Brother dear

Yesterday, in the afternoon, I got back from the airport. I think that my brother Andrew really enjoyed his little holiday in Bulgaria. It was the first time he had been here, so it was quite unusual for him. Yes, Andy and I did some of the things that we did when Peter was here, but we also did some new things as well. It was not interesting for me to see Tsaravets, but he really had to see it. 

We also went to Emen Canyon and Tryavna, so we could have the excellent Indian meal that poor Peter never had the chance to eat! Savoya Spice is only open for a few days each week. The onion bhajis were particularly good. 


Andy also cooked a superb lasagne and we scoffed that one evening with my friend Adrian. 

We also had lunch at a new restaurant in Arbanassi, “The Wine Club”. It is really good and I want to take Irena there. After lunch, we went for an amazing walk with Adrian and Sisi, his doggie, along the cliffs that overlook Veliko Tarnovo. Absolutely incredible views!


I suspect that my dear Irena has a long list of DIY jobs for me, now that I am back in Daveri. Tomorrow I am planning to cut the grass, one of my favourite pastimes, and of course I want to get that firewood. The first time the chain came off the chainsaw and so I had to take it in to the Husqvarna place to get it fixed. The second time was even more embarrassing: I could not get the blooming the chainsaw’s engine started! I pulled the starter cable again and again, but no luck.

Recently I have seen a few things on the news that suggest that the Russian army is about to break up or else there will be some sort of revolt against Putin. This “partial mobilisation” of 300,000 seems to be a bit of a disaster. There have been a lot of protests and demonstrations, not to mention thousands of Russian men escaping to Georgia, Finland and just about anywhere they can go to avoid being drafted into the army. Irena's brother, Yevgenny, is nearly fifty and he was in the Navy, so it is unlikely that he will get called up for the army.

As for the medical insurance company, they have stopped replying to my emails. Such wonderful "customer service"! I am planning to go back to Doctor Ivanov and ask him to sign a statement, saying that I really did have an operation at the hospital in Veliko Tarnovo. Then I will contact the insurance company again. If that still does not work, then I will try phoning them, a social media campaign and my attorney, Sylvana. Okay, so it is only 160 leva, but what is the point of having insurance if they are not going to pay up when you have a legitimate claim, not matter how large or how small? 

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