A Fine Day for a Picnic

This was a four-day weekend.  May 1st is the Bulgarian Labor Day.  It is an annual holiday to celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers. Labor Day has its origins in the labor union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for rest.


Saturday was the Spelling Bee in Veliko Turnovo.


Sunday morning another Peace Corps Volunteer and friend, Tricia, came to the village.  She has several friends here because she was visiting this village regularly for a couple of years before I arrived.  We met with Katya and Hristina.  First we went to the garden for fresh lettuce, onions and parsley for a salad.  Then we headed up into the hills for a hike.  We went into new territory I hadn't see before.  Everything is gorgeous right now - very green and lots of spring growth.  I posted some photos on the Spring photo page (see right column).


It was a gorgeous day of scenery, exercise, fresh food and especially, camaraderie.  There was laughter, singing and lots of chatting in Bulgarian, with brief moments of English. We managed to spend 7 glorious hours in nature!