The 28^th International Festival of Masquerade Games Surva begins today in the town of Pernik (Southwest Bulgaria). The festival will be opened with a torch procession and a concert programme of foreign groups Friends without Borders. Surva is regarded as the most prestigious manifestation of traditional folk games and customs in Bulgaria and the Balkans. An international scientific forum will be held on the first day of Surva under the motto Weekdays and Masks with the participation of prominent cultural anthropologists and historians from Bulgaria, Lithuania, Macedonia and Serbia. Over 7,500 people will take part at the Surva festival between January 25 and 27.