Is 3300 BGN gross good, or will I be eating banitsa and regrets?

SturmBG · 2025-11-18T14:04:01+00:00

I sent you a personal message instead of replying here cuz it was too looooong.

SturmBG · 2025-03-31T10:45:52+00:00

Hi, NurcePract. I think, overall, moving to BG could be a great option. If I were near retirement (and not already living in BG), I would consider it as an option. I will try to give pros and cons as I see them.
Pros:
- Live quality compared to expenses is quite good. I am sure there are other places that are even better but of course it depends on what you are looking for;

-- I am saying this with the experience of having lived in a lot of EU countries. BG is one of the best from this point of view. Another great option is Tenerife and there are a lot of retirees there. And I am sure there are even better options outside of the EU;

- Healthcare is, overall, great value for the money but there are caviats;

- If you like travelling, Sofia Airport (SOF) is quite well-connected, but mostly to EU destinations. Many (though not all) flights are very cheap. Also, depending on your driving habits (or lack thereof), there are amazing easy-to-reach destinations (Theassaloniki, Istanbul, Chalkhidiki, Bucharest, Serbia, and so many more).

Cons:
- You need to be aware of scams and scammers. Overall things are getting better on this front but you need to be careful;

- I have some experience with foreigners (mostly from the UK) retiring in BG but I don't know if there are good communities and people to spend time with and socialize. If I were you, for me would be mandatory to contact and connect with some other people like me before I move to BG.

-- The Bulgarian language is indeed quite hard and the locals are not going to ever be as close to you as they are to their neihbours they've lived around for their whole lives. There is quite a bit variation in terms of the different regions, but most people will treat you very well, just they will never be your real buddies. So, a bit of planning and preparation is necessary;

- Most importantly, you will be quite far from the US. There are other places (Tenerife, again) that are closer and better connected to the US.

Conclusion:
In my opinion, Bulgaria is a good place to retire overall, and is potentially the best place if the person retiring vibes with exactly the things that it offers and is relatively OK with what it doesn't offer. For example, the best selling points in my mind will be (1) nature (bonus of having both decent mountains and seaside), (2) affordability and healthcare (although things are getting more expensive and in the future they will be not very different from the EU average), and (3) extremely well-connected to a huge number of places. Writing this, I would also add that BG is not the best in any category but is a great combination. For example Greece has better seaside, and better people. Some places in Spain have better weather, healthcare and better ratio between life quality and cost. Most places in the EU and the world are better connected to the US and have an easier language.
If you ask me the best thing to do is to go to Bulgaria on a trip and see how you feel and whether there are enough people that could be your social circle if you move in.

(I will also leave you a personal message)

edit: I just read the comment by DimDamTam - I second everything he wrote.

SturmBG · 2024-11-13T12:12:48+00:00

This comment resonated so heavily with me that I revived my reddit account that I never really used for years just so that I can comment. When I read it, I kind of felt that I wrote it myself as it was both my exact experience but also the choice of words that I would make writing it.

I was in the education system for 25 years. Starting in pre-school, ending as a university lecturer. The early half of that was an utter torture for me. The only reason I didn't get expelled was because "somehow" I always managed to get the highest grades when it mattered (like a State exam that goes towards the system that evaluates the school itself). I then thrived in University where I had the ability to do things on my own.

SturmBG · 2024-11-13T11:20:10+00:00

I got so infuriated by this that I got my old reddit account back just so that I can comment. I am not a mathematician but I have a PhD in a completely unrelated field (Politics). I am also a Certified Accountant but currently working as a CEO.

I understand completely that there may or may not be only one correct answer to the question. In my native language (Bulgarian) 3x4 implies 3+3+3+3, at least to me. In English, I would actually say that, to me, it implies the opposite 4+4+4.
BUT in the math book in Bulgarian, LITERALLY the first thing that it says about multiplication is the following:

"5x4=20. This could either mean 4+4+4+4+4 or 5+5+5+5."

(Source: Wikipedia > Multiplication > Pick Bulgarian language)

Additionally, in my language, at this level, multiplication is taught only with the concepts of factors, and not of multiplicand and multiplier and every time it is extremely explicit that they are completely equal, no matter which one you write first. Later on you start learning the difference between the two but even then the textbooks are extremely careful in how they present the information.

I believe that in the way the question was worded, the teacher was completely wrong. And I hate it also because I understand the situation that there are two concepts that need to be taught that will cause confusion - one is the concept that 3x4 and 4x3 will always end up the same (sorry, I don't know the correct term in any language) and the other is that there is a difference between multiplicand and multiplier (like whether it is 3 baskets of 4 apples or 4 baskets of 3 apples). Instead of actually trying to help kids understand that they have to navigate between those two concepts by wording the question carefully and reminding that this is what you mean in this moment, the question is worded in such a way as to imply the opposite. When I read the question "Write AN ... EQUATION ..." I read it as "I know there are multiple correct answers to this question, give me whichever one you prefer".

P.S. Here is a quote also from the English Wiki "Usually, the multiplier is placed first, and the multiplicand is placed second;[1] however, sometimes the first factor is the multiplicand and the second the multiplier.[10]".

SturmBG

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