Kukeri

Kukeri are Bulgarian carnival figures- men dressed like beasts or typical characters (grandfather and grandmother, the king and the tax- collector), always wearing masks, bells on their waists and fur-coats. According to old custom the kukeri walk the streets on the first days of January and dance to scare evil spirits away with the costumes and the sound of the bells, as well as to provide a good harvest, health, and happiness.

               Young and old dress in national costumes put on masks and try to scare the evil spirits away. According to the tradition the kuker games are performed only by men, mainly unmarried. Each kuker group has its leader who is the only married man or with other words a householder with established social position. Some groups are also leaded by two man acting as husband and wife.\

               The costumes that kukeri wear are prepared by themselves. In some parts of Bulgaria kukeri wear masks with wooden construction and variegated threads. They glue pieces of different fabrics mirrors, feathers and various different ornaments.

Baba Marta

   In Bulgaria on the first few days of March, people exchange and wear red tassels, small dolls called Pizho and Penda or red and white woven threads. These altogether are called Martenitsa. They symbolize the wish for good health and are heralds of the coming spring.

   Martenitsi are worn by people until the end of March or the first time an individual sees a stork, swallow or budding tree. The name of the holiday is Baba Marta which translated in English means Grandma March. In Bulgarian folklore she is a grumpy old lady whose mood changes very rapidly.

   It is an old pagan tradition that has remained almost unchanged. People believe that by wearing the red and white colors of the Martenitsa they ask Baba Marta for mercy. They hope that this way winter would give way to spring. The stork and the blooming tree are signs that Baba Marta is in a good mood and is about to retire.   That means that spring is coming soon.

   After people take their Martenitsa off, they usually hang it on a branch of a fruit tree with the believe that this act would bring it health and luck.

 

Finally my greatest creation is completed! What I mean is that I managed to get my habitat project done and just in time for the deadline.

               For this project we had to design a house for a specific place. It was situated in Kenmore on Loch Tay. We were also given three random clients with demands, likes and dislikes. My clients are Tina Turner, Pablo Picasso and a scientist named Brian. Quite an interesting trio they are.  Maybe my biggest influence was one of Pablo’s likes, namely cubes.

               At first my design was entirely cubical but over time I added other bits that broke up the shape a bit. However it still carries that cubical character that I wanted it to have.

I decided that the relationship of my clients would be as follows: Tina and Pablo are just old friends and Brian is Pablo’s nephew. That is why I wanted each of the individuals to have equal living space. Each one gets a bathroom, toilet with bathroom and a wardrobe. In the house there is also a studio for Pablo and a library on the second floor.

Christmas !!!

Christmas is coming. It is perhaps the happiest holiday of the year. Combined with break from school/university/work one couldn’t ask for more. But for the kids the real cherry on the top of the cake is the presents. Big ones, small ones, shiny ones, preciooouus ones. Who doesn’t like receiving presents? Well, maybe when we get older we start caring a little less about them but I will never forget how anxious to see my presents I was, when I was smaller.

 The truth is that things were different back then. We pretty much had small presents only for our birthdays and for Christmas. Now part of the joy is gone, because people get whatever they want whenever they want. Even the Christmas celebrations start earlier and last longer now. But I guess that the reason behind this is that people want everyday to be Christmas.

There is something magic about that holiday - the snow, the cold, gathering with family and relatives in our cozy homes.I just wish everybody was happy for Christmas.

"Global warming" ?

Global warming. Is it real? Maybe. Is it caused by human activity- I don’t think so.

The theory about global warming is becoming so popular that it is literally everywhere- newspaper and internet articles, magazines, tv programs, movies etc. It’s hard not to think about it when you hear of it all the time. But is this whole story just a big hoax?

We have to ask ourselves who would gain from the global warming. I would love to know the answer to this question. Maybe it is the scientists who are at the bottom of this. After all they get huge financial support for the research in that area. Also they are the ones sitting behind the theory.  Or maybe it’s the governments collecting millions in taxes and donations for fighting this “problem”. Maybe it is a way to hold up the developing countries. Maybe it is all of these things.

Al Gore used global warming to gain popularity- he was running for president after all. However his documentary “Inconvenient Truth” has some interesting facts that I’ve met in other places. One of them is that in the history of the earth there have been warm periods with high levels of CO2 emissions long before humans came to be. So how come this time we are suddenly the ones causing it? Or how can we stop global warming if it is something periodical on earth and we are not causing it. Going against nature is like peeing in the wind – things are going to get dirty.

Archeologists believe that music dates back to 7000 BC. The first musical instruments that people used then were probably percussive as well as wind ones. Now we have a huge variety of different instruments and styles of music- from popular to unconventional, aimed at a small group of people.

          Music is all around us and it is difficult not to find your favorite style or styles. I myself like different kinds of music- a little bit of classical, pop, techno even. But the music I favor the most is rock and metal.

All time classic- Queen

Long hair and a bottle of whiskey

          On hearing those two styles quite a few people instantly imagine long hair, alcohol, spikes, leather and fights. That picture is not necessarily valid although sometimes it can be. 

          I actually tend to think that rock and metal are more relaxing than destructive. This is because I find that sort of music as a way of releasing your energy while listening to it and not by being aggressive.

Eric Adams from Manowar

          Metalists may look dirty and scary but most of them are ordinary people. The only difference is that they have chosen to look in a different way than the others. And who does not want that.

Iron Maiden back in the days