The saw a return to precious materials, particularly white metals covered in diamonds.
The ruling gave up its monopoly on power after the and allowed elections.
Some 937,000 to 1,200,000 people—mostly young adults—had left the country by 2005.
Euro-Atlantic integration has been a priority since the fall of communism, although the communist leadership also had aspirations of leaving the and joining the by 1987.
Extraction of metals and minerals, production of , , steel, biotechnology, tobacco, food processing and are among the major industrial activities.
An essential element of Bulgarian folklore is fire, used to banish evil spirits and illnesses.