Auntie Bulgaria

A photo of the Pirin Mountains in Bulgaria. Well, why not?
Ever since I started writing one myself, I have become an avid reader of other people's blogs, especially if they are in any way connected with Bulgaria. Auntie Bulgaria, otherwise known as Claire Ruston, has been writing an excellent blog for quite some time now and you can read this blog by going to www.auntiebulgaria.blogspot.com Recently Claire was excited because her little lemon trees have at last started to produce lemons for the first time . (Gin and tonics, here we come!) Here is my comment and Claire's reply.

A lemon tree, my dear Watson! I am very impressed by the citrus surplus that you are about to have, Claire. Lemons usually cost a fortune in Bulgaria. Did you bring your lemon tree into the house during the winter? Or did it somehow survive in the wonky polytunnel?

 What about the asparagus? Does it really take FOUR years before they start producing a good crop of spears? Any special asparagus tips? (My apologies - no pun intended!)

 We are STILL in China, but I have now had my last-ever parents' meeting and it is only 67 days until I finish my teaching career and retire from the classroom. We fly out from Hong Kong on the 18th June and finally, finally arrive in Bulgaria on the 19th. Let's hope our house in Kalotina and our apartment in VT are still there!



  1. Hi Simon, yes, we brought the lemon tree into the house for the winter. It's getting big now, so it's a precarious move, but it won't survive outside.

    And, yes, it really did take us four years to go from sowing asparagus seeds to harvesting lots of spears (before that, we harvested the odd spear but were wary of exhausting the young plants). Just be patient with it. Once they're established, it's one of the easiest crops in the garden and we'll probably be reaping the rewards for around 20 years. Worth the wait if you ask me.

    Best of luck for your return to Bulgaria. Not long now!
  2. BIG NEWS!

 Our rather official-looking invitations for Russia have finally arrived, courtesy of Papulichka, aka Albert, Irena's father. Please note that these are just "invitations", not the actual visas, so the next step is to go to the Russian Embassy in Sofia and apply for the visas. They cost about a hundred euros each. (Ouch!) But before we can do that, we shall have to get our five-year Bulgarian Residency cards renewed or replaced with permanent ones. But before we can do that, we shall have to buy one year's medical insurance for Bulgaria, as well as medical insurance to cover out trip to Russia.

Assuming that it all goes according to plan, Irena and I will be going to the Crimea in August, so expect some Crimean-themed posts on this blog.

 And why is it that hardly anyone ever writes a comment on my blog? Do I scare people away or what? Please, please, pretty please, write a comment (yes, you!)  It is great to get feedback and maybe it helps to make my blog more interesting and more interactive!  

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