Ian W
@cyberescue1
English expat in Bulgaria
Forum posts
203
Contacts
4
About me
English
Lives in Varna
Speaks English, some French, little Italian, little Bulgarian.
Registration: 01 January 2023
Activity
Managing meals in Bulgaria by Cheryl
Hello everyone, Managing meals day-to-day can sometimes be a real mental challenge, even more so when you land in a new environment, with different schedules, habits or ingredients. How do you manage your meal routine as an expat in Bulgaria? We ...
@Cheryl Because my wife works and I'm retired and I don't really cook, we tend to eat out quite a bit. We are lucky that we have a counter service restaurant bar just 2 minutes walk from our front door, which is half the price of many other ... Read More
Has food cost increaed massively? by jeanmandredeix
Is it me or has food costs increased over past few months? I monitored my food costs on our last 6 week visit and we have only been here two weeks so far and they seem a hell of a lot higher.
@jeanmandredeix Yes, prices have certainly increased. Appears to be in conjunction with the introduction of the Euro in January. Prices had gone up anyway, but even more do now.You can save by picking the stores you shop at wisely and some have a ... Read More
Tax on pensions by gaz1
Hi all, we’re planning on moving out to Bulgaria to take advantage of the lower tax rates on out retirement. we are aware that our uk state pensions will be tax free, we believe but what about drawdown withdrawals we make from our private ...
@gaz1I claim a UK private pension and have been doing so for over four years now.I've also made lump sum draw downs. Firstly, there is an agreement between the UK and Bulgaria of single taxation only, so you can only be taxed once.Secondly, you will ... Read More
Getting older in Bulgaria by Kath948381
Do I have to return to the UK from my Bulgarian village home as I'm getting older ? I miss the peace and quiet when I have to return to the UK now and then so what do I do when I get older and older, I'm 72 , 73 later in the year.
@JimJ Very sorry to hear of your father's situation Jim.You may have already tried and I'm none the wiser, but I wonder whether you could get a transfusion privately, in a private hospital? Or may be they get blood the same way as the public ... Read More
Long Life to Everyone! by JimJ
Well, yesterday was my 76th birthday (I can't believe how quickly those years have passed!) so I've now comfortably exceeded the average male Bulgarian's life expectancy of 71.9 years. Now I have to pass the same milestone for female Bulgarians, ...
@JimJ Many happy returns Jim and may there be many more! Read More
Glass Blocks by Ozzy183a
Hi all,Can anyone recommend or direct me to a shop that sells internal clear and coloured glass blocks as can’t seem to find anything. Thanks Ozzy
@Ozzy183a Also "shop for jilishta dot com fwd slash 122-stakleni-tuhli" Read More
Glass Blocks by Ozzy183a
Hi all,Can anyone recommend or direct me to a shop that sells internal clear and coloured glass blocks as can’t seem to find anything. Thanks Ozzy
@Ozzy183a Try caem dot bgThey have a whole range of colours, shades and designs of glass blocks, from 13 Leva to 40 Leva per block.I searched Google with "стъклени тухли" ... Read More
News in English about Bulgaria by Kath948381
I'm still logging on to English newspaper s and I think it's about time I actually know what's happening in Bulgaria. Can any one recommend a Bulgarian news website to me? I'm more a Guardian reader than a Daily Mail type
novinite dot com. Read More
Managing retirement savings in Bulgaria by Cheryl
Hello everyone, Saving for retirement as an expat in Bulgaria can be challenging. With different options, rules or even taxation, expats have to understand how it works to make informed decisions. We invite you to share your insights in order to ...
@Cheryl I have a UK private pension, invested by a top investment company and administered by one of the best pension administrators.My monthly paid pension is UK taxed at source and PAYE is automatically paid to the HMRC. My pension is paid into a ... Read More
Albania vs Bulgaria for english speakers by savethequeen77
Hi my name's Moe I'll be moving to Albania or BulgariaIm trying to decifer how to market my small businesses in English in either country. Any advice or where the most English speakers are who can see my ads? Thank you
Well, if you're going to market your businesses in English, your only real hope, is in the major cities of Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas, where you'll find the most English spoken.However, as SimCityAT says, unless we know what type of businesses ... Read More
Death certificate needs to be sent to the UK quickly by Kath948381
We live in a village near to Pomorie and Burgas we can get a bus to Burgas and Pomorie . We know there's a speedy office close to the round about Mc Donald's . Is there any where nearer? Also do Easy Pay do this?
@Kath948381 Hi Kath,As far as I know, EasyPay don't do courier work. Also, Speedy, although they're part of the DPD Group, ironically, don't ship to the UK. Yes, as Gwyn says, Econt will send it DHL for you, but it's more expensive than using a DHL ... Read More
Managing retirement savings in Bulgaria by Cheryl
Hello everyone, Saving for retirement as an expat in Bulgaria can be challenging. With different options, rules or even taxation, expats have to understand how it works to make informed decisions. We invite you to share your insights in order to ...
@Cheryl Plain truth is, I didn't have retirement savings in Bulgaria. All my savings are in the UK, invested via a UK investment company, who invest, diversely, worldwide.My situation was rather different from most. I didn't have one single pension ... Read More
OMG fires raging across Bulgaria by Mrs Homemaker
https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/wildfires-rage-across-bulgaria-destroying-forests-homes-2025-07-27/Villages have been evacuated, So far no loss of life thank goodness Its just an awful state of affairs. I do hope everyone ...
Here's a thought / idea that might help save our properties and gardens...It is relatively easy to construct irrigation systems for watering agriculture. Merely pipes laid in the ground, with holes in every 20cm or so , to sprinkle water over the ... Read More
Another Pleasure of City Life... by JimJ
We're starting to see the tiniest signs of an end to our current apartment renovation (not that we're counting any chickens, mind you ..😎)The local municipality have come up with another "Cunning Plan" to make themselves some money and ...
@Kath948381 It's why we don't have a car - too expensive to run, with the stresses that go with it, including parking.Instead, here in Varna, we bought two garages and a parking space. The garages are in a block local to us (100 metres away). The ... Read More
OMG fires raging across Bulgaria by Mrs Homemaker
https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/wildfires-rage-across-bulgaria-destroying-forests-homes-2025-07-27/Villages have been evacuated, So far no loss of life thank goodness Its just an awful state of affairs. I do hope everyone ...
@josephsaad44 I'm well aware of all of what you say and know what they all stand for.I do not watch mainstream media, because it's just propaganda in its purist form. Instead I have an extensive list of Alternative media on video platforms, some ... Read More