Celebrations Begin: 25th Birthday

Celebrating my 25^th birthday in Bulgaria was fantastic.

I was super excited about the cake that Palma and Vladi made. It was awesome. The candles read "2-5"     

The day before, I prepped two family size pans of brownies for cherpi-ing* at work and made banitsa and tarator for my cousin’s arrival. My cousin, Brett, was in town for a few days during his epic trip around the world. Unfortunately for him, all my cooking skills were used on adding oil and eggs to the brownie mixes--the brownies were excellent. The banitsa (way too salty) and tarator (way too much garlic and dill) were awful. I also prepared bags of drinks, snacks, and more brownies to bring for my birthday party in the neighboring village. 

*Cherpi-ing basically means ‘treating.’ As in, it’s my birthday, so I’m treating my friends and colleagues to chocolate, cola, chips, or whatever you choose (chocolate is more or less mandatory though). In return, they shake your hand and wish you a happy birthday, with health, happiness, good luck, love, lots of babies, etc. It’s tradition to ‘cherpi’ not only on your birthday, but also your nameday, or whenever something wonderful happens to you (new grandchild or winning the lottery). 

My dear friend, Didi, wove this bag to give to me for my birthday. It's too beautiful to use. I'll keep it forever to remember friends from my time here. 

My brownies were a hit at work and I spent some time googling and translating recipes for colleagues. Between handshakes and cherp-ing, preparations for the celebrations on the 5th and 6th of September kept me super busy. I was able to get away for lunch with Brett at Torlacite (not wanting to attempt cooking again) and to take him to the Historical Musuem. After I finished work, we hiked to Velin Del, a mountaintop overlooking the border peaks with Serbia, then carried supplies to the neighboring village for the birthday party one of my friends organized.

Brett and I eating with friends before the party. 

It meant a lot to me how many people remembered that it was my birthday (even if Facebook is to thank). The birthday flowers, presents, and wishes from my friends in Chiprovtsi were very special. And I’d never imagined someone would throw me a party. It was a day when I truly felt that this is real life, my real friends, real experiences. A great birthday.