- Title: BULGARIA: Bulgarian pop diva keeps flame burning for Fiedel Castro
- Date: 2nd February 2008
- Summary: (CEEF) SOFIA, BULGARIA (RECENT) (REUTERS) HRISTOVA SINGING CUBAN SONG
- Embargoed: 17th February 2008 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Bulgaria
- Country: Bulgaria
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment / Showbiz
- Reuters ID: LVA2PQS5A1O6W420Z6JU0VM7QRM1
- Story Text: Bulgarian music idol, Yordanka Hristova was a big star in Fidel Castro's Cuba, but she is secretive about whether their was anything more than friendship between herself and Cuba's revolutionary president.
Yordanka Hristova was once called "the bride of all Cubans" and was so popular on Fidel Castro's island that Cuban families named their daughters after her.
Forty years on, the 64-year-old Bulgarian pop diva keeps the gossips guessing about her relationship with the revolutionary icon himself, saying all that matters is her love for Cuba and her admiration for its leader with the beautiful brown eyes.
"I think they are a special kind of people. They are a extremely honest, affectionate and warm-hearted people, spiritual people rather than consumers. They are not like all others," Hristova said.
The singer was first introduced to Castro during his visit to communist-ruled Bulgaria in 1972 and fell for what she called his macho charisma. He praised her for her good Spanish rather than her looks, she recalled.
"He was a very good listener, along with his gift of being a great orator; speaking for six to eight hours at the square. I was impressed with his eyes. From up close they were very beautiful, a slightly transparent light brown colour, Hristova told Reuters.
Dismayed by the collapse of ties between Havana and Sofia after the end of communist rule in eastern Europe in 1989, Hristova has helped set up a foundation to revive cultural links, named after Cuba's national hero, Jose Marti.
Marti, a poet and writer, died in a cavalry charge in 1895 in the fight against Spanish colonial rule. Hristova says his life mirrored that of Bulgaria's own revolutionary hero Hristo Botev, also a poet, who died in an uprising against Ottoman rule in 1876.
The foundation has erected a statue of Marti on a small square in Sofia and is pushing the capital's mayor to name the square after the fighter for Cuban independence.
Hristova first sang in Havana in 1967, when Castro had embraced Soviet-style communism and the Beatles and other "decadent" Western rock groups were banned.
Asked whether Castro was a fan, she said he is not a music aficionado or a bohemian.
"He doesn't like to dance, unlike his brother who is a much more typical Cuban," she recalled about acting Cuban president Raul Castro.
With her passion for Latin rhythms and dances, Hristova made a splash at the Varadero Song Festival in 1967 and has performed in Cuba almost every year since, often passing the winter there.
Of all the Soviet bloc singers who toured their country, Hristova won the warmest reception, her open manner earning her the affectionate title of "bride of all Cubans", her repertoire including Cuban, Italian, French and English songs.
Hristova's own loyalty to Castro and his socialist vision is unswerving.
"I bow down to Fidel; to a person who has devoted his life to an idea, to a cause - to Cuba's independence. There aren't many such people left," she said.
Hristova's love for Cuba and Cubans love for her was mutual and many started to name their baby girls after her. Yordanka is now a common name for Cuban women in their 30s.
"With time many Cubans began to ask me for autographs for their children named after me - Yordanka," she said.
"At an airport, while checking in a stewardess told me her name was Yordanka. And here is a photo, also a ballerina," Hristova said. She found a picture of the ballerina named after her in her pile of memories from Cuba.
The singer, a widow with two children who speaks at least five languages and is still a star at home, admitted her looks played an important part in winning Cubans' hearts. She said Cuban men do not like skinny women, but prefer them more plump, which she characterised herself as.
In the communist era about 40,000 Bulgarians worked in Cuba, mainly as engineers and agriculture experts. The Balkan nation exported chemicals, machinery, wine and canned food to Cuba and imported the Caribbean island's sugar and citrus fruit.
Bulgarians still have fond memories of Cuban bananas and oranges, which reached their shops in winter and were so popular they had to be rationed.
These days trade is negligible and cultural ties have faded away, much to Hristova's disappointment.
"The fact that we Bulgarians, their best friends at the time were so quick to withdraw was a terrible blow for me," Hristova said and added she feared Castro was not pleased with it.
"Of course, my friend probably had some bitter comments about this in his own style. I haven't heard it, but I think so," she said .
Hristova attended Castro's 80th birthday celebrations in Havana in 2006, just a few months after he had emergency surgery for an undisclosed stomach illness.
She regularly receives his writings from the Cuban embassy in Sofia and occasionally sends him telegrams, signed "your friend, Yordanka Hristova". - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: Audio restrictions: This clip's Audio includes copyrighted material. User is responsible for obtaining additional clearances before publishing the audio contained in this clip.