What are you missing in Bulgaria?

Friendly service and Melton mombary pork pie.

I'm missing the UK terribly:  fuel rationing, fights at petrol pumps, empty supermarket shelves, toilet paper shortages, astronomical truck driver wages, doom-mongering, an asinine "Prime Minister"-cum-Court Jester, kids carrying machetes.....and all the other things which makes one proud to hold a UK passport.

However will I survive another year without those home comforts?

Think you may have fallen into the Media Trap and become a Sheep to believe all the rubbish you read.

I think Jim was joking - kind of. Gave me a good laugh, anyway. We definitely have the same Prime Minister, the closed petrol stations and the half-empty supermarket shelves in our area. Not too sure about the kids carrying machetes.... 

Absolutely nothing

Family, 

nothing

Baaaaah baaaaah Newspapers. Baaaaah baaaaah BBC.  baaah Baaaa Radio. Unfortunately those idiots believe what the read and are told.

There’s a new shortage of condoms in the UK lets hope the same people buy up that stock and are bred out of humanity.

Steve, maybe I'm misunderstanding you. Or maybe things are different where you live.  But here in East Anglia, there are definitely huge issues with fuel availability, reduced stock in supermarkets, even our local GPs saying they can't do blood tests because of the shortage of the test tubes used to collect the blood sample.
The sheep are those who believe the lies that there are no problems in new improved world-beating thumbs-up wave-the-Union-Jack Brexit Britain.

Of course it’s changing! I live in Yorkshire and my town had three shootings in two years, a guy I played with for the area boys beat a man to death for drugs, the ghettos are getting bigger, Sheffield shooter boys have infiltrated one area and I wouldn’t walk the street with my German Shepherd dog, I did 15 years self employed and saw the difference when ordering materials- things missing, wrong size, not working. Apprentices not knowing how to calculate simple areas, they had just left school for goodness sake, my last firm actually lowered the entrance criteria from a grate 3 to 2. If after ten minutes from opening you haven’t phoned the doctor then there’s no more appointments, one petrol station has closed and the other has massive queues, last Sunday afternoon youths pushed a guy into the canal and wouldn’t let him out till he gave them his wallet…genius at work (the ba******) . Jobs revolve around H&S now not the job itself. I’m 54 and will be glad to see old Blighty in the distance as I tend my 600m2 garden in Bulgaria and help out in Cambodia where I’m much more appreciated.
           Be kind in your response Steve I’m ex military too.

Uh, last time I looked at a map East Anglia was well outside the M25. Maybe "they" have moved it?

There's no doubt there is media hype, they're in the business of sensationalising everything and reducing complex issues to click bait headlines.

But I also have no doubt that there are issues, very real and genuine issues, and that between Brexit and Covid many if not most are experiencing worsening quality of life in the UK.

I am missing people, transportation, etc. I am finding Shumen is a very isolating with not much to do except go to the grocery store. I don't have a car and can't go to Varna as frequently as I'd like (only on weekends and only once and a while). I hope to get to Varna more in the future and meet some expats there. 1.5 -2hrs 40 mins can be quite a long time by public transport.

Not really anyone to hang out with as the only English speakers I've mostly come across are high school kids for the most part. No forums, groups, etc. to meet people here. If anyone knows of any, please let me know. Seems like going for a coffee or a drink is the only thing to do in Shumen. Again, if anyone knows of anything to do here (with other people, not solo), please let me know.

My co-workers have families and tell me they just stay at home evenings and weekends with their family and just do things around the house.  One co-worker told me Shumen is boring even for her at the moment since things were shut down due to COVID.

At least I have some personal studies outside of my job to keep me busy.

Thanks

There is a LOT to think about before making the move! I bought an apartment in BG as long ago as 2014, and then a house and land end of 2019. Now the time has finally come where BG has opened up again, I have sort of "gone off the boil" about the whole idea. This is, in part due to the visa issues (although as a semi-retired person with a private pension and savings, I might well qualify.)
Lack of language skills bothers me, and while many say the residents are very friendly, that was not the case when I was in the village where  I bought the house a couple of years ago. Anything but!
I have a lot of cats I hoped to take with me, but have been warned they are not seen as pets in Bg and are likely to be shot??!!
Another thing that worries me as an older person is the healthcare system. I am not sure I want to be old and ill in BG. The services may be very good and I am happy to pay for care, but a few friends had nightmare experiences.
As to the situation in the Uk, there are no food shortages where I am (at least,not of the food I eat, I am a vegan) . Fuel shortages lasted about a week but all is fully back to normal now.
I will need to make a decision soon as to whether to resume the renovations to my house, or to use that money to do works for my house here in the UK and just use BG as a holiday home.
I suspect for me the moment has passed!

It's definitely a big move and not one to make without weighing up the pros and cons. My feeling for us (hubby and I) would be to spend 90 days there before committing. Not because I'm unsure, but I don't know how hubby will cope.

Renting somewhere for 90 days would have been easy enough if it were just us. Complicating factor is that, we just adopted 4 kittens! They do have their pet passports and are indoor cats, so that helps. I'm not so worried about cats getting shot, but snakes and feral dogs are a concern. Once we were settled somewhere, I'd be looking to build a secure enclosed cat run for them as a solution.

Scarlett, I do also share your concerns about old age. Being old and ill and possibly with a degree of dementia won't be helped by being in a country with a different language and no real social care.

These are all things to consider when deciding to move country permanently.

Congratulations on your fur babies Jane,how lovely! Be aware pet passports are no longer of any use I understand. Now need an animal health certificate, with added costs (sigh) I have seven cats and have also discovered I can take a maximum of five unless I am a breeder/going to an event etc.
I hope I can split them between myself and OH , but the quote is not far short of £1000 per cat to fly. Lot of money!

Ouch at the cost! That seems VERY excessive, and possibly another example of rip-off Britain. I've been told by the cat rescue in Cyprus we adopted from that their cost to get the paperwork done and ship a cat to the UK via BA flights is 350-500 EUR per cat. That's the actual cost, not what they ask for the adoption fee. It works out cheaper per cat to send 5 on the same manifest.
I think it's five cats per person per shipment, so if you go and if you fly the cats there, you should be able to split them with your partner.
We're considering driving with a van full of cats in big puppy sized crates. Not a fun trip for any of us, but once you get them across the Channel, provided you take a route that stays in the EU, I've been told by someone who did it that border crossings are very easy. We'd need to get the UK certificate to get the cats out of the country, then we can use the pet passports for border crossings within the EU, I think.
It will take at least three days to get there, but feels as if it could be easier on all of us. BA only flies pets into Sofia, so they'd need to travel all the way across Bulgaria even if flown.
Moving the fur babies and their quality of life at the other end definitely needs to be a big part of the decision making. At one stage, I wanted to move us all back to Australia where I'm from originally. We had five cats then, too, sadly four now no longer with us. But with such a long journey for them and six months quarantine at the other end, we were looking at £5000 per cat. Not an option. Plus I got sick of trying to stay polite with all the people who suggested getting rid of the cats when I would prefer to get rid of those people!

Being able to find trousers as a woman with a 38 inch waist is horrible but possible.  I also wear a lot of leggings. 

Being able to find a bra as a woman who wears a size 40G is impossible.  It literally doesn't exist.  Whenever I see another fellow be chested woman they're always swaying around without a bra and I know why.  Shein delivers larger, cheap bras.

I miss cheese and pickle sandwiches, frozen vegetable burgers, uncle Ben's microwaveable golden vegetable rice, Terry's chocolate orange, supermarket sandwiches, marmite, the daily wrap at McDonald's (I'm aware I'm a lard ass)

Neatly shaped fruit and vegetables, poundland, Sunday dinner.

The abundance of microwave meals in Britain.  Ready made tuna pasta bake and chicken curry.

I miss self service check outs.

I miss not being bitten by mosquitoes whenever I forget to spray myself from head to toe every few hours for a good portion of the year.

I miss having having a landlord that can't kick you out over a petty disagreement or over the neighbors hearing footsteps repeatedly.

I really do enjoy living in BG with my husband and kids for the most part but everything has it's downsides.

On the country side, I miss paved roads in the fields to go walking.

When it rains a lot, the feet get very muddy...

Reading your message I seem to read you can have the best of both countries, so please consider living part time in both and repair your U.K. house. Property prices increasing in both countries seems like a good place to have your monies. Enjoy your multiculturalism. Wow! 👌

There are a lot more things I won’t miss about the U.K. than things I will….in fact I can’t actually think of one thing I won’t be able to do in BG that matters.

That’s the whole point of our move, to get away from the western lifestyle, the stress and grind. It’s not good for you and I want out!

I’m not moving to BG and trying to replicate the things I do here, it’s the opposite, BG offers all the things I can’t do in U.K.

Like having a work life balance! I can’t wait to be time rich and money poor, it doesn’t matter because we will be mortgage free and have lower bills. I’ll have time to grow my food, spend time with my animals, make instead of buy, live lightly on the land with less money because there’s no need to buy so much “stuff”.

Being off grid is my dream, self sufficient and resilient, not crippled by failures in modern supply chains and economic crises.

I can’t understand people that want U.K. food, and nasty convenience food at that. Newsflash, it’s making you sick!

The food in BG (not supermarket ready meals) is the second biggest draw for me, the first is the weather that allows me to grow that amazing produce, it might look wonky and uneven but it tastes amazing and is actually really good for you. You are what you eat!

I can’t wait to NOT see a drive through junk food sign on every roundabout. I’m not surprised some expats are miserable in BG if they want the same $**t life from the U.K. in such a beautiful country.

Sounds good, Helen. 

We’ll said Helen.

Absolutely spot on HelenDinBG, I couldn't have put it better myself. You'll slot in nicely here ☺️

Ha ha, I am so glad not to have to put up with pork pies.  I love England but when we moved th the East Miss from The North West it was pork pies egg at every buffet.  Being back hot pot, steak puddings and crumbly Lancashire cheese!  Even trips would is better than Midland pork pies.

Apologies is for predictive spelling.

I see that most people miss the food of the UK.  Me also.  UK is one of the places on the planet where you can get most world food cuisine.  Somthing not so in BG.
I mostly miss Jamaican, Indian and good Chinese foods. 

So....   when in Roma...   do as the Romans.  Bulgarian's make all their own foods so i started doing the same.  When i first came to BG i had very poor culinary skills.
Now i make my own scotch eggs, Traditional Cornish Pasties and Jamaican Chicken Patty.  I make large batches of each and put in the freezer.
I do wish however Lamb was more readily available...   that said, i'll buy a goat in spring and start to fatten it up so i can have Curried Goat Rice and Peas come next winter.

I highly recomend   https://www.mysupermarketbulgaria.com
for Indian and Chinese herbs and spices, sauces etc,   English canned goods and such.
I'm still very partial to the odd Fray Bentos Steak and Kidney Pie from time to time or the odd can of Mulligatawny Soap... all available mailorder from above website.

I also miss going to the restaurant to eat but that particular avenue of pleasure has been closed down as of late.  Yes you can eat out if you have a Green Passport...   but when i do find a restaurant still open, i have to eat alone.  Such a shame.  These eating houses will go out of business for sure because it is about people enjoying food together. 
Although i have been jabbed...   i'm starting to think dying of COVID will be a better option than living in this dystopian separatist society we are building worldwide. 
Don't know about you lot...   but i'm more than happy to die free.

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Evtra, have you tried the organic shop Zoya for your rice flour? I don't know how the price compares to the other link, but here they also sell spices not readily available in the supermarkets.

https://www.zoya.bg/category?currency=B … 0%91%D0%93

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The link I sent will take you directly to the rice flour. I'm not sure I fully understood the post, did you want it with or without gluten?

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