Interesting videoa/documentaries.

[philip in china]

I doubt those figures.

You seem to know a lot about living conditions here. How much time have you spent here and where did you spend it?

[Hello, Mr Big Shot]

The earning is a comparative one that uses the US economy as the standard price for consumerables. The Bulgarian per capita income averages at around $7,000, but due to the price of commodities and consumerables being cheaper the direct comparison to the real value is $20,000. Money goes further, if you buy your products from gypsy farm stalls you can buy a weeks shopping for maybe $10, it'd cost you much more in the US and other similiar economies.

Lol. Hell of a commute for a couple of carrots and a bag of spuds, though.

[VillaGuy]

The figures are here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Bulgaria there's the bulgarian language link on the left handside of the page too. I also use the Kapital websites, Gradat and this page has lots of useful info on the economic conditions too http://www.investbg.government.bg/en
In the UK the modal (most common) average is also below the average for what is suggested here, in mid wales probably only the highest earners or top 5% get the average UK wage or higher. Sometimes the figures feel abstract, but they are due to the few percent at the top that skew the figures northwards.

I have been in Sofia for a few months and then in Veliko Tarnovo for the same period of time, the gypsy stall meant my money went much further, I got bagfulls of fruit and veg for just a few Levs

This is a page that compares and contrasts the different regions, good if you're a statistics person http://www.regionalprofiles.bg/en/

[philip in china]

Wikipaedia is extremely unreliable. I would venture to suggest that a site set up to encourage investment in a country is far from impartial.

I am very close to VT. I like the city.

[VillaGuy]

You could argue all figures due to that fact though for any country. The regional profile indicator site is decent that I've edited on the end of my last post. I love VT, great city, I know a few Bulgarians there. The tennis coach down there is a good friend, Angel Petrov, he's also a civil engineer and used to play Volleyball for the national team. I've been to a few barbeques down next to the Yantra in the Asenov district, there's some lovely houses in that scenic region. What's Pleven like? It's got a reputation for corruption I believe

[philip in china]

Pleven is OK. It is in Bulgaria, so of course it is corrupt.

[VillaGuy]

Boyko Borisov the pm or ex pm is from the mob according to some, the country does have a serious problem but it's getting better surely. Pleven just has a reputation worse than other areas, not sure where I heard this but it has stuck in my mind, Sliven too I've heard similiar things about.

[philip in china]

I see no evidence that it is getting better. Indigent idleness and institutionalised corruption seem the besetting sins of the nation.

[VillaGuy]

Real GDP growth at 3.5% last year, unemployment down to 7.9% then up slightly to 8% in the last month, still the best December figure since the financial crisis. The tourism industry is growing by 10%+ year on year. It'll take a while for things to filter through but the economy is pretty well based. Romania is taking off, I expect Bulgaria to do the same. Sofia is the fastest growing capital in the EU too, with special emphasis on the IT sector. It's not all doom and gloom, the worst thing about Bulgaria is the attitudes, they almost feel defeated when they aren't. The mass emigration during the 90's will hurt the country as it was mainly the best educated and people of reproductive age, that will leave a legacy far into the future, but I think there are reasons for optimism.

[philip in china]

Your naive acceptance of any figures produced by the Bulgarian government shows your lack of knowledge of affairs here.

[VillaGuy]

They're from international auditors that assess the countries credit rating. There's poverty in every country, 6.5% of Americans live in trailor parks without healthcare insurance. Bulgaria can blossom, but negative mindsets and blaming everything on the government needs to go, in a capitalist economy you make your own luck. People's mindsets need to make the transition from the communist era where everything was a given and due to the government, things need to be thought differently in a free market environment.