Cult of Dionysus

Firewalkers honor Saint Constantine in mystery-shrouded, centuries-old rituals

Sotirios Gkaintatzis danced across burning coals, his stomping bare feet raising sparks and puffs of smoke as he held aloft an icon of Saints Constantine and Helen.

Gkaintatzis is the leader of a group of "anastenaria" - the devotees of St. Constantine who celebrate these centuries-old rites in a smattering of small villages near Thessaloniki, in northeastern Greece.

Festival in Sofia Brings Animated Films from all over the World

276 cartoons, 32 of them Bulgarian, participate in the Golden Kuker Film Festival in Sofia. It begins on May 7, and there will be free screenings.

For the ninth time, Golden Kuker presents the best animations from 94 countries, including Bulgaria. Viewers will experience exciting stories and an impressive vision created with all the means of expression of fine arts and cinema.

Sexual curiosities in Ancient Greece (photos)

According to Aristophanes, human beings used to have four arms, four legs, and two sets of genitals, either two male sets, or two female, or one of each. But Zeus split everyone in two, forcing them to wander around on just two legs looking for their other half, with their sexual orientation determined by the genitals of that alter egothey yearned for.

Swimmers find dead dolphin on Halkidiki beach

Swimmers in Halkidiki, northern Greece, alerted the local coast guard on Wednesday after discovering a dead dolphin on a a beach near the village of Dionyisou.

According to initial estimates by representatives of the conservation group Arion, the mammal is most likely a rhinoceros dolphin though the cause of its death remained unclear.

Ukrainians Clash with Locals over Bulgarian Dog Spinning Ritual

Ukrainian and Bulgarian environmentalists have got into a scuffle with locals in a southeastern Bulgarian village over a controversial ritual performed there every year.

Dozens of people have arrived in the Brodilovo village in the Strandzha mountains, led by an environmentalist organization and handing out stuffed toy dogs to locals, according to the Bulgarian National Radio.

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