On 18 February, the Bulgarian Cultural Association in Belgium hosted the Martenitsa Festival. Representatives from Romania and Moldova also took part at the festival held in Brussels. This is the second edition of the Martenitsa Festival dedicated to the symbol of spring that unites the three countries. Martenitsas, as well as various souvenirs and wines were presented at the pavilions. 

''The hall was packed, there was no place for people to sit... It's nice that this intertwined white and red thread can connect so many nations. What could be better than that?'', Tanya Staneva, Chairwoman of the Bulgarian Cultural Association in Belgium, said for BNR. Elena Rente from Romania thanked Bulgaria for organizing the festival of the unifying tradition. In Romania and Moldova, the martenitsa is called mărțișor. ''Mărțișor brings happiness, and at the end of the month, we tie it to the stem of a flower. But the white and red thread unites us all'', says Elena Rente.