Sat, Nov 21 2009
More than 100 results were found.
Since Bulgaria joined the European Union, interest among Dutch small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Bulgarian market had grown substantially, organisers said at a seminar entitled "How to do business with the Dutch", held in Sofia on March 27. The seminar was organised jointly by the Bulgarian Dutch Business Club (BDBC) and the economic department of the Netherlands embassy in Sofia. The seminar opened
This summer I started to ride my bicycle to work. I had bought the bike two years ago, but somehow my friends managed to talk me out of actually using it as a regular mode of transportation in this city, rather than occasionally using it in the park. I decided that by using pavements and car-free streets such as Vitosha Boulevard, I would survive. After all, I was born and raised in central Amsterdam where riding your bike in
"In an attempt to prevent speculation over food prices in Bulgaria, Economy and Energy Minister Petar Dimitrov suggested that his ministry show the `real' prices of commodities on a weekly basis." Let me show our friend Dimitrov a few REAL prices: on the Bulgarian website of Billa (http://www.billa.bg), a major food retailer, 400ml of yoghurt was offered at the amazingly low price of 56 stotinki (normal 62 stotinki).
Durankulak Lake is a protected area situated at the seaside less than six km south of the Bulgarian-Romanian border. It is world famous for hosting more than 250 rare species - fish, reptiles, amphibians, marsh birds and plants, many of them included in the Red Book of Endangered Species in Bulgaria. However, it is not only nature that attracts experts and tourists to this place of beauty. On one of the islands in the lake,
After Bulgaria's entrance into the EU, more and more individuals and companies from the Netherlands are visiting to check out the possibilities of this country. Unlike the Brits and Irish who have been coming here in droves for the past five years or so, many of my fellow compatriots seem to take more of a wait-and-see approach when it comes to leaving money behind in former socialist block countries. Right after the entry
Illegal construction in and near the town of Bansko and the surrounding national park and Strandzha Park, in south-eastern Bulgaria are being investigated and stopped by the Supreme Administrative Prosecution. In addition, they are looking into developments in the north east, in the area between Kavarna and the Romanian border, where several construction projects are being carried out in or too close to national
After a cold and wet trip to England I am happy to be melting in the Bulgarian sun. The only few dry minutes in the wet week I spent there was when I bumped into the Gay festival in the Leicester Square area. The colourful combination of muscular leather clad lispers and an army of kd lang look-alikes did not match the British summer rains. I was surprised to see that the London police did not see this happening as a
During the final stop of America's Head Cowboy, George W. Bush, European tour in Sofia, he and Sofia resident John Hazlewood, a fellow Texan, exchanged the Texas Longhorns famed "Hook `em Horns" sign. (See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hook_'em_Horns) In the following days, the Bulgarian media struggled to decide whether the foreign hand signal was a satanic gesture, a symbol of rocker solidarity, or an
I want to thank the Head Cowboy of the Hillbilly Empire and his lovely Squaw for a wonderful car-free Monday in the centre of Sofia. It was a pleasure to spend the entire morning on my balcony in Neofit Rilski Street savouring not only the peace and quite, but also the smells of the flowers and the remaining blossoms on the trees. Not since the Car-Free Sundays back in 1974 at home in the Netherlands have I
I asked many friends and relatives if they had ever done it, and since the answer was no, I just had to try the train from Sofia to Istanbul. Following in the footsteps of Agatha Christie and with visions of the Orient Express, I decided to venture where apparently recently, few had gone before. I started my research by Googling for "Bulgarian Railways" which led me to the somewhat amateurish-looking website of
The recent headline story in this and other media about the foreigners who failed the first ever English language driving test in Bulgaria really made me giggle. The poor Indians from Kremikovtsi steel plant were possibly the best guinea pigs this country could ever find. After all, the level of driving skills in their home country matches those of the members of the club that Bulgaria belongs to: "Egypt, Kazakhstan,
The one thing I like about Bulgaria is the total predictability of its rulers. The total mishandling of the Natura 2000 issue was an absolutely perfect textbook example of how things work in this country. First the Government tables a fairly decent proposal, only to have it ripped to pieces by pressure groups representing the true financial rulers of Bulgaria. After all, golf courses and apartments far outweigh the natural
All the war mongering in Africa, Afghanistan, Iraq and now again in Lebanon and Israel has started to piss me off. Feelings of rebellion against the system that I have desperately been trying to suppress for many, many years have come back to the surface. Instead of blurring out my incoherent and purposeless opinions, I decided to dedicate this space to the lyrics of some of the best anti-war songs I know. If you know some others and/or better ones please e-mail them to me.
After watching what must have been the most boring and uninspiring of all Football World Cups, I've come to the conclusion that both the type of players selected and the choice of coach, very much reflects the cultural and political nature of the nation. Although the Germans have one or two players whose names shall be remembered, all the media focus was on their new leader, "Klinsi" the wunderboy. Only in the days
Lilly and I wanted to spent a few days together to celebrate our fourth wedding anniversary and the (almost) end of her academic year in Budapest. Instead of making a mad dash for the seaside, we decided to spend four days in Bansko. Our choice was mainly because it is closer and I personally prefer the mountains in summer. We stayed at the wonderful Kempinski Hotel Grand Arena in Bansko (www.kempinski-
It was a late Sunday evening, I had a huge pile of papers to deal with but, as usual, I started reading my favourite Sofia Echo instead. After finishing the business pages, an intriguing title drew my attention - "Football, corruption and God". I wondered what football, corruption and God had to do with each other, so I started reading the article. I am truly sorry I did. Being married to a Lithuanian, who has been living
Winners buzzed to victory in the Allied Pickfords Open Sixth Annual Go-Cart Tournament held on June 17. The karting track in Borisovata Gradina saw a really great roaring party and the true winners were friendship and the spirit of sportsmanship. First place, with a weekend for two at the Spa Hotel, went to Hans Kosytorz of the German embassy, while second place was taken by Stoyan Ivanov
With Lilly out of town I had an old fashioned, immature, extra long, boys' weekend watching 12 world championship football games back-to-back in JJ Murphy's Irish Pub (www.jjmurphys.net), and more to come. Business and cultural events such as the Albena Media Events (http://2006.bwa.bg) (where The Sofia Echo picked up two prizes) and the Monday night Sting (www.sting.com) concert in Nessebar passed
First of all I want to say a few words about the American military bases in Bulgaria. Although it seems that the Bulgarian government negotiated much better deals with the representatives of Uncle Sam, I am still not convinced that this is such a good idea. The argument that Bulgaria will now become a target for Muslim terrorists doesn't fly with me since this country already put itself on that map when it joined the Yankee doodle
I have discovered that for different reasons the weeks surrounding the Easter holidays, both Western and Orthodox have become my favourite period of the year to reflect on life and death and indeed make changes to my temporary existence on the planet. Rather than making News Years' resolutions on January 1, I find the feeling of spring in combination with the memory of the death and suffering of our Lord and
AFTER spending a week in the UK I am so happy to be back in Bulgarian civilisation. Contrary to popular belief, I am absolutely convinced that my health is much better served by the air of Sofia than the invisible pollution of London. Immediately after landing at Luton Airport, and for the entire week, I experienced a burning pain in my throat which disappeared within hours after returning home...
I WAS more than a little surprised that the shopkeepers of Vitosha Boulevard attributed a drop in sales of as much as 40 per cent to the closure of their street to all cars, including taxis. The reason for my surprise was the fact that I had realised that my own increased shopping pleasure due to this closure had resulted in a four-fold increase of expenditure on my part.
I HOPE that 2006 will satisfy all your wishes. Of course I also hope this for this wonderful country in general, as it embarks on its last year outside of the European Union. This will be an interesting year and I am sure it will be full of surprises. I made a short list of what I think will be possible in the next 360 days or so...
I LOVE country music, blues, jazz and rock `n' roll, and Dwight Yoakam, John Prine and Waylon and Willie are among my all-time favourite musicians. I have more American friends than Dutch ones and Marilyn Monroe is still the best-packaged female that ever existed... So, why the hell does this nation of nice, friendly and cool people manage to piss me off so often? Why is it that they have this urge to elect some of the greatest morons in the history of mankind to power and why is it that they think that democracy is the greatest thing...
"KOOS, I've had enough of this country and I'm looking to move back to Holland"; the sombre sound of my young Dutch friend's voice cut straight through me. We had only seen each other very recently at the monthly Bulgarian-Dutch Business Drink and he was full of good spirit, eagerly awaiting the birth of his daughter who indeed showed her face to the world a few days later. My friend, who asked to remain anonymous, is a young dynamic Dutchman who fell in love with both Bulgaria and his lovely wife.
THIS week I had the pleasure of visiting the World Travel Market in London. The WTM is one of the two greatest travel and tourism exhibitions in the world and almost every nation uses this venue to display its best attributes. Most countries have chosen a theme that best displays their beauty, culture and heritage, while others, including Bulgaria, suffice with a sterile pavilion with a big banner displaying the name and slogan of their country.
MAKING social comments can be a tricky business in a country like Bulgaria. In recent months I have been asking many of my friends, both Bulgarian and expats, what they think about the murders of gangsters and other serious businessmen. The majority response was "good riddance", although most people in this country realise that this is a rather short-sighted view, since on this basis we know these people will be replaced.
I AM so sorry that I have offended some small minded people with my column about `Bulgarisation', especially since it was meant as an encouragement to improve this land of opportunistic optimism... After a week of desperately trying to avoid more confrontations with representatives of the boring class, my week took a turn for the better since I had the pleasure of meeting a man I had wanted to talk to for a long time.
MANY Western companies come to Bulgaria with the idea in mind that they can open a branch and transfer their business practises and corporate ethos to this land of wine and song, with a few minor modifications to allow for local needs and culture. But alas, after a while, they realise that those local needs and culture have taken over. Little is left of their original plans and predictions. They discover that their branch has been BULGARISED.
ON Monday September 19, I had the pleasure to fly with Wizz Air on their first flight from Sofia to Budapest. For fear of making fellow Dutchmen and Scots jealous, I won't tell you how little I paid. The service was on time, more than friendly and in many ways much more then I expected. The aircraft was an Airbus, the onboard service was charming with lots of smiles and to my surprise there were at least 20 empty seats. (Where were you all?)
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