First topic message reminder :

I've been looking on the forum and read some very good posts about life in Bulgaria but nothing will ever beat the reality of trying it at first hand which then led me to think Why not take it a step further. For example does anyone offer the option to stay with a Bulgarian/English family in a small town or village in Bulgaria. it will acquaint those thinking of buying with everyday life of the contemporary Bulgarians and the expats with their hopes and problems that they face every day. They would also get a feel of the warmth of Bulgarians and their hospitality.They could be shown interesting local places such as monastery, cafe, restaurant, church , museum, and market, supermarkets and other useful stores even a graveyard whatever takes their fancy. Another is they could be shown how to make some of the traditional meals like: “Banitza” “Gjuvetch”, “Kjufte” or “Kebapche”. Depending on the season they could also be making winter preserves and pickles, “Ljutenitza”- tomatoes and red peppers based sauce (spread), the unique Bulgarian yoghurt or feta cheese. This will not only bring them closer to the daily life of the Bulgarians, but they could find more about current social and political situation and how the changes in the last decade affected the ordinary people and what life is really like on a daily basis and even get involved in the chores etc. This is only a thought but a good one I think and I'm sure someone could make use of it in some way.

Didsn't Kathy McGowan at Voditsa offer short breaks (a week or thereabouts) covering just this kind of thing, on her campsite?

fruitlover wrote:

Didsn't Kathy McGowan at Voditsa offer short breaks (a week or thereabouts) covering just this kind of thing, on her campsite?

She is a member on here but never posts and hasn't been on for a while now so maybe she isn't running the business any longer.

She has ben away in another country for some time but I believe is back now and arranging new projects

Esta wrote:

My husband and I have often discussed a way of setting up a rural tourism "
package"
I have many lists of what could be done here, how to market it. We even looked at EU grants - but other things come up and it gets put on the back boiler.

We have already put together a schedule for a week full of "
activities"
that could be done in and around our village - walks, fishing, making cyrene and other dishes, days to local places of historic interest - a day shopping in Yambol or Burgas, trip to the coast - all with someone who has been there and done it.

We have an annex on our house, primarily for family and friends to use - It is also handy when someone comes over to see how their house is progressing. It is available for short-term letting as well, for people to "
try before they buy"
. I think relocating would just seem so much less daunting for many, if they had even a small glimpse of village life, met a few Bulgarians, had been to the local supermarket, know where to get a taxi, know where to park in the town centre etc. and also know someone they can ask for help every now and then.

Maybe its time to get it off the back boiler and perhaps create something that may benefit not only new comers but also yourselves .

Any updates on this?

It is a good idea. We did it for people when we first lived in our house 7 years ago but after 2 years decided not to do it. Why? We spent hours chatting and offering our experiences. First port of call to guests was the local bar to give an opportunity to experience local life. Then talked about the shops in the village, and the festivities that happened from time to time and about village life in general and introduced them to our neighbours. Took them on walks to appreciate the beautiful mountain views and gave invitations to new people to village festivals if they happened to be with us at the time. Few took advantage of the offer and one person told us that he had done all his research on the internet! He was being offered 'real life'! We have never lectured people and have always been friendly and helpful mindful that things in Bulgaria change rapidly so always advised to check any info we gave.
By and large, we found ourselves very upset that our help was not appreciated and many we never saw again. So we don't do it anymore. If anyone does go ahead with this idea it will be interesting to read how it turns out. In my experience people disappoint and I am not a normally negative person.

Quote :

Dobrich » Wed Sep 14, 2011 4:12 pm

Any updates on this?

Sorry - must have missed this thread when it came back up again!!!

We are not fully pursuing this at the moment, a few folk (friends of friends etc.) have been over this year. There are one or two things occupying my time at the moment, that could eventually lead to this project being set up properly, it is early days yet. Of course, I will post on this forum if there are any new developments!

Looking forward to it Esta :Thumb:

Good luck to you Esta but many Brits have no intention of integrating as you have done. I really wish you all the best and you have made a good life here but I am afraid that experience tells me that you are doomed to disappointment. Please prove me wrong.

If people come here and don't like it then that is fine. If people come here and like it and decide to make the move (either renting or buying) then that is fine. I still love Bulgaria and my life here, others perceptions will not affect my outlook. I have not invested any money in this idea - we converted an old donkey shed onto an annex to create an extra bedroom, initially for family and friends come to stay....of which there are many!!! Gets them out from under my feet from time to time!!!!

Sorry - I am just not sure what you mean by "
doomed to disappointment"

Good luck Esta hope all goes well.

Am I missing the point here? Surely if you offer a "
Taste of the real Bulgaria"
experience, this is for people to find out if they like it or not? If they have found out, then mission accomplished, whether the answer for them is a yes or a no. So your service is still successful, even when the outcome is not what you personally would have liked. Of course it's a bit disappointing when other people don't share our enthusiasms but you know what they say about "
one man's meat . . ."
Bulgaria has much to offer besides the rural idyll, (yes I can say so now I've been!) so I imagine the trick is to be impartial and remember we are only showing people one side of a many faceted gem. It shouldn't mean there's no point in doing it?

It will soon be a year since the last post on here - Has anybody gone ahead with a project of this kind yet? Or contemplating it or in the process of setting it up?

....As I said before, we did just as has been suggested and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Of course it doesn't matter if people don't enjoy what you enjoy or decide that the village/life/Bulgaria itself is not for them. You have given them an insight no agent will bother to give them or have the time or inclination to do so. What I meant by 'people disappoint' is because it will become apparent to anyone who decides to do this, that some people will take all hospitality on offer and then never be seen or heard from again even if they decide to remain in Bulgaria. Everything given out of pure friendship and love is not reciprocated in any way whatsoever. Before anyone mentions that you don't 'give in order to receive' (quote) there is such a thing as manners and general friendliness. Still, I know I'm old school and these things don't seem to be expected these days.
Re-reading this topic, I might be tempted to put a toe in the water again and offer our property to rent in order to move sooner rather than later. I just worry that folks might find the list I would give about what to do in certain eventualities of living in a village, might be a little daunting! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I have just revisited what I last wrote on this topic. As often happens, I seem to have put a stop to the subject. I have had more thoughts on this topic when meeting with some lovely folks (on this forum) and explaining many things about life in our little bit of heaven and viewing our property. No committment on either side I hasten to add.
The strange thing is that although I have been dithering about moving back to Britain, as some of you may remember (Am I mad? topic) I think I have re-sold Bulgaria to myself and am now coming round to deciding to stay.
Real life here in Bulgaria is not for the faint-hearted and I am pretty sure that when faced with the reality of a dream life here there are many things that will seem strange and maybe off-putting. I needn't go into the actual things because many of you will know what I mean if you have lived in a village for a few years.
I think it must be very difficult for those coming from a more ordered way of life and accommodation to have to come to terms with village living. Even the best renovated house will have problems and its location is of paramount importance of course because we all know the pitfalls of nice house/wrong location which may not be immediately noticed.
Explaining our house and lifestyle to new people showed me how much we had learnt and how 'foreign' it must all seem to someone from another country.
I woke up this morning to beautiful Autumn sunshine and a completely new vision of life here and I really think I would be 'mad' to give it all up. Maybe I should keep my caravan for my independence on visits to Britain.
Sooo.... watch this space.