Thousands Welcome 2012 in Downtown Squares across Bulgaria

Thousands have celebrated New Year's with open-air events across Bulgaria. Photo by Sofia Photo Agency

Thousands of people in Bulgaria have celebrated New Year's with events at downtown squares organized by local communities and authorities.

The open-air celebrations of the advent of the New Year with live music, wine, fireworks, and traditional round dances ("horo") – in spite of the midnight winter cold – have emerged as a popular tradition in Bulgaria in the past couple of decades.

Many of the Bulgarian municipalities treated those attending the community celebrations of the arrival of 2012 with New Year's banitsa – traditional Bulgarian pastry with luck charms.

Some Bulgarian municipalities – Veliko Tarnovo in particular – treated their residents with roasted pigs.

The largest New Year's happening was the "Stage under the Stars" show in downtown Sofia, which was broadcast live on the Bulgarian National Television, and featured a number of popular pop and rock performers.

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