May Day

Chestit Praznik! (which, I found out from banners flying today, means "happy [any] holiday") This makes the second Monday off in a row—it's going to be hard to get used to 5-day work days again! The first of May has historically been labor day or "worker's day" around the world (except US, Canada, etc. because of the communist flavor of the holiday.) Thankfully someone told me about this on Friday, or I would have showed up to an empty (and locked) office on Monday morning; unfortunately it was not enough time to plan a trip. Anyhow, on Monday I walked around town looking for the May Day festivities, and I found it—sponsored by the Bulgarian Socialist Party— in Borissova Garden: three or four stages (music), food vendors, balloons, mimes, throngs of senior citizens, and even an old hammer and sickle flag or two.