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I’ve just returned from a quick dash to Sofia to do some research in the National Library, celebrate my ex-mother-in-law’s 85th birthday, and write a little about how the country still celebrates 8 March as International Women’s Day. It was a very busy and over scheduled trip, with visits to three history museums, but I am always happy to be back in Bulgaria, even if only for such a short while.
One of my oldest friends from Bulgaria came to the US earlier this week to look for an American distributor for his wine. I spent a day at the trade fair chatting to Americans about Bulgaria’s long winemaking history. We also got a chance to celebrate the publication of my latest co-authored book.
It looks so nice! I am so grateful to the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, ROI Books, and Iztok-Zapad books for publishing this translation.
So I spent a day in a village in the northwest of Bulgaria, near the town of Vratsa. This is a very poor part of the country where people live quite close to the edge, and is probably one of the poorest regions in the European Union. But it is also breathtakingly beautiful, and it is in this part of the country that many people maintain an allegiance to leftist ideals. I am always humbled and honored to be a guest here.
Just received a hard copy of the March/April issue of the Bulgarian women’s magazine, Zhenata Dnes. They included a translation of a review of Why Women Have Better Sex Under Socialism and mentioned it on the cover!
I was cleaning through some drawers last weekend and found a nice stash of Bulgarian martenitzi to wear in advance of the “Baba Marta” holiday on March 1. Adds a nice dash of color!
From Wikipedia:
“A Martenitsa is a small piece of adornment, made of white and red yarn and usually in the form of two dolls, a male and a female. Martenitsi are worn from Baba Marta Day (March 1) until the wearer first sees a stork, swallow, or blossoming tree (or until late March). The name of the holiday means "Grandma March" in Bulgarian and the holiday and the wearing of Martenitsi are a Bulgarian tradition related to welcoming the spring, which according to Bulgarian folklore begins in March.”
