31st May 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
by Sarah Lampert Sarah Lampert was Third (later Second) Secretary Political in Sofia from 1991 to 1994. Her memories of Bulgaria are of the challenging time of transition between the old guard and the old way of doing things, and the new, but also of the relaxed and sunny atmosphere in Sofia, the stunning Bulgarian […]
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27th May 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
by Phil Dexter Phil Dexter worked as British Council teacher and Teacher Coordinator in Sofia in the period 1987-1994. In Bulgaria, he set up and developed centres for self-access English lessons for students from secondary foreign language schools – a project that is now successfully used in other British Council representatives around the world. Phil has many dear memories from […]
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16th May 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
by Lynn Bailie Lynn Bailie originates from Sunderland in the North East of England. She lives with her husband and son in a village near Burgas. Five years after buying a house in Bulgaria they moved to Bulgaria permanently. “That’s the way people do things here. Everyone who gave up their time to help were […]
13th May 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
by David Stokes David Stokes was Director of British Council Bulgaria from 1991 to 1997. He was the first British diplomat to stay in a Bulgarian family whilst learning the language. David was also asked by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to “run the British Council as if it was in Western Europe’”. David and his wife Pepy […]
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9th May 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
Christine Day, daugther of Sir William Harpham, the first British Ambassador to Bulgaria (1964-1966), sent us a picture of the Embassy staff at the Queen’s Birthday Party in 1964.
4th May 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
by David Pert David Pert lived in Sofia from 1996 to 2000 when he worked in the Visa, Consular and Political Sections of the British Embassy Sofia. I’m David Pert, and lived in Sofia from 1996 to 2000 when I worked at the British Embassy. I lived in the wonderful Boyana area of town with […]
2nd May 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
By Jane Burner Jane Burner lived in Bulgaria between 1970-1972 and 1984-1987, during the two postings of her husband Alan Burner to Sofia as 3rd Secretary and Deputy Head of Mission respectively. Previously, Jane told us about the difficulty and satisfaction of finding and buying food in Bulgaria in the 70s. This time, she shares a fond […]
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30th April 2014
In recent weeks, I have walked into three very different sorts of buildings and had three very different sets of reactions. With Labour Day approaching, this has got me wondering: are buildings designed to have an impact on those that work in them, those that visit them, or both? Do people behave differently in a […]
28th April 2014
The Tsar Liberator faces the National Assembly. Newly cleaned, with touches of gold, the statue of the Tsar leading his troops in liberation of Bulgaria is impressive. But his watchful stance and position opposite parliament, the symbol of Bulgarian democracy, brings with it some ambiguity, brought into sharper focus by the situation in Ukraine. The […]
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27th April 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
by Kris P Baykon Kris P Baykon is an ex-serviceman from the UK, who tried the 9-5 life for a few years and didn’t really like it. As a consequence he and his wife now live in rural Bulgaria. Kris runs a blog about his Bulgarian life. “The good news is that this village does feel like […]