We begin with this post what we hope will become a series of articles that we at VR and Partners have decided to dedicate to all those, entrepreneurs and otherwise, who are thinking of moving to Bulgaria >. The basic idea is that changing a nation is never an easy choice and that the motivations are never simple; in practice, it is not enough to say "here in Bulgaria taxes are low" to create fertile ground capable of attracting investors to this country. In our opinion, we must first of all make those who are thinking of moving to Bulgaria understand what they should expect and what opportunities such a choice brings. From there, from a conscious choice, will derive - and this is our experience - the ability to do business or more simply to find here, between the Balkans and the Black Sea one's nest of life.
And precisely because we know that our posts are predominantly read by the Italian public, we will begin our knowledge of Bulgaria starting from two very important aspects for Italians. The first is the climate: we are in a particular area, on one side close to Russia and on the other to the deserts of Asia Minor. These two circumstances become perceptible in the Bulgarian climate which is particularly harsh during the winter months and very dry, with very little rainfall, during the summer. The difference compared to Italy is perceptible especially in winter, but it must be said that with the passing of time the temperatures here too are becoming less rigid and in any case become very mild the closer you get to the Black Sea coast.
Lo stile di vita, secondo aspetto molto caro agli italiani, è quello di una nazione produttiva ma dove è ancora possibile vivere senza farsi soverchiare dallo stress. La vita qui è piacevole e condita da un buon numero di attrazioni e divertimenti per tutte le età, soprattutto nelle principali città della Bulgaria, ovvero Sofia, la capitale, ma anche Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas e Ruse.
The aspect of everyday life that Italians perhaps find difficult to get used to is nutrition. Here there is a triumph of soups, stews and desserts. In short, at the beginning, at the table, you will tend to get full very quickly also due to the considerable spiciness of the food, but then you will get used to it and if this does not happen, rest assured that the well-stocked Bulgarian supermarkets are full of Made in Italy food products prices comparable to those you would find in Italy.
Another aspect that, especially at the beginning, causes some concern in those who have decided or would like to move to Bulgaria is the language. Bulgarian is a language similar to the Russian to which it gave rise (it seems that the Bulgarian language is historically attested at least a century before the Russian one) and as such uses characters, the Cyrillic ones, different from ours based on the Latin alphabet. So how to do it? Our advice is as follows. Consider that in about a week, even on your own, it is possible to learn the Cyrillic alphabet, and this will allow you to read, for example, road signs or the names of subway stops, recognizing them. As far as verbal communications are concerned, you can fall back on English which is correctly spoken by a large part of the population. Finally for work-related matters it is better to be supported, at least until you are independent, by trusted professionals who will help you avoid problems, rip-offs and mistakes during your first steps in Bulgaria. In this regard, we at VR & Partner offer an ad hoc consultancy service both in terms of legal and for regarding the possible need for sworn translations.
Nel prossimo post vi parleremo del costo della vita in Bulgaria. Continuate a seguirci…
