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Author Topic: Hi from Bulgaria  (Read 5131 times)

sarab

  • Joined Jun 2015
    • New Start, New Life in Bulgaria
Hi from Bulgaria
« on: June 11, 2015, 03:12:57 pm »
Hello all. We moved to Bulgaria two years ago. I see there are members from far and wide so I won't feel out of place.

We are a middle aged couple with animal keeping backgrounds who have tried to grow as much as we could in the garden of our suburban semi in North Wales. We also had three laying hens sharing the poor abused handkerchief of a garden with two dogs. For three years we tried to get hold of a local allotment which was supposed to be on a new site, but after several changes of site, problems with planning and objections from residents it was dragging on. We had been trying to sell the house and when we finally got a buyer we gave up on the allotment idea, re-homed the ladies and moved out to Bulgaria where we bought half an acre of ground with fruit and nut trees, outbuildings, a house renovated to holiday home standard and a jungle of weeds! The house had been empty for six years but luckily the neighbours (who's family once owned it) had been using most of the growing area for pumpkins to keep the weeds down a bit. When we arrived we were greeted as friends and the garden had been planted up with scores of tomatoes and peppers, okra, aubergines, courgettes and of course, the weed suppressing pumpkins. We worked hard that summer! I learned a lot about preserving food.

We wanted to have local breeds of chickens but were given five backyard pullets from an Australian frind to get us going, then bought Bulgarian Shumens thinking we could promote this rare breed to other Brits (they proved to be good breeders but the chicks were not long lived) We still have them as well as a couple of the originals and several ex-batts (15 chickens in all) and six ducks. We have had our trials in the poultry side and lost money, but are back on track. We are getting a couple of goats this month (mum and daughter)  which will be interesting...and more work.

We grow and preserve a lot of our own vegetables, fruit and nuts (I am veggie) but a foray into geese for meat, last year, was not a success when my husband (meat eater) wanted me to show him what to do with the first cull, a rather nowty gander, after the deed was done. I told him he was on his own...the geese were sold apart from some for his Christmas dinner from the gander. He has since helped with the slaughter days on the neighbour's holding (steer and pigs) in return for some meat for the freezer. Meat is all home killed in the villages.

So we are two tired but happy holders, doing what we could never have done in the UK due to budget. We have an aged lab, a lab cross from the UK (both rescued) and a delinquant cat (who arrived at 3/4 weeks old, starving and gummy eyed and pronounced he was staying, despite my dislike of the species) We don't speak much of the language but try, and still have a laugh with the neighbours who are genrous, hard working and poor people, and very proud. It has been a steep learning curve and we are so glad we took the plunge to do it for as long as our ageing bodies can cope.

Anyone reach the end of the post? :roflanim:

cans

  • Joined May 2013
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #1 on: July 01, 2015, 07:16:51 am »
Hi.  :wave:

You have been busy the last two years. Sounds like you have settled in to you new life.
Enjoy you goats when they arrive and be prepared to spent a lot of time leaning on the gate watching them

Any queries and there is usually someone on here able to give advice

Bionic

  • Joined Dec 2010
  • Talley, Carmarthenshire
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #2 on: July 01, 2015, 07:26:49 am »
It sounds interesting. What made you choose Bulgaria?
Oh, and welcome to the forum :wave:
Life is like a bowl of cherries, mostly yummy but some dodgy bits

Womble

  • Joined Mar 2009
  • Stirlingshire, Central Scotland
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #3 on: July 01, 2015, 07:33:48 am »
Superb introduction!  I'm looking forward to hearing more from you!  :thumbsup:
"All fungi are edible. Some fungi are only edible once." -Terry Pratchett

Rosemary

  • Joined Oct 2007
  • Barry, Angus, Scotland
    • The Accidental Smallholder
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #4 on: July 01, 2015, 08:57:31 am »
Superb introduction!  I'm looking forward to hearing more from you!  :thumbsup:

Ditto  :thumbsup:

devonlady

  • Joined Aug 2014
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #5 on: July 01, 2015, 09:49:30 am »
And me!  :wave:Hello from Devon

Quirkygirl

  • Joined May 2015
  • Cwmbran, Wales
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #6 on: July 01, 2015, 01:22:34 pm »
Hi busy bees,
Lovely to hear how you got started and done so well with the language barrier and working the land..   :tree: :dog: :chook: :chook:

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #7 on: July 01, 2015, 04:17:36 pm »

Anyone reach the end of the post? :roflanim:

I read every word, and enjoyed it immensely.

Welcome to the forum  :wave:
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

sarab

  • Joined Jun 2015
    • New Start, New Life in Bulgaria
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #8 on: July 04, 2015, 09:52:40 pm »
Thank you everyone for the welcomes. I am ashamed to say that events overcame me and I forgot to check in recently...I wasn't being intentionally rude, honest!

Our goats have arrived today and are settled into their pad, which is much larger than they're used to. The poultry are very interested and slightly alarmed at these rather noisy creatures invading their space but I'm sure they'll settle. The goats have been used to running with all the usual fowl as well as peacocks and guinea fowl

It sounds interesting. What made you choose Bulgaria?
Oh, and welcome to the forum :wave:

The initial draw to Bulgaria was the cost of a property with a bit of land...we could never have done this in the UK without working full time which would have been impossible. But tis is a beautiful country too, with amazing wildlife, strong culture and proper seasons, including very hot, long summers and short, cold winters. We were looking at remote mountain properties at first, we love the natural world and peaceful environment, but common sense prevailed as I have arthritis so hills are not a good thing, and lack of public transport, hospitals, shops etc could be a problem if OH had to go home for any reason. Also my stock are part of my life and I wasn't prepared to risk them to the jackals or foxes, or even wolves in the mountains. So we are in a village with all that the mountains don't offer, as well as a more reliable water, electricity and internet service!

By the way, the reason you don't need much land to keep stock is because you can graze/browse on common land or send your animals out with the shepherd/goatherd/cowherd every day as long as the weather permits, for the princely sum of two quid a month! Unfortunately we are the only ones on our side of the village with goats so the goatherd doesn't come this way, we would have to take them to him. We might do, we'll see.

devonlady

  • Joined Aug 2014
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #9 on: July 05, 2015, 08:44:54 am »
Oh, my word! That sounds an idyllic lifestyle and I envy you your choice of home. Not that I would up sticks at my time of life (I can get homesick going shopping!) but would you consider offering accomodation to others wanting to see if your country would suit them?
I do hope it doesn't get like Ireland did, people buying properties, doing them up and selling them for huge profit to other English folk thus pricing locals out of the market.

sarab

  • Joined Jun 2015
    • New Start, New Life in Bulgaria
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #10 on: July 05, 2015, 09:39:07 am »
Devonlady there is absolutely no way that could happen in the near future. One of the reasons that you can buy a basic house on half an acre for a couple of thousand is that people have left the rural areas in droves since the end of communism, seeking what westerners have in the cities (and if certain poiticians would have you believe, in UK!) There are many villages without a single occupant and many more with less than a hundred mainly ancient villagers still trying to eke a living from the land. So many derelect houses, many held on to by family as they are worth nothing, others that no-one lays claim to. You could go a long way to solving the UK housing problem here. And yet there are plenty of homeless here too, they just don't want to live in rural areas and have forgotten how to live off the half acre that most properties have.....and the trees which line roads and fields are dripping with fruits and nuts, a forager's paradise.  Many empty areas are taken over by gypsies.

It's not all doom and gloom though. We live in a village of 650 residents, we have a good few corner shops, chemist, hardware, bakery and bars, the signs of a thriving community. We have a mix of ages but it has to be said, the over 65s dominate. There are about 30 ex-pat households of Brits, Russians, Italians and French. We don't tend to mix with them as most come out for a cheap life of idleness and drinking, but we ave proved to our wonderful neighbours that we are hear to work our small patch and integrate, for this we are respected.

Quirkygirl

  • Joined May 2015
  • Cwmbran, Wales
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #11 on: July 05, 2015, 10:50:33 am »
Do you find the language a problem or is it easy to pick up and well done to you.  :excited:

sarab

  • Joined Jun 2015
    • New Start, New Life in Bulgaria
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #12 on: July 05, 2015, 11:12:54 am »
The language is a nightmare...I get my tongue in a twist with English! First of  all they use the cyrillic alpabet. That's the easy bit. The language itself comes up there with Chinese as the most difficult. We have the pleasantries and vegetables and animals in the garden, days of the week etc and get by. The younger Bulgarians often have a smattering of English and a couple of our older villagers know a few words as thir kids live in English speaking countries. But we try and that is all that is asked of us. Conversation is the hard bit.

devonlady

  • Joined Aug 2014
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #13 on: July 05, 2015, 03:54:38 pm »
I once sat next to a dear young man from Iraq while travelling to Australia. He spoke only Iraq and German, I spoke only English, schoolgirl French and a  few words of Italian. We communicated really well by the time we reached Melbourne, a mixture of sign language, shared words and friendship. God love him, wherever he is!
The language will come to you, Sarab. A friendly smile and a helping hand meanwhile will mean more than words :)

Rupert the bear

  • Joined Jun 2015
Re: Hi from Bulgaria
« Reply #14 on: July 05, 2015, 10:35:46 pm »

Sarab

It sounds like you have won the first prize in the lottery of life ! Such a big step to take too and I worried about moving to Scotland from the south of England.
I love the proper seasons and the strong culture ethic (sigh ) if only we were younger.......

 

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