Purim in Sofia

Last night, Ellis and I decided to go to the Synagogue to hear the reading of the Megillah – The Book of Esther – for Purim. We arrived around 7:00 pm, and were greeted by friends and acquaintances that we’ve met in the past.

Also attending, was the newly appointed US Ambassador, James Warlick. We had the pleasure of meeting him and wishing him good luck at his new post here in Bulgaria.

The few times that we’ve attended services at the synagogue, there haven’t been many children around. But last night, they were out in full force, and dressed in every type of costume. The very little children were dressed as sheep, Eyor the Donkey from Winnie The Pooh, a mouse, and of course, there was a Spiderman, a pirate and more. The children from the school put on a small performance telling parts of the story of Purim – all in Hebrew! They did a great job (although I did notice one girl who had her lines written on her hand so she wouldn’t forget them!) They also sang some Purim songs – we were very impressed!

The Megillah was read, and the noise from the noisemakers was very loud every time that Haman’s name was mentioned (the villain of the story). After the service, we all enjoyed Hamentachen, the traditional cookies for Purim.

Happy Purim Everyone!

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