It’s almost Christmas time! I thought I’d tell you how I spent my Christmases in Bulgaria. I was born and raised there for the first ten years of my life before I moved to Canada. Growing up we didn’t have much, however the most important part was that I had my closest family around!
Most of you probably don’t even know where Bulgaria is… Well it is in the south-east region of Europe. Neighbouring countries include; Turkey, Romania, Greece and Macedonia. The country is spreads across 111,000 kilometres and population is over seven million. Overall, there are many big cities as well as a lot of little towns that are spread across the country. Some popular spots that are visited are the beautiful beaches at Sunny Beach, and the ski slopes at Bansko. These are just some random facts that could hopefully help you picture what Bulgaria could look like.
Next up; Christmas talk!
Well, the biggest difference is that Bulgaria follows Slavic traditions.
The main big Christmas dinner is held on the 24th of December. The dinner table must contain an odd number amount of dishes which is a very uncommon tradition. All the food must be vegetarian. A popular dish is a circular bread called “pitka”. Inside a coin is place and it is said that whoever gets that piece will receive good luck the following year and will bring in wealth into the family. Some other popular dishes include cabbage leaves stuffed with rice, pastries and bell peppers stuffed with rice.
The final exciting point is we get two Santa’s! Yes, that’s right, one on the 25th and one on New Year’s Day. It is said that “Diado Marz” bring presents along with his granddaughter to kids.
As we say in Bulagria, Vesela Koldea, everyone!