Thursday

After my language lesson yesterday, I stopped by the carpet museum and tourist information center. I’ve been running into the lady who runs it around town and hadn’t visited since I arrived. I’d like to work with her in the future and wanted to spend some time chatting with her about her work….Well, my meeting turned out much differently than I expected. She dressed me up in the national costume and had me pose for pictures throughout the museum with different props. It was in the 90s yesterday, I was wearing rolled up jeans and a shirt underneath several layers of wool dresses and I didn’t have a clue how she wanted me to hold the different carpet production props. She seemed to have a blast instructing me and taking photos. It was sweaty and awkward, but also awesome, I mean, when else could this possible happen? When I returned to work, we exchanged pictures from our impromptu photo session and different ones she’s taken of the area over the years. I plan to return soon to talk about tourism and to learn how to weave carpets.

After horo dancing at the cultural center, I went na gosti at a colleagues last night. Na gosti literally translates as: ‘to go be a guest,’ but means so much more and is a huge part of Bulgarian life. Bulgarians do it everyday. You don’t call ahead, but you usually bring a small gift, like chocolate or flowers. The host will supply food and rakia and it’s expected that you arrive hungry, thirsty, and ready to talk for hours. My colleague brings me fruit and vegetables from her garden often and has offered to let me use her washer machine. I figured it was due time to go na gosti and I wanted to return some of the hospitality. I attempted to bake chocolate chip cookies using my electric hot plate, this plan failed miserably, but I headed to her house anyways.

When I arrived, banitsa was in the oven and a table in the garden was ready for guests. We sat under the grape vines drinking a beverage mixed from homemade elderberry syrup and soda water. Elderberries grow in the mountains here. Their flowers are used for teas and syrups, their berries make natural dyes for carpet weaving. My colleague has an amazing garden and a huge cellar full of compotes, canned vegetables, and wine barrels. Shortly after the banitsa was cooled and placed on the table, her husband, neighbors, and two grown sons appeared. Her sons had with him the orthodox priest who runs the Chiprovtsi Monastery. All of us sat in the garden, eating banitsa and salads and talking until late. It was fantastic.

We made plans to picnic at the monastery and go blackberry picking. I am also expected to make pies, demonstrated in her kitchen, for the monastery. This was decided during dinner. The priest is very well read and knows quite a few English words. He mentioned pie, which all of them had seen on television and knew to be a ubiquitous American dish. Of course, they agreed, I must be skilled at preparing pies and since I don’t have an oven, I should prepare it here and teach at the same time. This should be interesting. I rarely cook or bake. I’ve never made a pie before. The only things I make regularly are variations of egg scrambles and three ingredient peanut butter cookies. But, I’m excited to learn. If I’m learning how to prepare Bulgarian food, dance horo, and weave carpets, I ought to have something to teach in return…something besides English and more interesting than using advanced features on Microsoft Excel that is. I returned home with a bag full of cucumbers and apples from the garden and a cola liter bottle full of fresh sheep milk. Can’t wait to find out what comes next.