1. What is the Bulgarian for Christmas?
A. Koleda
B. Velikden
C. Dimitrovden
2. To reach the Borovets winter resort, you pass through...
A. Sliven
B. Samokov
C. Strazhitsa
3. Which royal dynasty restored Bulgaria after two centuries of Byzantine domination?
A. The Coburg-Gothas
B. The Shishmans
C. The Asenevtsi
Their demand: to disrupt the scheduled opening night of a play by the Irish playwright, George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), directed by US actor John Malkovich. Neither Shaw, nor Malkovich need any introduction to theatre-goers worldwide, but that was not enough for the angry Bulgarians in central Sofia.
Come Yuletide, and the streets swarm with adult men dressed in what appears to be a combination between early 20th century gendarme uniforms and traditionally embroidered white shirts. They march to rhythmic tunes in what looks like a symbiosis of tap dancing and the Bulgarian horo. They enter bars and restaurants, whose patrons are only too happy to disperse tips. Each part of the city has its own band. At the end of the day they all converge in the town's centre and prizes are given out to the best participants.
The state has been seized by Delyan Peevski's mafia clan. His appetite for devouring political parties is stronger than ever.
Asen Vasilev, Changes Continued
We should not think naively that this audacity on steroids in politics will disappear on its own. We are responsible for Bulgaria's development as a democratic country.
President Rumen Radev
"A success by all means," an advisor to the interior minister proclaimed, adding as many as 98 percent of smartphone owners in Bulgaria got a test message from the system. Trouble is, very few of them realised they did, owing to, according to Interior Ministry sources, most smartphones' settings switching off test alerts by default.
1. What do Bulgarians celebrate on 1 November?
A. Cyrillic Alphabet Day
B. Libration from the Ottomans
C. National Enlighteners Day
2. Which church has preserved medieval murals?
A. Boyana Church
B. Alexander Nevsky cathedral
C. Bishop's Basilica of Philippopolis
3. Bulgaria's pumpkin pie is called...
A. Patatnik
B. Tikvenik
The US president himself, and also anyone from David Cameron to Viktor Orban used to come and learn at our border: zero migration. The Balkan route used to be closed.
Boyko Borisov, GERB chairman, on Bulgaria's security during his terms as prime minister
We are liberals, to the incredulity of those who want to smear us.
Kostadin Kostadinov, leader of the Vazrazhdane pro-Russian party
A bridge spanning over a turbulent whitewater river, which was constructed in such an incredible location that it was quick to gain notoriety for being otherworldly, a structure no human hand was able to accomplish without assistance from supernatural forces. Predictably, legends and myths about the bridge proliferated through the centuries, and some remain to this day. So does the bridge.
1. Which major event in Bulgarian history took place in September?
A. The 1944 Communist coup
B. The signing of the 1878 San Stefano treaty
C. Bulgaria’s foundation in 681
2. How many poisonous snake species live in Bulgaria?
A. Ten
B. Two
C. None
From the social media uproar caused by the Paris summer olympics to the unfounded claims that a stabbing attack in England was perpetrated by a Muslim, and from the Covid-19 infodemic to former US President Donald Trump's vitriolic assails against Vice President Kamala Harris fake news rules the world. In many cases it has real consequences in real life. In fact the more heated the debate, the more facts are vulnerable to manipulation.