FUN

First of all, I am a guest in this country, so I have to follow the rules of my hosts, whether they obey them themselves or not.

Secondly, we can't complain of corruption here and at the same time find nothing wrong with passing a 20 leva note to a policeman. I know they don't get paid much and need some extra income in order to feed their children. But hey, this is not my problem. The Bulgarian state should pay decent salaries to its employees; it's not my duty to make up the deficit. Their job is to protect me, not to rob me.

According to the dust-cover blurb by Salman Rushdie, Solo is a novel of "exceptional, astonishing strangeness... confirming Rana Dasgupta as the most unexpected and original Indian writer of his generation."

An Indian writer? Writing about Bulgaria?

I find that there is nothing more infuriating than an American who feels that he can criticise (this, of course, is from a representative of the nation that induced the international credit squeeze!) on a country that he wishes to renew a residential card for (not sure if he refers to the United States or Bulgaria as the location of residence is not mentioned).

Hopefully, by the time renewal is necessary, the Civil Service will have installed computers, then bureaucracy will be rampant and many applications for renewals will be lost somewhere in outer space!

I showed the magazine to a Bulgarian friend and, whilst his English is limited, he was extremely impressed, especially with the photography. He is the director and choreographer of the Sofia–based Bulgarian folklore ensemble I dance with. Both of us being dancers, and immersed in folklore in general, we loved the preview of the next issue's cover in Vagabond 28–29, with the photo of the girl in "costume." It is very clever, and I'm looking forward to the March edition which features her. The photo of her rear view is also very amusing.

Hardly any other European country can boast with a magazine with a concept like yours, at such a high level in both style and diversity.

Congratulations and keep on like that!

Jerry Schu, Luxembourg-Sofia

Dear Vagabond,

My wife and I were avid readers of your magazine whilst we lived in Bulgaria, but due to family reasons we have recently returned to the UK after two and a half years in Bulgaria.

However, whilst staying at the Srebana guesthouse last week I found myself looking for some reading material to pass the time (ahem) and reached out for the Vagabond. Suffice it to say I haven't put it down since!! Marvellous writing, honest opinions and incredibly funny to boot.

Glynn Clarke, Botevo, Varna

DEAR VAGABOND

However, he told us the following story which can only be another of those scams employed by greedy hoteliers wanting to cheat foreigners (in this case school kids) out of a few extra euros.

The way I see it, a great many people look after them. I have no other explanation for such a large population of street animals. However, feeding them your stale bread and uneaten food and changing their pots of water is not enough. Well, some cats wear flea collars and some dogs have been neutered. But these are the exceptions, not the rule. All my neighbours who have a soft spot for the dozens of stray dogs and cats in the neighbourhood seem to think giving them pills or taking them to the vet to neuter them or even cleaning after them is too much.

Well, some cats wear flea collars and some dogs have been neutered. But these are the exceptions, not the rule. All my neighbours who have a soft spot for the dozens of stray dogs and cats in the neighbourhood seem to think giving them pills or taking them to the vet to neuter them or even cleaning after them is too much. They love and take care of the animals but would not go that far in their affection. It makes me think Bulgarians believe in everyone doing their job, meaning they never do anything which in their opinion is not their job. The same thing goes for dog poo.

Yellow Cheese Balls - Fried pieces of kashkaval
Potato Balls With Yellow Cheese - Mashed potato patties with kashkaval
Chicken Parson's Nose - Grilled chicken rumps
Chicken Lungs With Onion - Chicken livers with onions
Tolstolob - A genetically engineered hybrid between a trout and a carp
Panayorski Eggs - Yaytsa po panagyurski are poached eggs floating in yoghurt sauce
Pork Lung with Onion - Like chicken livers, but pork
Pork Neck of the Table - Fried vratna parzhola, or pork steak