Sofia Highlights Importance of Being Blonde

Bulgaria’s capital will be flooded with hordes of blondes this week, dressed in all shades of pink, carrying matching balloons, hats and flags, also all pink, of course.

The Parade of Blondes on October 23, which will welcome both local and international guests form ten countries, is part of the Congress of the Blondes taking place in Sofia from October 21 – 24.

Under the motto “Intelligence will save the world”, the Congress aims to bring together 150 blondes who have officially registered to participate, organizers from the International Association of Blondes, IAB, said.

“We’re inviting blondes and everyone who likes blondes to join us. It will be an event and a party to remember,” Olga Uskova, or “blonde head”, as she calls herself, of the association, said. 

The three-day programme includes a variety of events, such as a charity dinner, a photo session with all the participants and a visit to the Sofia zoo. The festival culminates in a beauty pageant where “the smartest and the most beautiful” contestant will be crowned “Miss Blonde”.

Delegates will discuss such topics as examples of successful business practices by blondes, blondes in politics, and fighting addiction to shopping.

Uskova said that many male fans of blondes from Italy, Belgium and Germany were coming to support the congress.

“Our goal is to turn Congress of Blondes into an annual event, a real attraction that draws people from all over the world to Bulgaria,” she said. This would boost the country’s tourism industry and its economy in general.

Valentina Dumanova, 25, one of the contestants in the beauty pageant, said she was excited about the upcoming event. Her reason for taking part was simple: “I’m beautiful, I have long legs and I’m a blonde”.

Dumanova, who is currently completing a Masters in finance, often feels like the lead character in the Legally Blonde movie series, who, played by Reese Witherspoon, defies the popular stereotypes associating blonde hair with low intellect to get a law degree.

In real life, Dumanova added, many people appeared confused by her highflying career aspirations, saying: “You’re studying finance? This can’t be possible!”

Her answer to those so-called “bimbo” stereotypes was that she hopes to start working for the finance ministry and rescue Bulgaria from its financial crisis. “All the finance ministry needs is a blonde who will fix the country,” she said.

Dumanova would not be taking part in the “Miss Blonde” competition were it not for Uskova’s efforts to promote blonde studies.

A Russian, born in the depths of Siberia, she came on an internship to Bulgaria 19 years ago and never left. Uskova says that she felt inspired to set up her association in 2006 while selling designer clothes in Russia.

“I noticed that most of our customers were blondes and that they shopped much more than brunettes and always had more fun,” she recalled.

Today, the IAB musters several thousand members and it plans to expand. The local branch in Bulgaria has 150 members, the youngest of whom is only three months old, a fair-haired baby named Aleksandar.

“Being blonde is not just a hair colour, it’s a state of mind,” Uskova said, philosophically.

“If you’re confused about which is left and right, if you forget your keys all the time, and if you can’t find your parking ticket while shopping in the mall, you’re a blonde,” she added.

That is why Uskova does not discriminate against members on the basis of sex, hair colour, or even species.

The association has accepted men and brunettes as members, not to mention several non-humans, namely, four giraffes from Riga, a bear, a donkey, a camel and a tarantula. Why? Because blondes love animals and many have pets.

For Uskova, the much talked-about rivalry between blondes and brunettes is a myth. She is unexpectedly brunette-friendly, seeing them as “just blondes who have been thinking a lot, and because of that, their hair got darker”.

She maintains that stereotypes about fair-haired women being stupid play to the advantage of blondes, helping them to achieve their goals more easily.

Unlike other blondes, who tend to see jokes about blondes as offensive, she finds them funny. “I love them, I collect blonde jokes,” she said. “They’re just a way to get more attention”.

Not surprisingly, humour informs the special oath that every member of the IAB has to take.

Blondes must swear to love all things pink and never reject any man whose business card lists his job as “president”. Finally, Uskova said, they must never forget what blondes are doing at the bottom of the ocean… Wondering what the answer is? Looking for Leonardo DiCaprio.