Bulgarians are frustrated by their country's lack of a clearly defined image abroad. Heirs to one of
Europe's great civilizations, and guardians ot
Balkan Christian traditions, they have a keen sense ot national identity distilled by centuries ot turbulent history. In a constantly repeating cycle of grandeur-decline and national rebirth, successive
Bulgarian states have striven to dominate the
Balkan peninsula before succumbing to defeat and foreign tutelage, only to be regenerated by patriotic resistance to outside control. The
Bulgarian nation was formed in the seventh and eighth centuries when the Bulgars, warlike nomads from central Asia, assumed the leadership of Slav tribes in the lower Danube basin and took them on a spree of conquest in southeastern
Europe. The resulting First Bulgarian Kingdom, after accepting Orthodox Christianity as the state religion, became the centre of Slavonic culture and spirituality before falling victim to a resurgent
Byzantine Empire in the eleventh century. Recovery came a century later when the local aristocracy broke free from
Constantinople and restored past glories in the shape of the Second Bulgarian Kingdom. However, the rise of Ottoman power in the fourteenth cen¬tury ushered in the 500-vear-long period of Tursko robstvo or "Turkish bondage", when the achievements of the medieval era were extinguished.
Bulgarian art and culture recovered during the nineteenth-century National Revival, and the emergence of a potent revolutionary movement prepared the ground for
Bulgaria's eventual Liberation in 1878, achieved with the help of
Russian arms. However, Europe's other Great Powers conspired to limit the size of the infant state at the Berlin Congress of 1878, the first of a series of betrayals which denied Bulgarian claims to a territory which had long been considered an integral part of the historical Bulgarian state. Macedonia. In die twentieth century alone.
Bulgaria went to war three times (in the Balkan Wars of 1912-13, World War I and World War II) to try and recover Macedonia, only to be defeated on each occasion. By 1945 it seemed like a country that had somehow missed out on its destiny, and rap¬idly turned in on itself during the subsequent deep sleep of Communism.
Monasteries
During live centuries of Ottoman rule,
Bulgarian national traditions were kept alive by its monasteries, which had been centers of
Bulgarian-language learning since the Middle Ages. Often hidden away in mountain valleys -both lot defensive reasons, and because old the tranquility thereby offered to hermits -the monasteries went on to provide the populace with both spiritual and political leader¬ship during the nineteenth-century upsurge of patriotic feeling known as the National Revival. For today's visitor, the monasteries offer a unique atmosphere of sanctity and peace, as well as the chance to peer inside some wonder¬fully decorated churches.
Rila, Troyan and Bachkovo are the three most-visited founda¬tions, welcoming a steady stream of pilgrims all year round and attracting crowds of celebrants on major saints' days.
Much of Bulgaria is like an open-air museum of Balkan culture
Today, while undoubtedly more open to the outside world and more visitor-friendly than ever before.
Bulgaria remains a country in transition. Back in the momentous winter of 1989, it looked as if it was dragging its feet on the road to democracy while others forged ahead. The Communist Party-ditched a few of the old guard, changed its name to the Socialist Party and promptly won the first multiparty elec¬tions for more than forty years, remain¬ing the country's most coherent political force until the elections of April 1997. when the SDS took over. Despite stabilizing the economy, the SDS failed to stamp out corruption, and were swept aside four years later by a new movement, the NDSV, centred around (the former Tsar of Bulgaria, Simeon of Saxe-Coburg Gotha. With the Tsar installed as Prime Minister, and a Socialist (ie former Communist) occupying the post of President. Bulgaria is in for some interesting times. Since 1989. market economics have been introduced more cautiously than in the more developed former Communist states, but the steady growth of private enterprise is making its mark nonetheless. Locals are quick to point out that the move towards capitalism has meant poor conditions for many. Full employment and job security arc things of the past, and the new business cul¬ture is riddled with corruption and organ¬ized crime. While these problems shouldn't affect your enjoyment of an invigorating and little-experienced culture, it's a good idea to remain sensitive towards such issues.
Folk festivals
Traditional folk music is still very much alive in
Bulgaria, and is celebrated in numerous festivals across the country, especially in summer. The biggest bashes of them all are the Koprivshtitsa festival, which attracts performers from all over
Bulgaria, and Pirin Sings (Pirin Pee), which concentrates on the rich folklore traditions of the southwest. Both festivals feature an organized programme on a series of stages, as well as a host of unofficial performances by village musicians gathered around the festival fringes, making these occasions more like medieval fairs than modern cultural manifestations. Traditionally, both take place only every four or five years, but such is their popularity and importance that smaller, scaled-down versions of the main events are now organized annually. In addition, there's a whole host of local festivals in villages right around the country, often using traditional feast days such as St Elijah's Day (llinden) or the Assumption (Galyama Bogoroditsa) as an excuse for a day or two of dancing and drinking - ensuring that you stand a good chance of catching something whichever part of the country you're in year round.
At the present time Bulgaria is one of the most popular country of the Balkans. More newsworthy than the former Yugoslavia, and heavy touristed like neighbouring Greece and Turkey, it's a place that brings few distinct images to mind. Despite being the site of extensive Black Sea package resorts and the source of several good wines, it's all too often dismissed as the dour place it was before 1989, when it served as one of the Soviet Union's most loyal East European allies. As with many little-known destinations, however, there's a great deal to discover here: much of Bulgaria is like an open-air museum of Balkan culture, with beautifully decorated churches, fine mosques, wonderfully preserved rustic villages and a great deal of enduring folklore. The mountainous interior makes it one of the top hiking destinations of Europe, while over on the Black Sea coast, the white-sand beaches are just as magnificent in reality as they look in the tourist brochures.
