Podcast in English

Surva masquerade festival is back with a bang in Pernik

For three days, the mining town of Pernik lived and breathed kukeri.   The 29 th International Festival of Masquerade Games Surva 2023 officially closed there yesterday, with a record number of participants from Bulgaria and abroad, Pernik..

updated on 1/31/23 10:30 AM

After a long lull, Surva Festival is back ready to captivate Pernik

Surva is here! After a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic, Kukeri, Chaushi, Arapi, Babugeri and other fairytale characters will once again chase the evil forces with a bang. The long-awaited festival of masquerade games will be held from January..

published on 1/27/23 10:29 AM

Kukeri from all over Bulgaria prepare for festival in Simitli

More than 7,000 people will take part in the XIX Kukeri Games Festival "Simitliya - The Ancient Land of Kukeri" this weekend (January 14-15) in the town of Simitli. Traditionally, every year on the second Saturday of January..

published on 1/14/23 7:10 AM

May you have a good life and health throughout the year and beyond!

For centuries the coming of the New Year has been one of the most important moments in Bulgarian tradition. It is more than a change of digits on the calendar, it is a borderline that has to be crossed, and it is crossed with a series of rituals and..

published on 1/1/23 1:05 AM

The day of St. Stephen closes the circle of Christmas feast days

As the legend has it, St. Stephen was fully devoted to his service. He was among the first 7 deacons, initiated by the first apostles. He was a wonderworker- he would put his hands on ill bodies and those would be healed in a miraculous manner. Elated..

published on 12/27/22 6:10 AM

The caroling tradition in the Bulgarian village of Pirgovo

Celebrating Christmas is one of the most important and most awaited days of the year. After the hard work of harvesting in the autumn and the preparation for the cold winter, the short and dark days of December seem to brighten with the festive..

published on 12/25/22 9:05 AM

The turkey in traditional Bulgarian cuisine

Unlike Christmas Eve , when meat is not eaten, the meal on Christmas Day is opulent with lots of meat dishes.  And though turkey recipes are for family get-togethers (because turkeys are big birds and can feed a lot of people), in Bulgarian..

published on 12/25/22 7:05 AM

On St. Ignatius Day traditional caroling groups start their preparation for Christmas

One of the unforgettable experiences created by Bulgaria's only open-air ethnographic museum "Etar" near the town of Gabrovo is the school for “koledari” (carolers). The initiative, which started in 2017, is similar to the established..

published on 12/20/22 10:00 AM

St. Nicholas Day is celebrated on December 19 according to the Julian calendar

Fishermen from the coastal town of Burgas will again observe the tradition of celebrating St. Nicholas Day on December 19 according to the old Church calendar. In the fishing village of Chengene Skele the celebrations will begin at 11.00 am with..

published on 12/19/22 6:05 AM
Reenactment of rites related to Saint Varvara's Day

Three holidays at the beginning of December mark the transition from ‎autumn to winter

December 4 is the church holiday of the Holy Great Martyr Barbara, celebrated ‎by both Orthodoxy and Catholicism . Barbara was a girl from a noble family, ‎beheaded for her Christian faith at the beginning of the 4th century. There is a ‎belief that..

published on 12/4/22 10:51 AM