back

Back to Sofia.
walking the same streets that bring so many memories.
breathing the air that seems fresh and clean.
sipping a large cappucino in my favourite Onda opposite the Russian church.
recieving unexpected calls.
meeting unexpected people.
spending time with close friends.
smiling.
a lot.
the look at people's faces when they first see me.
having my schedule full with meeting people.
drinking wine and eating cheese.
making tentative plans for concerts, parties, trips.
nothing has changed much in Sofia.
it is grey, dirty...a little sad.
nothing has changed...
except me.

My vacation didn't go so well...

It is very true that whenever you are very eager to do something, usually things screw up.The same happened with my vacation...more or less.
I went to the seaside, yet I didn't go to the beach, as the sea was dirty (too much building of hotels near Varna, resulted in a sewage system breakdown). Anyway, I was not much in the mood for beach-ing as Mury had serious health problems and I was quite concerned. I hope things get better with her.
Despite that, I think I managed to have some good rest and time for myself :) Which is always quite valuable.
I went back to Veliko Turnovo and the stay there was quite nice and calm - I visited a friend in the nearby Arbanassi (the luxurious villa-quarter of the town) and spent several nice hours chatting. I met some friends and drank coffee on hot sand. I also managed to spend a surprising amount of time watching TV :)
Yet, the last days we went to Gabrovo, Sokolovo monastery and the etnographic museum "Etara". And this week I am going to continue with the village tourism and stay 4 days in some nice villages in Rodopi mountain:)Hope the weather stays okay, rain please GO AWAY!

The Bulgarian medics are at last back to Bulgaria

The Bulgarian medics that were imprisoned for 8 years in a jail in Lybia and accused for intentionally injecting the AIDS virus to Lybian children, were finally brought back home.
Everyone is happy and relieved, BUT...
There are some lessons to be learned by the whole 8-year ordeal. If these lessons are not learned, then the Bulgarian politicians will totally loose the credits of the people.
Lesson 1: In such a complicated diplomatic situation it is better to act early, not to wait 7 years and then start trying to do something
Lesson 2: You should be very, very careful with your media exposure and the campaign around "saving the prisoners". Do not allow some shadowy business structures to prevail and earn money on the misfortune of these people!
Lesson 3: Being in EU truly can save lives.
Lesson 4: Let's hope all is agreed with the financial side of the "freedom". I personally won't be very happy to understand that Bulgaria has to pay a compensation to Lybia and this will be calculated in taxes.

Finally, I really feel sad for the medics. Their lives are ruined, and what I really hope is they are not used as "media - puppets" and then - when there is nothing sensational about them any more - thrown away.

The police against Bulgarian bloggers

I never believed this could happen until it actually happened!
Bulgaria is a member of EU for 6 months now, it is supposed to be a modern and fast-developing country...but...obviously its citizens do not have freedom of speech.
Story goes like this.
The previous week there were several non-violent protests and flash-mobs against the decision of the Bulgarian supreme courts to allow building in the natural reserve Strandja. The participants were mainly young and well-educated people who did nothing but just showed peacefully their disagreement with the decision.
Then, suddenly one day, one of the active bloggers in the Bulgarian blogging community - Michel - was asked to go to the police station and he had to answer questions.
The problem was he had published in his personal blog information on one of the Strandja protests!
This is happening while only a week ago another Bulgarian businessman was shot in the very centre of Sofia. And the police is not working to find his assassin but is trying to scare people that openly state their position in their personal web-space.
Strange, ain't it?
Absurd!
Good thing is - the whole blogging community reacted immediately and for two days there were more than 100 opinions posted in the blogs of all this people.
The Ministry of internal affairs is still silent.
I would like to here what they want they have to say...

Elections for Europarliament

Bulgaria will be represented in the European parliament by the Socialistic party, The party of the Sofia mayor (and media star) - Boyko Borisov, a Nationalist party (ATAKA, led by a crazy guy, who, in my opinion thinks he is Hitler re-born and the party of the Turkish minority, led by Ahmed Dogan.

The news is not very good for the image that Bulgaria is trying to create in the EU.
A party of a populist guy like Borisov (who supposedly has connections with the mafia)against the representative of ATAKA Slavi Binev (who also has strong relations with the mafia it seems) and the Turkish guys...

I frankly do not see these guys working together - they will rather be quarreling all the time and will not reunite to defend the Bulgarian interests in Brussels...
I am really disappointed, maybe I have to blame myself for not voting...
But every day I loose my hope in the future of this country.

Mafia and corruption.
That about sums it up!
And can u imagine - on one of the Bulgarian TV channels they invited the pop-folk singer Kamelia to comment the elections. Well, what the F***?

Lazy labour day at home

This weekend it was labour day.
In fact - 1st of may was Tuesday, but we had 4 days off (Saturday to Tuesday). I spent the Saturday writing...It took me 9 hours to write a Profile of a person - I never imagined it could be so time-consuming. Now I understand why writers are so self-contained.
Then, Sunday I went back home, as Mury came to visit me.
It was rather strange, as just a few minutes after getting on home ground, I met Alx4o, then Kremba, Lili and Velislava. Obviously - Turnovo is a small town and everybody comes back for the weekend. In the next days I met Nasko and part of AIESEC VTU, one girl I had met on the BWB Enterpreneurship classes, one collegue of my mother and Ogi (Megan's friend). Maybe I am missing someone...
Well, indeed it was crowded in Turnovo - it seems that my hometown is becoming a popular tourism destination. Which on one side is good. But from another point of view...not so much so...
The first day (Monday) we went to drink coffee in my favourite Turkish coffee shop - there coffee is prepared on hot sand. It is really nice, and the host is a very welcoming lady. After the great coffee, we went to the popular "40 marthyrs church". It has been renovated recently and the bones of the Bulgarian tzar Kaloyan have been re-buried there. I was quite surprised that the entrance to the place costs 5 levs (I think the last time I went to the museum it cost only 1 or 2 levs). Anyway - I wouldn't be so frustrated if the money we paid was worth it. But indeed, besides having the Omurtag column and some icons...it was a strange thing that the builders decided to leave the electricity sockets visible...As a whole - it was made too modern. And...as anywhere in Bulgaria...not much information boards.
Then, after the Church, we passed through the Vladishki bridge - a wooden bridge I was once very scared to approach.I thought that it might break and I might fall in Yantra. Well...I almost overcame this...not fully it seems.
We reached the other bank of the river, near St Dimitar Church. It was really nice and calm, but also a bit sad...as there were a lot of houses fallinga apart. I dunno why I really feel sad when I see a beautiful old house falling apart:(
After our walk we tried to find a place at the "Shtastlivetza" restaurant, one of the most famous Turnovo restaurants with wonderful huge salads and a beautiful view towards Asenevci monument and the old part of the town. But...of course...no places left.
We went to another place, but what made us a great impression was that instead of enjoying their meal together people were making scandals, pushing the waitresses to work faster (as if if you cook at home, it will take you no time). It was rather unpleasant.
Then, pretty tired, we went to the Asenevci monument, where the previous night there was a concert organised by one of the Bulgarian political parties. It was rather disgusting, cause obviously nobody cared to clean after...
On coming back home, we watched "The march of the emperors".Mury obviously didn't like it...Well..some movies are not made for everyone :)
The next day we went to the Central mall (I am almosta specialist on malls, I just had to show our mall to Mury ). Rather boring...I really do not like the mix of shops there...
Then, we finally found places in "Shtastliveca" and happily had lunch...then we made a little walk down Gurko, making lots of funny pictures (Which can be seen on Flickr)
It was a rather nice weekend...Thank you my dearest Mury for the nice time spent together:)

About Plovdiv and accidential meetings :)

As I mentioned in my previous post, I went on a trip to Plovdiv for the weekend. I just needed to get out of Sofia, to collect my thoughts, so I can take one very important decision about my career.
Well, I dunno if I managed to decide. But for sure I had fun and I am inspired.
Yesterday morning I managed to wake up at around 8.30, shower and pack my bag with basic survival stuff - you know - towel, toothbrush, camera and MP3 Player, a book and a sketchbook (it seems I will be back to drawing) some colour pens (I didn't have much time for that, though :( ).
Boris was really kind to meet me at the bus station (frankly didn't expact that someone will bother to meet me...)We had lunch and a fast walk-around the old part of Plovdiv.
I really like the atmosphere of the place, yet I cannot get rid of the feeling that the old part of Veliko Turnovo is more well-preserved, more tourist appealing than this one.

After that Angel drove us to Boris's place, where we had nice coffee and I finally met his so-much-talked-about (or famous) dog Uma. She is rather sweet, just the type of dog I like - not very small, yet not a huge one.
Angel and I went to the "Education fair" and I saw (finally) the famous Plovdiv fair. I really liked it - it looked like an University campus or some big open-air museum...

We walked around a bit, then met with Tony,Svil, Desi and Boris and had dinner. Then - we headed for Angel's place to watch a DVD. The choice of the film was rather...hm...strange "There is something about Mary". Quite a stupid one, yet we had fun.
Angel has a nice white kitty, but I think the poor animal is a bit stressed by him. He is too anxious and she feels that. I took her and I tried to stay calm...so she calmed down too.I like cats falling asleep in my arms:)
Angel's place was really so cool...and the bed was lovely...eeeh...
But sooner or later you just have to wake up and go to EB elections.


These LC plovdiv EB elections were a bit unpreparied, but I stayed only for the LCP speeches. Both candidates seem to me wonderful people, but it made me a very bad impression that their speeches were rather too short, lacked structure and profound message.
Anyway. AIESEC for sure is not what it used to be. Sadly.
Then, I made a wonderful walk alone. I explored the Old Plovdiv ...as you can see by the pictures.Nice place. Feels like home. Angel asked me what do I like about old house so much and I said - I guess their history and atmosphere, the stories they tell...
I managed to get to the bus stop at around 3,30...and while I was wondering how the crowd of people is going to fit in the bus...I thought I saw Gery standing some meters away from me. No, it was not possible!I must be halucinating. Gery is in Belgium, on a traineeship, not in Plovdiv...Such an accidential meeting couldn't be!Well, it seemed it could!It was her, and we travelled back to Sofia together. She had been to the wedding of one of her friends in Plovdiv and is going back to Brussels on Tuesday!

Oh, I love meetings like that so much...
Now I am home, preparing mentally for the working week, trying to take a final decision on the question that is bothering me, willing to draw a picture or two, listening to Madredeus (very nice music), trying to upload some pictures on flickr ( which wouldn't upload, I dunno why). Ah, back to reality, but everything seems so different. Like a rebirth...
Enjoy your week:)

A nice nostalgic walk down my hometown's narrow cobbled streets

Yesterday I allowed myself a nice walk around the old part of Veliko Turnovo.
It was simply marvelous.
I won't tell you any more, just see the pictures:)

I am NOT proud to be Bulgarian because...

...our politics are not acting as defendants of our rights abroad. Bulgarian nurses are convicted to death. 8 years nobody does nothing and hundreds of dollars are paid for lawyers without any success. Now...an initiative to save the nurses is started. It is called "You are not alone"..It is supposed to support the prisoners and their families and to express the public opinion with the hope that something might be changed and can be free. Yet, the whole campaign is getting too commercial.It is everywhere! You have the "you are not alone stickers", the "you are not alone" ribbons. Shops are putting the "you are not alone" sign, demonstrating a very populist maketing aproach. I even so "you are not alone" sugars packets and "you are not alone" salads:(
... a group of taxi drivers block the whole capital in an agressive protest, causing a terrible delay and losses for business. They have the right to protest - their collegue has been killed.Yet they do not have the right to be as arrogant as to ask some special privileges from the Parliement - like being able to drive without safety belts and getting more money per drive...
...a "businessman" (connected to the mafia) puts in his retail centre -TZUM an aquarium and there he places...a baby tiger to entertain the customers!!! After a serious protest the businessman decided to move the poor animal to the Plovdiv zoo.You might think that he finally understood how obnoxious and inhumane it is to keep an animal in a glass cage.No, you are not right. Yes, he is extremely stupid - he is serching for a black panther to replace the tiger!
These are free of the reasons that certainly don't make me feel very proud to be Bulgarian!!!

Bulgaria-trying to brand itself as a country - not very successful so far...

I have been to at least 10 discussions (including university, specialised tourism conferences, private conversations etc.) where the vague image of Bulgaria was commented.So I was really happy when I heard of a website, givving the opportunity to young people to show there image of Bulgaria, to change something if they do not like it.
I was really curious and inspired...Until I found this video. It has the ambition to show the country from a different angle, it is really funny indeed, yet I am not sure what I would think for that country if I was a foreigner...
For sure I will think "what a strange place"...and feel a pity for the people living there...
There are, of course, some "PR clips" of the country - like this one.
Yet...they seem to me a bit too artificial.
As are the Bulgarian EU accession videos - like this - I like the beginning,but at the end it really skrews up the whole thing...Why do I, as a Bulgarian, need someone to place a huge dot in the middle of Europe and tell me that "I am there" (that is what the words in the dot mean in Bulgarian).Will this make me feel "more" European.
I doubt it...especially when I can see such scenes in my country...
Doesn't it look a bit more Oriental to you :)

Good reasons to visit Bulgaria

According to the Bulgarian news site Novinite, foreigners are going to flock to Bulgaria to buy the magic breast-growing "boza" drink.
Well, for those who don't know - it usually goes with the "banichka" (a kind of traditional and very oily pastry).
The survival test for trainees coming to Bulgaria is having "banichka" and "boza". If thew do not puke, they will survive...

Bulgarians invading UK after the EU accession - not quite so

One of our editors in Capital has written a nice article on the topic which The Guardian published.
You can read it here.

Do I really want to live in Bulgaria?

It's been a long time since I last asked myself this question. I have always beleived that, no matter that I would like to travel around the world, the place I want to be is Bulgaria, as it is the place I was born, and where I feel "at home". It is not patriotic feeling, I cannot say that I am so proud of my country, of its people and its history...It is just the feeling that I belong here.
Yet, the week that passed made me reconsider some stuff...
The news of a baby-tiger, being locked down in one of the most expensive shopping centres in Sofia, "as an attraction" to the people made me really angry. The comments I read on the internet - even more so. If there is something I really, really hate - it is the lack of style and the the stupidity of people, that believe they are "someone VIP". This case reminded me once again the fact that my home country breed a special group of stupid, show-off people that consider themselves as "dictators of lifstyle". In some way they are funny, but it scares me to think that if the "VIP-s" are like that, if they are role-modelling...can u imagine what are the ordinary people supposed to be:( I do not want to live in a society that doesn't have even a very tiny idea of style.
Another thing that happened ( too good for some of the tabloids) - a wave of serious agression among and towards children poured from the headlines: A 9-year old kills a 4 -year old, Two babies found dead, A school-girl attacks her teacher during class.
Just a few of the stories.
Bulgarian society is getting more and more aggressive and I really don't like that.I do not want to live in a country where conflicts are resolved in such a way.
I do not want to live in a country where people are ready to kill you just because they think you are strange.
While we were travelling from Bansko this Tuesday, my collegue was complaining all the time from the country...I usually do not allow such complaints to influence me.
Yet...if I do not feel at home in my "home country" ...I might have to find another place to call home.
A choice I am praying I will not be forced to make.

Bansko - 8 years later...

Today I was on a one-day trip to Bansko, a small town in the picturesque outskirts of Pirin mountain. I had been there just once before 8 years when I went for the first (and only so far) time that I went hiking. So I didn't remember anything at all.
Still, my shock was complete when we were entering the town. Just imagine - a beautiful scenery, snow-capped mountains, vast valleys...and tall, ugly cranes, and buildings, and ...a whole huge construction sites.
It is so packed of buildings being built, that it seems you cannot find a single street to just have a small walk around. I do not know what there investors expect there, but in my oppinion, any tourist would feel a bit to "squeezed in" in Bansko. And what rental returns are we talking about, as they do not have the skiing infrastructure ready to meet the expectations of the tourists? They even have a problem with electricity...
Well, a lot of money is being put in golf-resorts (the new mania in the region, there seem to be at least two huge projects for golf courses).
Yet I am a bit too sceptical about it.
We'll see if the region will become a "Ski, Spa and Golf" paradise (there are thermal springs in the region). I strongly believe that, when someone pours so much money somwhere, they should know what they are doing.
However in this case, I am not quite sure...

Reality shows - social phenomena or ugly exposure of our "dark sides"

I am not a big fan of reality shows - simply I prefer to use my time for more interesting stuff.And besides, watching TV is not one of my favourite sports.
Yet, I caught myself that I am watching some of the episodes of Big Brother 3 with quite an interest.
Why is that I asked myself and I still do not have an answer...
First of all - the show is quite a social phenomena. The people that are there, seem to be a representative part of the social types, relevant to the Bulgarian society (at least my perception is so). So...I am a bit scared of what our society is right now...and very, very sad...
Let us sum up - there is one gay, one guy that is pretending to be a girl (and not very sure in his sexuality), several "pop-folk" girls (the things they are most proud of are their mobiles), triplets ( that are changing every night and pretending to be one and the same person in front of the others,ah...by the way - very popular in their hometown for being well-paid "prostitutes"), one old (compared to the others) lady that stands really strange there, one really dumb guy (from a small proincial town) that thinks he is really cool and trendy, one macho man, one "poor little girl" that has to dance in a striptease bar to earn her living. And a crazy Christian fanatic that is carrying around a copy of the Holy Bible in English ( Excuse me - is this making him look more intelligent or closer to God???)I surely miss someone, as I am not really acquainted with all of them.
Is Bulgaria really like that. Phu...I am even scared to think that my society is full with such overwhelming stupidity:(
Or, maybe, these people are not representative ( what a good way to comfort myself:P).Maybe they are really some of the freakiest people around. A pure metaphor of the ugliest sins inside us. Even if it is so ...doesn't feel much better to watch them.
Yesterday - Plamen - the religious fanatic ( who had decided to get out of BB house as he couldn't integrate with the others) was offered by BB 5000 levs (2500 Euro) to stay 15 more days ( evidently the producers are aware that he is the one that is really different from the whole bunch and the one who might create some saucy scandals, so he must be kept to keep the audince). Although Plamen demosntrated so far that he cannot stand the others and the whole concept of the show...he just sold his soul for 5000 levs. Greed won over his "Christian virtues". If there were such at all. He is also so vain ( in his decision to participate in BB, and in demonstrating his religiousness all the time) and a hypocrite...
It is interesting to see how people play...and how the masks fall in such reality shows...
But I am constantly asking myself - do we have the right to dig so deep in someone's inner world?And, although blogging is also a kind of "emotional exhibitionism" how miserable and vain and empty you should be to allow everyone to get into your emotional world???

Hypocrisy and AIDS

Yesterday night I read a short story by Frederik Begbede about a medicine discovered to fight AIDS.
Anyway, it was part of his book "Stories under extasy" and was telling how he had sex with a huge number of girls in one day. It illustrated how much people are afraid of AIDS and what a relief they experienced when they found out there is a vaccine invented. To the extent of them being promiscuous...
Today I read that according to a research, a lot of Bulgarian medics are refusing to examine patients when they find out the people have AIDS.
This is really UGLY!!!
I cannot imagine that if you have given the Hipocrate's oath that you can find any excuse to not examine a person.
Ignorance - doctors do not know how to treat a patient with HIV or AIDS and make manipulations safely is the only explanation I can imagine.
Yet this is only explanation, not an excuse.
At least it shouldn't be an excuse in a country, that is in Europe, is civilized and is...open-minded.
I am so tired of people saying they "really care" and then - behaving like real cowards when it comes to facing the problem.