8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

1/17

,,EVS 4 ALL

European Voluntary Service

`

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

2/17

eneral information about Bulgara

Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 15th largest city in the European Union with apopulation of 1.2 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha andapproximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula. In the next few pictures you will see some famoussights of Sofia.

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

3/17

Martenitza- On March 1, Bulgarians give martenitsi to their family, friends and neighbours. This may

be in the form of a simple bracelet of entwined red and white wool or a brooch of red and white wool

tassels. Front doors are decorated with enormous red and white pompoms or with woolen dolls called

Pizho and Penda. Pizho is the male doll and is usually crafted from white wool. Penda is the female, red

doll and is distinguished by her skirt.

Kukeri - is a traditional Bulgarian ritual to scare away evil spirits, with costumed men performing the

ritual. The costumes cover most of the body and include decorated wooden masks of animals (sometimes

double-faced) and large bells attached to the belt. Around New Year and before Lent, the kukeri walk and

dance through the village to scare evil spirits away with the costumes and the sound of the bells, as well

as to provide a good harvest, health, and happiness to the village during the year.

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

4/17

Nestinarstvo -It involves a barefooted dance on smouldering embers (, zharava) performed bynestinari (). It is usually performed on the square of the village in front of the whole population

on the day of Sts. Constantine and Helen or the day of the village's patron saint. The ritual is a unique

mixture of Eastern Orthodox beliefs and older pagan traditions from the Strandzha Mountains.

Traditionally, the right to perform the ritual would be hereditary and the head nestinar may be succeeded

only by his or her son or daughter, and only when he or she is too old or ill to continue performing it. The

head nestinar's house is sacred, because it houses the stolnina () a small chapel where icons of

several saints are arranged, as well as a sacred drum used specifically for the ritual and believed to cure

the drummer if he is ill.

The name koledari comes from the Church Slavonic word for Christmas i.e. Koleda. The carolers

traditionally start their rounds at midnight on Christmas Eve. They visit the houses of their relatives,neighbours and other people in the village. The caroling is usually performed by young men, which are

accompanied by an elder one called stanenik. Each caroler carries a stick called gega. They wish the

people from the village health, wealth and happiness.

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

5/17

The speaking language in Bulgaria is Bulgarian. Also English, German, French and Russian is spoken in

the country's resorts, hotels and restaurants. Most of the young people are also able to communicate onone of those languages. The Bulgarian alphabet is Cyrillic, but on Signs along international motorways, atthe airports and resorts are also spelled in Roman letters Below you can see how the Bulgarian letters

looks like.

Taratoris a cold soup made of yoghurt and cucumber (dill, garlic, walnuts and sunflower oil are

sometimes added) and is popular in Bulgaria.

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

6/17

Lyutenitsaor Lutenica is a national relish of Bulgaria. The ingredients include tomatoes, peppers, onion,

garlic, black pepper, vegetable oil, sugar and salt.

Banitsais a traditional Bulgarian food prepared by layering a mixture of whisked eggs and pieces of

cheese between filo pastry and then baking it in an oven. Banitsa is served for breakfast with plain yogurt,

ayran, or boza. It can be eaten hot or cold.

Kofteis a Middle Eastern and South Asian meatball or meatloaf. In the simplest form, koftas consist of

balls of minced or ground meatusually beef or lambmixed with spices and/or onions

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

7/17

Pulnena piperka/Pulnena chuska(stuffed peppers) is an Eastern European dish consisting of peppersfilled with minced meat and rice.

Shopska salad-It is made from tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, raw or roasted peppers (preferably roasted),

sirene (white brine cheese).

Musaka-made by potatoes, mash meat, eggs and milk on the top. Baked in oven.

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

8/17

The Bulgarian currency is called ,,Lev and its approximately 0.51 euro. The official rate of the

European commission is : 1 euro = 1.95583 Bulgarian leva. In the town of Blagoevgrad the best rate thatyou can find and change EURO to Bulgarian lev is 1.950. On the pictures below you can see who theBulgarian money looks like.

On the diagram below you can see the average minimum and the maximum temperatures in Celsius foreach month. Also you can use http://www.wunderground.com/q/zmw:00000.2.13598 to check theweather.

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

9/17

In Bulgaria there are 3 main operators: Mtel, Globul, VivaTel. We will provide you with a Phone andSIM card either prepaid or regular one on one of those operators.

8

-2

-10

-15 -15

-1

5

10 10

20

10

20 0

18 20

25

35

17

7

0

-10 -10

10

17

22

30

October November December January February March April May June

The temperatures in Celsius per months

Minimum Maximum Average

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

10/17

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

11/17

eneral information about Blagoevgrad

Blagoevgrad is city in southwestern Bulgaria, the administrative centre of Blagoevgrad Province, with a

population of 70,881 inhabitants. It lies on the banks of the Blagoevgradska Bistritsa River.The city is the

economic and cultural centre of southwestern Bulgaria. It is located in the valley of the Struma River atthe foot of the Rila and Pirin Mountains, 101 km south of Sofia, close to the Greek, Serbian and Republic

of Macedonia borders. Blagoevgrad features a pedestrian downtown with preserved 19th century

architecture and numerous restaurants, cafes, coffee shops, and boutiques.Blagoevgrad is home to twouniversities, the South-West University "Neofit Rilski" and the American University in Bulgaria.

Alternativi International

Association Alternativi International is youth non-governmental, non-profit making organization working

in the territory of Blagoevgrad region. The main objective is to encourage personal and professional

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

12/17

development of young people through non formal education and also the building up and development ofactive citizenship among them. The organization is an alternative for young people in the region to realize

their potential and become an active part of the society. "Alternativi International is founded by people

seeking the positive change for young people in Bulgaria. For that reason the main target group isyoungsters aged between 17 and 30 years old. We also aim at providing equal possibilities for youth with

fewer opportunities. The organization gives them the opportunity to develop their selves by participating

in various initiatives and events at local, national and international level. The association organizesinformation days and campaigns, cultural events, discussions and debates on different issues, etc. The

organization, in partnership with students from the city, issues and youth newspaper, to inform youngpeople about career opportunities, trainings, work placements, internships, cultural happenings and so on.The organization is working with the aim to develop intercultural dialogue and understanding between

young people from whole Europe crossing all the differences. We are developing initiatives fighting theracism and xenophobia among youth from different religious, ethnic, cultural, geographical or economical

background.Here you can see the pictures of our office:

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

13/17

EVS4 ALL includes hosting of over all nine volunteers separated in 3 periods of 2 months with 3volunteers each from different countries. The service will be held on the territory of Blagoevgrad regionfrom November 2014 till May 2015 and will include volunteers from Georgia, Turkey, Croatia,Macedonia, Romania, Spain, Azerbejan and Czech Republic. The main topics of the project are related to

promoting volunteering and informing young people about EVS as well as with organizing youngster`s

free time trough clubs of interest and multicultural school. The volunteers will be developing anewsletter containing information about volunteering opportunities on local and international level andwill work in Radio Alternativi-they will gather interviews and other materials for volunteering; they

will also develop monthly video newsletter for what has been done and what is coming up in theorganization`s calendar. The aim of the cooking and dance clubs and the multicultural school is tostimulate intercultural dialogue and make local youngsters more open-minded. The project will provide

youngsters with alternative to spend their free time while developing their skills and civil initiative trough

non-formal education. The main aims of the project are promoting volunteering and EVS in particular,providing alternative for youth to spend their free time and promoting tolerance and intercultual dialogueamong young people trough different cultural events. Another topic the project focuses on is social

inclusion of young people with fewer opportunities trough working with youngsters from the local

orphanage. The volunteers will also have the opportunity to meet youngsters coming from villages andnon-developed regions and also take part in our partner`s activities and campaigns aiming informing and

social integration of those youngsters.

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

14/17

Organization Numberof

volunteers

From To Type oftransportation

Travelcosts

In

euro

ARGONAUTA 1 Croatia Sofia/BG Train / Bus 275

Hodina H 1 CZ republic Sofia/BG Bus/Train/Plane 275

S&G 1 Turkey Sofia/BG Bus/Train/ 275

Droni 1 Georgia Sofia/BG Plane 275

Student Youth

Council

1 Georgia Sofia/BG Plane 275

Volunteers

CentreSkopije

1 Macedonia Sofia/BG Bus/Train 180

Millennium

center

1 Romania Sofia/BG Bus/Train 180

Interculturallife - educacin

activa por un

mundointercultural

1 Spain Sofia/BG Bus/Train/Plane 360

National

Assembly of

Youth

Organizationsof the Republic

of Azerbaijan

1 Azerbaijan Sofia/BG Bus/Train/Plane 360

PLEASE REMEMBER YOU SHOULD NOTBUY THE TICKETS BEFORE YOU GET

CONFIRMATION FROM US!

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

15/17

our arrival point will be Sofia airport and from there we will manage to provide you with

transportation to Blagoevgrad.

Workinghours

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

10:00-12:00 Teammeeting

Bulgarianlesson

Differentopportunitiesfor young

peoplesession /

Volunteers

diary andself

evaluation

Bulgarianlesson

Meeting withpeople fromrural arias

Free day Free day

12:00-13:30 Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch Free day Free day

13:30 15:30

ERASMUS + Culturalpresentations/

planning and

organizingactivities to

promote EVSamong young

people inBlagoevgradand the

region

RadioAlternativi

Meetingwith the

mentor

Videoworkshop

,,Alternativi

news

Free day Free day

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

16/17

15:30-18:00 Creating anddeveloping

online blogof the

volunteers/Preparing

online

brochure forvolunteering

Dancing club Volunteersafternoon-

all they wantto do

Cookingclub

Fun with theteam

Free day Free day

The daily schedule is subject to change upon arrival when discussed

with the volunteers.

Private apartment with kitchen, bathroom and allfacilities. Shared bedroom possible.

Picture of the apartment will be received as soon aswe have them.

You will be receiving food money monthly (100-120 euro)

You will be receiving pocket money monthly

(65 euro)

NB!! Please make sure your passport (not ID card) is valid at least 6 months after your

departure from Bulgaria.

Also for those of you who need visa official letter will be sent from our association to

you and your sending organization. Please also contact them for support with you

documents.

8/11/2019 Yes 4 EVS (1)

17/17

Association ,,Alternativi International

Official address; 98B ,,Polkovnik Drangov2700 BlagoevgradBulgaria

Office address: Youth House of Blagoevgrad-1st Floor1 "Bistritsa" str

2700BlagoevgradBulgaria

Email: alternativi.international@gmail.comPhone: 00359888122125 / 00359895180486

Facebook: Alternativi InternationalWeb: www.alternativi-bg.org