Useful Information
Flights and Transfers
http://www.cheapflights.co.uk/flights/Bourgas/London-Area/
The Language
The Bulgarians speak an Cyrillic language with characters which will seem strange to most people:
Most people in the tourist areas will speak very good English although you may have problems when travelling outside of these areas or trying to use services such as a post office.
Useful words:
| Hello | zdavei |
| Good Morning | Dobro Utro |
| Good Afternoon | Dobro Den |
| Good Evening | Dobar Vecher |
| How are you? | Kak ste? |
| Please to meet you | Radvam se da vi vidya |
| Goodbye | Dovijdane |
| Yes | da |
| No | No |
| Please | Molya |
| Thank you | Blagodarya |
| Sorry | Sajalyavam |
| Excuse me | Izvinyavam |
| It doesn't matter | nayama znachenie |
| Do you speak English? | Govorite li Angliiski |
| A beer | Bira |
| Coffee with milk | Kafe s mlyako |
| Ice Cream | Sladoled |
Information and tips
Electricity: Plugs used in Bulgaria, are two-pin plugs; which means that sockets are made accordingly. The common voltage is 220 V, and it is wise to bring your own adapters as well as converters as these may not be available in the area you are travelling to.
Time difference: Bulgaria's time zone lies two hours ahead of Greenwich Meridian Time (GMT). Along with most of Europe, however, Bulgaria institutes its Summer Time. Summer Time is three hours ahead of GMT and is instituted from the last Sunday in May to the Saturday before the last Sunday in September.
Currency exchange: The Bulgarian currency is the Bulgarian lev (BGL) and its plural, leva. Every lev used to consist of 100 stotinki (st). Leva notes are available in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50. Stotinki coins in use are 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50.
Getting around: Local buses are very cheap and run every 15 minutes they cost approximately 60 stotinki's per person which is payable to a guard (not in uniform) on the bus. The guard will ask you for the fair when the bus is moving.
Taxis: Only use the licensed yellow cabs. These are not metered, and a price needs to be negotiated before the you get in the cab.
Water: Do not drink the tap water. Bottled water is available in any market, but always make sure the seal on the bottle has not been broken. Try to avoid ice cubes whenever possible as these are also made from the tape water.
Tipping: A tip of 10% is generally expected by the waiting staff in restaurants, cafes and bars. Nonetheless, tipping is also recognized as a means of expressing one's satisfaction, so you are in no way obliged to tip if you feel the service did not merit it. Some restaurants automatically add a service charge, so check the bill before tipping.
Please & Thank you: Bulgarians don't often say please or thank you. Don't be offended as this is part of the culture. Bulgarians also shake there head for yes and nod there head for no.
