My blind date with Sofia

Over the past week I spent in Turkey, I told several people I met I was going to see Sofia, (Bulgaria) for the weekend and a common question I got was, "Why do you want to go there??!" Even the travel agent asked me that, which was a bit of a concern and quite distressing to me. The truth is, I met three Bulgarian women in Athens a few weeks ago who didn't necessarily have a high opinion of Sofia either. Naturally, I decided to go anyway, despite not knowing
anything about the place! I figured at the very least I knew some people who could show me around.

Of course given that Bulgaria's a NATO member and the newest country admitted to the European Union, I figured it couldn't be THAT bad. I also want to point out here that this trip isn't always about seeing the Great Wall or the Vatican (though important) but to visit, learn,
embrace, and experience different things. If anything, I've tended to be disappointed by the big "must see" cathedral/monument/tourist trap (See my post http://danielstriparoundtheworld.blogspot.com/2008/08/denmark-and-little-mermaid-part-i.html ) and have found that some of my experiences at the local food stand, random encounters
at the bus stop, and hangin' with locals in their dive bar has proven to be more memorable and lasting of an impression. Ok enough deep thoughts for the day. "Boli me glavata!" (I have a headache!)

I took the 10 hour bus ride into Bulgaria and throughout the trip I'd look outside the window and see some pretty dreary areas. Small and poorly lit towns with a couple of fluorescent lights here and there. Pretty depressing stuff-- and I thought to myself what the heck am I doing??! I should have listened to everybody else! It didn't help that my passport was checked four times throughout my journey (yes Bus Lady, I'm the same American tourist you saw just a little while ago in seat 11, in this very same bus... Now leave me alone to check out this wonderful scenery!)

I arrived late at night and walked to my hostel, which was also in a very poorly lit side street. At this point I thought to myself this is the part in that horror movie we've all seen, when the stupid guy goes into the haunted house to see where the monster is hiding. "No, don't go in there you stupid guy!" Well, this stupid guy went down the street anyway and just hoped to make it the three blocks without incident. I did just fine (no monsters) and found my cozy hostel-- arms, legs, and head intact.

Turns out, the city is actually quite nice. I mean it's not the cleanest city in the world but certainly not the ugliest or dirtiest. Strange thing I noticed was that despite the sunny, dare I say, California-like weather of 75-78 degrees, everybody I saw was wearing a thick overcoat or jacket and rather bundled up. I was the only one wearing shorts and a tshirt. So much for trying to fit in with the locals, eh?

I met up with Radi, whom I met in Athens, later that evening and one of the first questions she asked me was what I thought about Sofia. A few other people I met that day asked me the same thing. I told Radi, as well as everybody else, that I thought it was quite nice (especially given what I saw on my bus ride in!) I think the prevailing perception amongst Bulgarians (as confirmed by Radi) is that they still feel like the red-headed stepchild, a bit unsure of her new place in the EU and what the rest of the world thinks of her.

Radi was a great host throughout the short weekend. Checked out some local restaurants, ate typical dishes like cow tongue, Bulgarian stew, (forgot the name) and drank some pretty good Bulgarian wine. Apparently, wine is one of the things the Bulgarians are confident and sure of. As a two-buck chuck connoisieur I may be overreaching here, but I have to agree!

The weird thing about Bulgaria is that they have celebrated Halloween for a few years now. I don't understand it and is yet another indication of the worlds' inexplicable embrace of American and Western culture.

The other strange and very different thing I encountered is how Bulgarians say yes and no. Nodding up and down means no and shaking your head from side to side means yes. In other words, Bulgarians are a bit schizo and a confused lot! "Halloween, Levi's and McDonalds- you
name it, we'll take it. But we will never conform to how the rest of the world (besides Greece, actually) says yes and no!"

Anyway, after a short weekend of seeing Sofia, I'd say my first date went well. Will I call her back for a second date? Not sure if she's marriage material at this point (we'd have a hard time communicating with that whole yes means no and no means yes thing anyway) but hopefully she'll blossom into her full potential in a few years!