Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria

Stop #2 of the EU Open House extravaganza was Bulgaria because there was no line. There’s a reason for that. It’s a very modest building and the space was tiny and cramped. They did serve a very tasty puff pastry and served us a great white wine which just happened to be the first thing that I put in my stomach all morning. 11am is not to early to start drinking on an empty stomach.

I recently spent a Friday evening at a Professionals In the City event held at the Bulgarian embassy. I was looking forward to the evening as 1) it was my first embassy event, and 2) the Bulgarian nurses had just been released that week from Lybia after being falsely imprisoned for eight years — the Bulgarians had something to celebrate! To prepare for my visit I asked around to find out if anyone knew any Bulgarian. [Having lived overseas for several years, I think it’s always polite to know a least a few of the niceties in the local language.] Apparently a fair number of our local lifeguards are from Eastern Europe, and a friend was able to get quite a list of phrases and pronunciation (more than I could ever remember!) together for me. I focused on the basics «hello» «thank-​you» and «Cheers!» Nasdrave!
So, prepped with my tiny bit of Bulgarian and enthusiasm for experiencing new cultural events, my companion and I made our way to the embassy. Unfortunately, we were not as prepared for the outing as we might have been: it was raining and we were without an umbrella, on top of that we didn’t get the address and directions nailed down before we headed out, so we ended up wandering in the rain around Dupont Circle for a bit. Normally, not such a big deal, but I was in work clothes, and wearing a very awesome pair of heels. (I got tons of compliments, but those shoes were NOT made for walking!) By the time we got there, my mood had definitely diminished.
After getting through the metal detector and a the less than charming doorman (a trait that seemed common among the «locals»), we slapped on sticky nametags and made our way to the one room set up to host us. (I had been hoping that perhaps we might get to see a bit more of the embassy. Not so.) A large table in the middle of the room was full of Bulgarian cuisine. We grabbed some plates and filled them with salads, cheeses and the two entrees of chicken and fish. (The fish was quite tasty!) We had a choice of red or white wine from the mother land. Not to sound like a total wine snob — but the white was horse piss. The red was moderately drinkable. It’s difficult to eat and drink while standing, there were no tables to perch at, only some seats around the edge of the room. I asked some people who were already finished eating if they would mind giving up there seats to us since there were not enough to go around. They reluctantly obliged.
While we ate and mingled, a slide show with images of Bulgaria played at one end of the room. Eventually one of the embassy staff came out and said a few words of welcome. After he was finished he barely spoke to any of the guests. When I approached him and shared my congratulations on the release of the nurses, and offered a warm Nasdrave to celebrate, he barely reciprocated.
As I was starting to ask myself, «who’s idea was this?» the musical entertainment for the evening came to play for us. I’m not sure if you’ve ever had the pleasure of listening to traditional Bulgarian folk music, but atonal is one of the words that comes to mind to describe it. It’s an acquired taste, I’m sure. The singer of the group was a truly lovely, friendly and articulate woman. She certainly was proud and happy to be sharing her music with new people. I was ready to beat it after the first song, but we stayed through most of the performance. (My feet were killing me and I was ready to sit down!)
Go check it out for yourself, but if I am offered another opportunity to attend an embassy event, I’ll pick a different one.