Flowers Flowers Everywhere

Since yesterday evening Sofia has turned into a flower city--make-shift flower stalls have sprung up all over the city center and in pedestrian high-traffic areas. The reason? It is the 8th of March, International Women's Day, which is very much celebrated in Bulgaria. Having missed this day in its full glory the past nine years, I am almost taken aback by the "massiveness" of it all. People are buying, giving, carrying flowers (the most popular being hyacinths, tulips, and daffodils) almost everywhere you turn, and the sunny weather is contributing to the beautiful atmosphere.

I think this is one of the nicest traditions we have and I am not saying that only because I am a woman. It is also far less commercial than Mother's Day, for example. There are no ads running for weeks about how you are supposed to buy diamonds for the woman you love, etc.--the stuff that used to make me sick to my stomach in the States. Flowers are more than enough :). Curiously enough though, the first International Women's Day was celebrated in the States, but not much seems to have remained of that tradition over there at present.

So...to all the women out there: Happy Women's Day!
And to all the men: Love the women in your life!