Razgrad in March

We usually visit Razgrad in the summer and I have many posts with pictures from our various travels there. This year I made a trip in March and I've chosen a few photos of the town in its pre-spring outlook.

The 1st of March is one of the most beloved Bulgarian traditional holidays, when people exchange martenizi - red and white tassels as a wish for health, joy and happiness.

The central part of the city was festively decorated in red and white and there were plenty of stands, selling martenitzi.

I couldn't pass the opportunity for a souvenier photo from Razgrad :). In my hands I'm holding my souvenir purchase - a book by Georgi Gospodinov, the author of this year's international Booker winner Timeshelter.

: Ibrahim Pasha Mosque and the statue of master builder Manol
The mosque was built during the Ottoman rule of Bulgaria. It is the third in size mosque on the Balkans and is now a UNESCO listed cultural monument, currently under reconstruction. Commissioned by the local ruler Ibrahim Pasha, it was built in the early 17th century by Bulgarian masons from the near-by villages. According to legend, the ruler ordered the builders to be locked and killed, so that nobody would be able to replicate his mosque. To escape prison, the builders made wooden wings and flew over the prison walls to the Balkan mountain, but their hatchets (or hand saws) cut through the ropes of the wings and they fell down and died.

Interesting old houses in the old part of town: