Varnaland

Although I can check off Bulgaria on my map, I don’t feel like I really have been there. Maybe it is because we arrived in Varna at 4 AM on Saturday morning. Maybe it is because I spent 75% of the time lying prone by the pool and the rest of the time trying to convince Susan to get ice cream with me.

Varna was beautiful, although not beautiful enough to motivate me to buy new AA batteries for my camera. I had been trying to piece together some history on the region for you but then decided just to let Wiki do its thing and do what I do best: make lists.

Over the weekend I read Netherland, a novel in which the protagonist Hans, an equity analyst, begins stock recommendations with an unrelated but smart observation or fact to gain the audience’s respect. Then he says whatever the hell is wants about the price of oil.

Likewise I am sharing a few observations and facts about Varna/Bulgaria so you can impress your friends. However, I cannot guarantee that the observations are smart. After all, I was pretty f#*ked up on gelato.

Didya Know...?

The communist government renamed the city Stalin from 1949 – 1956. Apparently it didn’t have the same come-hither-tourists ring.

After this guy, I had thought Budapest was the Ed Hardy-wearing capital of the world; I was wrong. It is Varna.

When Bulgarians waggle their heads Indian-style, it means yes and when they nod, it means no.

When I first moved to Budapset, my mom kept asking me how I liked Bulgaria.

A Bulgarian invented the first electronic computer, and the country has been called the Silicon Valley of Europe.

Bulgaria and Denmark were the only two countries to save their Jews during the Holocaust.

What are some good Boston/Worcester/New York facts? I need to impress some peeps come September...