Spring is nature's way of saying, "Let's party!"

Today, Thursday March 1st, 2012 unofficially marks the beginning of spring in Bulgaria. This in itself is an exciting event celebrated with the exchange of red and white friendship bracelets (martinitsi), but what's more exciting is it means it's only a few more weeks until the Raffy Ice Cream man comes back! Hot diggity.

Until then I am left wearing all 23 ridiculously awesome bracelets that were ever so kindly given to me by various students, colleagues, old ladies on the street, you name it, all in an attempt to appease the finicky weather God, "Baba Marta". Turns out she's a temperamental old coot. I walked to work this morning in a snow storm, took a nap this afternoon in the sunshine and am now hunkering down before the rain comes this evening. She's not really helping the female image...