The Day of the Holy Brothers Cyril and Methodius, of the Bulgarian Alphabet, Education and Culture, and of Slavic Literature was celebrated on May 24, 2025 in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province as part of the 4th China-Central and Eastern European Countries Expo.

The event titled “Discover Bulgaria Through Its Letters,” began with a performance of “One Bulgarian Rose” by Mrs. Diane Gallardo de Tzanev and the traditional offering of bread and salt to the guests. The Consul General Vladislav Spasov addressed the attendees, speaking about the significance of over 60 years of Bulgarian language teaching at Beijing Foreign Studies University and the recent expansion of Bulgarian language programs to Beijing International Studies University, Hebei International Studies University, Tianjin Foreign Studies University, and Guangdong University of Foreign Studies. He emphasized that the knowledge of Bulgarian language and culture in China fosters people-to-people exchanges, trust, and mutual understanding between the two countries.

Greetings on the occasion were also delivered by Ms. Ge Lina, Director of the China Cultural Center in Sofia, who is about to take up her post in Bulgaria’s capital, and Ms. Nina Kaloyanova, Secretary of the Municipal Administration of Chelopech. Ms. Kaloyanova spoke about the significance of the Bulgarian alphabet. She highly appreciated the opportunity to acquaint Ningbo with the beauty of Bulgarian folklore dance and music, and expressed the desire to continue cultural exchanges and cooperation between Chelopech Municipality and its Chinese counterparts.

The event continued with performances by dancers from the folk ensemble “Bulgarche” and singers from the vocal group “Srednogorski Zvun” (Chelopech Municipality), as well as piano performances by Mr. Vladimir Tzanev, Ms. Evgenia Goranova-Bermudez, and the 9-year-old Chinese musician Mi Zijing.

The celebration ended in a very Bulgarian manner – all attendees joined the traditional horo dance.