On arrival in Bulgaria, we were met by a beautiful young lady named Desislava Mihova, quickly shortened to Dessy. Dessy was to be our guide and interpreter during our stay in Bulgaria. She soon learned that these Canadians were warm hearted and loved to laugh.

After a three hour beautiful scenic drive from Sofia to Veliko Tarnovo we reached the hotel that was to be our home for the next 10 days. After a quick tour of the rooms, we finally settled in. Home is what you make it and we did just that.

Twelve countries were represented at the Folk Art Festival including, Algeria, Bulgaria, Egypt, Iran, Indonesia, Jordon, Mexico, Poland, Puerto Rico, Switzerland, Thailand and of course, Canada. The festival reached beyond the sharing of culture, dance and music, as our young Canadians established friendships with people around the world. This is one of the many trips that the MacCulloch Dancers have taken abroad. They have represented Canada in Disney World, Florida, Utah and Idaho, USA and Puerto Rico, the Republic of China, Spain, Belgium and Mexico

We were in the same hotel as Egypt and following the “Official Opening Ceremonies, an impromptu Glengarry/Egyptian Ceilidh ensued. It was a wonderful sight to see our musicians and dancers sharing music and dances with a country we knew little about until now. In a short time, Deborah had the Egyptians dancing the Highland Fling and before the night was over, one brave Egyptian was even wearing a kilt. At the same time, Canada learned a few fancy moves that included terrific hip gyrations. “Oh well, when with the Egyptians do as the Egyptians do".

Each night concerts featuring three different countries took place in a park situated in the heart of the city. It had a huge stage with an excellent sound system. Every concert drew thousands of people. When we were not performing in the park we were performing elsewhere or enjoying the performances of the other countries.

Perhaps one of our most rewarding performances took place in a small village named Samovodene. On arrival, we felt that these people had little in the line of wealth. We were happy to share our music, dance with them, and perhaps lighten their hearts for a couple of hours. Their wondrous welcome and thunderous applause from the moment we walked on stage until we said our last good-bye was overwhelming.

Our night ended with a dinner hosted by the mayor in a quaint cafe. Mr. Mayor treated us to a bottle of his homemade brew which we shared over dinner. This set the stage for quite a party, discussion of politics mixed with songs, dance and laughter carried us through the evening. Our handsome waiter was truly a singing waiter as he joined in the singing and also did some of his own songs. The evening came to aclose, it was time to say goodbye to our new friends. I know the mayor enjoyed the Canadians and we also enjoyed our night in his town.

During our stay, the troupe was honoured as special guests of our Canadian Ambassador Mr. Raphael Girard. They performed at a grand gala presented by the Canadian embassy, celebrating Canada Day with Canadian and Bulgaria diplomats. Later in the evening, Mr. Girard jokingly remarked that Don Boudria had called that morning, warning him to “watch out for those MacCulloch Dancers”

We had the opportunity of making our presence known via radio and television broadcasts. Denis Carr & Jim Forbes dressed in their Highland attire were celebrity cooks on a televised cooking show. Their task was to cook a typical Canadian turkey dinner. They did an excellent job.

Following performances the pool area became our meeting place, one could cool off in the water discuss the happenings of the day and enjoy beverages and snacks. This set the mood for the many parties that continued on into the night. Only the bravest made it to breakfast.

Another note of interest is that in Bulgaria, a nod of the head means no and moving your head from side to side means yes ...quite confusing at times.

The Finale, which included all participating countries, was an extravaganza to behold, champagne bottles exploding over the water which surrounded us, the sound of music, all the countries’ flags flying high, the exquisite colour as each country took their place on stage joining hands in song and dance. If only for a little while, all countries knew the experience of harmony among nations.

We left Bulgaria a feeling of accomplishment. Canada was well represented.

As we said farewell to our Egyptian friends, their last words were “We will see you in Egypt”. You never know, it could happen

Our thanks to the festivals president, Emil Pavlov and his staff for a well-organized festival and for making our stay in Bulgaria a pleasant and rewarding experience. Our thanks also to our lovely Guide and Interpreter Dessislava Mihova for her patience and warmth.

From Rae, Deborah and Heather and Dancers “A special thank you” to our musicians, Denis Carr, Jim Forbes, Darrel MacLeod, Dave McCormick & Kenton McBean.

As we said farewell to our Egyptian friends, their last words were “We will see you in Egypt”. You never know, it could happen.

Rae MacCulloch