Bulgaria with Noodles

Have you seen this property advertised on the YANTRA HOMES website? Not bad for 65,000 euros and it comes with more than 2000 sq metres of land. I am not sure that you really need four bedrooms, but maybe one of them could be made into a library or a study or something else. It is really nice to have some spare space and an extra bathroom or two, whenever anyone comes to stay.  Polski Trambesh is about 40 or maybe 50 kms north of Veliko Tarnovo, so you will need a car (and probably a garage). On the other hand, perhaps there is someone in the village who will sell you their garage or rent one to you or else you could use one of the outbuildings as a garage. The vendors have lavished care and attention (and money!) on this property and the swimming pool is rather nice. This property really does look like a bargain!  Recently I had quite a long chat with an old friend in the UK, who is not all happy with the situation in Dear Old Blighty (more rail strikes and air traffic contro...

Dear Peter, Well, if you took your mother out for lunch, then I am sure that you will not want me to remind you of the very worst aspect of eating out in the UK: the bill! Yes, prices here in Bulgaria have gone up a bit, of course, but on the whole having a good scoffing session is not going to cost you the better part of a hundred quid. At the moment I am listening to the Steely Dan CD that you kindly brought with you. We are now in VT, as we needed to do some serious “retail therapy” and on Tuesday morning I have to go back to the hospital, to see Doctor Ivanov. The anti-inflammatory pills he prescribed are very good. I have hardly any pain and I can just get on with my life. Okay, I probably will not be doing any marathon runs in the near future, but the knee seems to be more or less normal. I even played badminton the other day and Irena beat me, yet again. We went to a really good barbecue at a friend’s house in Petkovtsi on Friday. (Petkovtsi is the first village that you come to...

Dear AJ, I have not heard from you for a while. Nothing bad, I hope? Well, your first-ever visit to Bulgaria is now less than a month away. I have a long list of things for us to do, but of course this will be subject to your approval. Lots of games of badminton and country walks with a naughty Jack Russell, in order to counter the effects of my dear wife's excellent (and very substantial) cooking. Some sightseeing in and around Daveri, as well as plenty of wandering around Veliko Tarnovo. VT is a most beautiful and unusual city. You will love it! We might also go on an organized walk with a group of people, mostly retired expat Brits, who call themselves "the VT Walkers" (yes, very original). We can also go on a free walking tour of VT. On the subject of food, you will be pleased to know that Bulgaria is a very cheese-friendly place. As well as Kashkaval , the standard cheese in these parts (it is a bit like Cheddar or maybe Edam), there is Izvara (a sort of cottage che...

. Yes, he was supposed to be on holiday, but while Peter was with us he fixed the lights in two bathrooms, mowed all three lawns and repaired the hob of the cooker in our apartment in VT.  Now he is back in the UK, having a rest.

Dear AJ, I have checked at the Sofia railway station and the left luggage place costs five euros per day per bag. So, if my Maths are any good, then to store two bags for four weeks would cost you two hundred and eighty euros. That is rather a lot! Plus you have to factor in the cost of getting the bags to Sofia. And how would you get it to the railway station? Well, I could store it for you for free, but I hope that you would reimburse me the cost of the petrol (and a round trip from Daveri is about 600 kms!) I have told my dear wife that you will be arriving on 4 th  September and, as you can appreciate, ladies always like to stick to the schedule. However, if you were to arrive on Wednesday, 2 nd  August, I was planning to drive to Sofia on that day anyway because I have to take my friend Peter back to the airport. So I could collect your bags on the 2 nd  of August and then I could put them into the loft of our apartment in Veliko Tarnovo. I could also make sure that ...

Dear AJ, When I read that you were planning to go to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, I was deeply troubled and then I felt that I just had to write to you, begging you to reconsider. I am therefore enormously relieved and pleased to know that you won’t be going there. Praise the Lord! Now we need to think of where you will be going for August, before you come to us in early September. Well, about a week ago I was fixing the fence in the garden. It was a very sunny, hot day and suddenly I felt terrible. I thought that I was going to vomit, I was so dizzy and weak. It really was bad! I am therefore not going to recommend anywhere hot (and yes, it will be  very hot  in August, especially in North Africa and Southern Europe.) Here are my recommendations! (1)              Poland and / or the Czech Republic. Prague is beautiful (a bit touristy and expensive, alas) but there are plenty of other interesting places there...

Yes, we finally arrived safely in Corfu. The weather was a bit grey at first, but after a day or two is warmed up and was wonderfully and typically sunny. That fat little dog was at a boarding kennel. She seemed to be okay and the owners of the kennel kindly sent us some photos of Tina getting lots of fuss. Taking her on holiday with us was a pain last time, so she was probably happier where she is. Recently I had an email from an old friend who suggested that Trump will become President again in 2024. No, he will NOT be re-elected. I watched Arnie Schwarzenegger on CNN and he made a lot of sense. Arnie was saying that yes, Trump will probably win the Republican nomination, as there is no one in the Republican party that has as anywhere near as much support as he does. The anti-Trump opposition within the Republican party simply cannot unite around one effective candidate. However, Trump's supporters only make up about thirty percent of the total electorate. You cannot become presi...