"Chestita Baba Marta !"

In these days, a week ago, all main streets of towns are full of Martenicas. If you don’t want to make martenicas for friends by yourself, you can buy them which is difficult  because every martenica is beautiful.

We give Martenicas as a present to relatives and friends to wish health and happiness. All Bulgarian people put them on their clothes but some people put them around their wrists. Everybody gives Martenicas as presents and receives many Martenicas too. People greet one another saying - "Chestita Baba Marta" , that means "Happy Grandmother Marta and Marta is also the name of the month of March.

How old is this tradition ? Nobody kbnows because we have old legends about Martenicas since Bulgaria became a country, about the year 681.

People don't think about that now - they think about spring that is coming, the cold winter that is going away and the flowers that are blooming.

We keep our Martenicas until we see the first stork or first swallow, then we can take off our Martenicas and hang them on a blossom tree or put them under a rock.

- a message from our Bulgarian partners