The first week of March is very exciting for people in Bulgaria. At 1st of March we celebrate so called “Baba Marta” which means grandma March. On this day we give each other red and white “martenitsa” wishing health and happiness. Martenitsa could be in the shape of small girl and boy, bracelet or many others.
We wear martenitsa until we see signs of spring like storks or blossomed tree and put it either on a tree or under a stone. That is why you can often see this:
3rd of March is the biggest national holiday – Liberation Day when we celebrate our liberation from Ottoman rule. All people celebrate and visit different historical monuments together.
8th of March is also a big holiday for women in Bulgaria. My mother have told me about this holiday in the “socialist period”. At that day women used to wear the most beautiful clothes they had in work, they had big gathering to receive greetings, presents and flowers from the “Director/owner of the factory” they worked in (typically the same presents for all). They had big dinners in restaurants and special events with songs and poems performed by children in kindergartens.
Nowadays is similar but more “family” than celebration in the work place. Kids and students give handmade postcards or flowers to their mothers and man give flowers and presents to women. Happy Holiday LadiesJ
In the sense of both 3rd and 8th of March, this is a picture of national female hero and revolutionary contributed for the Liberation of Bulgaria.
Rayna Knyaginya