MOMCHILOVTSI, Bulgaria, Aug. 29 (Xinhua) — The eighth edition of the Yogurt Culture Festival kicked off on Friday in the Bulgarian village of Momchilovtsi in the Central Rhodope Mountains, with the aim of showcasing local traditions and promoting a healthy lifestyle.
Over the three-day event, visitors will enjoy an exhibition of folk arts and crafts, organic products, and the awarding of finalists in the competition “Ambassador of a Healthy Lifestyle in Momchilovtsi.” The festival will also host the 8th National Competition “Miss Rhodopes – Yogurt Queen.”
The China Cultural Center in Sofia and the Confucius Institute Sofia took part, presenting Chinese culture and crafts. Guests watched two Chinese chefs prepare traditional rice cakes, and experienced a Chinese tea ceremony, a performance on the traditional Erhu instrument, as well as Chinese clothing and choreography.
A discussion on health and longevity was another highlight, where Bulgarian and Chinese experts exchanged ideas on their countries’ healthy living traditions. The Chinese presence had a special significance: Shanghai-based Bright Dairy, one of China‘s leading dairy companies, was among the founders of the festival in 2015.
At the opening ceremony, Zahari Sirakov, Regional Governor of Smolyan Region, said the event had grown into something far beyond folklore and cuisine. “With each subsequent edition, the festival develops and becomes an ambassador of a healthy lifestyle,” he said.
In a congratulatory message, Nikolay Melemov, Mayor of Smolyan Municipality, described the festival as a bridge between generations, between tradition and modernity, between the local and the global.
“Thanks to it, we preserve knowledge, share experience, and show that Bulgarian yogurt deserves its place on the world culinary and cultural map,” said Melemov.
Momchilovtsi’s mayor, Siyka Surkova, underlined the festival’s role as a symbol of Bulgarian-Chinese friendship. “A friendship that builds a bridge between two continents and two different cultures, and at the same time promotes Momchilovtsi as a magnetic place with preserved traditions, faith and wisdom,” Surkova said.
Ivan Todorov, Chairman of the Bulgarian Center for Development, Investment and Tourism in China, said the healthy lifestyle discussion opened the door to a large-scale initiative promoting the Rhodopes as a natural phenomenon whose climate and resources bring health and longevity to all who visit.
Eighty-eight-year-old villager Petar Velichkov told Xinhua that yogurt had always been essential to the local people. “We call it the blessed food,” he said. “We have always made yogurt at home, following the tradition of our parents. I still make five liters every Wednesday.”
Local guesthouse and tavern owner Rumyana Petrova also shared her philosophy of healthy living. For her, it is a blend of food, nature, and a relaxed lifestyle. “It’s enough when I wake up in the morning to look at this forest; the air, the sun, the stars. It’s a combination of everything,” she said.
On the cultural ties between Bulgaria and China, Petrova noted that both nations shared a vision for health and longevity. “Apparently, they are striving to have more long-lived people there, just like we do here. Maybe that is what we have in common. We are looking in the same direction, toward natural, organic products.”
