With days passing by I saw martenitsa on every step in Bulgaria. The trouble comes when it was a spider living under that stone… If the creature is larva or worm the person has nothing to worry about, the same goes with ant but in that case a lot of hard work has to be done to achieve the success. In other parts people hide these small strings under the stone in belief that the creature living under that stone will determine the person’s health and luck in the next year. In some parts martenitsas are tied into the fruit tree to give it health that will eventually result in tastry fruits. What happens next depends on the region of Bulgaria. You should wear your martenitsa until the last day of March or until you see a stroke – a symbol of spring. But there’s one more explanation: martenitsa is also the herald of the spring that waits just around the corner and by wearing it people ask Baba Marta (Grandma March, an old, grumpy lady in Bulgarian tradition) for mercy so the winter can go away quickly and the new circle of life can begin. White stands for the purity while red is for life and passion. It’s a gift (never buy one for yourself!) to the person you love and care about and it symbolizes the wishes of good health in the upcomming spring and the whole year. On 1st March people in Bulgaria give each other these red and white strings known as Martenitsa. The girl at the reception desk had 50 or so strings on her wrist and it intrigued me so much! I knew it can’t be just a coincidence and as soon as I reached my hostel (and saw so many more red and white strings) I decided to investigate the topic a little bit more. One of the first things I’ve noticed, already in the airport, was that so many people, both man and woman, had brooch or bracelets made of red and white strings. My first (and so far) the only trip to Bulgaria happened last year, in the middle of March.
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