In Bulgaria, there are 249 towns and cities and 5,081 villages. Most people in this country have a village connection either because they were born in a village or their grandparents still live there. Bulgaria is still a rural nation in many ways. Hundreds of thousands of people have moved to the cities for work but they return the villages as often as possible. It is there that they can reconnect to their Bulgarian soul.
Many would tell you that life today in Bulgaria takes a village to survive. If there were no villages, life for many would be much harder. This is perhaps more true for the older generation than the younger one. However, in time the younger generation will become the older generation and they too will feel the way their parents do today.
During the last 15 years, life in Bulgaria has become somewhat more difficult for most people. Before this, people had time to relax with friends and to enjoy the beautiful nature of the country. This is not the case in Bulgaria today for many people who are working harder and longer with less time for relaxing. It is increasingly more difficult to stay connected to people. Most of the money earned on the job has to be spent on food and other things other than having a good time with friends and family.
This is where village life differs totally from city life. It is cheaper to live in the village. Friends are always there working in the yard or garden. In the village, people grow almost everything they eat. Bread, sugar and a few other things are bought at the store but most things are homemade. Rakia, the national drink, is made from the grapes or other fruits grown in the gardens in the villages. It’s not uncommon for a village family to make 100 liters of rakia for their own use. They wouldn’t think of buying this in a store or offering anything but the home made stuff to visitors.
Time in the village is as important to people as it is in the cities but in a different way. City people work eight hours a hour and then they go home or go out. Village people work from sunup to sundown and they never go anywhere. At the end of the day, when all the work has been done, you will see people sitting on the street in front of their houses or in the yard around a table. City people often have time to waste but this is never the case in the village. There is always something to do. They must always remind themselves that winter is coming and they must be prepared.
To many Bulgarians, the village is not an appealing life style on a permanent basis. It offers very few of the nice things that have come to enjoy. However, it does offer something different for a few days. A break from the hectic pace of the city and their stressful jobs. It is there that they reconnect to the real Bulgaria. It is there they find what they cannot find anywhere else. Traditional things, while not as popular or important as they once were in the past, can still be found. In the village, grandparents and friends still embrace the old ways of doing things and life is good. It’s a place to offer a “наздраве,” over a glass of rakia and a shopska salad. A moment in time to forget the stressful life that awaits them back in modern Bulgaria.
USA education level required to read this post: 6th grade
Questions for Group and Pair Discussion
- In your opinion, what are the most stressful things about living in a city like Sofia?
- What do you like or dislike about village life in Bulgaria?
- Do you think the villages will survive the modern trends in Bulgaria today?
- Would you consider living in a village at some point in your future?
