I visited Bulgaria for a week, so I have a limited perspective. The things that stuck out to me:
1. the food is amazing and inexpensive. Fresh high quality produce and meat, reasonably skilled chefs, and an incredible blend of French, Italian, Greek, Turkish, and Russian food. Seriously, the produce is amazing and so cheap.
2. the newer apartment buildings are well constructed and extremely cheap
3. Sofia is depressing. It looks like a dying city. Everything is falling apart, there's graffiti everywhere, not many people under 30 except those who can't leave for various reasons. There's a lot of pro-soviet nostalgia and suspicion of modernization and foreigners.
4. people hang out in public smoking, drinking, playing table tennis, and exercising. I bought a bottle of wine and drank in a park in city center until late and I felt perfectly safe. That doesn't appeal to everyone so it can be a plus and minus.
5. people drive like madmen with loud music and poorly modified cars with no mufflers. Lots of macho culture and posturing.
edit for something I forgot:
I was walking downtown sofia at about 8pm on friday night and saw a train of 3 new AMG mercedes following what looked like a modified Lambo. I also saw a Porsche GT2 RS, a mclaren, and several bentleys very clearly illegally parked for days outside a luxury hotel. I don't know where that money is coming from but I assumed it's corruption or drug trafficking given what the rest of the city is like.
1. the food is amazing and inexpensive. Fresh high quality produce and meat, reasonably skilled chefs, and an incredible blend of French, Italian, Greek, Turkish, and Russian food. Seriously, the produce is amazing and so cheap.
2. the newer apartment buildings are well constructed and extremely cheap
3. Sofia is depressing. It looks like a dying city. Everything is falling apart, there's graffiti everywhere, not many people under 30 except those who can't leave for various reasons. There's a lot of pro-soviet nostalgia and suspicion of modernization and foreigners.
4. people hang out in public smoking, drinking, playing table tennis, and exercising. I bought a bottle of wine and drank in a park in city center until late and I felt perfectly safe. That doesn't appeal to everyone so it can be a plus and minus.
5. people drive like madmen with loud music and poorly modified cars with no mufflers. Lots of macho culture and posturing.
edit for something I forgot:
I was walking downtown sofia at about 8pm on friday night and saw a train of 3 new AMG mercedes following what looked like a modified Lambo. I also saw a Porsche GT2 RS, a mclaren, and several bentleys very clearly illegally parked for days outside a luxury hotel. I don't know where that money is coming from but I assumed it's corruption or drug trafficking given what the rest of the city is like.