Discounter chains Penny Market, Plus open stores in Bulgaria

Both retailers target at least 50 outlets in Bulgaria by the end of 2010.

Sofia - Kardam train disaster case resumes on September 3

The disaster was caused by a fire which erupted at about midnight on the train from Sofia to Kardam on the border with Romania, in the Dobrich region, killing nine people and injuring many others

Bulgaria’s new building permits go up as areas shrink

The number of new permits rose by 24.6 per cent to 1832 from January to March 2009 but plunged by 61.4 per cent against a year ago.

Straightening out pirates

Once one of the world leaders in music piracy, Bulgaria is slowly making its way to the straight-’n’-narrow, whether it wants to or not

Borissov Cabinet replaces all 28 regional governors

After replacing 18 regional governors on August 13, a Cabinet meeting a week later completed the process, choosing new regional governors mostly from among municipal councillors and MP candidates from Boiko Borissov’s party who did not make it into Parliament.

Deluge in Dobrich causes 3M leva in damages

Over the course of two hours on Friday afternoon August 7, a 91 litre a sq m downpour caused widespread mayhem and devastation. Scores of cars were swept away by the torrent, smashing into one another. Basements, warehouses, houses were flooded.

Rewind and overwrite

Cabinet to curtail SANS powers and resurrect former Interior Ministry organised crime-fighting unit

Strong earthquake shakes northeastern Bulgaria

The tremor's epicentre was in the Black Sea, south-east of the Kaliakrna Horn, 63km north-east of Varna and two km beneath the surface of the sea. Seismologists are now working to determine how far and to a what extent the earthquake was felt around the country

Historic museum near Kavarna looted

Artifacts were stolen over the weekend from the museum. The police is currently deployed at all routes leading in and out of the town, checking the vehicles.

Shopping malls in Bulgaria suffer from the crisis' onslaught

The number of frozen and abandoned mall projects have also risen because of bad economic teams and difficulty in getting loans.

Ban on the sale of liquor takes effect on election day July 5

City halls have the power to decide the time frame of the ban on alcohol in stores, bars and restaurants

Samuil Stoyanov winner Baza award

The Institute for Contemporary Art in Sofia awarded this year's BAZA award to Samuil Stoyanov.

Ukrainian topless DJ star tours Bulgaria

Nineteen year-old T-DJ Milana is to embark on a tour of Bulgaria that will take her to Silistra, Dobrich, Veliko Turnovo and Plovdiv.

Mr.Bricolage expands into Serbia from Bulgarian division

Doverie Brico, which owns the Mr. Bricolage franchise for Bulgaria, Macedonia and Serbia, will begin its regional expansion despite the credit crunch, the company has said

Bulgaria begins repair work on 50 road sections

Summer-time road repairs start on 50 road sections throughout the country, part of Bulgaria's programme to upgrade send and third-class roads

Boney M to tour Bulgaria

Disco legends Boney M will tour Bulgaria for five concerts in the summer of 2009

Elana Holding invests 30M euro in wind park

The projected annual revenue from the wind park operation is estimated at 14.5 million euro during the course of 5200 hours of effective work. Completion and connection to the national grid to be achieved by the end of 2010

Paramedic units will be deployed in danger zones

Ambulances will be positioned at danger points throughout the country during the summer in a bid to expedite medical assistance

Civil police to be present at high-school proms in Dobrich

Police and schools liase to make for a safer prom month

Cannabis growing equals two years prison

Two years behind bars and a 5000 leva fine for growing weed worth less than 2000 leva. The court ruled that all appeals are forbidden.

Bulgarians owe unpaid taxes on income of 21 300 000 leva in 2008

The National Revenue Agency finds discrepancies between the declared income and properties of 252 people

Earthquake shakes parts of Bulgaria, Romania

Seismologists register incident as 5.3 on Richter scale, with an epicentre in the region of Vrancea in Romania.

Economic crisis knocks down housing prices throughout Bulgaria

Residential prices will slip to their lowest in the third quarter of up to 30 per cent on an annual basis, analysts say.

Sofia Carrefour to open in February 2010

After Bourgas, Carrefour eyes Sofia next, but not before February 2010

Project of the Year 2008 awards

Tulip Foundation Project of the Year 2008 awards go to projects that combat loneliness, social isolation and inequality.

Islamophobia in Bulgaria?

Allegations that radical Islam is infiltrating Bulgaria fuel the existing fear and loathing of Muslims that is the legacy of Ottoman rule and more recent demonising of Muslims

Turkish and Bulgarian sister cities sever ties over Armenian genocide issue

Some Bulgarian municipalities recognised the events that took place in the Ottoman Empire during 1915 as genocide.

Preserving traditions

Home-produced food made by time-tested methods using local produce tastes better

Winter is the time to relish the autumn harvest of the fruits grown from the seeds that were sown in the spring. Storing and preserving food belongs to a long tradition of preparing for the harsh months of winter, when nature slumbers and people move indoors to stay warm and conserve energy. In the UK, as across the so-called developed world, most people no longer live in tune with nature.

Esoteric symbolism, dilapidated barns

Finnish art comes to Dobrich

The Dobrich Art Gallery recently held an exhibition of works by four artists from Bulgaria and Finland. At hand for the opening ceremony was Finnish ambassador Kauko Jamsen. He began by drawing on events from the past: "The Finnish army in 1878 took part in Bulgaria's fight for freedom." In addition, 2008 marked the 90th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

A ceremony of remembrance

Along with national holidays, most villages in Bulgaria have their own special days to honour their creation. And, naturally enough, there's always a big party

Every year the townspeople of Donchevo (population 1000) hold celebrations to commemorate the settlement of their village. About 90 per cent of Donchevtsi are descendants from, or members of, 100 ethnic Bulgarian families that had relocated there in 1940 from Asirlik, a village in what is now southeastern Romania (following the Second Balkan War and World War 1, the Bulgarian-Romanian border moved south). The Dobroudja regional government then allotted plots of land to them in Donchevo.