Last Friday was International Women’s Day (simply
‘osmi mart’ or ‘8th March’ in Bulgarian). It’s a BIG deal here – easily
as big as Mother’s Day in the UK, except it celebrates all women, not just the
reproductive ones. Women receive gifts from their loved ones – usually a flower
or something small for the home – and are greeted with a cheery ‘chestit
praznik’ (‘happy holiday’) wherever they go.
We went into Etropole on the 8th
and it was a glorious day. Everyone was enjoying the sunshine. Everyone was
carrying flowers. And everyone seemed to be in a jolly mood. It was like
Christmas Eve, but warmer and more floral. The shop at the petrol station even gave
me a carnation (the pink beauty above). It was all very charming.
What I really like about osmi mart (I have it
in my head that months aren’t capitalised in Bulgarian, but I might be wrong)
is it’s an excuse for women to celebrate themselves and the other women in
their life. So, rather than children taking their mother out for lunch, the local
restaurant was full of gangs of ladies having a right merry time with each
other. There was lots of kissing, clinking glasses and ‘chestit prazniks’. What’s
not to love about that?
The gorgeous weather carried on all weekend
and we finally got around to some gardening jobs. Gardening Bore
2019 is officially underway. You have been warned.
So far we’ve sown tomatoes, chillies,
coriander and lettuce for the veg garden. We’ve started forcing our dahlias already
(and will do the same with our gazillion gladioli soon). And I’ve sown some sweet
peas and other seeds for my new cut flower bed. There’s lots more to sow in
April, but at least we’ve made a start.