Farewell

Hi there,
To all my known and unknown readers, to the people interested in my stories and my life in the past almost 1 year. I'm writing my last (60th) post here. I'm writing a goodbye, a farewell post, a closure.
There was a reason I started blogging - I was away from home, away from my friends and wanted to share what's happening with me. I wanted the whole world to know my stories and to see what I've done. Thing's have changed, I changed! It's been half an year since I'm back home in Bulgaria! Many things happened to me, I experienced a lot, I did things I didn't think I'm capable of. Normally I would want to show off with them, share them, say it out loud. Alas, not any more! I just don't feel the need of sharing that much - some things are too personal, some are not significant, and some are maybe not so interesting. I've realized I'm not so dependant on people's opinion anymore. I did things that are questionable, that are not the things people expect of me. Actually I'm quite satisfied with those things.
Besides, an interesting part of the year is comming - the end of the old year and the beginning of a brand new one. In the next year I want to stop planning and saying too much, but actually act more and do the things I want. I just don't think that blogging is one of them.
So I want to wish you a Happy New Year and a tremendous beginning of 2008. May it be very eventful and interesting for you and I hope you achieve the things you couldn't during the past year but also start actions on the dreams you think will never be realized!
Best wishes!
Ivo

"This is my December
This is my time of the year"

That's right - December is my favourite month! I love the winter cosiness it brings, the beauty of the snow-covered trees, the many holidays this month has :P This is an eventful month trapped between the beginning of a new year of my life (just after my birthday, which is today;)) and the end of the calendar year. I give my best during this month an try to achieve what I couldn't so far. Looking back at what happened since my last birthday I can say this was truly an amazing year filled with so many new experiences and new opportunities. I'm proud of my achievements and realize the hunger for going on and on and challenging my limits. Even though sometimes I set too high goals, on this day I feel like everything is possible and nothing can stop me. Nothing can fade my smile today :)

NaLDS

It's about time to update my blog and share with you one of the most amazing experiences that happened to me recently - NaLDS. This is an AIESEC conferences that annually is held in Sankt Andreasberg, Germany. Throughout the years it had gained the popularity of one of the best conferences in AIESEC on the theme of leadership. Although a German conference every year it's becoming more international and there you can find delegates from all around the world. I was the only Bulgarian but I managed to meet very interesting people from Kenya, Romania, Denmark, Czech Republic, Serbia, Hungary, Nigeria, Columbia, Italy, Norway, Iran, Slovakia and many more. You can imagine the diversity we had during the Global Village :)
What is special about NaLDS is the atmosphere it creates. For one week you are disconnected from all your troubles and concerns back home and you have time for self-reflection and deeper understanding of your goals, vision and values. It makes you think about a lot of things and throughout the process you realize a lot of things about yourself. I really enjoyed the time spent with my home group - 12 amazing individuals (including 2 facis) with who we had great discussions, practical games and a lot of sharing. I once again realized how important is to share your thoughts and ideas and get a feedback from the others. I hope I managed to wrap up all the knowledge I got there and make use of the discussions and the reflection time. However I'm sure that NaLDS was very useful for me - I managed to align my thoughts and get really close to a very important decision about the next year of my life. Not to mention all the new friends I got there :) I love you guys and hope to see you again soon! Flyyy Eagles :P
Here are some pictures from NaLDS so that you can feel the incredible atmosphere there:

Home group 7 - The Eagles!


The whole group - Sami, Gustavo, Veronica, Ivan, Andreea, Maziar, me, Sascha, Martin, Martina, Davide and Sebastian

Official dinner

Work during the sessions

AIESEC dances

Me and Martina :)

Me and Peter - my host in Cologne

White, green and red - Bulgaria, Hungary and Italy

Can Bulgaria and Kenya be neigbours? On Global Village anything is possible :)

Nice snowy picture after the snow ball fight

LIS

So it finaly came - THE CONFERENCE - Local Induction Seminar of LC TU 2007! This was one of the most amazing experience I've had!!! It's hard to describe with word all the emotions I experienced, all the thoughts that were passing my mind, all the fun I had, and the satisfaction when everything finished!

So what happened and how we did it:

In LC TU we do it good, we do it interesting, we do it at the last possible moment :D We had so little preparation that I can't believe we made it. Instead of taking a good sleep before the opeing of the conference I was preparing sessions till 03:00 only to continue doing it from 05:00 on. We lacked time but we had a lot of passion and willingness to show our best and meet the delegates' expectations. We also had Ivo (MCP) who helped us a loooooooot and who made it possible for us to deliver such a good conference that will stay in the memories of the delegates.

And there came the delegates - around 35 curious people who had no idea what was going to happen to them in the next 2 days :) We left them no time to be bored :) I'm quite sure they enjoyed our sessions - both amuzing anf funny but also useful for them. It was my first time as facilitator. I thought it will be a bit uneasy and nervous for me but when I faced them and saw the friendly attitude in their eyes everything just came naturally. I was enjoying it so much :) My positive attitude and smile must have been contagiuos because the delegates were enjoing it as well. I was so proud back home reading my sugar cubes (short messages that everybody can send to whoever wants) where they were stating their approval of me as facilitator and of the conferense as whole :) It really touched me. Believe me the experience to face so many people and make them play, make them have fun, make them passionate about something is a feeling so great that I recommend it to everybody!

But what about our guests - we had quite interesting party delegates - a big group of alumni and members from LC UNWE came to see us and share the fun and the party with us. They were quite cool and really contributed for the good mood. Always in the middle of the party, they showed they have the AIESEC spirit in them and made me enjoy the night so much. Maybe the only bad thing about the party was that I slept only for 1 hour and barely made it home the next day, where the first thing I did was to jump in my bed and spend the next 12 hours thare ;)

I bet the conference was a bit tiring for all but also quite memorable and a cool start of a wonderful year in AIESEC! I do hope everybody was so inspired that those 2 days will keep them motivated for at least 2 years (:P) and lead them to success!

My thoughts are getting very random and I should stop writing. Instead I'll post some pictures :) I'll post more when i get the photos from Rumen who was not only an important member of my punishment team (oh my god this team was wild ;)) but also the person who made more pics than all the others together :D

Home Sweet Home

Last week I ended my 3-month traineeship in Coca-Cola and officially I’m unemployed now :) I needed a little break and I took it – I went home. It was 2 months since my last visit and my family was very happy to see me again. My brother went home with me so we were the 4 of us again.
Actually I had a reason to go home, a very good one – my grandfather had a birthday! It was his 70th birthday! We had a huge family reunion. My uncle, aunt and cousins came also so it turned out to be a big celebration :) My grandfather was extremely happy :)
I used the time in Shumen to catch up with some old friends, get a new phone number (+359883394826) and vote in the local mayor elections. Those were some nice relaxing 5 days that filled me with energy for the upcoming conferences – LIS on 1-2 November and NaLDS on 5-11 November. Looking forward to my next visit home!

My grandpa happy on his birthday

Nice family picture :)

First Step

First step as conference manager

First step as facilitator

First step in AIESEC for 25 enthusiastic persons

LIS 2007 - LIS the IIIrd
A chance to be creative. A chance to learn from past experience and implement good ideas. A chance to teach and learn.
LIS 2007 - let's make the first step together!

Recruitment

Today was the first day of a 3-day marathon of assessment centers and interviews for our candidates for new members in AIESEC. We have 53 applicant selected for that phase and only around 25 of them will be selected. It may be a tough competition because we have some very good candidates. It is quite challenging for us - the assessors - too. It's not an easy task to evaluate people. And no it's still the easy part - the tough will bet when we have to pick the exact 25 ones. I really hate rejecting people, it makes me feel bad. I need to be more bitchy and not care about that, but I can't! Anyway, I'll have to.

So, about today - very tiring but I'm very happy. We managed to go through 18 candidates and we really have some top picks. I was delighted by the working process and the profesionalism we showed. We also had fun together. Maybe here I have to say big thanks to Blago and Tanya, who helped us a lot! We couldn't make it without you, my friends!

And here are some pics with our candidates after completion of the first case of the assessment center :) They're cute, aren't they :P

an interesting day :)

Don't you love such days with great beginning and even better ending. I just had one of them :)
I was happily surprised with a mail from Germany, saying that I'm accepted as a delegate of one of the best conferences in AIESEC - NaLDS. That's a 1-week leadership conference that gathers a lot of international delegates and as I heard is really useful and fun. I'm so happy, happy, happy! I still remember me sending the application 3 days ago - 1 hour from the deadline, on a party :P I didn't expect such a fast reply, but German people are really fast and punctual. It will be interesting to go again to Germany - it was the first foreign country I visited - 4 years ago.
After a very intense day at work I was just in time for the presentation we had in Faculty of Economics of Sofia University. I had the pleasure to be the chair - the person that moderates the presentation. It was a new experience for me and I really enjoyed it. As a whole the presentation was very good and I'm happy with my performance :) Hopefully I'll have the chance to work in AIESEC with some of the people that attended the presentation.
Of course not everything was perfect that day - an application of mine was turned down by the MC of AIESEC in Bulgaria ... again :( Maybe it's time to stop applying there. I won't have the chance to be a facilitator on the coolest conference this year that will gather all the newies from the different LCs. Too bad, I really wanted that, but I guess I can't have it all. It's no secret that I'm a bad looser so I have to find a way that this rejection won't affect me. Anyway, I have a lot of rethinking to do and it's time to get in order my priorities.
However my day finished in an excellent way. After the presentation I went to the birthday of Dessy - a new member of LC UNWE. I can say it was one of the best AIESEC parties I remember! Lots of people, lots of dancing, lots of fun ;) I met a lot of friends I haven't seen for a while and of course the enthusiastic newies. The atmosphere was heated by the alcohol and the beautiful girls :) I should be going to more of the parties of LC UNWE!
It's getting late here so I'm going to bed. Let's see what the next day has brought to me...

235 hours
time is ticking
much to be done
no room for panic
impossible is nothing
we CAN do it, we WILL do it
we will succeed no matter what
235 hours and counting …

200

I saw this quiz on some friends' blogs and was so bored to actually take it myself and post it here.
Enjoy!
The statements in bold are the ones that apply for me.

01. Bought everyone in the pub a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said ‘I love you’ and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Done a striptease
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Stayed up all night long, and watch the sun rise
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Touched an iceberg
20. Slept under the stars
21. Changed a baby’s diaper
22. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
23. Watched a meteor shower
24. Gotten drunk on champagne
25. Given more than you can afford to charity
26. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
27. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
28. Had a food fight
29. Bet on a winning horse
30. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
31. Asked out a stranger
32. Had a snowball fight
33. Photocopied your bottom on the office photocopier
34. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
35. Held a lamb
36. Enacted a favorite fantasy
37. Taken a midnight skinny dip
38. Taken an ice cold bath
39. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
40. Seen a total eclipse
41. Ridden a roller coaster
42. Hit a home run
43. Fit three weeks miraculously into three days
44. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
45. Adopted an accent for an entire day
46. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
47. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
48. Had two hard drives for your computer
49. Visited all 50 states
50. Loved your job for all accounts
51. Taken care of someone who was shit faced
52. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
53. Had amazing friends
54. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
55. Watched wild whales
56. Stolen a sign
57. Backpacked in Europe
58. Taken a road-trip
59. Rock climbing
60. Lied to foreign government’s official in that country to avoid notice
61. Midnight walk on the beach
62. Sky diving
63. Visited Ireland
64. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love
65. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
66. Visited Japan
67. Benchpressed your own weight
68. Milked a cow
69. Alphabetized your records
70. Pretended to be a superhero
71. Sung karaoke
72. Lounged around in bed all day
73. Posed nude in front of strangers
74. Scuba diving
75. Got it on to “Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye
76. Kissed in the rain
77. Played in the mud
78. Played in the rain
79. Gone to a drive-in theater
80. Done something you should regret, but don’t regret it
81. Visited the Great Wall of China
82. Discovered that someone who’s not supposed to have known about your blog has discovered your blog
83. Dropped Windows in favor of something better
84. Started a business
85. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
86. Toured ancient sites
87. Taken a martial arts class
88. Swordfought for the honor of a woman
89. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
90. Gotten married
91. Been in a movie
92. Crashed a party
93. Loved someone you shouldn’t have
94. Kissed someone so passionately it made them dizzy
95. Gotten divorced
96. Had sex at the office
97. Gone without food for 5 days
98. Made cookies from scratch
99. Won first prize in a costume contest
100. Ridden a gondola in Venice
101. Gotten a tattoo
102. Found that the texture of some materials can turn you on
103. Rafted the Snake River
104. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
105. Got flowers for no reason
106. Masturbated in a public place
107. Got so drunk you don’t remember anything
108. Been addicted to some form of illegal drug
109. Performed on stage
110. Been to Las Vegas
111. Recorded music
112. Eaten shark
113. Had a one-night stand
114. Gone to Thailand
115. Seen Siouxsie live
116. Bought a house
117. Been in a combat zone
118. Buried one/both of your parents
119. Shaved or waxed your pubic hair off
120. Been on a cruise ship
121. Spoken more than one language fluently
122. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
123. Bounced a check
124. Performed in Rocky Horror
125. Read – and understood – your credit report
126. Raised children
127. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy
128. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
129. Created and named your own constellation of stars
130. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
131. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
132. Called or written your Congress person
133. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
134. …more than once?
135. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
136. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
137. Had an abortion or your female partner did
138. Had plastic surgery
139. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
140. Wrote articles for a large publication
141. Lost over 100 pounds
142. Held someone while they were having a flashback
143. Piloted an airplane
144. Petted a stingray
145. Broken someone’s heart
146. Helped an animal give birth
147. Been fired or laid off from a job
148. Won money on a T.V. game show
149. Broken a bone
150. Killed a human being
151. Gone on an African photo safari
152. Ridden a motorcycle
153. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph
154. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
155. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
156. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
157. Ridden a horse
158. Had major surgery
159. Had sex on a moving train
160. Had a snake as a pet
161. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
162. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing
163. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
164. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
165. Visited all 7 continents
166. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
167. Eaten kangaroo meat
168. Fallen in love at an ancient Mayan burial ground
169. Been a sperm or egg donor
170. Eaten sushi
171. Had your picture in the newspaper
172. Had 2 (or more) healthy romantic relationships for over a year in your lifetime
173. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
174. Gotten someone fired for their actions
175. Gone back to school
176. Parasailed
177. Changed your name
178. Petted a cockroach
179. Eaten fried green tomatoes
180. Read The Iliad
181. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read
182. Dined in a restaurant and stolen silverware, plates, cups because your apartment needed them
183. ..and gotten 86’ed from the restaurant because you did it so many times, they figured out it was you
184. Taught yourself an art from scratch
185. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
186. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
187. Skipped all your school reunions
188. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language (body language ;))
189. Been elected to public office
190. Written your own computer language
191. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
192. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
193. Built your own PC from parts
194. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
195. Had a booth at a street fair
196. Dyed your hair
197. Been a DJ
198. Found out someone was going to dump you via LiveJournal
199. Written your own role playing game
200. Been arrested

Sharing is caring :) You can do some sharing too if you want.
Anyway, it's a good material for "I have never ever ...", right? ;)

numbers

8 months of blogging
50 posts
almost 1300 views of my blog

Well, interesting statistics. Frankly I didn't think I'd blog for so long. The initial idea was to write some news here for my friends while I'm abroad. Now it's been 3 months since I'm back home but I didn't stop blogging. Guess it's for all my friends that are abroad while I'm here :D
Seriously, I think blogging is a nice way of self-reflection and in a way - a "diary" that you can come to after a while and look through it. Besides, some people might find it amusing to read my blog and get to know what's happening to me :)

The Inn :)

This post is about my lovely room in Students Town :D A place that has seen many visitors and is almost always full. It's quite interesting how many paople have slept here since I moved in. We even have a regular "visitor" that stays here as a forth roommate. Well, you can't really find privacy here, but it's quite fun.
I really enjoy it when friends come here and stay over. Like 2 days ago - once more I had international guests. There was an AIESEC conference near Veliko Tarnovo and Silvi (OC delegates) asked me to host someone. I agreed and there I was on Sunday - waiting on the rain for a Lithuanian girl to come and stay for a night. I didn't know her but hey, that's AIESEC - you somehow can't refuse an AIESECer that needs a place to stay because you might be in the same position somewhere in the world. Her name was Laura and she turned out to be a really cute and lovely girl :) Thinking what to do and where to party I picked some more international delegates - 3 guys from Poland. It was quite funny because everywhere we went to eat smth, the electricity went down :) Finaly we got some drinks and went home where Laura was waiting for us. I had a bottle of home made rakia and menta so we decided to play some drinking games. We played "I have never ever" so we got to know each other, even too much ;) It was really fun, I enjoyed it!
At some point the Polish guys left and we went to bed - Laura in my bed and I on a folding bed. Guess what - after some minutes one of the Poles (Bubu) came to ask if I can host somebody else in my room because there was no more space at the place they were. We didn't have any more beds but what could I say - I agreed. So after 10 more min he came back with a blanket so he can sleep on the floor. I couldn't let him sleep on the floor so I gave him the bed I was about to sleep in. Good for me that Laura let me sleep with her in my bed :) It was good, but short - I had to wake up early to go to work. Anyway, it was a really nice night and in the future you can be sure I'll be willing to host a friend that needs a place to stay for a night or two :)

happy

I just felt happy about today and want to share it :)
First of all I finally passed my last exam and am proud to say I finished 3th grade :)))) The exam was oral (which is not so often now in my university) and I got it somehow with a good grade. I feel a bit guilty because I really didn't prepare for it, didn't say much about the questions, but still got a good mark. Well, bonuses are always welcome :D Anyway, now I'm ready to take my 4th and last year of bachelor studies in finance.
About the other good thing - I had my first AIESEC presentation that I perform as presentator! It's quite a cool feeling and gives you an incredible experience. The presentation went well at overall. There are some things that we can improve but we are still learning and the last 4 presentations will be better and better :) Probably I'll take part at at least 2 more, we'll see.
So now I'm going to sleep and hopefully the smile on my face will stay for at least a whole day ;)

complaining

Maybe I should say some more words about my job in Coca Cola. Anyways, this week it’s taken the biggest part of my daily time. The last days I’ve been coming 8:30 in the office only to leave at around 22:30. 14 hours a day!!!! So my routine is basically work – sleep – work. Not to mention I’ve been working some time on Saturday and Sunday too. And all this because of the ******* budget. I’ll be more than happy when we submit it on Monday.
Tell you what – the AIESEC budget (or any other NGO budget for that matter) is waaaaaaaay different and muuuuuuuuuch simpler. In Coca Cola we’re talking about hundreds of millions of euros and if I accidentally mess 1 recipe or type a wrong number it’s gonna make a difference. So I’m extra careful and check and double check everything.
OK enough complaining! I promise my next post will be more cheerful :)

1st school day

Lots and lots of memories came back to me today as I saw the students on the streets going for their first school day. I can't believe it's been 15 years since I first celebrated this day and stepped in my first school :) It seems so distant now and yet so close. Time has passed and I no longer go to my school, but the old friends remain. Some of them will always do and will keep the memory of this past times when everything seemed so simple, so different. I'm really happy that I have friends like Svilen, who I know since 1st grade and will always consider as one of my best friends!

It's Recruitment time

Hey hey AIESEC people!

Recruitment is upon us in LC TU and we are ready to take the challenge and recruit the brightest, best looking (:P), most motivated and passionate, hard working and ambitious young individuals that can be found in the universities in Sofia. We just entered a 1,5 months marathon that will suck most of our time and power but will bring enormous doze of satisfaction and will develop our organizational and presentation skills.

So 10th of September came and passed and we as AIESEC participated in the openning of the year in Technical University and raised awareness about AIESEC among the students in the top faculties in TU. Time is ticking and soon we'll enter the room for the first presentation in the university. Just like 2 years when I discovered AIESEC but this time I'll be on the other side - facing the students, addressing them and answering their questions. We are going to stand together as Executive Body and perform our first presentation. Are we going to make it good? Hell yeah - we'll rock the house! Well, shit happens so if we mess it - at least we have 5-6 more presentations in different universities to improve :D No, seriously, people learn from their mistakes so there will be some suck ups but we will smooth everything and try to show our best.

We'll see the results in the end of October and we'd better be really proud of them!

Still trying to deal with AIESEC, work, exams and personal life at the same time. Apparently succeeding :) Some people can, some people can't. At the end of the day it's all about time management, natural talent (haha I don't know how much of that I have :D) and a bit of luck (even if you don't have the previous 2, you'll do just fine with a big doze of luck :))

So I wish you to have the time you need for doing the things you like!

Unity Makes Power

Today is a Bulgarian national holiday - the Bulgarians celebrate 122 years from the Unification of Bulgaria and Eastern Rumelia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unification_of_Bulgaria) This holiday is very important for our history because it shows the courage and determination of our ancestors to oppose the Great Powers and unite our scattered country. This was truly an act that we can be proud of and honour the brave organizators and the soldiers that died in the following Serbo-Bulgarian war. Unfortunately nowadays there is am apathy about this holiday and you can hardly feel something special about the day. Some of my friends didn't even know it's a holiday.

I remember last 6th of September - I was in USA then and did my best to memorate the day and show I'm proud to be Bulgarain. I guess it's true that everybody becomes more or less patriotic when he leaves the county. However I don't need to be away from Bulgaria to love it and will try to make it a special day and enjoy it as much as I can :)

HAPPY HOLIDAY DEAR BULGARIANS!!!!!!

exams

I'm passing some difficult weeks right now. The exams in my university came and I'm seriously trying to prepare for them and get good marks. It's not that easy because I have to work and study at the same time and I really don't feel like taking exams so I'm trying to find some excuses not to study but to do smth more interesting.
However I've always been a good student and so far managed to achieve good grades. So I'm not trying only to pass but to do it the best way and achieve good results. And it's somehow happening. Today (actually yesterday) I had my first exam and I really did a good job - having the best grade (6). It seemed so easy - after all, the lectors are not so strict now and besides it always helps when you say you've been Erasmus :)
So 1 of 4 is over, 3 more left. Come on, I'll take them and forget about it. No sweat.
Anyway, you should always celebrate such small victories. I'm just back from the disco and a birthday before that. I'm a little bit tipsy from the alcohol but still ok for posting :)
Hopefully a week or two from now I'll be able to say I made it to forth year in university. Wish me luck!

Homeless?

What do you connect students dormitories with? Cheap way of living, dirty little rooms, nonstop parties - of course, but also troubles and endless administrative issues :( I hate to deal with SSO (the devision that manages the dorms). It's all about endless queues and problems.
So what is the problem - I had a decent room in one of the best blocks in Student Town (block 23) with good roommates. I was hoping to still have it when I return from Denmark, but noooo - things had to change. They decided to renovate the block. Normally a good intention - after the renovations I would have one of the best rooms in Studentski. So the idea was to put us temporary in other blocks, finish the renovation before the start of the school year and put us back in the new rooms. Hahaha - it's too good to be true, not in Bulgaria. Well, we had to move and we did - now I occupy a messy room on the first floor with awful toilet. When I was talking about smth with the supervisor of the block ("domakinka") and mentioned that I'm in room 121 she said - "Oh, you are in that crappy room" :( "Good news" is that I won't have to stay here for long - I have to be gone by the end of the month. That would be cool if I had a place to stay. Block 23 maybe - hahha try again! After 2 months of renovation they just emptied the rooms and did absolutely nothing to renovate them. Lasy bastards! So now nobody knows when it's gonna be finished. There is a solutions - I can apply for a room in another block but then I'll lose any chance to go back to block 23 :( Off and I want to stay there, I had enough of moving. But still I hav to find a place to stay til they finish it.
Have no idea what to do but will think of something.

Istanbul

On Earth there is a city, vast and populuos, bright and colorful, busy and loud, appealing with its beauty and yet filled with mysteries and secrets. An ancient city connecting modern Europe and exotic Asia. A city that bears a mark of many civilizations and stood the test of time. That is the magnificent Istanbul - the heart of Turkey! Known by many names, the city was the capital of glorious empires and thus an unreachable goal for many Bulgarian rulers throughout milleniums. There is something magnetic in this city that makes you want to visit it, to explore it. I personally had never been there, although it's so near, but knew that I'll see it one day soon.

And this day came. Although it was one of the top destinations for my next trip outside Bulgaria, I didn't plan to go there that soon. But I couldn't resist to accept Silvia's invitation to join her and go to surprise our friends from AIESEC that had a huge conference there. At first I was thinking to reject the offer, but when my other plans for the week collapsed, I had no choice but to happily accept and go there. During that time Adam was visiting me so I took him with me and the three of us headed to Istanbul with the night bus on Monday.

The trip wasn't without trouble. We had to wait 7 hours on the Turkish border :( You can imagine our frustration knowing that we are stuck there and will miss the opening of the AIESEC conference. Nobody knew how long we are going to stay on the border so everybody was relived when we finally passed it at 8 o'clock in the morning. We were late, very late, but still had enough time to see our friends. At 13:00 we reached Istanbul and started looking for our hostel. After we found it we changed clothes and went to the site of the Global Village where AIESECers from 102 countries were gathered to present their countries!

So some words for the AIESEC conference: It's called Intenetional Congress (IC) and gathers the MCs from all AIESEC countries. This is the biggest and most important conference in AIESEC! There you can feel the spirit on internationalism; the passion of the young and ambitios future leaders of the World; and test your phisical and mental limits in a 10days marathon of high-quality sessions, many new contacts from the whole world and plans and strategies for cooperation and everyday parties :) That's the place we went to spend our first day in Istanbul. We managed to catch the Global Village and the official openning where we heard speeches from the mayor of Istanbul, PAI, CCP,MCP of Turkey, HR Manager of HP and saw performances of the famous "Fire of Anatolia" and the Whirling Dirvishes. It was amazing! And beside all we managed to surprise or friends from the AIESEC :) I saw many friends from Denmark, Serbia and Bulgaria. Of course I couldn't resist to go to the stage and join the AIESEC dances :) There we saw another friend - Piotr - the CEEDer of LC VTU, who was also there to see the city and the openning and joined us for the rest of our stay there.

The 4 explorers :)

So after the openning the 4 of us (+ Piotr) went to the hostel and after some preparation went out again to see the nightlife of Istanbul. We went to a disko but I we didn't like it. And maybe it's not a good idea to go in a disko full of Turkish men when you are with a beautiful girl like Silvi. Anyway, we found a really nice classical turkish place - a narrow street full of small tables with short chairs, where you can drink Turkish tea, smoke nargile (shisha) and play tabla (backgamon). That's exactly what we did :) Me and Silvi taught Adam and Piotr how to play tabla while drinking tea and smoking nargile. It was magical :) It was so typically turkish and so pleasant :)

In front of Topcapi Palace

Traditional military costumes procession

In the Blue Mosque

The next day we started our sightseeing. Adam really wanted to go to Asia so we separeted. The rest of us went to SultanAhmed - the old city. There we went inside the Blue Mosque and showered in a fountain :D I can tell you one thing about Turkey - you walk and sweat, stay and sweat, breathe and sweat! I just couldn't count how many litres of water we drunk during that day :) We separeted again - Silvi went to an Islamic museum while I and Piotr went to the Kapali Carsi (the Grand Bazaar) and in Hagia Sophia. I just won't say anything about the last one because words are not enough to describe it! During the 2 days Piotr made over 500 photos so I can't wait to see them soon :)

In front of Hagia Sophia

In the afternoon we all gathered again and saw some more things. We went to 2 other mosques (Silvi is just amazing with the scarves around her body :D) and again to Kapali Carsi. I caould even bargain and bought a little souvenir :)

Unfortunatelly we had to go back :( So our short trip to Istanbul ended but we had a really great time there! I want to thank Silvi espacially for making me go there and also Adam and Piotr for sharing this trip with us!

locked-up

Guess what - I'm a prisoner in my own room! My both roommates are gone and so are my keys. Well, I once took Ceco's key by mistake so it had to happen that he takes mine too. So now he's in Mezdra and Kris is nowhere to be found. Funny situation :) There's nothing to be done actually - I just have to stay in the room (it doesn't seem like I'm going somewhere anyways :() and wait for Ceco to come in the morning. If somebody is concerned about me, can come and bring some food under my door :D Stay tuned for the next episode of Prison Break :D

A visitor from abroad

A view from the MC office

In the forest :)

A view from the Shumen Fortress

So far my stories with foreigners usually started like "I went to ..... and visited ......" Well, this time I didn't have to go anywhere, it was my turn to be a good host and welcome a friend from abroad :) So the point is that I had a visitor - Adam from Hungary, the same Adam that I visited in June in Budapest. It was his turn to return the visit and I had the chance to show my beautiful country to a foreign friend.

Adam came on Wednesday night (15 August) with the train from Solun (Tessaloniki). I hosted him on my brother's place (those of you who know my new messy room in block 26 know why :P) - quite a nice place with enough space. Due to my job I had to leave him alone during 2 days but on Thursday night we had quite a good time exploring the night life in Studentski Grad :) At first we picked Aga and Mladen and then tried my father's home made rakia. After that we headed for Avenue - I don't know why but I keep bringing friends in that disko :) Well, the place is one of my favourite and I like the music there.

On friday after work I showed Adam the AIESEC MC office. We found there Tony (LCP of LC Svishtov) and a boy and a girl from the French MC. We had a nice sightseeing walk with them and after a quick packing of the luggage headed for the train station.

We took the long way from Sofia to Shumen for around 7 hours in the crowded train (I slept most of the time :P) and had a good rest in my home. The day was ours and we went full of energy to explore Shumen. I guess the enegry was not so much, because after the killing sightseeing route I chose we were dead tired and stoped in my grandparents' place for some refreshment. The nice old people liked Adam and he was like an atraction to them. I guess it was the same for Adam when they started sharing stories about the time they were in Budapest on a holiday. Meanwhile I managed to show Adam the pride of Shumen - the monument on top of the city (quite a nice place) that can be reached after you climb 1300 stairs. The number is symbolic - it was built exactly 1300 years after the creation of the Bulgarian State. From there we took a "short" walk in the forest (5-10 km) to the Fortress of Shumen.

Well, the day was finishing but we found a little more energy and partied in the best disko in Shumen til 5 o'clock. We couldn't stay more in Shumen because we had to go to Burgas, where Silvia was waiting for us. There we took the bus/sauna to her place in Pomorie (or Pomodoro as Adam says :D). We had 2 great days there on the beach. Silve, BIIIIG thanks for being such a great host :)

On Monday night we all went to Burgas to take the train to Istanbul (that's another story) where we spent 2 amazing days. After that we stopped again in Shumen and I had to say goodbye to Adam who went home.

Thanks for the visit Adam! We had a lot of fun! Hope to see you again soon! You are always welcome in Bulgaria!

Reception activities

A thing that I really enjoy is meeting new people from different countries, different cultures. It's a nice way to experience diversity, see another perspective and a good opportunity to represent your own country. During my past travels I hade quite many chances to do that, as a result I have a lot of foreign friends in all parts of Europe and not only. But most of the communication I had with foreigners was abroad. That's why I'm really happy when I have the chance to meet some foreigners in Bulgaria.
I had this chance yesterday :) Two CEEDers from LC VTU (Peter from Poland/England and Viki from Russia) came to Sofia for a short trip. Aga took them in her room in Studentski Grad for two nights. One of this nights we went together to party in Studentski. Veli aslo joined us in the beginning. So basicly it was up to me to bring them to some nice place and make sure they are having great time. And indeed we had a really good time :) After a nice conversation in an old fashioned pub (mehana) and some beers we headed to my favourite disco (Avenue). We had some small problems like rain and forgotten identity card but finally we were inside for some dancing. The good thing about Avenue is that on the first floor there is disco music and on the second - pop-folk (chalga) so you can change places and listen to what you like. It wasn't crowded so we had enough space to dance, although all the seats were reserved. The chalga music and dances were a bit strange for them so we spent most of the time downstairs :D
Anyway, I hope they enjoyed the stay and will keep good memories from nightlife Sofia :))))

bye-bye LC UNWE

Yesterday I closed a chapter of my student's life - I left Local Committee Sofia-UNWE - my first touch to AIESEC. It was a normal, friendly farewell - I went to the General Assembly of the LC, voted for last time and gave them a request for cancelation of my membership status. It was quite an easy thing to do, practically I left the LC in the winter - with my departure for Denmark. I new how the people leave the organization and wondered how I fit in that. Some go through a glorious career, achieve a lot in AIESEC and become honorable members (alumni), some go to exchange and head for the future, and some just stop being active and eventually are voted off the LC. So what was my case - well it's another case :) I left the LC but I didn't leave AIESEC. I just moved. There is something in my personality that I just can't stand still at one place, I need to move, to change, to develop. I have this urge to follow opportunities and try new things. That's exactly what I did in AIESEC. After 2 years in the organization the proper development is to become a member of the Executive Body. That's what I strived for and when I couldn't get it in LC UNWE I found it eleswhere. That's how I joined LC TU and became a Vice-president Finance. A pretty right choice if you ask me :) I really like my current role in AIESEC and have great expectation for this term. It's gonna be much better than my stay in LC UNWE :)

After all AIESEC is all about providing opportunities, you just have to know where to find them and when you do - go for them!

So farewell LC UNWE and hello LC TU!

Shumen

Today I’ve decided finally to go home to Shumen and visit my family. It was about time I’d say – I’ve been away for more than a half year. When I moved to Sofia to study I used to go home once a month – quite normal taking in consideration that the distance Sofia-Shumen is around 380 km and it usually takes you 6,5 hours by train. Haha after my first return I almost felt like immigrant returning to his beloved city. Now it’s different – I’m used to living in Sofia and spending only 2-3 days a month in Shumen is something normal.
Anyway half a year is too long. I wanted to go to Shumen as soon as I came back from Denmark but I was quite busy with the trip to Beograd, AIESEC and looking for/starting to work. So now I’m taking the night train and will spend the weekend with my family. It will be a nice mini-vacation – a runaway from my daily life and a chance to taste some of my mum’s tasty meals :) Man, my family will be very happy to see me; they missed me a lot while I was abroad. I missed them as well.
Besides that I always like going to this city, to my city. It just feels so natural, so good. That’s the city where I spent my childhood, the first 18 years of my life. I have so many stories from there, so many friends and nice memories – the first love, the first true friendship, the first time I’ve been to a disco, all the contest I’ve been to and many many more... Whenever I go there I like to just wonder round the city center, go to cafes and clubs with friends or go for short trips to the monument, the castle ruins or somewhere else in the Shumen Plateau just above the city. I quite enjoy showing around friends from different cities. Sadly now most of my friends from high school had moved to study to other cities (like me), but still we see from time to time there.
So I’ll be going tonight. When are we going together to show you the charming and magnificent Shumen?! :P

They are FREE!!!!

The Bulgarian medics, sentenced to death in Libia are finally free! Truly a day of national triumph and a boost of self-confidence that we are able to defend our national causes! Rejoice Bulgarians, we prevailed!
With a massive help from EU and the international pressure over Libia, 6 innocent lives were saved and now the medics can hug their families on a Bulgarian soil and continue their lives. Lives that will be marked with the 8,5 years of tortures, constant fear and imprisonment. Some would say that after this nightmare they don't have a life anymore; it's ruined. However I wan't to wish them a revival and a new beggining. They deserve it!

First day at work

Guess where I am now - at the office desk of my first job ever in Bulgaria!!! That's right - I finally started working in Bulgaria, after months spent working abroad. The feeling is quite different, now I work on a job I appreciate and hopefully will like doing. It's not a crappy job somewhere abroad. So what exactly do I work - I'm doing an internship in Coca Cola HBC in Sofia. My internship will last 3 months and I'll be in the finance department - dealing mainly with long-term assets. Truly a job related to my major at the university :) I have a friend from AIESEC as a colleague in the IT department so it will be fun here :) I'm anxious to see what the future awaits me!

The FRIDGE :)

This post is dedicated to my friends from the MC team of AIESEC in Bulgaria - Blago, Milenski and Aga. On Thursday we had a little adventure. It was so hilarious I'm laughing every time I remember it :) So what we did - we moved a fridge. Well it's not as simple as it sounds. Milenski and Aga decided to buy a common fridge and they asked Blago to help them carry it. I happened to be in the MC office this day so I decided to go and help. I had no idea what I was going to be involved in. So we went to have a dinner and after that headed to block 59 in Student's Town where the fridge owner lives. The final destination was block 24. For those who don't know Student's Town - the distance is quite big actually (maybe 1 km or more). But we were crazy enough and sure we can do it. We started the carrying at 10:00 pm - me, Blago and Milenski holding the fridge (equiped with socks for the hands - to make it softer) and Aga looking from aside and supporting us. At 1/3 of the way we were already tired and decided to look for another way to bring the fridge to Milenski's room. Actually Milenski had luck (or had he :P) - a seller from a fruit vendor offered his help - we just had to wait him finish his shift and he would bring the fridge with his car. So we were waiting - half an hour in the freezing night. While waiting some gipsy kids came begging for money and we decided to give them the socks. And the seller came, funally. But it was all in vain - the fridge couldn't fit in the car. We were doomed. The spirit was low - Blago was going to miss the last bus to his home, Aga was freezing, some friends were calling me for a party. So what to do ?! Milenski and Aga went to look for a cart and me and Blago waited with the fridge. We waited, and waited, and waited! Then they came. No, not with a cart, of course, with new socks :D When they couldn't find a cart they went to Milenski's room and took some extra warm clothes and some socks for the hands. So the quest had to continue, the hard way! It was long, it was tough, it was exhausting, it was sooo hilarious :D But we finally made it - the fridge was there - in Milenski's room in block 24. Ufff at last. What was the time - around 1 am. Yes, it took us more than 3 hours! Well, half of the time we spent waiting, but still. Haha we were laughing all the way, making jokes of ourselfs. It was great fun.
So what did I learn from this:

1. no good deed is left unpunished :)
2. now I know how to carry a fridge the most convenient way
3. even the hardest work is fun if you share it with friends :) :) :) :)

So Aga and Milenski - enjoy your new fridge!

I'm back

Well it's almost a month since I've posted anything here. I kind of missed posting but things were happening so fast that I didn't know what to write about first. It sure was an eventful month so I'll just briefly write what happened to me. So here are the highlights:

Last week in Denmark - after the exam I had just a week to deal with all the administrative stuff before leaving and finally to do some sightseeing. For the last week I saw more of Denmark (Copenhagen in particular) than for the previous 5 months! I felt like a typical tourist walking in the streets with a map in hands :D The last day I managed to say goodbye to my friends and after a sleepless night filled with packing (I know I always pack at the last possible moment) and celebrating my return, I headed to the airport. I almost missed the plane (it's a long story) and the heavy rain made me miserable but after that everything went just perfect. So in my memory I say goodbye to Denmark again and continue with my trip back home.

The trip back home - of course I didn't go home directly but decided first to visit some of my friends, that I met in EWE in Eindhoven. So the plane was Copenhagen - Budapest and I was heading to meet Adam.
Budapest - well what can I say - I fell in love with the city (and the Hungarian girls ;)) Adam really managed to show me the beauties of Budapest and I regretedf I caould spend only 2 days there. But those were 2 amazing days :) We saw all the main tourist attractions and even managed to see a carnaval on the streets. During the nights we had fun in open air parties (they are so much better than the indoor ones) and tried Hungarian Palinka (yummi). If everythings works out Adam will return the visit in August :) Enough about Budapest; next stop - Vienna!
Vienna - time to meet Marek and spent 2 incredible days in the city I always dreamed to visit! If there is somebody that can show you all the best of Vienna - that is Marek. I had sooo good time there that I couldn't even imagine! I finally rode the famous wheel in the Prater, saw Shonbrun Palace, went to the big tower where you see all of Vienna, had Viennese coffee with Saha cake (of course), had a huge pork leg meet with beer in one of the most famous traditional restaurants, visited a concert on the Danube island (ohh the hangover) and many many more things. It was just perfect!!!!

Back in Sofia - finally back home after 5 months!!!! I missed Bulgaria so much. It's nice to be home but I had to face the Bulgarian reallity - on the door of my dormitory I saw a sign that I have to move from the block because it's going to be renovated :( Yuck! I hate moving! And I had to spend 1 of the two days in Sofia to deal with the beaurocracy and to move my stuff in the new room. But I didn't want to deal more with that and with a clear mind went to my next destination - Belgrade!

Belgrade - After EWE Olga told me about similar conferences in Europe. One of them was International Student Week in Belgrade (ISWiB). I applied there and they selected me. Too bad Olga didn't get selected :( So from 28th of June til 5th of July I visited Belgrade for the 3rd time in my life. I can't get enough of this city, it has so much charm in it and I'm sure I'll return there again. About the conference - it was GREAT!!!! Really it was quite fun and I met very good friends there. We were divided in workshops and I think mine was the coolest. We visited the churches in Belgrade, some galleries and museums, had lectures about queer culture and film financing (I skipped the last one to go to another workshop that visited the fortress Kalemegdan :P) Our gruop guide Dusan was really great, very energetic and interesting person. He managed to keep the spirit of the group high and to bond us. And I had the best roommates - a guy from Litva (Vitotas - Vodka for short :D) and another one from Slovenia (Mladen - a typical Balkan macho :D) We had really great time. And all the Slovenians were really great! Next time I plan a trip I might go to Slovenia :) Well I don't know what to say really - it was a great, very eventful week and for sure I'm applying for it next year too!

AIESEC - back to my favourite organization :) I was selected for Vice-President Finance in LC Technical University!!! Yeah! Now I have a lot of work but I'm very pleased and it's going to be soooo interesting this year. I can already feel the sleepless nights, the great parties and conferences and the satisfaction of the achieved results :)

Enough for now. Will write more soon.

it's almost over

I can't believe it! I look at the calendar and wonder where did all those months go?! Then again I can recall dozens of things in each month from january till now. So many things happened, so many bright memories! But the time went by so fast.
On Thuesday was my final exam. A good end for my studies in Lyngby Business Academy. Although they'll tell us the result at the end of the month I'm pretty sure I passed it and I can go back to Bulgaria with clear consciousness :) And yet it is an end. I got used to the subjects, to the teachers, to the way ot teaching. Now I have to switch fast to the Bulgarian reality for september when I'll have my exams in the University of National and World Economy, all 5 of them.
Another end - I finish work tomorrow. After 3 months I somehow got used to this shitty job. Not that I'll miss it, but maybe I'll miss a little the funny guys I work with. I definitely won't miss the early getting up, but something tells me I won't be enjoying lazy sleeping till noon in the bed for long - I should start an internship soon. Bah, anyway, sleeping is overrated :D
And the last end - in only a week I'll have to say goodbye to Lygby, to Denmark, to my friends here. It's such an odd feeling to see off your colleagues, your friends, knowing that you're next and it will be someone else to see you off until the colegium is empty. You know that maybe you'll never see those people you spent 5 months with, but you still promise you'll go and visit them. Will somebody visit me? Maybe yes, maybe no, who knows? Will I visit some of them - hmm not soon I guess.
So one more quick glance back, a glance at the past. And the time is over. No more looking back. I still have 1 more week and I'm gonna make the best of it. So that after 1 week I'll pack up my thoughts, my memories, my impressions from Denmark and happily make the next step into my bright future in Bulgaria. Can't wait for it :)

What a match

Yesterday with some friends we went to see the Euro qualification between Denmark and Sweden. We didn't have tickets but luckily there was a big screen next to the stadium that attracted a lot of football fans :) The atmosphere was great - thousands of people (both Danish and Swedish) cheering for their team, lots of beer and everything nice football can offer :) It was a while since I last went to see a football match back home at Vasil Levski national stadium, so I was eager to go. And I really enjoyed it. The match was very good, with a lot of goals. What surprised me was the calm attitude of the fans - no vandalism or violence. Even though the referee ended the game in a terrible way - still no fights between the Danes and the Swedes. I think that's the way football should be.

Another new from the day - Bulgaria won 2-0 against Belarus! :)

Erasmus

Yesterday we watched an interesting movie with some of my friends. It was a French/Spanish movie called "l'Auberge Espagnole". I'm not sure what attracted me most to that movie - the fact that I watched it while I was still tipsy from a whole day drinking beer and cocktails (it was a great celebration of the last study day in the university :)), its relaxed and simple style that made it enjoyable to watch or the fact that it was about Erasmus students :)
I've been living the "Erasmus way of life" for the past 4 months and it's nice from time to time to stop and realize what's happening to you. To appreciate this unique experience and describe it in a blog post :P
For sure the most valuable aspect was the opportunity to live, work and study in a multicultural environment. In such a cultural melting pot you feel a part of an international community where everybody is away from home and family, away from the cosiness of the native language and habbits. But that's the best part - you are forced to adapt, to react to this change and somewhere in the process become a better man - more tolerant, more open to the diversity and with much wider world horizons! You stop being locked in your national dimensions and become a true European - young, mobile, always exploring and always learning - by yourself and from the people around you.
What's good about it is that you are young and energetic and have the chance to meet and live with such people from many different countries. Suddenly you realize that the others are not so different and it's so easy to get along and party together. The language is no longer a barrier, the status and connections back home are not important, you are no longer Bulgarian, French, Polish, Hungarian - you are Erasmus :)
I really like this Erasmus spirit and I'm more than happy I was and still am a part of it. So, what I gained from my Erasmus experience - well it's not over yet and I hope in my last 3 weeks I'll add many more unforgettable moments and interesting events. I'll write about that some day soon. But overall it was very good so far :)
Hail to an amazing and world changing programme! Hail to a lifetime experience! Hail to Socrates/Erasmus! :P :P :P

the guest

I've just had a Bulgarian visitor this weekend :) Finally! Thanks Sasho. Thanks for coming and making the weekend more interesting and exiting! Even though Horsens is not too far from Copenhagen, it was nice of you to come.
It's good finally to have the chance to be a good host and show a friend around. After all the people in my house had international guests, it was my turn now :P And I think I needed some motivation to take a tourist trip around the city and look at the famous sites. Believe it or not, yesterday was the first time (although I've been living here for 4 months) I saw the little mermaid! Man I wasn't surprised at all to see a whole croud of Japanese tourists around it :D
And today, as good patriots, we went to vote for the election of the Bulgarian members in the European Parliament! It gives you a warm feeling when you care about your country and show it when you are abroad. Can't wait for 22nd of May and go again to the embassy for the cocktail they're giving. For sure it will be interesting.

I hope somebody else will want to surprise me and come to visit me, although I doubt it. Anyway, the invitation is given, so it's up to you guys! Last chance (read - last month) to apply for an unforgettable tour guided trip to Copenhagen :P The organizers (me) assure you, you'll have a wonderful experience, great emotions and huge amounth of fun :) Feeling tempted? Checking your schedule for the next month? Started looking for cheap plane tickets? Don't hesitate! Just do it!

A random thought :)

Today I came across a very interesting part of a song:

"We'll meet again, don't know where, don't know when,
But I'm sure we'll meet again some sunny day
Keep smiling through, just like you always do
Till the blue skies chase the dark clouds far away"

Just wanted to share this with you :)

Best wishes to all my foreign friends to whom I dedicate this song!

Eurovision results

Just a very short post to say that Bulgaria finished 5th on Eurovision! It's a huge success for us.!I've talked about this with so many people that I don't whant to repeat myself and won't comment more on this. I'll just say congratulations! Congratulations to us and to Marija Serifovic and her song "Molitva" that won the compatition!

Going to the final :)

Uraaaaa! Yes! Yupiii! The Bulgarian song is going to the final of Eurovision 2007! Bravo Eli, bravo Stundji! You did it! Congratulations!
I was so happy when they read Bulgaria on the small sheet of paper. I was even happier that I contributed a little with my sms :)
It's interesting that all our neighbour countries are in the final too. Romania and Greece are there because they were in the top 10 last year, and now Turkey, Macedonia and Serbia also join the final. I guess Europe likes the Balcan music and songs :)
So now I'm waiting for the final on Saturday. Watch it with me, hope with me and vote with me!

Eurovision

Europe is all music today, participants from 42 countries are going to compete for the title of winner of the Eurovision song contest 2007 in Helsinki, Finland - the biggest music event on the old continent.

For a third year in a row Bulgaria has a participant in this great event and today we all keep our fingers crossed for Elitsa Todorova and Stoyan Yankulov who are chosen to participate first on the semi-finals and their wonderful song "Water/Вода". The song is really outstanding, with a lot of ethno sounds and rhythms, and we hope that it will go to the finals on 12th of May. You can see the song on youtube.com: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9ytzgtLW1A&mode=related&search= and if you like it feel free to vote for it :)

Good luck guys! You deserve to be in the finals, you deserve to win!

Europa

Today is a remarkable day - 9th of May! Some call it the day of Europe, some - the Victory day; no mather if you celebrate the Soviet victory in 1945 and the fall of the Nazi regime or the Schuman declaration and the birth of the EU, all Europeans have a very good occasion to celebrate today. This truly is the day of Europe - a day that unites us! Europe is no more devided into 2 hostile blocks, we are becomming more like one family. A family that Bulgaria and Romania recently joined.


However we still have a long path to walk. If my friends from Ukraine, Albania, Serbia want to come and visit me, they can't do it freely, they still need a visa. Conflicts continue to torture the continent - the status of Kosovo is still not clear; tension grows in the relations between Estonia and Russia; there are huge protests in Turkey. Even in the EU nothing is as clear as we want it - the Constitution failed; the member countries remain selfish and look at their own interests; we still focus on the question should we give a chance to Turkey to become a member, when the real question should be how can we ease the process and integrate them faster.


Well nobody said it's going to be easy, but the main point is that things are going in the right direction and Europe is becoming what it should be - a place where different cultures meet and coexist in harmony and cooperation.

On fire :)

During the past days I feel alive again. I’m my normal self dealing with 1000 things and feeling the satisfaction after each mini success. It kind of reminds me my usual life in Sofia where I had to deal with AIESEC, with the university and with my social life. I began to feel bored here in this sleepy place where there are not enough challenges. But now it’s ok. Working on the project at the university fills a lot of my time and gives me a chance to act as informal leader of my group and coordinate the process. It’s surprising how much I enjoy writing about Bulgaria and its social and economic reality (because of the project). I somehow feel closer to my country.

Add to this the continuous writing of applications. I just got an e-mail saying that I’m accepted for the International Student Week in Belgrade (iswib.org) from 28 June to 5 July. I still haven’t decided if I’ll go but it’s good to have options :) First I’ll wait and see the results for the International Cultural Week in Pecs – another big conference/cultural week (icwip.hu) from 19 to 29 July. Man, I really should decide when I want to go back to Bulgaria and plan the trip back and which conference and countries I’ll visit. I have promised too many friends that I’ll try to visit them on my way back and should figure something.

Another good thing is that things are finally getting right in AIESEC and I’m again passionate about the organization and my future there. Currently applying for Non-corporate Manager on national level I have a good chance to have an interesting year in AIESEC working with a great team of professionals and friends. However if I’m not selected I have another option I recently learned – it appears that LC Technical University – the other local committee in Sofia is in need of experienced people to take the vice president finance position and they are interested in me. This will be a great chance to take a leadership position and face the challenge of working in a new place with new people. So if just a couple of months ago I was seriously considering to leave the organization, now I’m facing one more year filled with interesting and responsible work, many great AIESEC conferences and lots and lots of new friends :)

Wow this post is getting long and I don’t want to bore you too much :P Stay tuned for more interesting events from Denmark.

Today I decided to uptade my blog because I don't like my last post to be more than a week old. So what should I write about?
Maybe I should tell you about my wonderful trip to Stockholm, but then words are not enough to describe this really amazing city and how much fun I had on the trip! My advise is you should definitely see this city.
Maybe I should tell you about my stay in Tivoli - the famous Danish amusement park, but maybe instead you should just go to Sofia Land or whatever amusement park is close to you and have a day of fun on the roller coasters ;)
Maybe I should complain about my project work in the university, but I'm sure you all have some assignments to do and really don't want to hear about it.
Maybe I should tell you that yesterday was exactly 3 months since I came in Denmark. Oops, I already said it :) Nothing much to add actually.
So really, what to say?!?
Well, I won't say anything. Instead I'll just close my eyes and enjoy the sun coming through my window :)

Loesje