A 57 millimeter anti-aircraft gun and a tank can be seen in the center of the village of Boshulya, Septemvri Municipality, which is one of the best wine regions in Bulgaria. The collection will be enriched with an airplane pretty soon. Luben Hristoskov who is the village mayor for the third consecutive mandate has been carrying out a successful PR initiative aimed at attracting the attention towards this average-sized Bulgarian village. And he does it quite successfully for the time being. No thieves approach the village, probably stricken with respect by the whole armament placed in the center of Boshulya where on June 2 the village marks the day of Hristo Botev and all who lost their lives for the national liberation.

The T72 M tank which weighs 42 tons is a Russian model and is still in use in nearly 40 countries worldwide, says Mayor Luben Hristoskov who worked as policeman before he was elected the village mayor. The tank placed in the village center is an attraction typical of this Bulgarian village only. The machine was purchased with money donated by local businessmen. The engine, the gear box, the military equipment, the machine-gun and the lasers were removed from the tank. “Many people come here to take photos with the tank. Thus, our village became famous”, proudly says the mayor of Boshulya. However, if we ignore the jokes that the tank and the anti-aircraft gun situated in the center of Boshulya strike people with respect, the population of the village-Bulgarians and Roma live peacefully with each other.

“Let us not pull the devil by the horn, but people live peacefully in our village at present. Moreover, no thefts have been registered here”, says Luben Hristoskov. “There are nearly 70 Roma living in our village, but they communicate with Bulgarians quite well. Some mixed families have even emerged here. Most young Roma work abroad, others work as tractor-drivers, or in workshops for aluminum joinery. All of them are very polite people.”

The favorable climate and the rich soil suitable for vine-growing are probably the main reasons for the serious investment in farmland made by a German company in this village. Mr Hristoskov has more:

“A German company started to buy farmland and plant vineyards. It already planted some 25 hectares of vineyards out of all 40 hectares it bought here. They will start the construction of a wine-cellar later this autumn or in the spring of 2015 at the latest, because the vines have started to yield fruit already. The good news is that new jobs are created in this village. Last year the German firm hired 12 or 13 people on seasonal contracts. They will start to recruit even more people in the future”, contends Mr Hristoskov.

Young people from the village of Boshulya who are less than the elderly ones, as in all Bulgarian villages, take advantage of the strategic location of Boshulya. It is situated 13 kilometers away from the district town of Pazardjik and 6 kilometers away from the municipal center Septemvri. The location enables those who work in the towns to travel to their work place quite quickly. The population of Boshulya amounts to 810 people at present. 60 years ago there were 1,550 people living in the village, says Yordanka Vencheva who takes us on a trip across the interesting history of that village. She herself is the granddaughter of Martin Katsarov who was among the founders of the national liberation movement against the Ottoman enslavers who was sent into exile in Dyarbakir where he died later.

“The village of Boshulya was founded in 1650 by several families who came from different parts of Bulgaria”, says Yordanka Vencheva. “Earlier in the 14^th and the 15^th centuries there was a village and a church named after Virgin Mary which was later burnt down by the Turks. The locality bears the name Virgin Mary to this very day. Pieces of clay pottery and bricks were found during the excavations here which proves human activity. The name Boshulya originates from the name Bosul, a young and powerful fellow who fought against the Ottoman invaders. The present church was built between 1830 and 1860 by craftsmen from the towns of Samokov and Tran and was painted by one of the best students of renowned icon painter Zahari Zograf, whose original icon paintings are preserved until nowadays. The first school comprising of several rooms was situated in the church yard where our grandparents used to study religion and learn how to read and write.”

Presently there is no school in the village of Boshulya. It was closed 12 years ago and the school building was bought from an English citizen. The children from Boshulya go to school in the nearby village. The good news is that there is a kindergarten in Boshulya. “According to a popular belief, the big and beautiful village church was built with the gold coins Martin Voivode and his rebel band took from the rich Turks who once crossed the region.”

English version: Kostadin Atanasov