Sofia

Sophia

Since we’ve let the United States, two years and six months ago to this very day, I realize that there’s three of us on this trip. Me, Michael and Sophia. Sophia, as many know thanks to popular culture, stems from the Greek word for wisdom. Its root rests between suffixes and prefixes throughout the English [...]

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On how Bulgaria has changed in the last 20 months. . .

Trip to the Police Station On Foot: 16 minutes Figuring out the Right Window: 4 minutes Waiting in What Can Only Be Described as a Mob While Strange Chinese Guy Breaths on Your Hair: 25 minutes Waiting at Window While Pink-Sweatered Bulgarian Women Disappears: 11 minutes Retrieving Your Lichna Karta: 5 minutes Knowing You’ll Never [...]

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Get Over Yourself

Last night, we had dinner with two Danes and a Lithuanian. No, these are not types of dogs. They are people from Denmark and Lithuania. He was a diplomat. She was teaching at the Scandinavian studies program of Sofia University. Another woman recently taught a project design seminar at Traditzia. There was talk of vegetarianism [...]

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Sofia’s Secret Knock

PRELUDE There’s something about secrets that truly feeds the ego. When one becomes a player or even mute participant in sometimes sordid, private details—anything from a pregnancy to a pirated operation—the human head expands to allow the size of such privilege and trust. We instantly feel we belong to the inner circle. Further, we now [...]

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Salsa a la Sofia

So I know, I know. You’re thinking: Salsa is a Latin American thing. Perhaps Peurto Rican? Maybe it comes from Cuba, the Dominican Republic or Columbia? And you, Andrea, are volunteering in Bulgaria. Truth is, this similar-to-Mambo, side to side, eigh-count dance came from all these places. But New York first came up with the [...]

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When not volunteering. . .

So it’s been a busy couple weeks. . .and I’ll fill you in on some random information that describes our social life here in Sofia. Last Wednesday I had a tutoring session at Dunkin Donuts (of all places) with Radost, my teacher, and then Michael and I went to dinner at this Lebanese restaurant off [...]

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Any Bulgarian Sunday

We went to Alexander Nevsky Bulgarian Orthodox Church last Sunday. After a pleasing, foggy and breath-visible morning run through our own little Wash Park (just older dog owners and more artsy statues), we were already on that post-run-and-shower high. Down the stairs, out our door and up the hill toward the nearest intersection—one that always [...]

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Urban in Bulgaria

I hope I haven’t lost some of you–I’m back in blog mode and I promise to stay here for a bit. But back to my title. . . We’re in the city, being urban in Bulgaria, and it’s time to fill you in. . . Life here is, well, different. In Bulgaria, we buy groceries [...]

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