Food and In the Mountains...

I spent the last week practicing Bulgarian, traveling and learning about grants and programming in Bulgaria. I was in Pazardjik and then visited volunteers in Smolyan and Madan smack dab in the southern range of the Rodolpi Mountains. The scenery was fantastic, with craggy peaks poking above forested valleys of pine and fir. The trip was a three and 1/2-hour bus ride from Plovdiv. The small group I traveled with visited an orphanage and spent time with the children housed there, visited a Kino (Cinema) run by children in Madan, and learned about the Chitalishte (Youth/Rec Centers) in each city. The intelligence and spirit of the children was striking - they have great potential.

While in Madan, I was treated to a Rodolpi Family Dinner - a special southern type of Nagosti (informal dinner party). The dinner included Banitza which is a wrapped pastry filled with Cirene (like a feta cheese), Potato and onion cassarole, rice stuffed peppers, spice cake, fruit compote to drink, and of course Rakia (traditional grape brandy). The family who hosted this great feast for six guests lived in a 2-room blok apartment. The hospitality of this country and culture is nothing short of amazing. For people who have so little to give to someone who has so much already, and do so to a stranger with no expectation of recompense is utterly selfless. This practice is common to the culture and makes it rich.

Food in Bulgaria is far better than I expected. Fruit and Vegetables are nearly always fresh, picked within days of consumption. There are no preservatives in most food, so it spoils easily. Cosequently, everything must be fresh. The food tastes generally healthier than what I was used to from supermarkets and even restaurants in the United States, especially the vegetables. My host family has a garden from which they have picked tomatoes for my favorite dishes here Domati Salad or Shopska Salad (tomatoes, onions, peppers, salt, garlic and white cheese). It is true they use too much salt for most American tastes and they eat bread like there's no tomorrow, but the simple dishes are simply "good," and they make you feel clean.