The Rhodope village of Momtchilovtsi has recently welcomed a team of 51 people, who intended to shoot the Chinese version of the Survivor popular TV reality. The main goal of the event was to get the Chinese acquainted with the traditions of the village and… the secret of Rhodope longevity.

Of course, the secret was revealed a long time ago – the yoghurt, produced by the locals with the famous Lactobacillus bulgaricus. The healthy product is consumed in China as well under the brand Momtchilovtsi. It is made by a Shanghai company that has found success over the past few years with a series of milk products with Bulgarian yeast, named after the beautiful mountainous village. As of 2012 the company has also been sending Chinese tourists in the Rhodope Range. In the meantime its managers have developed friendly and business relations with the municipality of Momtchilovtsi, mainly in the tourist sphere.

Now the Chinese manufacturer has the ambition to promote Bulgarian yoghurt in an untraditional manner – by funding this year’s version of their Survivor in Momtchilovtsi! “Yoghurt is everywhere there – in soups, deserts, in meat sauces…” a representative of the Shanghai company has said in a very enthusiastic manner to local media, adding that the overall idea is to meet the Chinese with the healthy lifestyle in the Rhodope Mountain. The shooting process ended mid-September and the reality show is to be broadcast soon by one of the major Chinese TV channels. 

Mayor of Momtchilovtsi Maria Nikova gives us interesting details on the stay of the Chinese survivors in the beautiful mountainous village.

“Barely 7 out of 8,000 applicants from the casting arrived here and those were accommodated at 7 houses with different families. Each and everyone of them had to learn how to survive in Momtchilovtsi. We see that as something simple, but I must underline that those were people, born in a metropolis, where they had never seen a sunrise, for instance, due to the constant smog over their city. Lights at night are so strong there that no stars can be seen as well. To our greatest surprise these people got up in the mornings to enjoy the blue sky and the clouds before the sunrise… They spent hours in taking photos of the sunset, wandering around the peaks above the village! Otherwise they had to face different challenges, mostly related to the housework of the families they lived with. They milked cows and goats, they brought out potatoes, hoed the garden, they cooked…”

The Chinese also learnt to crochet, to chop wood, to mow and dry hay, to knead bread etc. – many untypical activities that a modern person has never faced. Of course, the language barrier was a major obstacle, as the survivors had to use only a modest Chinese – Bulgarian dictionary in their communication without an interpreter. A 22-year-old journalist was accommodated with the mayor’s house and she was shocked to find in the garden a tomato, weighing over a kilo! After the initial few days the Asian people were gathered in a common house, where they had to survive on their own with some budget. “Very friendly and smiling people with nice manners! We already miss them, they created incredible mood here,” Maria Nikova goes on to say. She adds that hundreds of Chinese tourists have visited the village over the past years.

“Bulgarian and Chinese tour operators bring here some 500 people per year. The fact is that they do have a very serious campaign about Bulgaria and Momtchilovtsi in particular. We are impressed by the fact that all the tourists know about us in advance. Those, who come to visit anything in Bulgaria, hire cars and come to Momtchilovtsi. The head of the marketing department of the production company has visited the place 4 times and has admitted, joking or not that his big dream is to take his family and to live here for good…”

The managers of the Chinese company are preparing a new joint project with their friends from the local administration. “It will be something big and useful for the locals,” the mayor prompted, but said nothing more. At least for the moment…

English version: Zhivko Stanchev

Photos: courtesy of Maria Nikova