Leaving England to Live Abroad (Why We Chose Bulgaria)  

Yes - and there’s so much to explore!😊

Bless you! You are always so kind! Yes, thank you, we absolutely love it here - would never go back to England! 💜

Thank you! Are you Bulgarian? We have quite a few Bulgarian friends now - everyone has been very kind. 😊

And we are learning the language 😃

Hi! Thank you for the very kind comment! And congratulations - whereabouts are you moving to? 😊

@@Escapetoasimplerplaceandtime you are welcome. We have watched quite a few of your videos and love them. We hope to find a house in a village close to Veliko. 😍

@@louieloo1105 thank you you are very kind! 🥰 VT is a lovely area! Good luck with that 💜

@@Escapetoasimplerplaceandtime thank you🥰

We are as well! We are exited but it's also very scary isn't it? (even if we already know the country and have our house) 😊

I am, it would be an interesting video. I can guess the reasons you left.

Thank you very much! That’s extremely kind of you. Whereabouts are you? 😊

Thank you! Whereabouts are you from?

@@Escapetoasimplerplaceandtime I'm a World citizen (Italian/Belgian) ;-)

Hi Don! Which property do you mean? We have three I have shown you here? There are properties available in each village and the surrounding area. Whereabouts are you from?😊

We have an apartment in the video - this is on a complex near to the Black Sea. We have a second house in the video with the large plot of land - this is not far from Burgas - about 30 miles in Land. And then we have our main home which is actually in a Roma village 😊

Do you have residency

@@WelshfamilylivinginBulgaria yes😊💕

No me, neither - but very pagan😊

My teacher says that I am 50% of the way there! I can at least make myself understood more situations - though I don’t understand then when they speak quickly - but I get the gist 😃

@@Escapetoasimplerplaceandtime "50% of the way there"... where is "there" :) What level are you at this point between A1...C2? Just curious. If it's too personal, let's just drop it.

Sorry, I’m not quite sure what you mean byА1 and C2 sorry to be a bit thick! She says I am halfway to being fluent

@@Escapetoasimplerplaceandtime Here is INFO on language levels: www.olesentuition.co.uk/single-post/what-is-the-difference-between-a1-a2-b1-etc This guy uses RU-vid to chronicle his progress. He is ±C2, maybe worth a look: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-dj28xCbAChM.html

Thank you very much for that! Now I understand. When we first moved over here, we did enter into a program similar to this. However, it was very unfriendly in that we were expected to learn things that were absolutely useless, but weren’t learning things that we needed to know - like basic every day Language for going into a restaurant, a shop etc. We now have a teacher who teaches us whatever we need to know - so there is no formal qualification - but we just go each week and explain things we have struggled with that particular week and progress from there. So there is no formal qualification, but it is far more user friendly than the initial course! This is a very difficult language and unless you are interested to learn it, is it possible. We really needed a teacher who would cater for our needs rather than a specific qualification. Hope that helps! Thank you for your very interesting comment 😊❤️

Hi there! Thank you for your comment. You seem very knowledgeable on this country - but you don’t live here? First of all, I don’t know much about politics to be honest - I tend not to get involved, but I know that some Bulgarians do complain - but it has never affected us in any way, shape or form. In fact, we found things here, much less restrictive during the pandemic - unlike England - which was a huge plus in that we didn’t suffer lockdown for more than a few weeks. With regard to the language - yes, it is extremely difficult - but not much different actually than Romania - so I’m not sure what you mean about that. When we’ve been to Romania, we understood quite a lot and they understood us. It’s like anything else really, you just need to apply yourself to learning it. We have lessons and we find them thoroughly enjoyable - but also we find out more and more people. Speak English now as it is taught in school. With regard to the winter - the first winter we were here was extremely cold and did have deep snow. But like everywhere else we seem to have been hit by global warming! We have had no snow at all this year and to be honest, it’s been like the middle of summer up until about two weeks ago (an English summer that is). It’s only just gone cooler , but March is just around the corner and that is the official first day of spring here. The winters are very short. With regard to the houses - I have no idea what you mean! We have bought four properties here, and only one of them has been built by the person who lived in it. He was actually an engineer better built house you couldn’t find anywhere - there’s a video on my site on it if you would like to check it out. My husband was a project manager in the building industry and he is well impressed with it - and he knows his stuff.. the reason that houses are cheaper is actually because there is a dwindling population. A lot of young people have been Lord away - there has been a bit of a brain drain amongst the youngsters - sadly. They think they can get a better quality of life abroad - they usually come home after a few years quite disillusioned! I’ve spoke to quite a number of them and they think that because the wages are higher in England, they will get a better quality of life. They soon realise that the prices are also higher and they soon start to miss the homeland. The hoses are cheaper because there is a lot of them empty! There are entire villages empty which is really sad. With regard to being “ripped off” by the locals - that just simply isn’t possible when buying houses - because you buy through an estate agent with a set price. It’s also illegal. One less point, Bulgaria and Greece were actually one country at one point the weather here is very similar to Greece, Bulgaria is also on the border of Turkey. Thanks again for your comment I’ve enjoyed replying to you - hope I can change your mind 😊 the only downside. I’ve actually found living here (and I was going to do a video on this) are the stray animals. It’s heartbreaking and there is no RSPCA. Other than that we don’t have a single complaint. all the best.

@@Escapetoasimplerplaceandtime Thanks for the detailed reply, very enjoyable reading it. I've just subscribed as I'm also into slow living, self sufficiency, living close to nature with plenty of open space and authenticity.

thank you for all the comments! If you’re interested in self-sufficiency and a slow lifestyle - than this is definitely the place to come 😊💜😊

The UK is far more corrupt but they hide it with fancy names like lobbying, trusts, sponsorship, subsidies, etc. Besides, if England was to repay for everything they have stolen from the colonies (still do), the current country will go totally bankrupt.

Yes, at least the corruption is more visible here or at least talked about😊

Hi Rob! Lovely to hear from you! Yes you do, but it’s relatively easy. It’s changed since Brexit - I think you need to apply back in the UK now - but the requirements are very reachable. There is a number of groups you can join over here in case you haven’t joined them - one is called “moving to Bulgaria“ where you can ask questions and get support. Feel free to contact us any time. Also - there is a link underneath in the description With my website on which has my details. It’s a brilliant country to retire to! You get a residency permit for a year the first time, then it’s three years then it’s five years and then you’re more or less here for good if you want to stay! We’ve never had a problem at all. With regard to Portugal, I was genuinely surprised to discover that house prices there are way higher than they are here. You can still purchase a house in certain regions here for under 20,000. May need a bit of work - But nonetheless you get a big plot of land with most houses also. Contact us any time xx

@@Escapetoasimplerplaceandtime hi and thanks so much for such a quick and detailed reply, it really helps, i looked at bulgaria about 5 years ago, but have been more drawn to spain/portugal. but have just started to look back again at bulgaria, it is very complex since brexit to get residency in portugal, so will look again into bulgaria, im a builder by trade so will be looking for a major reno, more concerned with getting a good amount of land than the building itself,is planning required for reno's or just do as you want within reason? thanx once again,x

Hi Rob! You will definitely be able to get a good size plot of land over here Rob - no problem at all. The garden with our second home (there’s a video on my Channel - Where can you buy a house for under £20,000) will show you the kind of land you can expect. We are actually quite overwhelmed! And there are more often than not outbuildings as well as a water supply. With regard to planning permission - I think it’s always best to get it - However, you shouldn’t have a problem. I have not known anyone who has that a problem. The mayor of the village is the person you initially need to speak to, and sometimes you may need to go to the municipality - but as I say, we’ve not had a problem - it’s not like England, where people complain! The houses are usually quite far apart each one in it’s on piece of land neighbours don’t seem to mind what you do in your own plot. Hope that helps 😊