Bulgarian statesmen and ordinary people climbed to the Okolchitsa mountain peak, near the northwestern city of Vratsa to honor Hristo Botev at the site of his troupe's last fight with the Ottoman Turkish army.

Bulgaria marks Saturday, June 2, the 136th anniversary of the death of one of the most prominent Bulgarians - the publicist, poet and revolutionary Hristo Botev, who gave his life for his homeland's independence.

Every year thousands of people trod the route of Botev's troupr to remember the heroes of Bulgaria.

The ceremony began with a reenactment of the troupe's last battle. The Vratsa Bishop Kalinik served the solemn mass. Attendees laid many wreaths and flowers.

Interior Minister, Tsvetan Tsvetanov, was traditionally among the politicians who took part in the ceremony. He walked to the peak on foot for the sixth year in a row.

Exactly at 12 noon, on the sound of sirens, with 2-minute silence and hooters knelling, Bulgarian people across the country remained still and bowed heads to commemorate the heroes who gave their lives for national freedom.

The only exception was the western city of Pernik, where the sirens were cancelled to prevent panic among local people in the aftermath of the 5.8 magnitude earthquake that hit on May 22.

The June 2 sirens sound different from the natural disaster alerts, but the Pernik Mayor, Rositsa Yanakieva, decided to not take any risks of creating tensions in the city.