Kate in Bulgaria

Experiences as a Peace Corps Volunteer and some adventures on the side

Begining of the End

 It is finally time for Matt and I to begin our vacation in Greece.  We leave Saturday afternoon for a funfilled 14 hour bus ride to Athens.  In reality it only takes about 12 hours to drive down there, but throw in about 2 hours for getting through the border (bulgarians do love their duty free shopping) and you've got yourself a 14 hour bus ride.

We will spend Sunday night in Athens then head to the Island of Mykonos first thing Monday morning.  We will be in Mykonos http://www.justgreece.org/greece/mykonos/   until Thursday then take a ferry over to the island of Santorini   http://www.justgreece.org/greece/santorini/.  We will be in Santorini until Sunday night, then back to Athens until Tuesday evening. 

We've been planning this trip since late January so its been a long time coming and what we always considered the begining of the end of our time here.  When we return we will have 4 weeks until Matt's parents arrive.  On the 13th of June we (matt, me and his parents) will begin our great Eastern Europe tour that will take us through Budapest, Vienna, Salzburt, Prague, Krakow, Kiev and Odessa.  The trip will last about 22 days out of country and another week here in Bulgaria showing Matt's parents the Black Sea and a few other Bulgarian cities. 

Once Matt's parents leave for home, Matt and I will head to our Close of Service (COS) conference in Sofia.  This is the last group conference we have and will begin the paperwork and process for our departure from Peace Corps.  Technically, our COS date is not until October 10th, but people can more or less ask to leave anytime between August and then.  We are thinking to leave sometime in early August.  Matt because he wants to be home in time for the birth of his brother's baby, and myself because quite frankly I am ready to leave Bulgaria and get on with the next adventure that awaits me. 

Things here in Letnitsa are starting to wrap up for me.  I know its still a bit early, but with all the traveling I am planning and deadlines looming, most if not all of my work will be done by mid June.  My SPA project will be finished by June 1 and the orphanage project I am working on is coming very slowly.  Still looking for funding opportunities, but I'm sure something will come up.  As convoluted as Bulgaria is sometimes, somehow things always seem to work out.

So that is all that is happening here right now.  I'll post lots of pictures and things once we get back from Greece. 

On another note, Sec. of State Condoleeza Rice is in Sofia today doing a meet and greet with people at the AMerican Embassy.  Seems the Bulgarian gov has agreed to allow the US to have 3 military bases here in Bulgaria.  As i'm sure you can imagine there is quite a bit of disagreement about this from the Bulgarian populace and especially from this particular group called Attika (literally translated as Attack.)  THey are holding a protest today in Sofia very close to the embassy and so therefore there is a travel warning for volunteers for the weekend.  Attika is not a pleasant group and gained in popularity with their message of extremist Nationalism and hatred of any group in Bulgaria that is not ethnic Bulgarian.  Thats right, its an anti-Turkish, anti-Roma and now, and anti-AMerican agenda these people have and scarily enough, their group grows larger and larger everyday.   If you want to read a good break down on what the Attika party is about, my friend Brett did a series of posts all about them and their mission.  www.brettnet.net  Its a scary thought to think that these people hold 8% of the seats in the Bulgarian gov and seem to be growing in popularity every day.

here is an article from the Washington Times about the US bases that will be coming to Bulgaria

BULGARIA OKS 3 BASES FOR U.S. TROOPS
By Nicholas Kralev
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
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Bulgaria has agreed to open three military bases to permanent use by 2,500 U.S. troops who would be available for combat in the Middle East and
other nearby regions. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will seal the deal whenshe  visits the country this week.

    Miss Rice, who leaves on a trip to the Balkans today, is expected to sign a broad defense-cooperation agreement with the new NATO ally that
would authorize the stationing of foreign forces on its soil for the first time in its 1,325-year history, U.S. and Bulgarian officials said.

    The final draft of the agreement, which was seen by The Washington Times, allows the United States to deploy troops from the bases for
missions in third countries without the specific permission of the Bulgarian authorities, a sensitive matter for many Bulgarians.

    "One of the key issues anywhere is our ability to use our soldiers  where we need them," said a senior U.S. official. "Otherwise, we would be
tying ourselves [down]. The old model [during the Cold War] was that we had forces in Europe because we thought we'd fight in Europe."

    The possibility that U.S. troops would use a country with a large Muslim minority as a base for an attack on a Muslim nation, such as Iran or
Syria, has provoked vocal opposition in Bulgaria. A nationalist party  represented in the parliament plans to stage massive protests against the agreement
during Miss Rice's visit.

    Another difficult issue during the negotiations involved jurisdiction over any crimes committed by U.S. military personnel in Bulgaria. It
was resolved in a convoluted 10-line sentence, which the senior U.S.  official said is standard for such documents.

    "The Bulgarians waive the right to primary jurisdiction, but, in cases of particular importance, they recall the waiver and reassert their
jurisdiction," the official explained in much simpler language. He  noted that most crimes committed by U.S. forces abroad "are fairly minor."

    A senior Bulgarian official said Sofia was satisfied with the arrangement and that the two countries would work together on a
case-by-case basis in the event of any serious crimes.

    Officials of both countries said the United States will not pay  rent for its use of the Bezmer and Graf Ignatievo air bases and the Novo Selo
army training range and storage facility. But, according to the agreement, it will cover "operational and maintenance expenses."

    "If we decide we need commercial property, we'll pay," the senior U.S. official said.

    The senior Bulgarian official said that any new facilities built by  the Americans will remain Bulgarian property during and after the
Americans' presence in the country.

    The Bulgarians are hoping the agreement will generate employment in the country, but may be disappointed.

    "We don't plan on having that many permanent workers," the senior U.S. official said. "But Bulgarian companies are eligible for contracts for
services if they meet our requirements and standards."

    There will be 2,500 U.S. troops stationed on the three bases in southern Bulgaria at any given time, although their number could reach 5,000
during rotation periods, the official said.

    The agreement, which has to be ratified by the Bulgarian parliament before entering into force, runs for 10 years and will be automatically
renewed. Either side can terminate it with one year's notice.

    Miss Rice signed a similar agreement with Romania in December. It has been ratified by the parliament's lower chamber and is currently
awaiting approval by the Senate, said Sorin Ducaru, the Romanian ambassador to Washington.

    Both Bulgaria and Romania are former Warsaw Pact countries whose strategic location at the crossroads of Europe and the Middle East
attracted Washington's attention after the September 11 attacks, ensuring their admission to NATO.

    Miss Rice will participate in a meeting of the NATO foreign  ministers in Sofia and will also visit Greece and Turkey.

So as you can see, things here in Bulgaria are changing rapidly.  I'm glad I was here when I was.  After they join the EU and these bases arrive, Bulgaria is going to go through some major changes and frankly, the Bulgaria I have come to know won't be around to much longer.  In some ways that will be a good thing, but in others, well I guess it could go either way.  Bulgaria is an ancient country that has gone through so much and survived through more foreign occupation then most.  It is a country going through growth and change, I just hope it can keep up with all of this change and still keep its character. 

posted by: ksension at April 28, 2006 10:20 | link | comments |

posted by: ksension at April 11, 2006 19:49 | link | comments (2) |