The all new adventures of a Kiwi guy, doing the property hunt jaunt in the Balkans.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
| Fri Mar 02, 2007 3:32 am | |
| Well I went down & booked a flight to Athens about an hour ago.... Don't have to pay for the flight till the 16th of this month. Gonna cost NZD$2300.00 to get there with Emirates. Bulgaria here I come! (well may be) lol. |
Fri Mar 02, 2007 8:42 pm | |||||||||||||
Today I've been looking at transport options from Athens to Bulgaria. The train looks like the best option, well the cheapest anyway.
Well folks I actually made it to Bulgaria! Couldn't believe the boarder control. We had to get off the bus three times to have our passports checked! The Customs Lady at the final check point must have never seen a NZ passport! she went over the whole thing with a magnifying glass, I think she must have been frustrated at the smirk on my face but I just couldn't help myself.... It's the only time I've ever had someone that fussy with a passport. Personally I didn't care much for Turkey but loved Greece & would like to get work on the islands at some stage in the future. Soooo my plan is to buy near to the Greek boarder.
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31/06
Found a really nice hotel for 40lev / night which is the same price I had to pay for "Hotel California" around the corner. The rooms a lot smaller but at least I can use the toilet in a normal manner / posture. Place is called the Krystal Hotel, quite close to the town centre, Built in the renaissance period. Really I need to halve my accommodation costs, just to keep it all under control.
Mon Jul 02, 2007 4:40 pm Subject: Day 1 of my house hunt....
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Today was the first day of my house hunt. For those of you who don't know I was in the hunt for a house in the 20,000 lev bracket in the South west of Bg. Sad to say it's looking pretty grim, Basically I'm after something that's sound structurally, ie reasonably water tight & with the doors & windows still in tact. The cheapest house available was just under 40,000 Euro, 80sq meters, sound but needs bringing up to western standards.... So I'm not really getting excited about tomorrows day out.....
Tuesday 03 July Hummmm as I suspected day 2 was about as inspiring as day one. Ended up been driven around 300k's with the agent & his taxi driver mate... I really can't figure why he wouldn't use his own car, his excuse was that the air con wasn't very good, but who cares! there's always the windows to wind down. The cost was astronomical, you know close to Richard Bransons fees for his space flight... I did say I was happy to cover costs since really I more then anything wanted to have a good look around. What frustrated me thou was that I told him where I was wanting to look & we started off going in the opposite direction! so really wasted time in Bansko when I was wanting to be South.... Eventually we got down to 20k's from the boarder in the Pirin area. Loved the mountains & Melnik where they make the wine under the cliffs. Definitely worth a visit! For the whole day we only saw 2 houses that were actually for sale. One 5k's from Bansko for 40,000 euro & the other near Melnik for 38,000 lev. Both admittedly in good areas but both beyond my range :( So I'm off to Sofia for a quick visit.
Melnik
04 July
Caught the train from Balgoevgrad to Sofia, I would suggest taking the bus if you're in a hurry. The train is pretty slow stopping often & the windows were pretty etched up so the view was foggy unless you stand up & open the top window. Hopped off the train at Sofia & spent over 2 hours trying to find the place where I was meant to be staying.... Kept asking for directions but no one seemed to know much about anything. Finally after walking for ages I managed to track the place down, Whew!
Hostel Mostel Sofia (www.hostelmostel.com)
05 July 07
Guess what? it's raining here in Sofia today & I don't even have a rain coat!! what a dummy eh? Mind you I bought one jersey with me & have been constantly mocked for that, ha ha! I did actually use it in Velingrad for about 10 minutes, (to justify bringing it more then anything else) Today I might just chill out at the museum.... & spend the day uploading photos of my travels to my Photobucket site... I really feel like I should be back down south house hunting....
06 July 07
Knocked around Sofia for a few days, stayed at the Hostel Mostel backpackers & had a great time with them. 20 lev / night with breakfast & a bowl of pasta in the evenings. Un limited internet access too & a place to upload my pics for the rellies to squiz at.
Sofia was ok I guess, a typical big city & at first I didn't really take to it. On arriving here I had a great deal of trouble getting directions to the hostel, Stupid on my part because I should have written the address down before leaving Balgoevgrad! I assumed that it would be no problem since it was in the city center next to the casino & Postbank....
On exiting the train station I asked directions to the city center, weird but no one seemed to understand what a city centre was! One guy pointed across the tram lines towards the buses so that's where I headed, buying a ticket from one of the little booths... The ticket lady was able to sell me the ticket but didn't have a clue as to what I was s'posed to catch with it??? Bus or tram? which number bus or tram???? & so was the next 2 1/2 hours spent wandering around aimlessly asking questions & getting the "No speak English" look... The ticket was useless because I couldn't figure what went where, I hopped on one tram which promptly turned off 100 mtrs down the track so had to abandon it, and hoofed it all over the place asking "City centre city centre" only to be pointed back to where I had just came from.
Finally salvation came in the form of the big Mac Donalds "M" arch. It had never looked so pretty before & even had a sorta glowing aurora about it. They happen to provide free internet access & I was back into my email getting positive address identification for the "Mostel" From there it was plain sailing. Later I found they did free pickups... lol
After a couple of days I had my fill of Sofia, was constantly getting lost only to find out by one local that the actual map I had was printed as a mirror image! No wonder!!! She was a great lady & walked me almost right back to the hostel & we had a great chat about the perils of the Bulgarian people & the changes they were currently going through. On departing we both felt touched by the instant friendship that had developed & it was kinda moving, probably never to see each other again.. All this in a big city & she wasn't the only kind soul there, so Sofia was starting to grow on me...
07 July 07
With the burning desire to head South.... yup you guessed it, like all my plans they end up out the window. Caught the bus to Veliko Tarnovo! Good trip, 14 lev & 3 1/2 hrs. The bus driver was very civil & could have used the boot a bit more but we eventually got there & not to be disappointed either!
VT is the most attractive little city I have been in, here in Bulgaria & like all things Bulgarian, If it's not cheap it's free! Staying at another "Hostel Mostel" which is an old building (150 years) but completely rebuilt. The hosts Tod, Zheni & Stanimir are great! Tod & Zheni are the first Bulgarians I've met that don't smoke.
Hostel Mostel in VT
Been here 4 nights & loving it. Cheaper then Sofia too! While here I met up with Lozza & we had a great time with her friends over dinner. really interesting people and a bucket full of laughs! Thanks Loz! :)
Apart from the fact that VT is a very pretty place with the fortress, town & river winding through it, the most striking & refreshing feature was the total lack of restrictions on where you could go within the entire fortress complex! I couldn't find one "No access!" / "Keep out!" sign. If it was in NZ you wouldn't be allowed within a mile of the place because OSH (Occupational Health & Safety) would have it all fenced off as a hazardous site.
So you can imagine I had a GREAT time standing on the edge of the executioners cliff which must have had a 100ft drop off & was climbing all over the ruins through the half built / demolished fortress & poking my head in all the dark corners I could find.
I really hope the light show is on tonight, missed it last night because I ended up in a great restaurant!
Needless to say I think you can tell that Bulgaria is getting in my blood! 
Yes!
I got to see the light show (free! Like most things, if not free it's usually dirt cheap) Great job they did of it too. I've heard it actually costs 200 euro to do the show. What seems to happen is that a bus load of tourists chip in & pay the 200 euro & the rest of the city gets a free light show! funny! that's the way things work over here it seems.
12 July 07
With the impending doom of my return flight on the horizon I thought I'd better take serious action & do something substantial about the property hunt... My work situation in NZ has deteriorated a bit & there's nothing to do there till late Sept
I've come to the conclusion that it's cheaper to stay here then go home! I had been up town to get a calling card from Vivatel to use back at the hostel to contact my airline, but only to find out that they use another phone co & the card was useless. Back to Vivatel I go & explain in slow english that I can't use the card at the hostel & can I use it with their phone? Eventually the attendant comes around & attempts (& I stress the operative is attempt) to dial Emirates in Athens. Well that was a spectacle in itself! I've never seen so much button pushing in my life & on 3 phones at the same time!!! 2 land lines & one cell phone! Finally after half an hour the phone is handed to me (only one fortunately!) & a Greek voice from Emriates airlines... "I would like to change my return flight" I ask tentatively thinking "here we go, I hope my card doesn't run dry half way thru the complicated operation. "What date?" "31 Aug" I reply as nicely as I can. "Ok that's fine & we'll transfer your free accommodation voucher as well"
I just about fell out my chair, didn't get one call transfer & no charges, nothing! I almost wept with joy! sooooo funny it was when compared to the calling card circus! Emirates have come to the party again & I walked out of Vivatel shaking the hand of the assistant warmly, really I could have kissed the poor girl, the strife she went thru to get me to the Emirates operator! Soooo I'm free for another 6 weeks! Horray!!! Just gotta figure how to not go back at all hummmmm....
Later on,
This evening the weather took a change & a thunder storm rolled over us, It felt so good that 4 of us stayed out in the court yard under the marquee while the fork lightning put on a show around us & then the rain came tipping down! We were quite happy to get a little soaked while eationg hot dogs & for the first time in a whole month I started shivering even with my jersey on! None of us were going to retreat for cover thou & the feeling of having all the heat sucked out of you was just awesome!!
Friday 13th July!
And a good one it's been too. If this is as black as it gets here I'm sold on Bg! Went to the light show (yes I'm still in VT) for the 4th time, dragged some of the others from the hostel up there. I've actually seen the show more times then the host of the hostel! The other night we got an extra light show on the way up there, in the form of some little bugs that glow in the dark! They are about the size of a cockroach & look similar, & their buts glow like a bright green LED! Really cool & I had to take one home to show the others. Cool little blighters!
Went & visited a couple of the local agents to see what they have on their books. One thinks I'm a dreamer looking for something under the 20k leva bracket & the other managed to get quite a few listings for property in the south of VT, trouble been is they can't run me around till mid to late next week. No problem cause I'll head south & pay a visit to friends there in between.
26 July 2007
Wow! I can't believe 13 days have past since my last entry here.
I'm back in Veliko Tarnovo again staying with my new friends at the Hostel. A really cool bunch & we have a great time doing stuff.
A lot has happened in this time, visited Aussie Sue for those of you who know that she has her own blog here & is just as colourful as her tales & if you are thinking of moving out this way it's a must read.
http://www.an-aussie-in-bulgaria.com/?m=200502
She was really good to me & a mine field of info on life in Bulgaria, She took me out to see some of the sights & it was good to just truck around town with her & see the daily struggles of an expat in a strange land (strange as in different)
I ended up hiring a car off one of her Bulgarian mates & having independent transport is a bit of a God send, although it's gonna drain the bank balance somewhat faster then I can handle. So to offset this I've ended up living in the car two or three nights at a time, when the smell gets unbearable it's time to check back into a hotel / hostel to do the washing & have a shower... One of the great things about traveling around in the south is that in most places in the mountains, there are springs running on the sides of the roads, sometimes more then one per kilometer, & you just about always have access to cold clean drinkable running water. So when I get up, it's a matter of driving down the road to have a quick wash & then off to find the local coffee shop for a caffene fix & some "mish mash" which is one of my favorite brekkie dishes. Mish mash is a bit like scrambled eggs but fancier.
Rodophe Mountains
Another way to offset the expense has been car pooling. Staying at the hostels there's sometimes others who want a lift in the same direction so I just ask to share fuel costs.
Speaking of fuel the consumption is a bit on the high side because the fuel cap doesn't seal & Diesel has been pouring out the filler on the windy roads. Every service station I go to doesn't have replacement retro fit fuel caps so I can only put 20 leva in at a time since there's not much point watching $$$$ pouring down the side of the car.
Driving over here is an experience in it's self! not for the faint hearted! On my second day I was starting to get the hang of the windy bumpy roads so was upping the pace to match the locals, down in the mountains in the South, come flying around a corner to meet a hay stack right in the middle of the road!!! Hit the anchors & slid right to the base of the hay... to observe two little wagon wheels underneath... Yup Farmer Ivan with his wagon & horse Just parked there right in the middle of the road! He was an old fella with a weatherbeaten face like they all have here & had a big smile on his dial for me, I just had to chuckle at that one.
Over here they still use the horse & wagon for their farm work, just like my mums family back in the 1930's. So cool to see that & hay stacks mounded up in the fields. I hope it never changes, adds such character to this land along with the live stock wandering thru the villages on their way to the fields with the Shepard's, or just by themselves. I love this place!
Other things are happening... Did my first paid tour! It's been really hot back here in VT & I was just hanging out for a nice cool swim in a river. Tod the hostel manager knew of a water fall to the South but didn't know it's exact location, (He's from Sofia) so I set off in the car in search of water.
After an hour or so I stopped in a little village for a bite to eat & amongst the locals a couple of "Engliski" accents stood out above the rest of the conversation the locals were having. I said hello & was immediately offered a drink on them! Got chatting about life in Bg & there was no way they were going back to "Mother England"
These guys had fully integrated with the locals to the extent that the villagers refuse to call them English. Was great to see. They pointed me in the right direction for the water fall & I had my swim! NICE!!!! A couple of days later Todd & I had 2 car loads of backpackers paying good money to go for a swim! Was good for Todd since he can now offer this service for the guests, Of course I was happy to see him get the cash, I just wanted the swim. I've ended up with a people mover doing regular tour trips with the backpackers to a couple of popular spots, great fun!
It turned out one of the backpackers was also in the house hunt game too, so we have teamed up to give the agents a run for their money, both of us are looking for the 20,000 leva "dream home" & I have been considerably encouraged by what I've seen so my mind has been ticking over the last day or 2.
The guys at the hostel have been just great & I'm now considered one of the staff, helping out picking up guests, fixing computers & doing up grades to get them running nicely.
The hostel is very old (150-160 years) mud brick & trimmer joists, but is almost completely rebuilt to a very high standard by a local resident builder & he is a minefield of expert information, A nice quitely spoken man who takes great delight in the project & so far it's taken him 2 years non stop and boy he's done a lot of work here! He showed me all through the place & all the artefacts that he discovered in the process. Facinateing!
For those of you who don't know, when I first joind this site back in 2006 my conquest was to get a house for 20,000 leva. I'd just like to say that this is still possible & you don't have to be as good as in Romania to do it. Although down South might be a real challenge & were not talking mansions here guys, just humble abodes.
02 August 07
Well more adventures of various sorts have occurred over the last week or so, very interesting & an insight into what can go wrong in "Bulgarian paradise" I had a backpacker keen to do the Veliko Tarnovo - Varna trip chipping in on the fuel costs. Staying at backpackers is good for that, often others jump in for the ride & it helps keep the costs down & is great company. Varna what an interesting place but I'd have to say it's not for me & the same opinion was held by my passenger. Way too over crowded & full of the opportunists who will bleed your wallet dry in a split second if given half a chance.
We sat down for dinner at a seaside restaurant & right from the start I felt like a money tree about to be harvested. The food was just about average unlike the service which was a foreign concept & we had worked out the total price to be about 14 leva. The meals were served one after the other & my mate who ate first didn't eat the lettuce leaf on his dish. Well we could have sworn that the same lettuce leaf arrived on my dish!! (mine been the second meal served) So I made sure I ate it so some other sucker didn't get it....
Next we ask for the bill, & they promptly remove the menus, me thinking "here we go" The bill is presented 19 leva.... surprise surprise! On that I go over to the draw where they stow the menus & rummage through picking a menu out & returning to the table, open it up & hello hello... The prices are all much lower then the first! Bonus!!
We call the waiter over to the table, "sorry wrong bill" I say pointing to the items on the bill & the corresponding prices in the menu. "No no!!" says waiter "Old menu" So we ask them how come the old menu is on the top of the pile of menus... Gosh it was funny. Out comes the manager to sort us out & My mate point blank ask's whether it's possible they have a local & tourist price menu. Not only had we been charged tourist price but they added on extra "food tax" which was a new one to us. So we decided to sit & if they wanted they could call the police in & we'd sort it from there. Nice try guys! It's illegal to have a dual price structure in Bulgaria so they backed out of that one pretty darn quickly.
My mate went back to VT & I cruised down the coast. If you can find a non touristy beach, the black sea is really pretty, & there are relatively untouched beaches down the coast, but I much prefer the Rodophi mountains in the South & that's where I headed next, via Plovdiv.
Trying to drive around Plovdiv is an absolute nightmare of one way streets & crazy Bulgarian drivers. It was dark by then & I had to give up on my search for the backpackers & drove into the hills to stay in "Hotel Kadet" parked up in the trees, nice with the windows wound down & sunroof open. Next morning I was back & after 4 hours of searching, I find the Hikers hostel. What a relief & I was about 3 days overdue for a shower, shave & laundry, so was looking like a homeless tramp. Funny the looks you get!
Two more backpackers Kath (Aussie) & Brent (USA) join me for the mountain run & a nice time is had by all. They seem to think my driving is very Bulgarian.... "if you can't lick em join em" I say.
Anyways us kiwis are pretty used to windy roads & little straights to over take. The pot holes are a bit of a novelty thou. It seems I have integrated well on the roads, he he. Got into the Devils Gorge & there was a massive thunderstorm, Awesome when you are in a canyon 300 feet deep or more. It's a beautiful place & I'd love to be based in that area.
Trigad Gorge
Another night was spent in Hotel Kadet, the three of us rugged up & I had inquired if the others snored them knowing my complaints about snorers in the backpackers. Turns out I woke them both up with bemused looks on their faces looking at each other. Embarrassing!
Brent & Kath
01 August 07
Home run to Veliko Tarnovo Hostel Mostel,
which has incidentally ended up my new home in Bulgaria. The guys there are just great! It rained most of the way back & this is something new for me here since it's only about the second time rain has fallen here in a month. 40k's from VT the car loses it's drive & I'm thinking "great! stuck in the middle of no where, can't speak Bulgarian & need a mechanic"
Some of the local villagers try & help but to no avail. They put me in touch with a car recovery firm that wants 200 Euros to transport the car to VT. No thanks buddy. My good friends at the "Mostel" send out a rescue tow for me. Guy turns up at 11pm ish, we mime towing procedure with me in the Kadet rental, him in a Reno people mover. Off we go! I've never been so scared for a long time, if any of you know how Bulgarians drive, well it's not much fun been tied onto the back of one with a 4 foot tow rope!!
All I could see was the back of the Reno & at warp speed cutting corners & doing overtaking maneuvers in the night with mucky road spray hosing the windshield constantly while the wipers were disintegrating.... I'm thinking "Lovely!! I'm about to be in a 2 + car pile up, Great!!!!!" The concentration needed to keep the car on the road, away from the Reno which is VERY VERY close at speed & stop the rope snatching & breaking something just sapps all your strength out of you after 30 minutes. A miracle we made back in one piece!!! Thank you God!
Now to get the car fixed..... They say it's the clutch. 150 leva!
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