Bulgarian Traditions
Welcome/Kicking water bucket
Bride
At the reception prior to the arrival of the newlyweds a white cloth is stretched at the entrance of the dancefloor. At the end the cloth is a water bucket made out of copper with a white and red flower in it. The couple walks to the middle of the white, in the middle the brides mother will welcome the newlyweds with bread . The mother welcomes the young family by feeding them bread, honey and salt. First, she gives them each a bite of bread with salt, so that they know that in life not all moments are sweet and that they both cannot live without each other, just as bread cannot live without salt. Then she feeds them bread and honey to make their lives sweet. Once the bride and the groom have been fed the bread they will walk to the end of the white cloth, and the bride will kick the water bucket. Depending on which flower rolls first, the gender of the first child is determined. - the white one is for a boy and the red flower is for a girl.
Champagne Toast
Best Man
After the bride and groom have been fed bread. The bestman and his wife will join the newlyweds for the champagne toast. After the champagne toast is complete Bulgarians say "bitter" Why do Bulgarians say "bitter": The symbolism of wedding toasts .There is much debate as to where exactly the tradition of saying bitter during the wedding ritual began. However, the symbolism is clear - the wedding champagne is bitter, and the newlyweds sweeten it with a kiss. It is common to say bitter throughout the night if you want to see the newlyweds kiss.
Breaking the loaf of Bread
Groom
When the family bread is broken, it is determined who will be the head of the young family. The bride and groom stand with their backs to each other. The godfather hands the bread over their heads and at his signal they begin to pull towards themselves.According to tradition, whoever is left with the big piece will take care of the family budget... some say he will be in command. And as many crumbs fall on the floor from the wedding bread, so many children will there be in the family. The old people say that afterwards it is nice for a young girl to go round the guests and each one break off a piece of the bread for the health of the young family.