Thank-you for all of the birthday greetings, messages and well wishes yesterday!!

What a great way to start of the first day of my thirties!!

[caption id="attachment_4966" align="alignleft" width="630" caption="Merci Chocolate"]<a rel="attachment wp-att-4966" href="http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?attachment_id=4966"><img class="size-large wp-image-4966   " title="Merci Chocolate" src="http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/DSC02529-1024x768.jpg" alt="" width="630" height="473" /></a>[/caption]

If you'd bumped into me yesterday, I'd have given you a chocolate to celebrate my birthday. One of these chocolates actually.

It's a tradition in Bulgaria. You give chocolates on your birthday. Then the receiver of the chocolate wishes you happiness, health, love and money. And if you're a middle-aged woman you may also a boyfriend to the list.

You have to buy a lot of chocolate when you teach more than 50 students in one day and you have just as many colleagues and friends at school.

[caption id="attachment_4971" align="alignleft" width="614" caption="Row after row of chocolate"]<a rel="attachment wp-att-4971" href="http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/?attachment_id=4971"><img class="size-large wp-image-4971 " title="Row after row of chocolate" src="http://www.karolinkabulgaria.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/DSC02530-1024x768.jpg" alt="" width="614" height="461" /></a>[/caption]

I love the tradition of giving away chocolates on your birthday. I will definitely be doing this in the future no matter where I live. Only in English it doesn't sounds as nice to say "here's a chocolate" or "have a chocolate" or "you're welcome to a chocolate." It sounds a lot nicer in Bulgarian: заповядйте.