24th May

Today, 24th May, is a public holiday in Bulgaria. It celebrates the Cyrilic  alphabet (which was invented by Saints Cyril and Methodius) and also  education and culture generally.  We watched a two hour parade of all the local schools, colleges and universities and the morning started with  hundreds of children doing a traditional Bulgarian dance.  The atmosphere was wonderful and you could feel the pride that the students and their teachers had in their particular school or college, all smiling, waving and carrying flags or flowers, and all set against the magnificent backdrop of the golden-domed cathedral. The balloons carried the alphabet letters into the sky.  I've added a few extras.