Kazanlak

The town is at about 200 km. east of Sofia, 55 km. east of Karlovo, 48 km. south of Gabrovo and 75 km. west of Sliven. The nature here is a perfect combination of the beauty and majesty of the Balkan Mountains and the fertility of the Tundja river valley. The "capital" of the rose-growing region, Kazanlak is at its liveliest in early July, when it hosts the annual Festival of Roses. Rich in folkloric displays and "rose-picking ritual", this is basically a tourist event - the rose crop has already been harvested during May or June. Should you wish to attend, check precise dates of what`s on with the Bulgarian National Tourist Office in your home country, and try to book rooms in advance. At other times the town is fairly quiet, though the richly painted Thracian Tomb on the outskirts makes Kazanlak an essential stop-off for anyone remotely interested in the Bulgarians` ancient antecedents. However, as the local hotels are pricey, and were are regular buses to the Shipka Pass, it`s worth considering staying there instead.

It is called " the town of roses ". The air here bears the fragrance of flowers. The vicinity of the town has been turned into wonderful rich gardens where the world famous roses for extractng rose oil are grown. At a distance of 5km from the town there are mineral springs. Not far away is situated the Kazanlak tomb wich is included in the list UNESCO.

Kazanlak is at its liveliest in early July, when it hosts the annualFestival of Roses. Rich in folkloric displays and "rose-picking ritual", this is basically a tourist event gathering thousends of tourists from all over the world.

It was in these lands that one of the great ancient European civilizations, the Thracian civilization, emerged and flourished, leaving behind tombs, frescoes, sculptures, treasures and the legend of Orpheus whose music fascinated even the wild beasts. The tombs in Kazanlak and Sveshtari are on the UNESCO List of World Cultural Heritage. 

The rose, queen of flowers is one of the symbols of Bulgaria. For centuries Bulgarians have planted roses, picked their flowers and extracted their heavenly essence – attar of roses. The rose, this marvellous gift of the land, is admired and used in perfumery, pharmacy and food industry.

Kazanluk is one of the biggest producers of rose oil in the world. The soil and the climate in this region are quite suitable for the roses. The conditions in Kazanlak proved to be more favourable for the cultivation of the rose than those in its own country of origin - Tunisia. This is specifically valid for the rainfalls. The air humidity, cloudiness and precipitation in May and June contributed to obtain roses yielding high percentage of oil.

The hotels and civic buildings of Kazanlak`s main square - pl. Sevtopolis - present an uncompromisingly modern contrast to the remnants of the prewar town that straggle untidily westwards. The nineteenth-century Church of the Assumption, behind the Hotel Roza, contains an exquisite iconostasis carved by Debar craftsmen, while a host of finds from ancient Seuthopolis are displayed in the basement of the Iskra Museum (Mon-Fri 8am-noon & l-5pm). Diagrams of the city`s street plan show it to have been an ambitious undertaking, built from scratch on a grid pattern based on the theories of Hippodamus of Miletus, the doyen of Hellenistic town planners. Weapons, pottery, and coins minted by Seuthes III help to illustrate life in his capital, while the reconstructed floor plans of domestic houses reveal the bowl-like depressions that served as cult hearths, for appeals to tribal deities. Upstairs is a
gallery exhibiting mediocre modern works and a collection of icons from local churches.

Tyulbeto Park - the site of two renowned funerary monuments, lies a further ten minutes` walk to the northeast,  on the far bank of the Starata Reka. A stairway beyond the park gates ascends to the skeletal remains of the  Turbe of Lala Shah in Pasha, conqueror of much of Bulgaria and first Ottoman governor of Rumelia. He fell 
in battle here, and it`s thought that his entrails were interred on the spot before the rest of him was carried back to Bursa (probably embalmed in honey) to be buried in a much finer turbe closer to home.

What this pretty town, nestled at the foot of the mountains, is most famous for is the Thracian tomb of Kazanluk. The tomb was excavated in 1944 and is one of the 9 cultural and historical sites in Bulgaria included in the UNESCO list of historical and architectural monuments of global importance. Up to then, the burial mound had been considered a natural elevation of the ground.
The tomb is situated in a mound near the town of Kazanluk. It consists of a lobby, a corridor and a dome. The system of ornaments in the corridor is complex and extremely interesting. The walls are covered with shining, fine plaster and a beautiful fresco.
Immediately behind the turbe is a protective structure built over Kazanlak`s Thracian Tomb, site of a late fourth- or early third-century BC burial chamber, unearthed by chance in 1944 during the construction of an air-raid post. Its fres-cos are so delicate that only scholars with authorization from the Ministry of Culture may enter (and only then with a good reason), but the replica (daily 8.30am-noon & 1.30-6pm), built 50m east along the path, is an atmospheric enough re-creation.

Once inside, the domed burial chamber is approached through a narrow corridor decorated by two bands of murals - one ornamented with plant and architec¬tural motifs, the other displaying battle scenes. The floor and walls are stained a deep red, while in the cupola are the paintings for which the tomb is famed. They depict a procession of horses and servants approaching the chieftain for whom the tomb was built, who sits behind a low table laden with food. His wife, face downcast in mourning, reposes on an elaborate throne beside him, and the couple touch hands in a tender gesture of farewell. A bowl of fruit is offered to the deceased by a female figure to the right, who has been linked with both the Great Mother Goddess common to Thracian tribes, and the queen of the Underworld in the Greek pantheon, Persephone. Racing chariots wheel around the apex of the dome, a possible reference to the games that often accompanied a Thracian funeral (see below). With its graceful composition and naturalistic details, the painting is a masterpiece of Hellenistic art, although opinions differ as to whether the frescos are the work of an itinerant Greek master or an inspired local.

The scenes of funeral procession, the musicians, the Thracian ruler and his wife, the chariots, the horses and other depictions are all very interesting. The tomb dates from the late IV c. - early III c. BC. Nearby an exact copy has been built for tourists.

Some history for Kazanluk
The area around Kazanlak has attracted successive waves of settlers and invaders, not least because of its strategic importance in controlling the southern approaches to the Shipka Pass. In ancient times, the Tundzha Valley was the domain of the Thracian Odrysae, who exploited the vacuum left by the retreat of Persian power in the fifth century BC to forge a powerful tribal state on the southern slopes of the Balkan Range. Their power was temporarily broken by Philip II of Macedon in 342 BC, but they re-emerged a generation later under King Seuthes III, an unruly vassal of Alexander the Great`s successor Lusimachus, who built a new capital, Seuthopolis, 7km west of present-day l Kazanlak - now submerged beneath the lake created by the Lake Koprinka dam.
Seuthopolis soon fell into decline, and a deluge of Celts occurred around 280 BC many of whom settled in the plain just east of Kazanlak. There was a fortified medieval Bulgarian settlement at Kran, just to the northwest, but the town of Kazanlak itself is relatively modern, dating from the Ottoman occupation. Its name loosely translates as the "place of the copper cauldrons", a likely reference to the giant stills in which rose oil was prepared. By the turn of the century Kazanlak`s streets were filled with the shops and store-houses of the rose merchants - a breed of Balkan trader that has long since disappeared, squeezed out by social ownership and state control. Another legacy of the Communist era is the Arsenal Factory south of Kazanlak, which produces the best Kalashnikovs outside of the ex-Soviet Union - making this a town truly dedicated to Guns `n` Roses.

Festivities
Kazanlak is a center of celebration of many local, regional and national holidays. A great tourist attraction is the Rose festival as well as the Mummers (Kukeri) day celebration. The Mummers days are traditionally celebrated on the first week before Lent. At that time Mummers from the whole region gather in Kazanlak to present their colorful costumes, masques and ritual dances.

The Rose Valley is magically transformed with breath-taking blooms in May and early June each year when The Festival of Roses is celebrated in many towns of the region. Rose picking rituals and folklore displays are presented.

The festival program includes the coronation of Queen Rose (a beauty contest in several rounds), the traditional rose-picking ritual and rose-distillation that gives you a true feeling of authenticity. The Festival ends with a street procession in which the main role is allotted for the participants of the International Folklore Festival that has been hold parallel to the Festival of Roses for some years.

The Day of the Rose has been celebrated in Kazanlak for nearly a century already. The festival takes place on the day of the Holy Spirit, when roses are in their full blossom. The tradition has been enriched through the years and nowadays it is celebrated with concerts, many cultural events. The whole town is decorated with rose wreaths and the wonderful fragrance of the world famous Bulgarian rose fills the air. The ritual “rose picking” is demonstrated in the rose fields outside the town. Boys and girls dressed in colorfully embroidered national costumes gather and dance under the sounds of Bulgarian folk music. From the rose garden the celebration moves to the central square of Kazanlak where through a competition the Queen of Roses is chosen. Then follows the folklore part of the celebration in which the most famous folklore singers and dancing groups from the region take part. The exciting ceremony ends with a ring dance. Splendid fireworks accompany the final concert in the evening.

Colourful festivals and craft centres keep Bulgarian traditions alive.
The Rose Festival takes place every first week of June in Kazanlak and Karlovo. It features the traditional rituals of rose picking and rose boiling, a parade and lots of singing and dancing in the streets.
The mummer dances are an old tradition dating back to pagan times. In different regions of Bulgaria, they take place at a different time of the year: on January 1st, or in late winter, or in mid-summer. Men in awe-inspiring goatskin costumes and masks and strings of bells on their waists dance in the streets, making quite some noise, to chase away the evil spirits and bring about good health and prosperity.
Numerous folk festivals are a colourful feast of world-famous Bulgarian folk music.