11532.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J0-48vZX4Vc/T1yQUTdNyOI/AAAAAAAAEYw/fJfYWsX7Mrc/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11532.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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By 7:15 p.m., all the grapes had been mashed and dumped into the barrels, all the buckets and crates had been cleaned, and we were sitting down enjoying a sampling of the previous year's efforts. It would be a couple months before this year's hard work would pay off.</div>
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There were lots of bees and wasps enjoying the nectar from the grapes. I got stung a couple times, but it wasn't a big deal.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-udQJjNT0_J8/T1yQVJ5WIVI/AAAAAAAAEZM/dp639vLO5sk/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11432.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-udQJjNT0_J8/T1yQVJ5WIVI/AAAAAAAAEZM/dp639vLO5sk/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11432.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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There were also a few harmless butterflies enjoying the nectar.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0a_wOK8RqbI/T1yQw2TA6ZI/AAAAAAAAEZY/M7B02PExVr4/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11442.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="253" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0a_wOK8RqbI/T1yQw2TA6ZI/AAAAAAAAEZY/M7B02PExVr4/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11442.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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This is Rexy, the family pitbull.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0BSds8rHWjY/T1yQxNXL7DI/AAAAAAAAEZk/a_KK5B-18rM/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11434.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0BSds8rHWjY/T1yQxNXL7DI/AAAAAAAAEZk/a_KK5B-18rM/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11434.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Far more menacing was this mouse murdering hen.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pMh-Y8AcEqQ/T1yQxRyCRZI/AAAAAAAAEZw/qVEiL5Po2YA/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11423.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pMh-Y8AcEqQ/T1yQxRyCRZI/AAAAAAAAEZw/qVEiL5Po2YA/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11423.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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A few other shots from around the village.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4IfVSbrKop8/T1yRWyxHtHI/AAAAAAAAEaU/Tl-6XdHEsgU/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11435.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4IfVSbrKop8/T1yRWyxHtHI/AAAAAAAAEaU/Tl-6XdHEsgU/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11435.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2vHrKB0inks/T1yR4CJMmMI/AAAAAAAAEb0/zIDW7t2LMXE/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11507.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2vHrKB0inks/T1yR4CJMmMI/AAAAAAAAEb0/zIDW7t2LMXE/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11507.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--teNwNMtCWw/T1yR4rQ0OpI/AAAAAAAAEcA/eFyaGNlJBEM/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B11545.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--teNwNMtCWw/T1yR4rQ0OpI/AAAAAAAAEcA/eFyaGNlJBEM/s400/fbBulgaria%2B11545.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-77664610407944276242012-03-07T17:29:00.000+02:002012-03-28T22:37:19.790+03:00The "Gypsy Bride Market"<span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: justify;">Cold
beer. Grilled meats. Fried fish. Cotton candy. Candied apples. A variety of
other sweets. Girls all dolled up. Boys eyeing up the girls, wooing them, and
vying for their attention. Adults mixing, mingling, chatting, and matchmaking.</span><br />
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The
so-called "Gypsy Bride Market" seemed to be several things rolled into one: a
fair of sorts, a reunion of sorts, a matchmaker's convention of sorts, a prom (or debutant ball) of sorts. Whatever
it was, it was nothing like the cattle auction it's been reported to be by the
media. I expected to be uncomfortable, and I was. Not because this was some
archaic and patently offensive sale of young women, but because we had no business
being there. We showed up uninvited and brought nothing to the party other than
our presumed moral superiority. Despite this, and even though we were there at least in part to judge, we weren't shunned or otherwise made to feel unwelcome. On the contrary, everyone was accepting if not overly accommodating and friendly. What made me uncomfortable was the voice in my own head that kept asking, "Who the hell are you to judge
anyway?"</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">For more on the market, read <a href="http://meganinbulgaria.blogspot.com/2012/03/family-reunion-or-bridal-auctions.html">my friend’s post</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
Here are some shots from the event.<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">These two girls were at the center of some controversy. A freelance reporter from Spain wanted to interview them (and any other girls hoping to be "bought" at the market). The reporter couldn't understand or speak Bulgarian, so without help from a translator she was useless. Anyway, an elderly gentleman claiming to speak on behalf of all Калайджии said no one could be interviewed or photographed until an official translator showed up. The girls' grandmother took exception to this and a small pissing contest ensued. In any event, maybe the girls found love because a few hours later they both were with boys.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wkKmwV7thU8/T1d6rm8PquI/AAAAAAAAESc/phEMrYWWGiM/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13110.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wkKmwV7thU8/T1d6rm8PquI/AAAAAAAAESc/phEMrYWWGiM/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13110.jpg" width="236" /></a></div>
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This girl was one of the "lucky" ones. She and her new husband both seemed pretty happy.</div>
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Gotta love the media getting in someone's face to "get the story."</div>
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Alas, I didn't find a bride worth purchasing. Instead, I bought a horsewhip at this stand. A 5 leva souvenir from my first and, in all likelihood, last visit to a bride market.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Upfzyebglew/T1d66sXphsI/AAAAAAAAETg/MI1DOaJMRV4/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13117.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Upfzyebglew/T1d66sXphsI/AAAAAAAAETg/MI1DOaJMRV4/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13117.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8016435681521369904.post-80384857644828591542012-03-06T22:26:00.001+02:002012-03-06T22:26:18.357+02:00Тодоровден (St. Theodore's Day or Horse Easter)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Five of us had jammed into a taxi for the short ride from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stara_Zagora">Стара Загора</a> (<st1:city><st1:place>Stara Zagora)</st1:place></st1:city> to the nearby village of Могила (Mogila). We were pretty excited, perhaps too excited. We were, after all, only going to Могила because we were curious to see the village's infamous "Gypsy Bride Market" for ourselves. Our excitement grew as we passed horse-cart after horse-cart of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romani_people">Roma people</a> along the way, all presumably headed to the bride market.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">That excitement quickly turned to disappointment upon learning that there would be no bride market. Although traditionally held on the first Saturday of Lent per the Eastern Orthodox Christian calendar, the market had been pushed back a day due to a conflict with <a href="http://www.imen-den.net/imenni-dni.php?mesec=3&den=3">Тодоровден</a> (St. Theodore's Day or Horse Easter). We made the most of it, lingering a bit until a chilly wind got the better of us and sent us back to Стара Загора.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Here are some photos from the festivities.</span></div>
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With all the horses running around, we had to pay close attention to avoid being run over. But that was nothing compared to the mob scene that developed after a guy showed up with a miniature horse and allowed the three American girls to climb aboard to pose for photos and take a short ride.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2Aoqzla9wgo/T1ZxG2JrH-I/AAAAAAAAELI/Oa23fOTi5Fc/s1600/fbBulgaria%2B13066.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="250" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2Aoqzla9wgo/T1ZxG2JrH-I/AAAAAAAAELI/Oa23fOTi5Fc/s400/fbBulgaria%2B13066.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Brianhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10842788091868856782noreply@blogger.com0