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Friday, 20 September 2013

Be nice and say 'Happy Bath!'


Not exactly a bath but quite close.

Did you know that Bulgarians congratulate each other upon having a bath?

The odd salutation is 'Честитa баня!' [chestita banya] and literally means 'Happy Bath!'. Ideally, it should be said when the person in question is still damp after his/her cleansing experience.

According to my Bulgarian trainer Ani, the custom was mentioned in G.B.Shaw's play about the Balkan Wars 'Arms and the Man', although, after quickly scanning the text, I was not able to find any evidence. Try it, and perhaps you might have more luck than I did.

Meanwhile, Happy Bath.

Water, Veliko Tarnovo.
Text and photos (c) Agne Drumelyte, 2013.

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