Gabrovo Carnival Kicks off

[Suzanne]

Gabrovo is a town with a rich and exceptionally diverse cultural life. Every year the town hosts the so-called May cultural holidays. This is the time when the town leads a more dynamic and festive life, filled with cultural events and thousands of guests both from Bulgaria and abroad. The performances of both unique Home of the Humor and Satire and the International biennial of the humor and satire are the focus of the holidays, which run under the heading "The World has survived, because it has laughed". The colorful carnival procession is the culmination of the celebrations. This is the most popular and merriest holiday for the residents of Gabrovo and their guests, the tradition roots from the Great Hullabaloo in Gabrovo, which has been continuously influenced by Europe's mask balls from the beginning of the century. It has only been interrupted twice - during World War II and in the years between 1990 - 1997. This holiday was restored in 1998 with the participation of the Delegation of the European Union in Bulgaria. In 2000 Gabrovo was accepted as a member of the Association of the European carnival cities, with a center in Holland and was personally visited by Mr. Henry Van Der Kroon -president of the association. Since May 1981 the town of Gabrovo yearly hosts a Dixieland parade. It is organized by the "Gabrovo" Orchestra. This is the only jazz festival in Bulgaria, which is specialized in only one jazz style - the traditional jazz, whose cheerfulness reflects the specific sense of humor of the residents of Gabrovo. Until now the parade has had guest-bands from France, Russia, Germany, Greece, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, soloists from England, France, the Czech Republic, etc. The first International festival of the comedy show was held in 1999. That is how the competition for new Bulgarian comedy came into being. The organizers of the festival accentuate on the Balkan type of theater. Their ambition is to show the new image if the Balkans - to present the region as a smiley and cheerful place, which can say goodbye to its past with laughter and proudly step into the future. The day of Gabrovo is celebrated in the third Saturday if May and is usually marked by a splendid show and lots of emotions. Bands and ensembles from many countries meet here.

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