22 May 2006

Seniors Rule!

There was a giddy sense of excitement throughout Sofia over the weekend. High school kids around Bulgaria graduate on or about this date, and they are not reticent in letting everybody know of this achievement. Beginning on Wednesday night, I heard groups of high school senior yelling, “edno, dve, tree…” (1,2,3…up to 12 in Bulgarian) followed by a big yay, and then—within 30 seconds—starting over again. Then on Friday and Saturday evening, they were driving or being driven around town: car horns honking, hanging out of windows and sunroofs; and, of course, continuously hollering. Apparently, part of the graduation festivities is a formal dance—much like a high school prom in the US, but only for seniors.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Oh, the good old days. In Hungary it's like seniors from secondary school go to a serenade a few days before graduation, which means they go to the teachers, sing a few songs to them under the windows of their flats, then the teacher calls them up to the flat and gives them some drink, etc. I remember when I graduated from secondary school we had serenade for 3 nights, and we were very drunk each of the 3 nights. I remember I was so drunk that one of my classmates noted when a mosquito was biting me, that what it was sucking out of me was not blood but alcohol :D

Then came a ceremony called "Ballagás" which is kinda "Leaving the school" ceremony, which means that girls in a navy-style shirt and guys in suit walk around the school for the last time. Then the last exams start, and when they pass these, that means that they successfully finished their studies at that school.