Surviving in Sofia: Part 1

Since I was on a roll—literally, a rolling train heading from the Soviet Union to Bulgaria—I thought that I would continue my saga. So, getting back to the story…

The year was 1990. It was a warm Indian summer day in September when I disembarked from the Soviet Train. There were no reception committees to meet me as in China, no organized tours to usher me around. Nevertheless, I managed to find an apartment that was old but functional.

It offered a pullout sofa bed in the living room, a shower in the kitchen, and, what I had thought was only Chinese: a Turkish-style toilet that dripped and froze over in the cold winter months. The living room had a large space heater—at least it was warm! There was an additional room reserved solely for storage purposes.

From the first lap of my 4-year stay, political and economic chaos had gained the upper hand in the country. Protests and strikes made the headlines daily. The country was in a state of crisis. My hunch was that the previous ruling party had masterminded the mutiny in order to discredit the coalition of newly elected democrats.

As a result, the hardships persisted. Shelves were empty and stores were out of goods! By the onset of winter, the crisis had mushroomed. Some teenagers clued me in on a cubbyhole amidst the storefront shops on the main boulevard that sold mini pizzas for a few cents. We could tell when the market hit rock bottom by the decreasing red sauce on the pizzas! How could I survive?

One snowy day, a tractor-trailer from Switzerland that was loaded with a cargo of humanitarian aid parked in front of my bungalow. My address had been handed to the driver for the drop-off. Hundred-pound bags of flour and sugar, crates of clothes, oil, instant soups, cans of pâté, and shampoo had to be unloaded. All morning, the driver and I lugged them upstairs to the vacant room adjacent to my living room.

In plastic trash bags lay piles of exactly that, which I needed—pullovers and winter boots. For weeks on end, I had a supply of flour, oil, sugar, pâté, soup, and the magnanimously appreciated new set of warm clothing, most of which I distributed to the local residents.

Bulgaria has come a long way over past 20 years since the democracy movement ignited. On January 1, 2007, Bulgaria acceded to full membership within the European Union. Today, the country has also become home to a vibrant fashion scene. Bulgarian men love to dress in the latest styles. As a matter of fact, Bulgaria is home to a Men’s Fashion Week—a rare occurrence in any country!

Photo top right Former Bulgarian Communist Party Headquarters in Sofia by Pascal Reusch
GNU Free Documentation License at Wikipedia.
Photo center right National Palace of Culture by Cameltrader at GNU Free Documentation License Wikipedia.
Photo bottom left Old Tram by Jerzy Kociatkiewicz Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license at Wikipedia.