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Having read quite a few of the posts on here I see there seem to be mixed feelings about the life in Bulgaria which leads me to think that maybe some have made a mistake ? and they are not as happy as they thought they would be but can't do anything about it as they have all thier investment in Bulgaria, so tell me if this applies to you and why you think your not as happy as you thought you would be

It might have gone a little off-topic but surely in life we don't actually choose a place solely on the happiness factor. So many things come into play when making a life-changing decision to move abroad. Balancing up all the pros and cons and then of course, thinking 'will I be happy in my new life?' In my case, life made a change necessary from my home abroad and Bulgaria seemed to fit the bill. It seemed it would make sense financially and I found a house I loved. Life had to move on for many reasons, just like for other folk and then I found the happiness I hoped would put the icing on the cake. In all honesty though, if I could afford the space and house I have here I would move back to my roots in UK. As it is, there is no way this could happen and the bills would certainly be crippling, so yes, I am more than happy in my retirement as I ever hoped I'd be.

I admire the honesty of all of you, but I can't help feeling that if you had a bottomless pit of money then you would be somewhere else? Maybe I have misunderstood but that's how it comes across to me

well Krypton .... I certainly would be and I dont mind admitting it !

Quite correct Krypton. I came to live abroad quite by accident, divorced and had to stay for protecting my interests in the property. Started work and then managed to get my own business with my new partner. One thing led to another, so my circumstances are very different to most people who choose to retire abroad. I would never have moved abroad out of choice, no matter what happened in the UK. My family are still there working and coping quite happily. Life is life anywhere and we all have to get on with it. Much as I love the sun and sand for holidays I can't think why anyone would want to live fulltime in such a lifestyle which can become very boring. At least for me. I think many people have lived to rue the day they moved to any country abroad when reality sets in. Here in central Bulgaria I have land, animals and time to grow (or try to) my own veggies and flowers. Hot summers and cold winters but the weather, much as I like it, should not be a big factor in moving abroad. Hope my words make sense and might be useful for some about to take the big step. Finally factor in the cost of flights and the distance from airport to home. I don't want to put anyone off buying in Bulgaria, I still think it is tremendous value for money if you buy with care and I do believe in a bright future in the long term for the country. When a country is largely poor, the only way is up. Happy New Year everyone wherever you are.

Yes I really am as happy as I thought I would be, and I acknowledge that Bulgaria has it's problems, as does every place on earth tha man chooses to inhabit.

I think part of the reason is I did not have a dream exactly ... I knew precisely what I wanted from life and found it here. Space, cleanliness to breath fresh air, less crime, less people, the room and time to keep my beloved dogs, now totalling 6 with 3 cat and 2 rabbit companions.
I have time to talk to people, timw to learn, time to cook and time to work if I wish ... in other words freedom and time.

Unfortunately for some people this means boredom and too much time on their hands ...so all I can say is to have to really know what you really want.

Thankyou for all your replies its been a real eye opener but overall you all seem to be very happy although you all accept there's problems living in Bulgaria but its the same anywhere thanks again and lets see if anyone can add anything else

Hello Dianna its good to see you again I've missed seeing you on here hope your well silly question really by the sound of your post your more than well, sorry Ashley I'm not trying to hi-jack the post but I just thought I would say hello hope you don't mind

sarah

In all honesty myself,hubby and son all regret moving to bulgaria,yes it has been an experience and after 3 years of putting up with it we are moving on this year never for it to be repeated,if we could move our house and put it somewhere else we would do it,we did,nt come here looking at things through rose tinted glasses,but we did,nt realise we would be taken back in time 20/30 years,its taken 3 years for us to get a simple thing like a wheely bin, gets very frustrating sometimes, Our village has not exactly been the nicest or friendliest,they only want to know you to try and con money off you,(try)does,nt help when 99 % of the village are turks and 1% are slarvs and they are the worst, nothing but a corrupt society from babies up to your oldest babba,try and put money into the village as there is a lot of unemployment and they stand in front of you quoting you euros,its a joke,every time you open your mouth everything doubles in price,even down to a bale of straw.Quite frankly Bulgaria sucks,perhaps there are some of you that love it but we are all allowed an oppinion and this is ours

LL ,I suppose it;
s down to the area you buy in,or the village perhaps ?
Another part of Bulgaria,and you might think it;
s heaven,we have Turkish in our village,perhaps 50%,greek 15% and Bulgarian 35%,being near enough to the border at Svilengrad,cant think of a nicer people,our village is great,we can go out anywhere and get chatted to or invited in,or we can be left alone,if you've made your mind up,fair enough but i would check out other areas,there again research goes along way into future happiness when moving to a foreign country,not so bad if you only spend a few thousand,you can STILL change your mind,it's when tens of thousands are spent,early on,then you can feel trapped if you've made a mistake.
I'm happy,will be happier if i find another property or land by the coast somewher soo i can mooch back and forth.

If there is one thing we regret is that we never done our research,we loved the house and don,t think we even noticed where it was situated,we have been to other regions in bulgaria and have thourght things might have been different if we had lived there,but i suppose you don,t know until you,ve tryed it,when we go from here,where we go we will make sure not to jump into things again and check it out properly,plus will never have to chop another piece of wood

Sorry to hear how disappointed [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] you are Lou, I can understand what you’re saying about stepping back in time and how difficult it is to do the simplest of things in Bulgaria, I found this very frustrating at first and hard to come to terms with, and to some degree I still do but it was a health issue that made me return to the uk but if I was in full health I would return that’s not to say that I would be happy about everything in Bulgaria, I think I was very luck with location and the village I chose the locals are incredible friendly and would never take anything or even ask for anything in return for help, I couldn't be doing with the chopping of logs, although in the uk it was a multi fuel burner and only needed topping up one every 24 hours, we just used the air-con on heat and gas heaters which was just about ok considering the size and location of the house, the one thing I did/do find hard to swallow was the poverty it was/is difficult for me to accept seeing children begging for money or looking in bins when I didn't have to, I guess I wear my heart on my sleeve, anyway that’s it end of ramble, but wherever you go I wish you all the best and happiness

Well at last some really honest answers. They bear out the importance of checking out the village with the house you fall in love with. I fell in love with my house and took no thought to the village. Having lived abroad happily it didn't occur to me. Very very fortunately I chose a pleasant village with no real poverty, nice villagers and basic amenitites. I accept it is quite difficult to find out things about a village however much you do research. When I was viewing with our agent I was whizzed through villages very quickly. Little time allotted to take in the surroundings. I remember asking if there was a shop and a bar and told 'yes' and that was it apart from seeing a couple of babas sitting chatting. I am so sorry that your village turned out to be a nightmare and wish you luck on your return to UK unless you would consider a move in Bulgaria.

Thankyou for your reply ,we are not moving to UK but to somewhere more civilized where we can say "
yes "
by nodding our head and actually walking out with it [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] as appose to it being put back!! No seriously we are heading off down to Greece

That's where I came from Loupyloo! I had good reasons for leaving because I had a beach snack bar on a tiny island there. It was very hard, but enjoyable work. Two winters I got quite ill and since I am normally a nery healthy person I decided that at 64 it was time to retire. Your experience of Bulgaria will be of use to you there because the Greeks can be a strange lot too! However, I had some good Greek friends which offset the bad. At least you can nod your head properly. I lived there for over 15 years, some of them on my own and had a very happy life there so good luck to you and let us know where you are off to.

Thanx very much yet again another experience you gotta do it ! to have tried and to have failed!!! is to of never tried at all!! after all we are a long time dead!!