Veliko Tarnovo or VT as it is affectionately known over here is one of the oldest cities in Europe. It has a history going back 5000 years. It was once the capital of Bulgaria – nowadays it’s a beautiful cosmopolitan city. We are paying a visit to celebrate Trifon Zarezan. Trifon Zarezan occurs at the same time as Valentine’s Day and is a time of drinking, feasting, and making Mary! We are here to spend a lovely weekend.
Possibly the main attraction in Veliko Tarnovo is the medieval fortress Tsarevet, that stands majestically over looking the town. It is surrounded on three sides by the river Yantra. The fortress was built as a town with a palace, a church, Residential and commercial properties.
Veliko Tarnovo Old Town
The old part of town which includes the picturesque Gurko Street is also a must to visit. The old town has beautiful views; some very interesting wall art; and also small shops run by artisans where you can purchase traditional crafts.
Trifon Zarezan
Although VT is a wonderful place to visit we are here with a specific purpose and that is to celebrate the amazing tradition of Trifon Zarezan. This takes place on the same day as Valentine’s Day and is known as the day of the vine and the wine.😊. Saint Trifon is the saint of wine and grape vines.
St. Trifon’s Day is a national holiday in honor of St. Tryphon. It is the day of winegrowers, falconers, gardeners and tavern-keepers and is celebrated on February 1 or February 14 (old style). On this day, the men begin to trim the vines. The pruned vines are turned into wreathes.
Custom has it that when the work is done, all of the men of the village get together and choose “the king of the vines“. This is the man who has had the largest harvest old made the best wine! Tradition has it that the king would then sit in a cart of some description whilst the other men parade him through the local town or village. He should be accompanied by bagpipes and drums. Once there the posse stops in front of every house where they are given wine by the women of the village – 1st to the king and then the other men. The wine that remains is splashed on the king and the blessing is pronounced: “Come, let it be a blessing!” To overflow the thresholds!”. The king answers with “Amen”.
After reaching his home, the king changes into new clothes and sits down at a long table to welcome people from the whole village.
Traditionally the woman of the village would then enter into their own customs over the next two days, known in folklore as “Trifunci”. The women of the village would not knit or sew or spin or any other jobs that require the opening of scissors. This was meant to be a protection from wolves if the scissors do not open then the wolves mouth do not open. They would prepare ritual bread and, after distributing it to the neighbors, put morsels of the bread in the milk of the animals – to protect both livestock and people from wolves.
The Local Vineyard
Nowadays, this tradition has been largely taken over by established vineyards. We visited one local vineyard to take part in the celebrations. The ‘King of the Vines’ was the vineyard owner. He wore a crown made from vines. He stood with his wife and colleague as they were blessed by the priest and then the priest blessed the vines one by one with holy water. I’ve never seen anything like this take place in England and I found it fascinating.
After the ceremony, there was food and obviously copious wine! The wine was free to taste but you could’ve course by a bottle! I bought the most amazing cherry wine or rather liqueur, which was a mere 14 BGLEV. There was lots of traditional food and music and dancing we had an absolutely fabulous afternoon. I just love these traditional Bulgarian celebrations and can’t wait for the next one!