B22 Blogstars

Bulgarian Transportation of the Week: The Sleeping Car!
Friday, May 9, 2008

The Sleeping Car! (спален вагон)
These cars are attached to night trains, giving passengers added comfort on their travels. You can buy these tickets on board (like this PCV did) or at the ticket counter of large stations. You must buy a separate ticket for the sleeping car. A trip to say, Varna from Chirpan, a ticket costs about 7 leva (with a discount card). A bed in the car costs roughly 8 leva. There were three beds in the compartment and since there was only two of us, we had to buy the third bed. It was worth it. Although I didn't get the best night sleep in the world (whenever the train would pull into a station, I would roll into the wall) but it was much better than sleeping in a closed compartment.

As you can see in the photo to the right, BDZ provides the blankets, pillows and sheets. They also, however, provide with complimentary items. We were given tissues, shoe shine, face wash and a toilet seat cover. It was a pleasant surprise getting this and we were the envy of all the PCVs in Varna that weekend who didn't take the sleeping car.

The lay out of the car was like this: on right side was a three tier bunk bed. On the left side was a closet with coat hangers behind a ladder to a shelf with more blankets. Against the far wall on the right was a mirror and a table. The table top lifted up to reveal a sink with running water (!).

All in all, travelling by sleeping car is the way to go! Lots of room, privacy, and a bed. Just remember to follow the sign-

J-Dub "the Duke" Paperstax

Posted byJimmy at 9:55 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Trasportation of the Week

Bulgarian Transportation of the Week: Vacation!
Thursday, May 1, 2008

Празниц!

No post from me today; I'm on почивка and exploring this wonderful country. I'll be researching for up coming posts. не местете на друга уеб-страница!

Posted byJimmy at 11:54 PM 0 comments  

Labels: Trasportation of the Week

Bulgarian Transportation of the Week: The Bus!
Sunday, April 27, 2008

Bus (автобус) Better late than never!
Buses are the most prolific of all transportation modes in Bulgaria. The highways are also filled with them. They are a faster and make fewer stops than trains. The downside is less room, more expensive and a potential wishy-washy schedule. It pretty much comes down to what you want-Time and a thrill ride or money, space and near 24 service. I say thrill ride because several buses drive, uh, quickly. This PCV has been on several buses that have arrived more than 30 minutes early and a few that have driven on the shoulder for several miles. It can be a hair raising experience.
The types of buses vary. The best buses are transnational whereas the most Soviet-looking ones are regional. Going from Sofia to say, Chirpan, the buses are all quite nice (and like trains, from Germany). Service to villages are usually old or microbuses.
Where do you catch these buses? Well in villages, you catch them from small bus stations like in Devin (left), really really nice bus station like in the capital, Sofia (middle), or shack.









Sometimes, you have to flag the bus down on the side of the road. In order to catch a ride from the Central Bus Station in Sofia to Dupnitsa, you have to find a bus driving south through Dupnitsa and haggle with the bus driver to convince him to top on the freeway to let you off. I'm sure they all wonder, why on earth would you want to go to Dupnitsa!? On the way out of Dupnitsa to the Central Bus Station, you have to stand on the side of the free way and wave the bus down. They will, more often than not, stop (at least, this PCV has yet to have any problems).

So there you have it, the автобус: Fast and thrilling.

J-Dub "The Duke" Paperstax

Posted byJimmy at 9:27 PM 2 comments  

Labels: Trasportation of the Week

Bulgarian Transportation of the Week: The Thumb!
Friday, April 11, 2008

The Thumb! (палецът!) Better known as hitchhiking (пътуване на автостоп)

It’s a great way to see the country, meet new people and add adventure to your adventure. Personally, I’d never hitchhiked before and was a little weary of doing it in a foreign country with a language I have a minimal grasp of. However, my fears were assuaged and I struck up conversations with some awesome people. Other PCVs have had similar experiences like former vafla aficionado and all round bad ass, Thomas Lodwick.And yes, I did steal that sweet pic from the linked entry. I have no qualms or apologies. For the lackadaisical PCV (like Mr. Lodwick and myself), hitchhiking is merely a mode of transportation in our arsenal. It's not a necessity, but spices up our trip and eases our wallet. However, other PCVs living remote areas (especially the illustrious ones in the Rhodopi mountains) find hitch-hiking indispensable and often times, inevitable. Villagers in the Rhodopis, where I first learned how to hitchhike, are very friendly and understanding of the circumstances for hitch-hiking (namely, the lack of a frequent bus schedule). Hitchhiking here is a way of life. However, The Word From Upon High That Bans All Things Fun (also known as the Peace Corps Policy Manuel), states in Section 23, subsection 1.2.5 "Hitchhiking is strictly forbidden". On the other hand, Lonely Planet, the premiere tour guide book, declares:

Lonely Planet makes a habit of warning against hitchhiking in its standard text section in the back of guidebooks; ignore that here. Bulgaria practically begs you to do it - or at least pick people up. It's an everyday means of getting around for people who often lack their own transport. Grandmas pile bags into cars on the side of the highways, lone children hold out hand to stop strangers' cars to get to school - the only fear is whether or not the driver will be playing chalga -nauseatingly joyful, relentless, bouncing disco music ('truck driver music,' one Sofian hipster scoffed).

I couldn't say it better myself. A few tips to successfully hitchhike:

1. If you're in a large group, split up into groups of 2 or 3
2. Be sure to keep that thumb up when you see a car coming
3. Tourists don't tend to pick up hitchhikers
4. Always be gracious when you get picked up
5. Swap awesome stories

However, the absolute MUST after a successful hitch is to brag about it to your suburban friends. You'll quickly been the envy of everyone (or least get a "Dude, we know you're doing awesome things. Stop making us feel bad about it").

Sometimes the driver may ask for money. This may not alway be a bad thing as the driver can be more hospitable. For instance, I and a few other PCVs, caught a ride with a guy going to Plovdiv. He only asked us for 8lv (the bus ticket was 9lv) and he would be faster. We took him up on his offer. About an hour and a half later, he wanted to know we want to take a side trip to a monastery. How could we refuse? He was an excellent tour guide.

All that said, hitchhiking, although strictly against PC policy, can be an interesting and rewarding experience that lets you reap the fruits of your integration skills. I for one, will plan on including hitchhiking into my next Bulgarian adventure!

J-Dub "The Duke" Paperstax

Posted byJimmy at 11:41 AM 1 comments  

Labels: Trasportation of the Week

Bulgarian Transportation of the Week: Donkey Carts!
Friday, March 28, 2008

Donkey Carts! (магарска талига!)
I have no idea if that's grammatically correct Bulgarian

One of the most interesting modes of transportation in Bulgaria. These carts are predominately used by the Roma. They are distinct on the roads and always make for a good photo opportunity. Sadly, according to the Peace Corps Bulgaria Volunteer Handbook, section 23, subsection 1.1.2 "Volunteers are expressly prohibited from using the following forms of transportation:...Horse or donkey carts" (the manual also prevents us from operating vehicles powered by steam. Yeah...I have no idea either). Perhaps if we petition the Peace Corps to allow us if we wear helmets. This plan, however, may attract stoning from local children. But I digress...

The donkey cart is one of the most interesting forms of transit in Bulgaria. It's safe to say that every city in Bulgaria has donkey carts. I have even seen them dodge traffic in the capital, Sofia. They can be quite a road hazard. I mean, out in rural Missouri, I've had to stop to let a herd of cows cross a dusty road. I never would have imagined seeing a similar situation with four lanes of traffic in a metropolis of over a million. Understandably, I had heard rumors of a national ban on donkey carts one public roads. This, of course, would hit one segment of the population very hard. However, I was unable to find any support whilst researching for this article.

Aside from traffic hazards and potentially comical pictures (photo to the lower left was not taken in Bulgaria), donkey carts also contribute the hazard of poop. Lots and lots of poop. You can tell you're in a donkey cart area with the stacks of poop (literally) littering the street. Bonus points if the poop is on a traditional cobblestone street. It gives a "blast from the past" feeling.

The bottom line: donkey carts give an aura of traditionalism regardless where you are in Bulgaria. They make a good photo opportunity to show a "Lexus and Olive Tree" comparison of life in Bulgaria. They also are impractical (and a illegal for PCVs regardless) except for local travel. Nevertheless, I'll never get tired of hearing the clip-clopping of a mammalian drawn wagon.

J-Dub "The Duke" Paperstax

Posted byJimmy at 12:01 AM 4 comments  

Labels: Trasportation of the Week

Bulgarian Transportation of the Week: Trains
Friday, March 21, 2008

Trains! (влакове!)
are by far the best way to get around Bulgaria (especially if you aren’t in a rush).

This transit system is nationally run by the Български държавни железници (Bulgarian State Railways) or БДЖ/BDZ for short. There are train routes through the country with trains running during most hours. Some PCVs say that I have an unhealthy obsession with trains. Can you blame me? Trains are usually no more than five minutes late, cheaper and the city name is clearly marked on the station.

Trains are a wonderful way to see the beautiful Bulgarian countryside. They also offer more space to stretch out, meet cool people/have crazy adventures and toilet facilities that dump waste straight to the track. This beats buses that have no toilet but I’d still wait until really really had to go before using a train toilet. The Bulgarian train engineers had a worse situation, they had no where to pee on some of the older trains except out the window. In response to this concern being raised by their union, the management issued the following response:

“Bulgarian train drivers have been issued with rotating chairs so they can pee out of the window without having to stop.”

I love this country.

There are four types of trains: International (международен), Express (ускорен бърз) , Fast (бърз) and "contemplate life" (пътнически). International trains should only really be taken domestically if you really have to be somewhere and you live on an international line (ex Plovdiv, Stara Zagora or Dimitargrad) since they are hella expensive but the fastest train available. Express trains are a bit pricey but worth it since they only stop in large cities. Fast trains tend to be the most frequent and are the ones to catch. The slow trains can be excruciatingly long. For example, I took a slow train from Sofia to Dupnitsa. By bus it's a 45 minute ride. By slow train, it's 3 and a half hours. I'm pretty sure we stopped to pick up hitch hikers. So when faced with a choice, pick the fast or express trains (unless you don't live on the main line or in a small village, then you're just S.O.L.).

Train carriages come in a variety options, open, compartment and sleeping. The open carriages are like a plane, with two rows of seats; usually two by two. They don't offer too much privacy but it's still more comfortable than a plane. The compartment are just that-a compartment of eight seats (four by four) facing each other. I find that these are the best when travelling with a bunch of noisey Americans as you won't disturb other passangers. The downside is the aisles can be narrow but that's not much of a downside. They are the option on night trains when you don't purchase a sleeping car ticket. Speaking from expirience, they aren't very comfortable to sleep on. The ticket lady didn't sell me a sleeping car ticket because my trip was only three hours long. You can also purchase a reserve seat for an extra 0.50лв. If you're in a rush, you can annoy the conductor by purchasing your ticket on the train for a 30% charge. Bulgarian trains also come in first and second class. There really isn't too much of a difference between the two aside from the first class coaches being newer. Regardless of any class, Bulgaria seems to be the place where German trains come to die. I have seen some new trains but they tend to go to random places (like from Plovdiv to Asenovgrad. I would have guessed Sofia to Plovdiv).

To get the most for your money, I highly recommend you buy a discount card. The youth card costs 30лв but it saves you 50% on all train tickets and you'll recoop the cost in no time; it's three return trips to Sofia for me. All of the cards are good for a year from the date of purchase. Other cards available are Student, Rail pass and pensioner. It's also worth noting that if you're planning on travelling internationally by train from Bulgaria to purchase one before you buy your ticket. You'll be a baker rolling in all the dough you're saving.

All in all, I love to travel by train. It's a great way to see the country and save money doing so. I could write so much more about trains but I'll save that for a later post.

J-dub "The Duke" Paperstax

On a solem note I would like to mention the train accident that occured on Febuary 29th, which killed nine people, the worst in the Balkans in 16 years.

Posted byJimmy at 10:02 AM 3 comments  

Labels: Trasportation of the Week

Bulgarian Transportation of the Week: Minibus
Friday, March 7, 2008

Ah, the minibus (микробус) just like a regular автобус, but without the safety. Minibuses are large vans or small buses (mini, if you will) and tend to service short routes in between large cities or really windy roads way out in the stix. They usually depart from bus stations, bus stops or unmarked places that only the locals know about. You can also flag them down. This PCV has caught minibuses from Dimitargrad to Stara Zagora, from Kazanlak to Stara Zagora and from Smolyan to the middle of no where. They are also usually cheaper than the standard bus and afford even less comfort. Some minibuses will refuse to depart unless every available space is taken, giving situations like this:

Keep in mind, this was a good 10 minutes or so before I departed and the driver was able to sell several more tickets. And what is a Peace Corps experience with with out daily awkward moments? There were six of us travelling together and we all sat in the back. We were the first stop. Hilarity ensued.

Needless to say, travelling by minibus is a great way to meet new people and experience new smells. It only adds adventure to your adventure.

All in all, travelling by minibus is a unique experience and it's not to be missed. You'll come away with a new mode of transport under your belt and a redefined sense of "personal space". I find it's overrated anyway.

Until next week, 4ao!

Posted byJimmy at 9:43 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Minibus, Trasportation of the Week