The Money Race on the go
2007-09-18 by Leonard Ancuta

Business Standard daily, together with Dnevnik, the first business newspaper in Bulgaria, and the Money Channel television, are publishing and broadcasting during September 17-28 the first cross-border media project in Eastern Europe - the Romania-Bulgaria Money Race.

Subject: "The Money Race" will provide readers and viewers a detailed analysis of the evolution of Romanian and Bulgarian economies, about 8 months after they joined the European Union. We focused on putting reality into figures, to better reflect the way the two countries changed their positions, and we will continue with detailed analyses on the development degree of both states.

... bla bla bla ... http://www.standard.ro/articol_12953/the_money_race_on_the_go.html


Projects without borders
2007-09-18 by Andreea Rosca

The "Money Race" is placing Romania and Bulgaria face to face after more than half a year after he European integration and evaluating where the two countries are in the competition for European financing, foreign capital and economic development. The project will develop for two weeks, starting today, and it differs from other editorial projects not only by content, but also by the thinking laying at its foundation.

... bla bla bla ... http://www.standard.ro/articol_12952/projects_without_borders.html


Romania, foreign investors' favorite
2007-09-24 de redactia @standard.ro
http://www.standard.ro/articol_13545/romania__foreign_investors__favorite.html

Romania ranks first in foreign investors' preferences in the race between EU's two newest members, since the volume of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the first seven months post-accession was 22% higher than Bulgaria's. The Romanian Central Bank posted FDI worth €3.4 billion during January-July, compared to only €2.7 worth of FDI in Bulgaria. Last year, FDI in Romania was double, compared with Bulgaria's.
Several multinational companies chose Romania for their regional business centers, instead of the smaller Bulgaria.
However, FDI in Romania dropped 8.7% year-on-year in H1, 2007, while foreign investments are increasing in Bulgaria.
According to estimates of Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) for FDI during 2007-2011, Romania ranks 30, with an annual average of €5.5 billion in FDI, while Bulgaria ranks 53, with an average of €4.1 billion worth of FDI per year. As for FDI per capita, Romania ranks 38, with €253 per capita, while Bulgaria ranks 39, with €243.
As for the investment-friendly environment, Romania ranks 48, while Bulgaria was given a higher rank, 44.
Earnings of Bulgaria's top 100 companies are comparable to the earnings of four major Romanian companies - Petrom, Dacia, Rompetrol and Banca Comercial? Român?.

Markets with the highest development in the past few years are, in both countries, banking, retail and real estate.

Retail

The local retail market (including supermarkets, hypermarkets and cash&carry), is estimated to some €18 billion in 2007, almost double compared to Bulgaria. While the share of retail is expected to exceed 40% of the total FMCC market by the end of the year, retail amounts to some 25% of the Bulgarian market. In both countries, traditional small shops and markets still have the largest share in retail.
"We estimate the Romanian retail market will exceed a 55-60% share of the total market by 2010. I think Romania has the fastest increase pace in the region. In Bulgaria, the market is much smaller than Romania," said Jacobo Caller Celestino, General Manager of Carrefour Romania.
Two of the largest worldwide players are leaders on both markets - Metro Group and Rewe Group. The third largest player in Romania is Carrefour, while Kaufland ranks third in Bulgaria.

Real Estate

The Bulgarian market is less developed than the Romanian one, thus has a higher growth potential. In the first six months following the EU accession, Bulgaria had the highest rise in the Union in construction works - 62.8% year-on-year. Romania ranks fifth, with an increase of 29.8%.
Prices are about double in Romania. If the minimum price for an apartment in Sofia is worth some €30,000, an apartment in Bucharest can be bought for a cost twice as high, at least.
Yields are slightly better on the Sofia real estate market (more than 7%), given the market is smaller and less developed as far as commercial spaces and offices are concerned. In Bucharest, yields are around 6-6.5%, while yields in Warsaw and Budapest are around 5-5.5%.
Romanian companies have invested up to €20 million in Sofia.
"We are going to witness a significant increase in prices, on the local real estate market. One built square meter in downtown Bucharest could amount to 10,000 in the future. Things are different in Bulgaria, where stagnations and even drops in apartment prices occur," according to real estate consulting company Arco General Manager, Ciprian Lopat?.

Banking sector

Th top three Bulgarian banks - UniCredit, DSK, (a division of Hungarian-based OTP Bank) and Bulgarian American Credit Bank - posted net profits €117.2 million in H1, 2007, some €15 million less than profits posted by Romania's largest bank, BCR. Bulgarian bank's assets totaled some €16 billion, while assets owned by banks in Romania exceed €50 billion. Besides BCR, BRD-Societe Generale, Raiffeisen Bank are Unicredit Tiriac the largest lenders on the Romanian market.
Earnings of the Romanian banking system are estimated to some €1 billion in 2007, or 5% of the profits of all banks in Central and Southern Europe. The average increase of the market above 15% per year and the trend is expected to continue in the following 3-4 years. More than 60 foreign banks announced the central bank they intend to open offices in Romania.
Romanians have dealt more with banks than Bulgarians. Almost half of Romanians older than 15 (48%) have dealt with at least one bank, compared to 39% of Bulgarians.

Bulgaria, winner in tourism race

Romania's earnings from tourism amounted to some €1 billion in 2006, while Bulgaria's earnings were more than double - €2.2 billion. Lack of infrastructure and tourism projects and low-quality services are elements dragging Romanian tourism down. "Although Romania provides wider variety of tourism destinations, the difference is tourism has a better promotion in Bulgaria," according to Traian B?dulescu, representative of the National Association of Tourism Agency.
Some 500,000 Romanians went to seaside in Bulgaria this summer, attracted by better services and lower prices.
For vacations abroad, Romanians spent an estimate €1 billion this summer, while Bulgarians have spent abroad some €700 million the entire 2006.

Romanian business in Bulgaria

Romanian businesspeople see Bulgaria with ever higher interest, because of its development potential. Currently, retail is the most attractive field. Furniture producer Mobexpert is present on the Bulgarian market since 2005 and recently opened a furniture hypermarket in Sofia, following an investment worth €10 million. The Bulgarian furniture market is estimated to some €300 million, with four large retailer- Aiko, Como, Aron and Nov dom Simeonov - controlling the market.

The home appliances retail is also attractive for Romanian investors, because of the recent consumer credit boom in Bulgaria. Domo, one of Romania's largest retailers in the field, has 11 stores in Bulgaria, with a turnover of €3 million.


Slower growth for Romania, higher deficits for Bulgaria
2007-09-25 de redactia @standard.ro
http://www.standard.ro/articol_13574/slower_growth_for_romania__higher_deficits_for_bulgaria.html

Bulgaria had a higher economic growth, compared to Romania, following the two countries' EU accession, but also higher deficits. Drought affected the growth in both countries.
Bulgaria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose 6.4%, while Romania’s growth amounted to 5.8% in the first half of 2007. Although initial forecast said the two countries would register growth significantly higher than EU’s average, analysts have darker outlooks for the second half of this year, especially as far as Romania is concerned.

Although posting growth twice as high as EU’s developed countries, Romania and Bulgaria rank among the last countries in the union as far as GDP per capita is concerned - only 34% of the average EU level.

Bulgaria had higher deficits due to the Monetary Council, which is usually set up in crisis situation, but slows down economic growth. “Bulgaria is not willing to give up the Monetary Council, even in the European system,” according to the Executive Director of the Group for Applied Economy (GEA).

Bulgarian authorities were considering joining the euro-zone four years before Romania, but current economic data would rather qualify Romania for an earlier enforcing the single currency. Romania’s Central Bank (BNR) forecasts joining the euro-zone in 2014, after complying with the convergence criteria.

While budget deficits for 2007 are within the convergence criteria (les than 3%), higher current account deficits are likely to impact on the already fragile balance of Romania and Bulgaria. Seven months after the EU accession, Bulgaria’s payment balance deficit amounts to €3 billion, for an estimated GDP of €27 billion for the entire 2007, while Romania’s current account deficit amounts to €9 billion for a GDP estimated at €115 billion.

In spite of all this, both countries are largely seen as attractive for investors. “The two countries growth potential is the higher in the EU, given we have to reach the standards of other members states,” said Bulgarian oil company Petrol’s Chief Financial Officer, Tsvetan Dimitrov.

The labor market

A relevant indicator of a developed economy is the percentage of people working in the service field. While the EU average is 30.3%, Romania employs only 16.5% of its workforce in services, far below Bulgaria’s ratio of 23%.

Romania has by far the highest percentage of population working in agriculture of all EU members, though agriculture is the least developed sector in Romania. One third of active Romanians are working in agriculture, compared to 8% in Bulgaria, which is slightly above the European average.

Romania registered the lowest ratio of employees not carrying out manual labor in Central and Eastern Europe, only 21.7%. Bulgarian specialists make up for 28 of the active population, which means the neighboring country has a work force better prepared for EU demands.

Labor costs of Romanian companies rose by 23.4% year-on-year in the second quarter after Romania joined the EU, according to the Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities. Labor costs in Bulgaria increased by a mere 14.6%.

The net average salary in Romania soared by some 15% in euro in the first seven months of 2007, up to €329 in July from €286 in January.

“Romania registers the highest salary growth pace in the entire region. Wages in Romania are higher than those in Bulgaria by one quarter,” said the General Manager of the Professional recruitment company, Cristina Pasat.

“The fact that many Romanians have the ability to speak foreign languages is one of their competitive advantages, unlike any of their neighbor countries, Bulgaria, Hungary, and the Czech Republic,” she explained.

The highest salary increases in Bulgaria in 2006 were registered in the top management and specialists fields, while in Romania “non-sales” jobs, such as administrative, HR, and IT positions, registered the most spectacular evolution, according to a salary study made by Mercer, the global leader for HR and related financial advice, products and services, in both countries.

Bulgarians and Romanians share the last two positions among EU members in terms of minimum wages, and purchasing power, respectively. Even though the minimum salary in Romania is higher than that in Bulgaria, Bulgarians surpass Romanians in terms of purchasing power.

In the first half of 2007, about 4,500 people were laid-off following restructuring processes or mergers and acquisitions in Romania. Bulgaria, however, did not restructure any jobs, according to the Eurofound statistics institute.


Romanians earn more while Bulgarians enjoy a higher purchasing power
2007-09-25 redactia @standard.ro
http://www.standard.ro/articol_13734/romanians_earn_more_while_bulgarians_enjoy_a_higher_purchasing_power.html

What do Romanians and Bulgarians spend their money on? Over two thirds of Romanians’ monthly income is spent on food, utilities and transportation, while Bulgarians still have about one half of their revenues left after covering these expenses. Most money is spent on food, in Romanian as well as Bulgaria, while the percentage is different, 34% and 41.7%, respectively. Both countries rank far behind the developed economies in the EU, where this ratio ranges between 16-20%.
Bulgarians spend more on furniture and renovation (4.5% compared to 3.9%) while Romanians pay more for clothing and foot ware (5.4% versus 3.4%).

Health services attract 4.8% of Bulgarians’ income, and only 3.9% of the Romanians’. However, Romanians pay more for telecommunication services (5.3% of their monthly income), than Bulgarians (just 4.9%).

Expenses allocated for entertainment are relatively similar: 3.4% in Romania and 3.8% in Bulgaria. The average income of a Bulgarian household amounts to €314 while in Romania it exceeds €420. Only 50% of the revenues come from salaries in both countries, and the remainder comes from sources such as own companies, property sales, and bank loans. The average monthly expenses of a Bulgarian household reach €302 while in Romania the exceed €380.

Purchasing power

According to Eurostat, the equivalent of minimum salary in terms of purchasing power is €204 in Romania, compared to €216 in Bulgaria. Both Bulgaria and Romania share the two last positions in the EU in terms of purchasing power, while Luxembourg, the Great Britain and the Netherlands rank first in this top. The purchasing power indicates how much of the minimum salary people from the same country spend for the same product.

Where do we shop?

Currently, 33% of the Romanians shopping are in organized commercial chains, such as supermarkets, hypermarkets, and cash&carry, while in Bulgaria the ratio is just 25%. This type of commerce is expected to make up 40% of the entire fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sales in Romania by the end of this year.

The value of the Romanian FMCG market is estimated at over €40 billion in 2007, increasing by 17% year-on-year. The Bulgarian market is valuated at half of this figure, and its annual growth pace is 9-10%. The increase registered in Romania is mainly due to a higher purchasing power and the aggressive expansion of modern commercial networks.

The Romanian and Bulgarian modern commerce is dominated by international groups. Main multinational retail chain operating in Romania are Carrefour, Auchan, Louise Delhaize, Spar, Tengelmann, Metro, Rewe and Lidl&Schwarz, the last three also present on the Bulgarian market.

Bulgarians top loan race

The money race is placing Bulgaria ahead of Romania, as far as loans for companies and individuals are concerned. However, Romania’s financial market has a higher growth potential and is less submitted to risks of high debt degree.

Romania is still ranking among the last EU countries, in terms of financial intermediation - an estimated 33.4% this year, from 27.3% in 2006. Bulgaria’s forecast for 2007 is of 50% financial intermediation degree, compared to 48% in 2006.

To narrow the gap and get close to the EU average by 2014, as central bank officials forecast, the non-governmental credit should have a 13.5% increase per year. On the other hand, Bulgarian authorities took restrictive measures on loans, fearing a massive growth of consumer loans.

As for mortgages, loans for real estate acquisitions account for only 30% of the total credits in Romania and is slightly higher in Bulgaria, compared to the EU average of 75%. The two EU’s newest members have the highest ratio of consumer credits in the entire Union. Moreover, consumer credits are used for FMCG, placing further pressure on the imports in the two countries.

Bulgarians are more aware of their obligations to reimburse loans, with a ratio of unpaid rates of 2.2% in 2006, compared to 2.8% in Romania.

Sofia, less expensive than Bucharest

Sofia is the cheapest European capital, ranking 108 in a living standard top made by consultancy company Mercer Human Resources, while Bucharest is on the 78th place.

Living costs in Bucharest rose dramatically after EU integration and the Romanian capital went up 36 places in the 2006 top, while in 2004 it was on Sofia’s current position as Europe’s cheapest capital city.

Compared to New York, which Mercer gave 100 points, living costs received 79 points in Bucharest and 72.5 in Sofia. The Mercer study quantifies some 200 indicators for each location - costs related to rent, transportation, food, clothing, services and entertainment. Both Sofia and Bucharest are “friendlier” to expats than the most expensive cities worldwide - Moscow, London, and Seoul. Regarding the quality of life, neither city has a great position (Bucharest - 108, Sofia - 116), and are both quite far from the most hospitable city in the world, Zürich. Inside the EU, Bucharest, with 77 points, and Sofia, with 74, are on the last two places.

Housing prices went up considerably in the last few years, not only in Romania, but in Bulgaria too. The Romanian residential market increased by 15 percent year-on-year since 2003-2004.

“In the last 3-4 years, housing prices in Bulgaria increased by 100 percent, in large cities they even tripled. The most expensive Bulgarian cities are Sofia and Varna,” said Dobromir Ganev, managing director of Bulgarian company Foros National Real Estate. In Romania, the most expensive city is by far Bucharest, followed by Cluj-Napoca, Timisoara, Constanta and Brasov. While in Bucharest, the average price is €700-1,500 per sqm, in Sofia the range is €200-500 per sqm.

I think its not fair to compare them as Romania is double in size and population :cheers:

^^ I think its not fair to compare them as Romania is double in size and population :cheers:

... so our dick should be 2 times longer ! :nuts: :lol:

... but you`re right ... for instance the title `Romania, foreign investors' favorite` is a little bit stupid ... taking in consideration the population of Bulgaria I think that Bulgaria is the winner in foreign investment race ! :nuts: It will be funny to see how do Dnevnik present these things !

I think its not fair to compare them as Romania is double in size and population :cheers:
Triple to be exact! We are 7 million, you are 22 million people.
And, yes it is fair to compare Romania and Bulgaria percentagewise.
But, I think we are rock bottom (in EU) anyway.........

"And, yes it is fair to compare Romania and Bulgaria percentagewise"

^^ This was my point ... but can not be done as its more complex than it seems. Just one example: population is ~ 3 times less but territory ~ 2 times smaller ...

http://evropa.dnevnik.bg/show/?storyid=380196

^^

... so our dick should be 2 times longer ! :nuts: :lol:



Or twice smaller ...:lol: :cheers:

Money race, wtf?!?

Triple to be exact! We are 7 million, you are 22 million people.
And, yes it is fair to compare Romania and Bulgaria percentagewise.
But, I think we are rock bottom (in EU) anyway.........

Man, things are moving forword way slower than I thought. I thought in 6 months the look will have changed rapidly but it almost didn´t.

^^ What do you mean? I can see the changes in Romania. Even in the last 6 month or so … it takes time to completely change …

Bulgaria will always be on the bottom, I'm not sure about Romania.
I mean the EU bottom, which is not bad considering the standards from the past 45 years of terrorism, oh, I'm sorry I mean communism!

^^ What do you mean? I can see the changes in Romania. Even in the last 6 month or so … it takes time to completely change …

Radi will see changes only when the Hemus motorway is built ;) :lol:

Radi, don't be mad at me for teasing you :pet: ;) Having big expectations leads always to big disappointments.

All in all, this confirms that our two countries are quite equal and are quite complementary, which is not bad imho.

Bulgaria will always be on the bottom, I'm not sure about Romania.
I mean the EU bottom, which is not bad considering the standards from the past 45 years of terrorism, oh, I'm sorry I mean communism!


Ahh, don't be so sure :) EU may expand further :)

Delyan … it takes time to implement infrastructure projects. Look at 2004 wave. Took them 2 years just to start some big public projects. For BG and RO, EU money have not even arrived yet … it’s all on paper at the moment . All our governments have to do … is invest heavily in education and create a good environment (economy/legislation/transport-infrastructure) for foreign investors +political stability. And all this takes time and money. Will get there; we’re on the right path :cheers:

Delyan … it takes time to implement infrastructure projects. Look at 2004 wave. Took them 2 years just to start some big public projects. For BG and RO, EU money have not even arrived yet … it’s all on paper at the moment . All our governments have to do … is invest heavily in education and create a good environment (economy/legislation/transport-infrastructure) for foreign investors +political stability. And all this takes time and money. Will get there; we’re on the right path :cheers:

Absolutly true ! Investing in education is the most important thing but our stupid governments never understod this in the last 17 years. Furtunately, after 2004 the situation changed a little bit in Romania. The new goverment was confronted in 2004 with a big strike & Basescu`s pressure to grow the salaries in education. I know that now there is a similar strike in Bulgaria and I hope that peoples working in education will obtain what they deserve: decent salaries !

Romania is doing wonderfully good. Here is one article that was posted on Bloomberg today. However, as many of you have noted, FDI in Bulgaria per capita is still much higher than FDI per capita in Romania. The quality of the FDI is a different issue. I think that at present the quality of the Romanian FDI is much higher.

Romania's Image Improves After EU Entry, Transparency Says

By Adam Brown

Sept. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Romania's image improved after
undertaking a fight against graft and joining the European Union
on Jan. 1, though fractious politics may ensure that it remains
the bloc's most corrupt member, Transparency International said.

The Balkan nation scored 3.7 points, below the EU average
of 6.5, in the global Corruptions Perceptions Index released
today. Last year, Romania scored 3 on the 10-point scale, with
10 indicating graft-free. The next-most corrupt EU member was
Bulgaria at 4.1.

``Joining the European Union gave Romania a better image
internationally,'' Transparency International's Romanian Branch
said on the organization's Web site today. ``Recent backward
steps in applying anti-corruption reforms could lead to the loss
of that credibility gain.''

To win EU entry, Romania strengthened the independence of
its judiciary, made it easier to investigate politicians and had
anti-corruption prosecutors start a probe of four current and
former Cabinet ministers and other senior officials since
December. All those named in the ongoing cases deny the charges.

The European Commission said in a report six months after
Romania joined the EU that it may still face curbs to membership
rights unless it further increases accountability of public
officials and follows through on graft investigations.

Transparency International said it's also concerned a high-
profile feud between Justice Minister Tudor Chiuariu and Daniel
Morar, the country's chief anti-corruption prosecutor, may slow
the fight against corruption.

Accusation

Chiuariu has accused Morar of starting investigations to
achieve political ends. Morar has said he wants to probe
Chiuariu on allegations he improperly profited from the sale of
government land. Chiuariu denies the allegations.

A feud between Prime Minister Calin Tariceanu and President
Basescu, former allies who split this year and accused each
other of corruption, has also distracted the government from the
fight against graft, Transparency International has said.

Of the 12 nations that have joined the EU since 2004,
mostly from central and eastern Europe, Slovenia had the best
score, at 6.6, followed by Estonia, with 6.5.

The index draws from 14 opinion polls and surveys by 12
independent institutions that examine perceptions of the level
of abuse of public office for private gain, the group said.

Our government made the price of electricity for factories more expensive with 50%!that's why we have a big inflation for the last 3 months.:(

And why's your government still setting the electricity price, aye? That's the problem, not the fact that it has increased by 50%.

Because we have a state monopoly in electricity distribution. CEZ, E.on, etc buy electricity from them and redistribute it to the smaller end-clients. But most big industrial users buy electricity directly from the state monopoly AFAIK. This has its good and its bad sides. The way it is at the moment, the state is negotiating foreign electricity exports/imports. And I prefer that to let's say E.on selling electricity to Greece during a peak usage period, when my country can't afford exporting electricity or some blackout may occur somewhere. The state is more interested in having no domestic electricity problems than in profit from foreign deals.

Bulgaria will always be on the bottom, I'm not sure about Romania.
I mean the EU bottom, which is not bad considering the standards from the past 45 years of terrorism, oh, I'm sorry I mean communism!

Nonsens, in 15 years you'l be like.. let's say Spain or Portugal, you're pretty smart people, you'll do ok, I'm very sure.

Spain?! I wouldn't go that far. :) But I think Romania and Bulgaria are in about the same situation Portugal and Greece were in when they joined EU. They were then the poorest kids on the block, and we (RO & BG) are now the poorest kids on the block. We need time...

Yes, Romania will have a great future. It's a big country with smart people who want to work, who want to develop them self. So yes, in 15 years Romania will be like today Greece or Portugal...even better..But Bulgaria..Hahahahaha..our country soon will become a vassal of Turkey..and will be populated mostly with gypsies, Turks and immigrants...

I don't share your paranoia.

Nor I.:ohno:

^^

than watch this http://vbox7.com/play:a258eb80 andthan part 2, 3, 4 and 5

Look at the statistics! The Roma and the Turks are having 3 times more babies than the Bulgarians.
This is not paranoia, this is a disaster.
BTW, the immigrants come only if the economy is developed!

Look at the statistics! The Roma and the Turks are having 3 times more babies than the Bulgarians.
This is not paranoia, this is a disaster.
BTW, the immigrants come only if the economy is developed!

Someone posted in one of the Bulgarian economy threads here a nice resume of the statistics, the Roma DON'T have so much babies, neither the Turkish minority.

This is cheap propaganda. Guys, don't buy this pls but rather look at the amount of ex-agents in the political parties in Bulgaria. That's where the only real problem lies and not in imagined by I don't know who myth about the Roma births or Turkish invasion. The only problem with these minorities will come surely if those myth continue to live between the Bulgarians. :ohno:

The Turks have very similar to our demography, except for the isolated villages. The gypsies are certainly a problem, but they now discover the advantage of free emigration. There are emmigrants in Sofia and larger cities, yes, but they are not so much. I still don't see a strong relation between the number of non-ethnic Bulgarians and the economy though...well perhaps except for the gypos.

And BTW this is very good crafted propaganda by Ataka and some nationalists. The movie from your link is produced by SKAT after all. I don't like all this craze, though I admit I used to believe it when it was still kinda new for Bulgaria..

Someone posted in one of the Bulgarian economy threads here a nice resume of the statistics, the Roma DON'T have so much babies, neither the Turkish minority.

This is cheap propaganda. Guys, don't buy this pls but rather look at the amount of ex-agents in the political parties in Bulgaria. That's where the only real problem lies and not in imagined by I don't know who myth about the Roma births or Turkish invasion. The only problem with these minorities will come surely if those myth continue to live between the Bulgarians. :ohno:

It could sounds stupid but on my opinion all the problems in our country come from the former communists and DPS

ON A BETTER NOTE:

Romanian restaurant company Trotter Prim plans to open its first restaurant in Bulgaria in 2008 under the City Grill brand. It will compete directly with the currently establiched Happy Bar & Grill, Pizzaia UGO, etc.

Румънскaта "Тротер прим" ще отваря заведения в България

Първият ресторант ще се появи през 2008 г.

Румънската компания за заведения "Тротер прим" (Trotter Prim), която управлява три свои вериги, планира да отвори ресторант с марката "Сити грил" (City Grill) в България, съобщи собственикът на компанията Драгош Петреску. Експанзията на компанията извън Румъния ще започне от следващата година и освен в България дружеството планира да стъпи и в Молдова.

Насочихме се към България, защото е съседна на Румъния и това ще улесни развитието на бизнеса ни, каза Петреску и добави, че вече проучва възможностите тук. Първото заведение трябва да бъде готово през 2008 г., каза още Петреску.

Компанията "Тротер прим" е създател на общо три вериги заведения. Освен "Сити грил", това са "Сити кафе" (City Cafe) и Caru cu Bere. В момента компанията управлява девет заведения с марката "Сити грил" и планира отварянето на още две. През първата половина на годината дружеството има оборот 5.2 млн. евро, което е с близо 60 на сто ръст спрямо същия период на предходната година. Очакванията са до края на 2007 г. продажбите на компанията да достигнат 11 млн. евро.

Инвестиционният план на дружеството предвижда да вложи 3.4 млн. евро в отварянето на нови заведения и модернизирането на някои от съществуващите. Също така "Тротер прим" планира да инвестира в проект за изграждане на хотелски комплекс, който също ще е под марката "Сити грил".

Стъпвайки в България, веригата "Сити грил" би била конкурент на останалите вериги заведения, които вече съществуват в страната. Това са вериги като "Хепи", "Уго", "Кривото", "Дивака", които заемат средния сегмент. Голяма част от тези вериги значително развиха мрежата си през последните години и някои от тях вече гледат и към работа извън София. Започнали с по едно заведение, сега почти всички вериги от този клас имат поне по пет заведения в центъра на София. Веригата "Хепи" има стратегията да се развива и извън България, като вече има няколко заведения в Барселона.

Hehe, Happy should open their restaurant in Romania too. After all they have in Spain..

Hehe, Happy should open their restaurant in Romania too. After all they have in Spain..

Yes: www.happy.es

Nothing can take the place of UGO, Divaka and Krivoto in the hearts of the young citizens of Sofia.:lol:

Ahhh yes, Ugo have their beautiful salads :)

Can anybody give me a website where I can watch the Bulgarian Survivor (the American one is boring) for free?

The Bulgarian one is even worse, I hate it. BTW did you know we have a BG "extreme makeover" now? Plastic surgeons becoming famous eheh..

Can anybody give me a website where I can watch the Bulgarian Survivor (the American one is boring) for free?

Come on,survivor? There are no good bulgarian movies,or what? I rather watch any hungarian soap than a reality show...

Can anybody give me a website where I can watch the Bulgarian Survivor (the American one is boring) for free?

try bgtelevizia.com. they got most of the mainstream channels.

The Bulgarian one is even worse, I hate it. BTW did you know we have a BG "extreme makeover" now? Plastic surgeons becoming famous eheh..

We have Survivor, Music Idol, Extreme Makeover, Big Brother, Who wants to be a millionaire,...what else..:nuts: :lol:

The Bulgarian one is even worse, I hate it. BTW did you know we have a BG "extreme makeover" now? Plastic surgeons becoming famous eheh..

Extreme makeover is an all time favourite here, but now you have worse shows (chick flicks): Dancing With the Stars, Singing Bee, etc.

Come on,survivor? There are no good bulgarian movies,or what? I rather watch any hungarian soap than a reality show...

I can't remember when was the last time I saw a good BG movie. Anyway, it's fun to watch my countrymen sweat in the heat and humidity of the Carribean. I have been down there after all. :)

I love talking to you guys, but I have class and I gotta run.

I can't remember when was the last time I saw a good BG movie. Anyway, it's fun to watch my countrymen sweat in the heat and humidity of the Carribean. I have been down there after all. :)

I love talking to you guys, but I have class and I gotta run.

Class at 23h(22h in BG I suppose)? NERD!!!:rofl:

Actually, I think it's about 5 PM in New York. :lol: At least... I hope he's in NYC now... otherwise... WHAT A NERD! :lol:

Class at 23h(22h in BG I suppose)? NERD!!!:rofl:
P.S.: 24 in Bulgaria, not 22. :)

Class at 23h(22h in BG I suppose)? NERD!!!

Actually it's 00:17 here :) I gotta go to bed, cause tomorrow I'll again look like beaten up with steel rods in the office :(

office?I'm going to tyrnovo tomorrow coz I'm gon be a student.:)

office?I'm going to tyrnovo tomorrow coz I'm gon be a student.:)

Congrats Nilix!

Actually, I think it's about 5 PM in New York. :lol: At least... I hope he's in NYC now... otherwise... WHAT A NERD! :lol:


P.S.: 24 in Bulgaria, not 22. :)

I work on my MBA degree after working hours. Classes start @ 6 pm and end @ 9 pm. We hit the bar after class. Lot's of fun! There is no way you can afford to live in NY for 2 years without income and pay $100,000 for the degree. We all have to work.

And yes, next day I have to make it to the office and oversee millions of dollars. Tough shit!!!

Reform Progress
2007-09-27 redactia @standard.ro
http://www.standard.ro/articol_13897/reform_progress.html

Privatization Differences between Romania’s and Bulgaria’s process of European integration are related to the communist heritage, according to Jean Pierre Vigroux, senior partner of PricewaterhouseCoopers Bulgaria. He said that Romania had the advantage of large factories from the communist era, that were later sold and brought in more foreign capital.
Bulgaria did not have many industrial giants to privatize - no refineries, no chemoical platform, no steel plants or car manufacturers. Thus, the top privatization in Romania, that of the Romanian Commercial Bank to Austrian Erste group, is worth €3.6 billion, while the largest privatization in Bulgariaamounted to €230 million - the sale of telecom operator BTC to investment fund Advent International.

Support for private sector

Bulgaria, however, surpassed Romania in terms of regulations favoring the business environment development. The reason is that Bulgaria “had the experience of catastrophe, of the fall of a system. Following that moment, it took legislative control to maintain stability and to promote growth in all sectors,” says Levon Hampartzoumian, President of UniCredit BulBank.

Romania leads in corruption top

Bulgaria has better scores than Romania in terms of freedom of speech, public services quality, political stability, rule of law, corruption control, and government ability to draft policies for the private sector, according to a World Bank report published this July. Romania has a score of -18, while Bulgaria scores better (-0.05) in this report, with scores from -2.5 to +2.5. Moreover, Transparency International’s report on corruption places Romania as 84th in terms of corrupt countries, while Bulgaria ranks higher, just 54th.

“As far as corruption is concerned, things are relatively the same - it still exists, it is still felt. Bulgaria’s big problem is business criminality... Until last year, a businessman was killed every month, I heard of some 30 businesspeople being shot. In Romania, I have heard about stealing, theft, but not about killings,” says Jean Pierre Vigroux, senior partner of PricewaterhouseCoopers Bulgaria.

Justice costs

The Justice chapter has been one of the sensitive points of the pre-accession process to the EU for both Romania and Bulgaria. Both states, however, took steps to reform the justice system in the past two years.

Problems within the judiciary had higher costs for Romania, as the state was forced to pay some €4.5 million in damages to Romanians whose rights were violated. Some 12% of the total complaints with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) are coming from Romania, compared to only 2.4% from Bulgaria. Most cases are related to the recovery of properties confiscated by the former communist regime in Romania. Bulgaria has already solved the retrocession issue.

Health reform - a priority without funds

Although both governments say the health reform is a priority, funds to revive the system are not to be found in the Romanian state budget or in the Bulgarian one. “The health system in Bulgaria is not functioning very well. Insurance funds are spent by September-October. The state has a monopoly on the health insurance, there is no competition,” according to Ogjan Donev, CEO of Sopharma, one of the two major medicine producers in Bulgaria. However, health spendings are expected to rise in both countries in the follwing years.

“I hope that, in the next two-three years, things will start changing. We cannot go lower than this, I think we are at the lowest level in Europe, so things can only go up,” Donev added.

Fiscal policies

Bulgaria beats Romania in the field of fiscal juggleries aimed at attracting foreign investors. While Romania introduced the 16 percent flat tax for a more favorable business environment, Bulgaria is about to use a similar strategy by introducing the lowest flat tax in Europe - 10 percent. A first step in this direction was made right after the EU integration, by reducing the profit taxation quota to 10 percent. Europeans are increasingly alert to Bulgarian movements, since ambitions are set to transform Bulgaria into one of Europe’s fiscal paradises. Romania has not made any changes since 2006 regarding general taxation, but competition and other countries’ good results in attracting investments might push Romanian authorities into changing fiscal policies.


--------------------------------------------------------

Absolutly true ! Investing in education is the most important thing but our stupid governments never understod this in the last 17 years. Furtunately, after 2004 the situation changed a little bit in Romania. The new goverment was confronted in 2004 with a big strike & Basescu`s pressure to grow the salaries in education. I know that now there is a similar strike in Bulgaria and I hope that peoples working in education will obtain what they deserve: decent salaries !

Teachers are Inflexible - Day 4 :cheers:

Today will be leading a protest rally in front of the Council of Ministers and the Presidency.
From the United Strike Committee announced that they insist for new negotiations with the Educational Ministry.

81% of the schools and kindergartens in Bulgaria attended yesterday the strike actions, according to syndicates' information. Regional inspectorates say that the percent hardly reached 39%.

Teachers from 8 schools in Burgas expressed readiness to start hunger strike. Two lady teachers from Sandanski (South-western Bulgaria) already made it.

Meanwhile teachers from sport school in Sliven town demanded for the resignation of Educational Minister Vulchev.

The minister commented after the yesterday's meeting with protesting teachers that the resolution is not a desire - it is question of economy count.

In Hungary teachers get 500 - 900 EUR. In Slovakia - 340-500 EUR. In Romania teachers start to work on 340 EUR, reaching to 500 EUR.

Bulgarian teacher's average salary is 370 BGN (180 EUR).

Rompetrol plans to have 85 gas stations (25 own and 60 franchised) by year end. It currently operates 50 gas stations (15 own and 35 franchised).

Общо 85 бензиностанции планира да има Ромпетрол у нас до края на годината

27.09.2007 16:42

До края на тази година румънската петролна компания Ромпетрол планира да има в България общо 85 бензиностанции, става ясно от съобщение на групата. От тях 25 ще са собствени и 60 – франчайзингови. В момента Ромпетрол България има верига от 15 собствени и 35 франчайзингови бензиностанции.

Днес компанията отвори в София първата бензиностанция, която ще работи под марката „Hei”, чиято концепция за включване към бензиностанцията на магазин, ресторант и интернет кафе бе въведена в Румъния преди три години. Направената инвестиция е на стойност 1,1 млн. евро.

Ромпетрол България е създадена през 2003 г. като първото международно подразделение на групата Ромпетрол. През 2006 г. фирмата е инвестирала на българския пазар 7,9 млн. долара. Продажбите й за годината възлизат на 200 хил. тона гориво, като през 2007 г. този обем се предвижда да надхвърли 250 хил. тона.

По данни на компанията оборотът й за 2006 г. е 200 млн. долара, като предвижданията за тази година са за 230 млн. долара.

------------------------------------------

Here is the article I found on Rompetrol's website:

Rompetrol Bulgaria opens first gas station including a “Hei” convenience store in Sofia

Rompetrol Bulgaria, a subsidiary of Dutch-registered The Rompetrol Group NV (TRG), opened today its first filling station with a “Hei” convenience store in Sofia. The “Hei” concept was introduced to the Romanian filling stations network in 2005. “Hei” offers a convenience store, restaurant, and Internet kiosk. Customers can enjoy these new high standard services, on top of the traditional Rompetrol fuel quality.

Currently, Rompetrol Bulgaria operates 15 company owned and 35 franchise stations. The new filling station is located at 175, Lomsko Shose, and the investment totaled 1.1 million Euro ($1.55 million).

TRG’s general contractor, Rominserv, developed the project after opening its own branch office in Bulgaria earlier this year in order to serve Rompetrol Bulgaria in the development of its filling stations network.

“We want to position Rompetrol as an innovating company on the Bulgarian market as well, by introducing new products and services, as we have already done in Romania,” said Eric Kish, TRG Retail Business Unit Vice President.
“In Bulgaria we estimate we will have 25 company owned filling stations and 60 franchises by year end. Rompetrol has a regional network of some 650 stations and aims to expand its operations to 2,500+ filling stations in the next three years. The development of the network implies expansion of the fuel stations segment and developing partnerships in the countries we are operating in, Bulgaria included. TRG also holds filling stations in France, Albania, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova,” added Kish.

The new Sofia filling station is fitted with three double pumps supplying four types of fuels: Euro Plus 95, Super Euro 98, Diesel Super Euro 4 and Autogas (LPG). The station is equipped with the “Fill&Go” management system, which allows for quick payment, directly at the pump, for the card or ring systems, a car wash, and a children’s playground next to the “Hei” terrace.

"All these services and quality products successful on the Romanian market will also be introduced in Bulgaria. At the same time, we will initiate a long-term social responsibility program,” stated Adrian Acatrinei, Rompetrol Bulgaria CEO.

“The first step consists in identifying locations in need of revamping – kindergardens, schools, and parks, in cooperation with Rominserv and local authorities. We have a budget of 15,000 Euro for the rest of this year, and, in line with arising needs, we will expand the program to other locations where we operate fuel distribution stations,” detailed Acatrinei.

The “Fill&Go” system was launched in Romania in 2004. Currently, all filling stations Rompetrol Downstream operates in Romania are fitted with the “Fill&Go Business” fuel payment system: “Fill&Go Card” and “Fill&Go Ring,” which are targeted at companies aiming to achieve high-performance in vehicle fleet management. Rompetrol also offers in Romania “Fill&Go Personal,” a quick-payment individual instrument designed to avoid cash register crowds, and with convenient and secure monthly billing.

About Rompetrol Bulgaria

Rompetrol Bulgaria was established in 2003 as the first international division of The Rompetrol Group outside of Romania, and focused on boosting fuel wholesale in its first two years. Starting with 2005, Rompetrol Bulgaria initiated an aggressive retail operations development plan on the local market. In 2006 alone, investments exceeded $7.9 million, a rise of 150 percent compared to 2005. Rompetrol Bulgaria sales volumes totaled 200,000 tons in 2006, and is expected to reach 250,000 tons this year. The Rompetrol Group completed a strategic investment at its Ruse-based storage facility, which boasts state-of-the-art technologies concerning oil products management, wholesales, safety, and environmental protection. The storage facility provides ship, railway, and road loading amenities, thus ensuring smooth wholesale operations on Bulgarian territory. In order to respond to wholesale customer demands, Rompetrol Bulgaria leased another two storage facilities this year, conveniently located in Varna and Sofia. The company posted a turnover of $200 million in 2006 and estimates reaching $230 million in 2007.

[SIZE="5"]
In Hungary teachers get 500 - 900 EUR. In Slovakia - 340-500 EUR. [B]In Romania teachers start to work on 340 EUR, reaching to 500 EUR.
Bulgarian teacher's average salary is 370 BGN (180 EUR).

A table with the alaries in the educational system of Romania. Things changed a lot in the last 3-4 years ! I remember that before a starting salary for a young debutant teacher was 40-50$/month,:bash: so almost everybody tried to find jobs in other fields ! Of course some of these salaries are still very low ... :)

The first table is with the salaries in highschools, schools and kindergartens. The second one concerns the universities. In Universities you can have very good money (1-2-3 ore more than 5 thousands euro) if you are sufficiently smart to obtain some nice research grants or you have a good position and you teach a lot. Of course there are still a lot of idiots that don`t deserve these money but this is another problem ...

1 euro = 3.36 RON

http://www.jurnalul.ro/mediaLibrary/images/2007-09-27/thumb600_salarii_profi.jpg

^^ Considering that bonuses are not included above, to have a primary school teacher earning 565 Euro/month and a professor (university) on 1040 Euro month is pretty decent :cheers: ; they’re not rich but not starving as they used to … :ohno:

BTW few years back one of my professors I keep in touch with was on 300 $/month :ohno:

Guys, it's probably here that I have to ask.. I am looking for the industry statistics for both countries. The global rise, and if possible by sectors. Any help will be greatly appreciated. :)

I don’t understand why do you guys have to compete with each other in terms of economical development it seems like both nations are the poorest in EU so would it make more since to help each other?

Competition boosts the progress :)

I don’t understand why do you guys have to compete with each other in terms of economical development it seems like both nations are the poorest in EU so would it make more since to help each other?

How do you "help" each other on international level? ;) It's a healthy competition that brings the better from both countries and as soon it doesn't get ugly, it's all fine. :)

Nonsens, in 15 years you'l be like.. let's say Spain or Portugal, you're pretty smart people, you'll do ok, I'm very sure.

^^ I heard the same from an Irish guy that I work with :) And he sounded were serious and asured that in 10 years Bulgaria will be what Ireland is now... I am not so optimistic though. Actually we have a lot of inside problems. In fact since 1944 and the comming of komunists in power we seized existing as a separate country.sad but true :ohno: Now 19 years after the changes we still face problems with the ex-agents and ex-kommies but i think the transition process is in its final stages since we entered EU. From now on things could only get better. As dia wrote... the problem is in our current political class. In fact the turkish party that so many here fear, the ultra nationalists, the so called right wing democrats from the transition period ... all of them are just a perfect activities of the former Secret Services... The other problem is that only the socialist party(ex-kommies) are a political party in fact - with all the atributes of such - political structures, various leaders , inside party life ... All the others are just parties<->leader

Since Putin took over in Russia i get sick of polit-technologs in Bulgaria ... The only thing that i fear is not to see a scenario in which Bulgaria becomes a both Russia and USA underboat in the EU. I believe we have chosen the best option from the 3 (Russia, USA , EU) and all we have to do from now on is think when we elect somebody to run the country and get advantage in the numerous possibilities that are clearly open for all of us. We are relly on the right path. :cheers:

The other thing i am so happy about is what New_Bulgaria wrote in one other thread :

^^ I am still impressed by the progress of good feelings between BG and RO. Back in the past, we didn't know and didn't care about them and the other way around. Then we got stuck together in the same EU waiting room. BG initially thougth it was better than RO for its faster progress and wanted to differentiate itself from its northern neighbor. It didn't take long for circumstances to turn around and BG started lagging RO. But ever since both countries joined the EU, boyyyyy, there's been so much passion and loving between the two countries. Such a dramatic change in such a short time. Amazing!!!! BG and RO finally discovered the WIN-WIN formula.

This BG-RO Renaissance is really amazing !

Cheers neighbours ! :cheers:

^^ Cheers ! :cheers:

-----------------

Concerning the BUL-ROM Money Race, Business Standard didn`t translate in English the last article but the article say EXACTLY what dia already said few days ago:

All in all, this confirms that our two countries are quite equal and are quite complementary, which is not bad imo.

* I will post this last article if it will be translated

The largest Bulgarian retailer of electronic appliances Technomarket opened its first store in the Romanian town of Targoviste (not the Bulgarian one). Technomarket is owned by Equest, who also owns Romanian competitor DOMO. Equest is pondering merging both companies and creating a pan Balkan chain. Technomarket already operates in Serbia (13 stores) and Macedonia (5 stores).

Обмислят листване на Техномаркет на БФБ

01.10.2007 15:50

Инвестиционният фонд Equest Investments Balkans Limited (EIB) – собственик на „К енд К Електроникс“ ЕООД, която притежава веригата за електроника и домакински уреди Техномаркет, обмисля листването на Техномаркет на БФБ-София.

Това съобщи за Investor.bg директорът за връзки с инвеститорите на Equest Наоми Кора.

Глобален координатор и главен поемател ще бъде ING, а Raiffeisen Centrobank ще бъде съвместен главен мениджър на емисията, която е планирана за първото тримесечие на 2008 г.

В момента се обмисля цялостната стратегия за развитието на веригата, като един от вариантите е комбинираното й листване заедно с румънската верига за електроника Domo на борсите в София и Букурещ.

Днес Equest финализира сделката за придобиването на 75% от Domo за 62,5 млн. евро. Част от средствата за покупката ще бъдат осигурени чрез кредит от Raiffeisen Zentralbank Osterreich AG.

Equest има непряко участие и в двете вериги с дял от 75% чрез своето дъщерно дружество Lynx Properties BV.

Към 30 юни делът на фонда в Техномаркет се оценява на 90,3 млн. евро.

Плановете за комбиниране на Техномаркет и Domo от фонда обосновават с идеята за установяването на панбалканско присъствие на пазара на електроника и създаването на синергия.

Наред с тази стратегия фондът работи активно по разширяването на мрежата на Техномаркет на Балканите.

По думите на Джордж Телеман, управляващ партньор на EIB за Румъния, миналата седмица Техномаркет е отворил първия си магазин в северната ни съседка в румънския град Търговище.

Веригата развива дейност и на пазарите в Сърбия и Албания, като изнася и малка част от продуктите си за ЕС.

За първото полугодие тя отчете продажби в размер на 152 млн. евро в сравнение със 122 млн. евро за същия период на 2006 г. Веригата на Техномаркет включва 27 магазина, три от които са били отворени през първите шест месеца на 2007 г., а още два се очаква да бъдат открити през второто полугодие.

От своя страна Domo има магазини и у нас. По информация на компанията миналата година тя е отворила седем магазина в страната, съответно в София, Пловдив, Хасково, Сливен, Ямбол, Русе и Варна. Тогава тя обяви, че през следващите три години планира да разшири мрежата си у нас до 20 магазина, като отвори магазини и в Благоевград, Видин, Плевен, Стара Загора, Шумен, Добрич, Бургас, Велико Търново и нови магазини в София.

Миналия месец „К енд К Електроникс“ подаде уведомление в Комисията за защита на конкуренцията за намерението си за придобиване на контрол върху Домо Ритейл ЕООД.

Romania wins officially. Romanian salaries are double that of their Bulgarians counterparts.:ohno:

Бюджет 2008:
Заплатите ни двойно по-ниски от Румъния
Средната пенсия става 200 лева, майчинството - 190

Заплатите в България ще бъдат два пъти по-ниски от румънските догодина. Това е заложено в бюджета за 2008 г., приет от Съвета за тристранно сътрудничество вчера. Според разчетите минималните прагове за осигуряване у нас ще нараснат с 26,24%. Така средният осигурителен доход догодина ще бъде 464,52 лв. В същото време румънското правителство заложи средна заплата от 905 лв. (1550 леи) в бюджета си за 2008 г. След данъци средната заплата при комшиите ще бъде 700 лв., съобщи в. "Котидианул".
От юли 2008 г. заплатите в бюджетната сфера в България ще нараснат до 10%, а пенсиите - с 9,5%. Така средната пенсия ще скочи до 196,40 лв. Бюджетните заплати могат да растат и с над 10% при съкращения в администрацията.
Заради въвеждането на плоския данък от 10% от 1 януари ще бъдат вдигнати заплатите до 430 лв. на работещите в бюджетната сфера на трудов договор. 375 лв. ще станат парите на държавните служители.

РАЗЧЕТИ
2007 г. 2008 г.
Минимална заплата 180 лв. 220 лв.
Минимална пенсия 102,85 лв. 112,62 лв.
Социална пенсия 76,23 лв. 83,47 лв.
Максимална пенсия 490 лв. 490 лв.
Макс. осигурителен доход 1400 лв. 2000 лв.
Мин. осигурителен доход 220 лв. 240 лв.
Мин. плащане за безработица 90 лв. 90 лв.
Макс. плащане за безработица 180 лв. 190 лв.
Плащане за дете до 2 години 180 лв. 190 лв.

ECONOMY

Why Romania is more successful than Bulgaria
Both Romania and Bulgaria have been EU members for almost a year now, but Romania has done far better than Bulgaria from an economic point of view. Bulgarin journalist Martin Karbovsky examines why: "One reason for the positive economic performance is that Romania's market is three times as large as Bulgaria's, and then there's the fact that it's closer to France. But other factors are no less important. At the beginning of the transition Romania adopted a much tougher stance towards the old political class. ... The violent confrontation between the Romanians and the Communists had left the latter without any illusions about being able to continue to rule the country. The Romanians didn't make the same mistake the Bulgarians made of changing the economic system without replacing the representatives of the old system."
Standart (Bulgaria)

ECONOMY

Why Romania is more successful than Bulgaria
Both Romania and Bulgaria have been EU members for almost a year now, but Romania has done far better than Bulgaria from an economic point of view. Bulgarin journalist Martin Karbovsky examines why: "One reason for the positive economic performance is that Romania's market is three times as large as Bulgaria's, and then there's the fact that it's closer to France. But other factors are no less important. At the beginning of the transition Romania adopted a much tougher stance towards the old political class. ... The violent confrontation between the Romanians and the Communists had left the latter without any illusions about being able to continue to rule the country. The Romanians didn't make the same mistake the Bulgarians made of changing the economic system without replacing the representatives of the old system."
Standart (Bulgaria)

I saw this article yesterday in the newspaper and i completely agree. This thread is useless just because it's evident that Romania is much more successful than Bulgaria in every single aspect.

Cheers, Romanians, i hope someday Bulgaria will again compete with you.

I think it's just a myth ...maybe ZA numbers look a bit better for Romania ... but we're on the same boat ... and it's fu*king sinking :nuts: :cheers:

I think it's just a myth ...maybe ZA numbers look a bit better for Romania ... but we're on the same boat ... and it's fu*king sinking :nuts: :cheers:

Yes...it sinking and we are on it:lol::lol::lol:

^^ I read the full article in Bulgarian. By the way, this is just one of many that have come out recently. See, regular Bulgarians just look at your salaries in euros and the fact that they are higher than ours. What they don't realize is that the current level of your salaries in euros is determined by the unprecedented rally of the Romanian lei in the last three years. Our currency is pegged to the euro, so no matter how big the influx of foreign money in Bulgaria is, the exchage rate will not change.

As a result, Bulgarians journalists, who are normally not competent, decided that Romania has implemented better reforms.

With this I don't want to diminish any of the achievements that our countries have accomplished, nor I want to ignore the many problems we still have to resolve.

I saw this article yesterday in the newspaper and i completely agree. This thread is useless just because it's evident that Romania is much more successful than Bulgaria in every single aspect.

Cheers, Romanians, i hope someday Bulgaria will again compete with you.

I like this thread, because it's about real competition, not spiteful arguing.

Romania and Bulgaria proved over the last year that they can work together by the "win-win" formula. This should be encouraged further going forward.

I hope that the ship is sinking in the Danube, not the Black Sea :lol:

^^ I read the full article in Bulgarian. By the way, this is just one of many that have come out recently. See, regular Bulgarians just look at your salaries in euros and the fact that they are higher than ours. What they don't realize is that the current level of your salaries in euros is determined by the unprecedented rally of the Romanian lei in the last three years. Our currency is pegged to the euro, so no matter how big the influx of foreign money in Bulgaria is, the exchage rate will not change.

As a result, Bulgarians journalists, who are normally not competent, decided that Romania has implemented better reforms.

With this I don't want to diminish any of the achievements that our countries have accomplished, nor I want to ignore the many problems we still have to resolve.

Yeah, I think your explanation is more down to earth. Our salaries are higher but so are prices.

The Romanians didn't make the same mistake the Bulgarians made of changing the economic system without replacing the representatives of the old system.
LOL!:hilarious

^^ I read the full article in Bulgarian. By the way, this is just one of many that have come out recently. See, regular Bulgarians just look at your salaries in euros and the fact that they are higher than ours. What they don't realize is that the current level of your salaries in euros is determined by the unprecedented rally of the Romanian lei in the last three years. Our currency is pegged to the euro, so no matter how big the influx of foreign money in Bulgaria is, the exchage rate will not change.

As a result, Bulgarians journalists, who are normally not competent, decided that Romania has implemented better reforms.

With this I don't want to diminish any of the achievements that our countries have accomplished, nor I want to ignore the many problems we still have to resolve.


Yes, but a car has the same cost in both countries, or other similar products whose costs are determined by international markets....

That's the reason why the Japanese travel so much :) It is just heaper for them to travel to foreign countries rather than spend their money home :) not that we are Japan but yo've got my point

And let's say you want to visit Paris....As a Romanian you'll find it cheaper than as a Bulgarian..

Yes, but a car has the same cost in both countries, or other similar products whose costs are determined by international markets....

That's the reason why the Japanese travel so much :) It is just heaper for them to travel to foreign countries rather than spend their money home :) not that we are Japan but yo've got my point

And let's say you want to visit Paris....As a Romanian you'll find it cheaper than as a Bulgarian..

You are absolutely correct. There is no doubt about that.

However, your purchasing power in Romania is the same as the one of an average Bulgarian in Bulgaria. This phenomenon also explains the influx of Romanians in the Northern Bulgarian cities. Bulgaria is much cheaper for you and you have a higher purchasing power than us in our cities.

I lot of businesses started posting signs in Romanian to lure more Romanian cusomers.

I really don't like that journalist wanna be - Marihuan Kartofski but gotta agree that many of the things he wrote are truth. Especialy those regading the ex-commies. Anyway he dramatized too much the situation which is very common for him.

You are absolutely correct. There is no doubt about that.

However, your purchasing power in Romania is the same as the one of an average Bulgarian in Bulgaria. This phenomenon also explains the influx of Romanians in the Northern Bulgarian cities. Bulgaria is much cheaper for you and you have a higher purchasing power than us in our cities.

I lot of businesses started posting signs in Romanian to lure more Romanian cusomers.

Regardless of the living costs I would still prefer a higher salary to a cheaper country.

I have to work 5 weeks to buy a laptop while my sister in Paris needs 6 days...and paris is not that expensive as people think anyway...

Would be interesting to see the two countries compared by their BigMacIndex

Regardless of the living costs I would still prefer a higher salary to a cheaper country.

I have to work 5 weeks to buy a laptop while my sister in Paris needs 6 days...and paris is not that expensive as people think anyway...

Would be interesting to see the two countries compared by their BigMacIndex

I wouldn't argue about this as well. The only downside to floating currencies is that they can do down as well.

I wouldn't argue about this as well. The only downside to floating currencies is that they can do down as well.

Yeah, tell us about that..the RON went down from 3.1 against the EURO 1 month ago to 3.6 against the EURO at this moment :bash:

But, I have one question: I had the impression that leaving the currency to float freely was a condition for EU accession or something (I mean, at least it is how I took it from our National Bank's decision to let the RON float freely). Can you tell me why is it that the Leva cannot float freely against other currencies? Thanks:cheers:

^^ We have a monetary board ... Lev is stuck to the euro at 1.95 from 1997.

^^ We have a monetary board ... Lev is stuck to the euro at 1.95 from 1997.

It was stuck to the german mark and than after the transition to the euro, the Bulgarian Lev was stuck to the euro.:banana:

^^ We have a monetary board ... Lev is stuck to the euro at 1.95 from 1997.

Aha, got it, although I am not an economist and do not see the consequences...I know that currencies are a means to balance macroeconomics, but I fail to see how a currency pegged to another one may impact on macroeconomics. Any economists here to help? :cheers:

Aha, got it, although I am not an economist and do not see the consequences...I know that currencies are a means to balance macroeconomics, but I fail to see how a currency pegged to another one may impact on macroeconomics. Any economists here to help? :cheers:

I'm studing economics right now, but it's my first year and i'm not really competent. :lol::nuts:

Aha, got it, although I am not an economist and do not see the consequences...I know that currencies are a means to balance macroeconomics, but I fail to see how a currency pegged to another one may impact on macroeconomics. Any economists here to help? :cheers:

^^ NB will explain better i believe. He is the financial guy here :) Don't know if you remember but in 1997 we had a hyper inflation , teh country was at complete colapse and since then we implemented the monetary board to hold on the situation. That's how a diletant like me explains the situation :)

:cheers:

we had a hyper inflation , teh country was at complete colapse



we also had one, but the national bank took other decision. when it dropped to less than 5% they removed four 0s. 10000 ROL=1RON.

we also had one, but the national bank took other decision. when it dropped to less than 5% they removed four 0s. 10000 ROL=1RON.

^^ The same here. But it happened in 1999. 1000 = 1 BGN.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Currency_board

It's an overall good article about what a currency board is..

^^ The same here. But it happened in 1999. 1000 = 1 BGN.

sweet!!!!

BGN, RON.....all it's so new:lol:

ECONOMY

Why Romania is more successful than Bulgaria
Both Romania and Bulgaria have been EU members for almost a year now, but Romania has done far better than Bulgaria from an economic point of view. Bulgarin journalist Martin Karbovsky examines why: "One reason for the positive economic performance is that Romania's market is three times as large as Bulgaria's, and then there's the fact that it's closer to France. But other factors are no less important. At the beginning of the transition Romania adopted a much tougher stance towards the old political class. ... The violent confrontation between the Romanians and the Communists had left the latter without any illusions about being able to continue to rule the country. The Romanians didn't make the same mistake the Bulgarians made of changing the economic system without replacing the representatives of the old system."
Standart (Bulgaria)

:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

At the beginning of the transition Romania adopted a much tougher stance towards the old political class. ... The violent confrontation between the Romanians and the Communists had left the latter without any illusions about being able to continue to rule the country. The Romanians didn't make the same mistake the Bulgarians made of changing the economic system without replacing the representatives of the old system.

Dear Neighbours :) I have a question regarding the statement above. Is it really like this in Romania ? Are the representatives of the old Chausescu system no more in power in Romania along with the old stuff from the sercet services Securitate ? I don't know anything about the rulling political class in Romania and am curious to know more.

Now I would like to make a comparison here about the state of the football clubs and local championships in both countries.

1. The Budgets of the Romanian teams : Politehnica Timisoara, CFR Cluj Napoca, Steaua Bucurest and Dinamo Bucurest are bigger than those of the local bulgarian giants FC Levski & CSKA Sofia. Otelul Galati - a club that is not amongst the leaders in the romanian championship has also a budget that most of the bulgarian clubs could only dream about. I don't know what Rapid's budget is though ... Romania wins here.

2. The Romanian clubs had more success in the European tournaments recently. Steaua reached the semi-finals of the UEFA CUp 2 years ago , FC Levski made it to the 1/4 finals in that year , the same did also FC Rapid. FC Levski qualified for the group stage of the CL last season while Steaua made it for two consecutive years. Romanis wins in that aspect too.

3. No matter that the balance in the qualifier matches for the Euro championship in Austria & Swiss was possitive for Bulgaria - 1 draw and 1 win , Romania was the team that qualified , while Bulgaria didn't. Romania wins again

Overall , the Romanian football is doing better than Bulgarian the recent years.

Congratulations , Neighbours :cheers:

Dear Neighbours :) I have a question regarding the statement above. Is it really like this in Romania ? Are the representatives of the old Chausescu system no more in power in Romania along with the old stuff from the sercet services Securitate ? I don't know anything about the rulling political class in Romania and am curious to know more.

Now I would like to make a comparison here about the state of the football clubs and local chapionships in both countries.

1. The Budgets of the Romanian teams : Politehnica Timisoara, CFR Cluj Napoca, Steaua Bucurest and Dinamo Bucurest are bigger than those of the local bulgarian giants FC Levski & CSKA Sofia. Otelul Galati - a club that is not amongst the leaders in the romanian championship has also a budget that most of the bulgarian clubs could only dream about. I don't know what Rapid's budget is though ... Romania wins here.

2. The Romanian clubs had more success in the European tournaments recently. Steaua reached the semi-finals of the UEFA CUp 2 years ago , FC Levski made it to the 1/4 finals in that year , the same did also FC Rapid. FC Levski qualified for the group stage of the CL last season while Steaua made it for two consecutive years. Romanis wins in that aspect too.

3. No matter that the balance in the qualifier matches for the Euro championship in Austria & Swiss was possitive for Bulgaria - 1 draw and 1 win , Romania was the team that qualified , while Bulgaria didn't. Romania wins again

Overall , the Romanian football is doing better than Bulgarian the recent years.

Congratulations , Neighbours :cheers:

Thanks for the congratulations.

Now to answer your questions: after the 1989 revolution, power was taken over by the former communists until 1996, and then again in between 2000-2004. However, the former comunists did not dare to preserve the former communist party so they made their own party here which basicaly changed names until now when it is called the Social Democrat Party. Communist parties are forbidden in Romania. However, what is good now is that the Council of the Former Securitate is discolsing the former Securitate guys more or less efficiantly, but it is doing it. For example, a former Securitate guy, and the leader of a party here got less than 2% in the European Elections here after being exposed as a former collaborator of the Securitate.

To conclude, the article is not right...communists preserved to an important degree the economic and political power....and they still have it today in some areas of economy and politics.

Thanks for the congratulations.

Now to answer your questions: after the 1989 revolution, power was taken over by the former communists until 1996, and then again in between 2000-2004. However, the former comunists did not dare to preserve the former communist party so they made their own party here which basicaly changed names until now when it is called the Social Democrat Party. Communist parties are forbidden in Romania. However, what is good now is that the Council of the Former Securitate is discolsing the former Securitate guys more or less efficiantly, but it is doing it. For example, a former Securitate guy, and the leader of a party here got less than 2% in the European Elections here after being exposed as a former collaborator of the Securitate.

To conclude, the article is not right...communists preserved to an important degree the economic and political power....and they still have it today in some areas of economy and politics.

^^ Thank you! :)

Pretty much the same situation here with the exception that the periods here were 1989-91, 92-97, and 2004 - now . Our president Georgi Parvanov was an agent of the ex secret services DS, the leader of the turkish party Ahmed Dogan too ... and many others who are abosolutely impudent and don't have the consciousness to step down from power. On the last elections the situation was even worst. There was a more than 100 pages list of ex-agents of the secret services who ran for mayors or city councils ... and what's even more shamefull many of them got elected.

In fact here everything since the fall of the komunism was controlled by the ex-secret services guys , even the oposition parties ,the turkish and the ultra-nationalist parties all those things were their artificial creation in order to take the economy of the country in their hands... Sad but true... The ex king Simeon II had the historical chance to put things in order in 2001 ... but he sadly just kneeled down to pick up the money from his father's ancestry and let in the politics even more greedy and incompetent people. The good thing is that the people are slowly starting to understand what really has been going on in Bulgaria over the last decade.

True...the article fails to explain politics in Romania :)

But it does a good analysis of the economy...

:cheers:

Bulgaria Unites with Romania in Entering the 'Schengen' Zone

Bulgaria and Romania will coordinate their efforts to integrate in the Schengen zone.

Bulgarian Ministers approved the project for common Declaration for the joining of Bulgaria and Romania in the Schengen area.

The aim is establishing a close cooperation between both countries and the maximal harmonization in their preparation to enter the Schengen zone.

The document says March 2011 is the common for both countries final date for full joining in the Schengen zone.



^^ Cheers Neighbours ! :cheers:

^^ Cheers also! Your move has pushed our gov to do more :cheers:

Coastal turism: Romania vs Bulgaria

http://www.plancoast.eu/files/constanta/presentations1stday/Talpas_TourismRO.ppt

Coastal turism: Romania vs Bulgaria

http://www.plancoast.eu/files/constanta/presentations1stday/Talpas_TourismRO.ppt

This is probably the only area in which we beat you.:)

This is probably the only area in which we beat you.:)

Not PROBABLY, but CERTAINLY. You have far more coastal tourist infrastructure than we have. And we cannot compete with your longer season, lower prices, and more attractive nature. :cheers:

Still, we hope to beat you in cultural and mountain tourism. :tongue2:

Bulgaria has higher mountains more sloaps lower prices. We suck at tourism but we should have the edge at cultural tourism

Hmm...the situation with the Bulgarian tourism is like a leap from the high and we're very near to the point we'd hit the ground. It's a huge crime against the nature. And the quality of service is dropping cause the number of hotels is rising and there is no enough skilled workforce. Destinations like Turkey are cheaper while Greece and Croatia have better QoS. When you add old infrastructure, corruption leading to overconstruction, the Eurotrash mobs at the seaside, some idiot hotel owners, taxi drivers, change bureaus, etc, things get even worse.

Sunny Beach and Bansko are the monster products of all that 'tourism boom' and I advise everyone to avoid them.

Switzerland Determines Quotas for Bulgarian, Romanian Workers

By Marc Wolfensberger
Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Switzerland has set up transition
quotas for seven years that will limit the number of Bulgarian
and Romanian workers who can work in the country before Swiss
borders are completely opened to them.

The quotas will come into force once Swiss lawmakers have
ratified the extension of a labor agreement with the European
Union to the two new EU members, the government said in a
statement released by e-mail from the capital Bern today. This
is scheduled to happen in 2009.

The first year, 362 long-term and 3,620 short-term work
permits will be delivered to Bulgarians and Romanians. That
number will progressively rise to 1,207 long-term and 11,664
short-term units in the last year, the statement said.
Switzerland will have the right to reintroduce quotas for an
additional three years in case of high immigration from the two
countries, it said.

Switzerland's biggest political force, the anti-EU Swiss
People's Party, has threatened to seek a popular vote on this
issue should the parliament approve the move in 2009. The
government itself is in favor of extending the accord to
Bulgaria and Romania as it says it will give a welcome boost to
the country's economic growth.

The EU is Switzerland's largest trading partner, buying
almost two-thirds of its exports. Switzerland has been seeking
ways to adopt some of the advantages of EU membership without
giving up sovereignty. It cooperates with the 27-nation bloc in
many areas including open borders, criminal probes and tax issues.

Romania and Bulgaria Develop Off the Beaten Track Routes Across the Danube
Balkan Travellers

31 January 2008 | Thracian treasures, Ceauşescu’s birth home, Roman ruins, military tombs and mineral water springs are only some of the alternative tourist attractions that the districts of Pleven in Bulgaria and Olt in Romania will tap into during the implementation of a new project for cross-border cooperation.

The goal of the project, backed by a partnership between the two district administrations and various non-profit organisations, is to better utilise the natural, historical and ecological resources of the two neighbouring districts, located across one another on the Danube River, Stilyan Vurbanov, the project’s leader, said.

After evaluation by experts of these resources, a common strategy for the development of alternative tourism will be devised and begin to be implemented towards the end of the year. It will include new packaged tours and the publication of a catalogue in Bulgarian and Romanian that will highlight the tourist attractions in the two districts.

Because the two districts are not located close to “traditional” tourist destinations, such as the Black Sea coast or winter resorts, the idea of the project is to concentrate on “alternative” attractions, Vurbanov told BalkanTravellers.com.

And a good idea it seems, as neither district seems to be lacking such alternatives. Both provide numerous activities on the Danube and its tributaries, such as sailing, fishing and simply going to the beach, but also a wide variety of historical, cultural and natural attractions.

The city of Pleven, which is the Bulgarian district’s administrative centre, is known for the large number of museums it houses. Many of the city’s historical sites are connected to the 1877-1878 Russo-Turkish War that resulted in Bulgaria’s independence, ending nearly five centuries of Ottoman rule. The hardest and longest battle of the war was the so-called Siege on Pleven, during which the Ottoman troops retained the city for almost five months, while under siege from Russian, Romanian and Finnish armies.

While there are almost 200 monuments on Pleven’s territory that commemorate different battles, one of the most important ones is the mausoleum-tomb of the Russian and Romanian soldiers that died during the war. According to Vurbanov, such sites – as they have a common historical importance to both Bulgaria and Romania, offer the opportunity of a kind of pilgrimage tourism.

The Pleven district also boasts other historical and natural attractions. Important Thracian remains from the fourth century BC, known as the Treasure from Lukovit, were discovered in the Balana area southwest of the city. The caves, waterfalls, and therapeutic mineral water springs in the district’s natural reserves of Krushuna and Steneto make them suitable for development as ecotourism and balneology destinations.

Romania’s Olt district does not fall behind with its assortment of alternative tourist attractions. Among them is the port town of Corabia with its Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral and the archaeological remains of the Daco-Roman Sucidava settlement. Situated on the Danube’s bank, it boasts the first Christian basilica in Romania, a secret underground fountain and the remains of a bridge built by Constantine the Great.

Those interested in more recent political history could visit Scorniceşti, the birthplace of Nicolae Ceauşescu, the communist dictator who ruled Romania for almost a quarter of a century. Even though, in the late 1980s, he attempted to make Scorniceşti a model town by demolishing village houses and replacing them with apartment buildings, his birth home was left intact and can be seen today.

All of these attractions are already there, so eager tourists who seek experiences off the beaten track could take it upon themselves and visit them independently, without having to wait for the completion of the cooperation project and its planned package tours.

Bulgaria has higher mountains more sloaps lower prices. We suck at tourism but we should have the edge at cultural tourism

I don't agree. Bulgaria has more archeological cultural sites than any other country in Europe, except Greece and Italy. Another example would be to consider the number of UNESCO protected cultural sites on the territory. The relics left from Thrace, Byzantium, Great Bulgaria, etc... are becoming very popular with global tourists. They are especially interested in the Valley of Thracian Kings, Kukeri festivals, Bulgar craftsmanship (ie: Madara Horseman), Veliko Tarnovo, Europe's oldest churches... In fact Bulgaria just drafted a new tourism strategy that focuses on cultural, health and business tourism. That's where the $$$ is at!:cheers:

The Second Danube Bridge Between Bulgaria and Romania Will Be Completed by 2010
http://www.balkantravellers.com/en/read/article/469

26 March 2008 | The long-awaited bridge connecting the cities of Vidin in Bulgaria and Calafat in Romania will be completed by 2010, according to Bulgaria’s transport minister Petar Mutafchiev, quoted by national media.

During a recent meeting with Vidin’s mayor, Mutafchiev also stated that the Spanish company Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas, which won the bid for the bridge’s construction in January, will begin work in April.

Currently, Bulgaria and Romania are connected by one bridge only: the Danube Bridge, also known as the Bridge of Friendship. Linking the cities of Ruse and Giurgiu respectively, the bridge was constructed in the 1950s.

The remaining nine border crossing points between the two countries consist of seven ferries, including the Vidin-Calafat one, and two inland crossing points near the Black Sea. Despite the introduction of joint border control between Romania and Bulgaria since they joined the EU in January 2007, going across the river by ferry is usually time-consuming and costly.

The project, worth 236 million euro, envisions the construction of a 1,971-metre bridge, featuring two road lanes in each direction, an electric railway and a bicycle path. It would be part of the Pan-European corridor IV.

The idea to construct a second bridge seized the imagination of people on both sides of the border as early as the 1980s. In the 1990s, Bulgarians felt an even greater need for such a bridge, as the wars in former Yugoslavia cut off their way to Central and Western Europe.

The bridge’s construction has been a Bulgarian transport priority for over ten years, with symbolic first digs taking place every few years but numerous delays preventing the production of any concrete results.

It looks like the 2010 deadline may actually be realistic, as many of the important issues surrounding the bridge’s construction – such as the construction firm bid and the land disputes, have already been solved.

Due to the idiocy and private interests of some local ex-governors, this project was delayed for at least 5 years!

2010 is an optimistic date...

With those temps Bulgaria will be on the top of most visited countries for holidays after Croatia and Greece and soon (hope) we will take and the first place on the Balkans.
For cultural Bulgaria will be on the first place mybe and in Europe,FOREVER!There are not any contry in Europe like our history and lets dont forget the whole Balkan hitory is Bulgarian ;) but that is other thread!
We beat and Spain courots for infrastrocture...their hotels are...bliaaahhh.
Bulgaria needs from more populasing the culture and history!The oldest treasure in the world...and soooooooooo many other huge relikves!
Bulgaria is and in one of the most strategic places in whole Europe and that brings us more "+" in tourism and moneys!

For tourism now and in next years: Bulgaria,Croatia,Greece(that everyone tired from that country) will be the leaders at Balkans.

^^ good luck ... but I think you're exaggerating ... a little :cheers:

mmm I dont know.But I dont want everybody see like some knocking from my side...just I show the facts and express my opinion :)

With those temps Bulgaria will be on the top of most visited countries for holidays after Croatia and Greece and soon (hope) we will take and the first place on the Balkans.
For cultural Bulgaria will be on the first place mybe and in Europe,FOREVER!There are not any contry in Europe like our history and lets dont forget the whole Balkan hitory is Bulgarian but that is other thread!
We beat and Spain courots for infrastrocture...their hotels are...bliaaahhh.
Bulgaria needs from more populasing the culture and history!The oldest treasure in the world...and soooooooooo many other huge relikves!
Bulgaria is and in one of the most strategic places in whole Europe and that brings us more "+" in tourism and moneys!

For tourism now and in next years: Bulgaria,Croatia,Greece(that everyone tired from that country) will be the leaders at Balkans.

:lol:

Yes, Greece, Croatia and Bulgaria are the tourism leaders in the region.

But no, Spanish resorts are much more developed than ours, especially in terms of infrastructure.

I mean, come on, Varna cannot be compared to Malaga, Black Sea highway has nothing to do with the highways on Costa Del Sol...and basically in terms of architecture, Spanish coastline beats us for sure.

Not to mention that there are much more green areas there and they are generally much more cleaner than ours.

Noooo!Im talking about in the country(coast line) not Sicialia or other islands or parts!
Their hotels are very dirty and old!
My relatives go there (i forgot the name of the resort,i will ask and tell) and they just was...disgusting!

I went to Costa Del Sol the last year and all I can say is that our seaside resorts simply cannot compete with theirs.

Besides, I gave up going to our seaside since 2-3 years ago. Last year, I went to Sv.Vlas for a couple of days, that was a horrible mistake.

Yes,they are!But Im talking about Varna,Bourgas,Golden Sands,Sunny Beach...

Yes,they are!But Im talking about Varna,Bourgas,Golden Sands,Sunny Beach...

Oh, man, stop dreaming.
Almost everyone likes(loves) his hometown but I think you are flying to high in the clouds.
Bulgaria has better infrastructure and offers better conditions to the tourists than Spain just as much as the Bulgarian salaries are bigger than the Spanish ones:)

With those temps Bulgaria will be on the top of most visited countries for holidays after Croatia and Greece and soon (hope) we will take and the first place on the Balkans.
For cultural Bulgaria will be on the first place mybe and in Europe,FOREVER!There are not any contry in Europe like our history and lets dont forget the whole Balkan hitory is Bulgarian ;) but that is other thread!
We beat and Spain courots for infrastrocture...their hotels are...bliaaahhh.
Bulgaria needs from more populasing the culture and history!The oldest treasure in the world...and soooooooooo many other huge relikves!
Bulgaria is and in one of the most strategic places in whole Europe and that brings us more "+" in tourism and moneys!

For tourism now and in next years: Bulgaria,Croatia,Greece(that everyone tired from that country) will be the leaders at Balkans.


You must be the most optimistic user of ssc.com. You've got countries such as Greece and Turkey bordering Bulgaria with nicer landscape, nicer and longer coast line and better resorts and you've got historical cities such as Istanbul and Athens just 30 minutes away from Bulgaria by plane and you want to tell me that Bulgaria will attract the most tourists in the region soon due to its nature and historical places? I mean tourism sector seems to boom in Bulgaria but don't expect more than the potential the region has.

You must be the most optimistic user of ssc.com. You've got countries such as Greece and Turkey bordering Bulgaria with nicer landscape, nicer and longer coast line and better resorts and you've got historical cities such as Istanbul and Athens just 30 minutes away from Bulgaria by plane and you want to tell me that Bulgaria will attract the most tourists in the region soon due to its nature and historical places? I mean tourism sector seems to boom in Bulgaria but don't expect more than the potential the region has.

We're talking about Europe, not Asia..And yes i think that bulgarian historical cities are more beautiful than the turkish ones. Also Bulgaria is after Italy and Greece in terms of historical excavations, objects and so.

Well, according to those guys:

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=19307079&postcount=137

Bulgaria has better regulatory framework, infrastructure and cultural/natural resources than Turkey :D

We're talking about Europe, not Asia..And yes i think that bulgarian historical cities are more beautiful than the turkish ones. Also Bulgaria is after Italy and Greece in terms of historical excavations, objects and so.

That's simply not true. As far as I know, we're 3rd in Europe in terms of UNESCO world heritage places/capita or something like that, not the sheer number.

We're talking about Europe, not Asia..And yes i think that bulgarian historical cities are more beautiful than the turkish ones. Also Bulgaria is after Italy and Greece in terms of historical excavations, objects and so.

I'm also not talking about geography. The facts don't change if you call Turkey asian and I did not say that Turkey is more beatiful or more historical but alone the historical peninsula in Istanbul has more history than Balkans combined. Look I just mentioned that this Bulgarian guy was too optimistic with his "analysis" you began with geography and with comparing your country with mine. Why do you guys always think that you must "defend" your country against someone from Turkey!

^^ Of course we do. Especially if he's talking BS :)

Since beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it depends on the nationality of the beholder, it would be sane to check what the other dudes say. Oh, did I mention that tourism competativeness index by the World economic forum? :)

Ok then I leave you alone with your "we are the best" communist mentality. Sorry for talking bullshit here, don't take my words serioulsy.

You will never leave alone the "we're the best" mentality :)

I'm also not talking about geography. The facts don't change if you call Turkey asian and I did not say that Turkey is more beatiful or more historical but alone the historical peninsula in Istanbul has more history than Balkans combined. Look I just mentioned that this Bulgarian guy was too optimistic with his "analysis" you began with geography and with comparing your country with mine. Why do you guys always think that you must "defend" your country against someone from Turkey!

I do not compare my country with Turkey. I've been to Istanbul twice and my opinion is not very positive. Istanbul is so overcrowded and dirty...I just hate the Orient. About your last statement, that "alone the historical peninsula in Istanbul has more history than Balkans combined"..OMG..I love believers.:lol:

That's why you have been twice to Istanbul, becaue your opinion was not positive? :lol: Tell me other stories dude :D

"I hate the Orient" You know that orient doesn't mean aynthing else than "eastern" If you don't like Istanbul because it's located geographly more eastern then you've got some serious problems. :cheers:

I do not compare my country with Turkey. I've been to Istanbul twice and my opinion is not very positive. Istanbul is so overcrowded and dirty...I just hate the Orient. About your last statement, that "alone the historical peninsula in Istanbul has more history than Balkans combined"..OMG..I love believers.:lol:

Actually, since I came back from Istanbul a week ago, I have say that I was pleasantly surprised how clean the city was. It's infrastructure also surpassed my expectations. I have no observations about the Turkish countryside, but Istanbul was a very, very pleasant surprise to me.

I also have to say that their customer service is far superior to ours and this means a lot to a visitor.

I do not compare my country with Turkey. I've been to Istanbul twice and my opinion is not very positive. Istanbul is so overcrowded and dirty...I just hate the Orient. About your last statement, that "alone the historical peninsula in Istanbul has more history than Balkans combined"..OMG..I love believers.:lol: Hmmm, you know I think it's fair to say that Istanbul is undoubtedly the most amazing city in the region. No other city can compare really.

Sure, maybe an exaggeration to say it has more history than the Balkans combined, but it certainly has an undeniable and obvious importance in regional and WORLD history (unlike other parts of the Balkans), grandeur(natural and architectural) and unparalleled atmosphere that arguably can't be found anywhere else in world, let alone in the Balkans.

@ New Bulgaria: Thank you for adding your objective view. I don't get why some forumers (always the same ones) want to create a "you vs us" atmosphere here.

NB, Istanbul is much more developed as a touristic destination than most of the Bulgarian resorts, but I simply dont like it. I prefer other kind of places to spend my holiday. :cheers:

^^ Your personal opinion. If all tourists had prefered Istanbul then Istanbul would be the richest city of the world. Not anyone has to like it but I really doubt that you have ever been to Istanbul. You say you have been twice to Istanbul and didn't like it. Why should someone visit a city for a second time if he didn't like it? Probaby you'll come with "business trip" now.. Alone your description "I don't like the Orient" shows that you've never been to here.

NB, Istanbul is much more developed as a touristic destination than most of the Bulgarian resorts, but I simply dont like it. I prefer other kind of places to spend my holiday. :cheers:

Well, I don't think that you can compare Istanbul with our resorts. One is an urban destination, the other just a holiday resort.

Of course you have the right to your opinion as well.

I don't want to sound like an ass, but I thought that Istanbul was very reasonable, not to say cheap, for somebody who lives in NY. I stayed at a decent hotel right off their main street Istiklal and hardly paid attention to prices as everything was within my budget. We dined at nice restaurants, went to nice shopping malls (Kanyon, City's Nisantashi) and visited their most affluent neighborhoods. Of course we also did all the historical stuff. From that point of view Istanbul was great.

I don't have the perspective of what the life of poorer Instanbulites is. I assume it's not that great, but it's the same in NY or any other big city for that matter.

Argentinian Messi, I dont think I should prove you where I have been to and how many times. ;)

Stay on topic.

You visited Ciyt's Nisantasi? Even I have not been there yet :) It seems that you've also visited non-touristic places. You won't see many tourists in distrits such as Nisantasi or Levent, mostly only in the historical peninsula? Did you have a Turkish friend there who guided you or how come that you have visited these places?
And of course photos are always welcome :cheers:

Argentinian Messi, I dont think I should prove you where I have been to and how many times. ;)

Stay on topic.

I didn't want to have any proves such as photos or a copy of your flight ticket, I just don't believe you. One can see in your posts that you've never been to here. You just talk like someone with ignorance who's telling this expectations of Istanbul.

We have 2 pages of posts that do not belong to that thread. It was a thread about Bulgaria and Romania. No Turkey.

Look who began with Turkey. I said it at the beginning.

You visited Ciyt's Nisantasi? Even I have not been there yet :) It seems that you've also visited non-touristic places. You won't see many tourists in distrits such as Nisantasi or Levent, mostly only in the historical peninsula? Did you have a Turkish friend there who guided you or how come that you have visited these places?
And of course photos are always welcome :cheers:

I never stick to the touristy areas in any city I visit. I am actually more intersted in how Istanbulites live.

I had done some reseach before I got there. My firm recently opened an office in Istanbul in the office tower of Kanyon Mall. I knew Levent was the financial district and was interested to check it out.

Istanbulu also gave me good advice (I still have to thank him). We took the ferry from Besiktas to Kadikoy and walked around the little streets there. Our plan was to get to Baghdad Avenue, but we never made it there. Instead, we had lunch in the little streets of Kadikoy and then walked around Moda, which looks so much like a Bulgarian neighborhood that I couldn't believe it. It was last Saturday, the weather was nice, and everybody was out and around.

I did not start with Turkey.

Getting to Kadikoy and the streets around the ferry port:

http://i194.photobucket.com/albums/z15/nkd970/istanbul/Istanbul03-22-08071.jpg

http://i194.photobucket.com/albums/z15/nkd970/istanbul/Istanbul03-22-08070.jpg

http://i194.photobucket.com/albums/z15/nkd970/istanbul/Istanbul03-22-08067.jpg

I have defended and wll continue to defend Bulgaria when it is unfairly criticized. However, I also don't like it when Bulgarians unfairly criticize other countries and their cities. I was in Istanbul 5 years ago and similarly to New Bulgaria was pleasantly surprised. The city is modern and indeed world class. My opinion is that Istanbul is one of the most impressive cities in the world and will likely become an alpha metropolis within 20 years. On the other hand Turkey as a whole is behind the times in many ways and Bulgaria is more evenly developed when such things as education are taken into account. See HDI for more info. So, yes Istanbul is ahead of any other Balkan city (arguably any EE city), but no Turkey as whole still needs to get its act together, especially in the interior of the county.

But you are missing a point here. Istanbul is the 6th most developed city in Turkey. For example it is way behind of Izmir and Ankara and even Eskisehir.

^^I think you spoke prematurely without first attempting to understand Istanbul's advantages over other Turkish cities, especially when analyzed from an international perspective. Istanbul is impressive because it is a huge city with a lot of history while increasingly peppered with elements of modernity, cosmopolitanism, etc... The other 5 so-called more developed cities in Turkey don't have the international feel, business atmosphere and plain grandeur that Istanbul symbolizes by way of its colourful history and evident ressurection that will lead to a prominent and likely globally significant future. Tell me, which other Turkish city can do the same? Further still, if Istanbul is 6th overall in Turkey, how many other cities are behind it. I'm particualrly interested in those populated areas that represent more than half of Turkey's population and lay somewhere in the interior of the country.

You are right my friend, actually i did not mention opposite... Anyway what am i trying to say is "Istanbul is USA but we have Canada, Norway, Sweden...";) I know This is an absurd example but i believe you understand what i meant:)

^^Yeah, that's a pretty good way of putting it. Anyway, if you are assertive, competitive and want to make lot's of money you'd probably hit up the USA. If you want to consume lots of omega-3, shovel snow as an excercise routine and live a nice and relaxed life wherein you'll be taken care of when you don't feel like working, then you'd likely hit up Norway. :cheers: Then again Izmir (Turkey's Norway) doesn't have much snow to shovel, but who knows, you might still be able to get your daily fill of brain-food from the local fish market. :)

GDP per capita from 2007 by cia factbook
Bulgaria $ 11,800
Romania $ 11,100
Turkey $ 9,400

end of story :)

GDP per capita from 2007 by cia factbook
Bulgaria $ 11,800
Romania $ 11,100
Turkey $ 9,400

end of story :)

Turkey's GDP per capita is 9333 USD and this is the nominal value.

Turkey GDP: 657 billion USD
Turkey GDP per capita: 9333 USD

Romania GDP: 121 billion USD
Romania GDP per capita: 5600 USD

Bulgaria GDP: 31 billion USD
Bulgaria GDP per capita: 4089 USD

http://www.unionlearn.org.uk/education/learn_1626_b_files/image019.gif


end of story :cheers:

wrong data buddy ^^

wrong data buddy ^^

They are all from the World bank and are nominal values. The graph with the minimum wages are from eurostat.

^^ Well ... it's wrong. I do not know about Turkey or Bulgaria but I do know about Romania

EU source - http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=STAT/07/85&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en)

Turkey's GDP per capita is 9333 USD and this is the nominal value.

Turkey GDP: 657 billion USD
Turkey GDP per capita: 9333 USD

Romania GDP: 121 billion USD
Romania GDP per capita: 5600 USD

Bulgaria GDP: 31 billion USD
Bulgaria GDP per capita: 4089 USD


end of story :cheers:


Romania's GDP in 2007 was at 122 billion EURO (!!!) or about 183 billion USD. Now, divide that by 22.5 million and you get: 8133 USD/capita.

I think Bulgaria's GDP was around 40 billion EUR (Bulgarians, please correct me if I am wrong), which means about 60 billion USD, divided by 8 million (approximate population) gives you about 7500 USD/capita. Happy now? :D

^^ Well ... it's wrong. I do not know about Turkey or Bulgaria but I do know about Romania

EU source - http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=STAT/07/85&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en)


According to your source:
Bulgaria 92
Romania 114
Turkey 298

So it's the same as mine.

Romania's GDP in 2007 was at 122 billion EURO (!!!) or about 183 billion USD. Now, divide that by 22.5 million and you get: 8133 USD/capita.

I think Bulgaria's GDP was around 40 billion EUR (Bulgarians, please correct me if I am wrong), which means about 60 billion USD, divided by 8 million (approximate population) gives you about 7500 USD/capita. Happy now? :D

I just quote what I see on

http://siteresources.worldbank.org/DATASTATISTICS/Resources/GDP.pdf

According to your source:
Bulgaria 92
Romania 114
Turkey 298

So it's the same as mine.

is it?!


http://www.unionlearn.org.uk/education/learn_1626_b_files/image019.gif
end of story :cheers:

Strange, everything is same in expection of Romania. Someone must have photoshoped the graph and switch the places of Romania and Bulgaria :D

Turkey's GDP per capita is 9333 USD and this is the nominal value.

Turkey GDP: 657 billion USD
Turkey GDP per capita: 9333 USD

Romania GDP: 121 billion USD
Romania GDP per capita: 5600 USD

Bulgaria GDP: 31 billion USD
Bulgaria GDP per capita: 4089 USD

http://www.unionlearn.org.uk/education/learn_1626_b_files/image019.gif


end of story :cheers:


Outdate or wrong data. Romania's GDP in 2007 was 121 billion EURO.

I think that it is about time that we change this thread's title to Romania-Bulgaria-Turkey Money Race(dick measuring)(find the best source) :|

I think we should rather stay on topic.

http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/

High Human Development:
...
53. Bulgaria
...
Medium Human Development:
...
84. Turkey


We beat you by 31 places.

Furthermore, Bulgaria is 66th at life expectancy while Turkey is 85th. Bulgaria is 22th at adult literacy rate, Turkey is 69th. Oh yes, and we beat you at GDP/capita PPP by 2 places.

That's the end of the story.

Turkey's GDP has been recalculated for two years now. Now we use the same method as the EU (ENA95) and not SNA68 anymore which was from 1968. The new numbers were published on march 1st and the GDP per capita is 9333 USD (nominal). The ppp numbers aren't published yet. Yes we suck in HDI ranking but I never took that seriously because even S.Arabia is higher ranked than Turkey in this list. Beside this Bulgaria with 8 million people and an EU member has less problems than a country which borders Iran, Iraq and Syria, that's logical!

http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=100153

Well, Saudi Arabia has about $20.000 GDP/capita, which is much higher than Bulgaria and Turkey. Would you trust the GDP statistics too? :)

Turkey's GDP has been recalculated for two years now. Now we use the same method as the EU (ENA95) and not SNA68 anymore which was from 1968. The new numbers were published on march 1st and the GDP per capita is 9333 USD (nominal). The ppp numbers aren't published yet. Yes we suck in HDI ranking but I never took that seriously because even S.Arabia is higher ranked than Turkey in this list. Beside this Bulgaria with 8 million people and an EU member has less problems than a country which borders Iran, Iraq and Syria, that's logical!

http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=100153


In the Bulgarian press was mentioned about this change and that the Turkish GDP will go upwards with about 1/3.However, not all the 27 EU countries revised their GDP but only Greece.The Greek government took this measure in order to decrease the budget deficit(as % of the nominal GDP) in order to avoid sanctions from Brussels for running more than 3% budget deficit.But now Greece will have to contribute more to the EU budget because every country pays a certain % of its GDP.The new methodology should be introduced by all EU members and candidates till 2014 but neither one of the current members except of Greece adopted the new system due to the fact that noone wants to become additional donor to the EU budget:lol:
At a press conference dedicated to the economic growth of Bulgaria for 2007 the National Statistical Office announced a small revision(0,2%) for 2006 and big future revision(although they didn`t say how much exactly) which will be done in 2014.I myself don`t see any reason for earlier revision after our membership payment will go up considerably whereas the only thing we`ll get is slightly improved credit rating.


edit:The nominal growth was about twice higher than PPP growth, not thrice as I initially wrote.But the trend is still positive and indicates for narrowing the difference between nominal and PPP GDP.

In the Bulgarian press was mentioned about this change and that the Turkish GDP will go upwards with about 1/3.However, not all the 27 EU countries revised their GDP but only Greece.The Greek government took this measure in order to decrease the budget deficit(as % of the nominal GDP) in order to avoid sanctions from Brussels for running more than 3% budget deficit.But now Greece will have to contribute more to the EU budget because every country pays a certain % of its GDP.The new methodology should be introduced by all EU members and candidates till 2014 but neither one of the current members except of Greece adopted the new system due to the fact that noone wants to become additional donor to the EU budget:lol:
At a press conference dedicated to the economic growth of Bulgaria for 2007 the National Statistical Office announced a small revision(0,2%) for 2006 and big future revision(although they didn`t say how much exactly) which will be done in 2014.I myself don`t see any reason for earlier revision after our membership payment will go up considerably whereas the only thing we`ll get is slightly improved credit rating.


edit:The nominal growth was about twice higher than PPP growth, not thrice as I initially wrote.But the trend is still positive and indicates for narrowing the difference between nominal and PPP GDP.

Greece case is something different. The old method that Turkey used in order to calculate its GDP was SNA68 and was used only by 2 countries, all others had switched decades ago. Our people were too lazy to recalculate it but now we were forced by the EU to do so, it took us more than 2 years and numbers were publishe at the beginning of this month. Now Turkey uses the same method as all other countries and Greece just added "unregistered" economy to their existing numbers which is again a different method.

Well, Saudi Arabia has about $20.000 GDP/capita, which is much higher than Bulgaria and Turkey. Would you trust the GDP statistics too? :)

Excatly! They are so highly ranked because of the high GDP but the HDI list doesn't take in account things such as ruling system or the reality of that women are treated like second class citizens there, no right to vote, to be elected or even to drive. There are more examples that can be given but I guess you see what I mean.

Оставете им да го бъде на тяхното.И по история са много назад и по-всичко.Като искат толкова да бъдат и на първо място в света!

that's correct as well.

Bicycle Path to Link Black Sea Coastal Cities in Bulgaria and Romania:banana:
http://www.balkantravellers.com/en/read/article/499

10 April 2008 | A bicycle path consistent with European standards will be built between the town of Shabla, on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast, and the resort village of 2 Mai on Romania’s coast, Romanian media reported.
The 500,000-euro project, financed by Brussels, will begin in May. According to the Romanian daily newspaper Adevarul, its expected completion date is in November.
Both the Bulgarian and Romanian municipalities have received approval for the project and will organise a tender for the construction of the path shortly.

The town of Shabla is located on Bulgaria’s northernmost Black Sea coast, about 80 kilometres north of the major port city of Varna. The waters around the town boast many sunken ships that make it a popular destination for diving. In addition, the nearby Shabla Lake is a natural reserve, housing a diverse population of animal and plant species, while the area round Shabla’s lighthouse boast numerous warm, sulphur-rich mineral water springs.

The village of 2 Mai, though much smaller than Shabla, has become popular in recent years among Romanian tourists as a quiet and peaceful sea-side resort. Located between the port city of Mangalia and the village of Mama Veche, many of its inhabitants are the Lippovans, a minority that lives in the Dobrogea region of Romania.

The bicycle path project is the latest in a series of initiatives to build closer and stronger ties between the two states. Despite the fact that Bulgaria and Romania are neighbouring countries, the traffic levels over the Danube – which forms much of the nearly 500-kilometre border between them, were surprisingly low until a few years ago.

This is changing rapidly, as the scores of Romanians who head south for the holidays testifies.

In addition, local and national authorities are taking measures to increase cooperation and strengthen ties between the two states. As BalkanTravellers.com reported in January, the districts of Pleven in Bulgaria and Olt in Romania – along the border’s central portion, initiated a new project for cross-border cooperation for the development of alternative tourism.

Another much-anticipated development is the construction of a second bridge over the Danube between Vidin and Calafat in the western part of the border, which – as BalkanTravellers.com reported in March, has been in the works for the past two decades, but is scheduled to be completed by 2010.

The important for the population`s standard is the GNI (Gross National Income) not the GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

Simple example:

Imagine country A has a vehicle factory in country B.

Its production increases the country B GDP and the country A GNI.

However, the real money /almost the whole profit/ goes to country A!!!

Have you guessed my point?

:D

GDP and GNI

http://www.med.govt.nz/upload/53549/image005.jpg


Now you can continue the dick measuring by providing the GNI stats as I do.:D

http://globalis.gvu.unu.edu/indicator.cfm?IndicatorID=140&country=BG#rowBG

So, Turkey is behind Bulgaria again. :D

The important for the population`s standard is the GNI (Gross National Income) not the GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

Simple example:

Imagine country A has a vehicle factory in country B.

Its production rises the country B GDP and the country A GNI.

However, the real money goes to country A!!!

Have you guessed my point?

:D

I don't know what you mean by "real money"...profit? Sure, profit goes to A, but country B gets wages, taxes, etc. which, if added up, dwarf profits.

Second Danube Bridge between Bulgaria and Romania to Be Ready in 2010

12 April 2008, Saturday

The new working program about the construction of the second bridge connecting Bulgaria and Romania over the Danube River envisages its completion in 2010.

The news was announced Friday in the city of Vidin by Bulgaria's Deputy Minister of Transport Vesela Gospodinova.

Gospodinova took part in a meeting on the bridge project, which is to connect Bulgarai's Vidin and Romania's Kalafat, together with representatives of the European Commission, the Secretary-General of the Romanian Ministry of Transport, MP Mihail Mikov, the District Governor Krustyo Spasov, and the Mayors of Vidin and Kalafat.

The construction works are planned to begin on April 15, as the necessary coastal facilities are to be constructed first.

Passenger Ship Line to Connect Bulgaria's Varna and Romania's Constanta

12 April 2008, Saturday

A permanent passenger-ship line between the sea capitals of Bulgaria and Romania, the cities of Varna and Constanta, will be opened on June 13, the Varna newspaper Narodno Delo reported.

The news was announced by the Head of the Passenger-Ships Station in Varna, Captain Valentin Kitanov.

The line will use the catamaran "Krimskaya Strela" (Crimean Arrow), which will run regular trips once a week. The ship will be leaving Constanta for Varna every Friday, and will be traveling back from Varna to Constanta every Saturday.

The one-way ticket costs EUR 30, whereas the roundtrip is EUR 50. The ship is owned by the Ukrainian company Inflot 1, and has been used for the Varna-Odessa-Varna passenger line.

I don't know what you mean by "real money"...profit? Sure, profit goes to A, but country B gets wages, taxes, etc. which, if added up, dwarf profits.

Of course the real money is the profit.

Country B gets wages, taxes, etc. but country A gets almost 90% of the whole profit anyway.

GDP and GNI

http://www.med.govt.nz/upload/53549/image005.jpg


Now you can continue the dick measuring by providing the GNI stats as I do.:D

http://globalis.gvu.unu.edu/indicator.cfm?IndicatorID=140&country=BG#rowBG

So, Turkey is behind Bulgaria again. :D

Although I don't get how you come to such a conclusion... is that a national aim in Bulgaria? :nuts:
Btw this is PPP from 2003.

^^
It doesn`t metter that it`s from 2003. Nowadays Bulgaria is much higher in the list! :D

The image is an example of GDP and GNI comparison.

The link is the source of info:

http://globalis.gvu.unu.edu/indicator.cfm?IndicatorID=140&country=BG#rowBG

You can see Turkey far behind Bulgaria according to the most important for the stadard index. :lol::lol:

Good luck buddy and have a sleep well! :D

I just know that GDP per capita in Turkey is 10.500 USD and in Bulgaria 6.500 USD in 2008 or that minimum wage is about 110 USD in Bulgaria and about 505 USD in Turkey's or that Turkey GDP is 748.000 billion USD and Bulgaria's 48.000 billion USD.
So if the believe of being ahead of Turkey makes you personally sleep better then go on with your own statistics :cheers:

I just know that GDP per capita in Turkey is 10.500 USD and in Bulgaria 6.500 USD in 2008 or that minimum wage is about 110 USD in Bulgaria and about 505 USD in Turkey's or that Turkey GDP is 748.000 billion USD and Bulgaria's 48.000 billion USD.
So if the believe of being ahead of Turkey makes you personally sleep better then go on with your own statistics :cheers:

^^ the statistic above doesn´t seem like "our own" or something like that, it´s from the WORLD BANK, pretty old, but it seems official enough to me.......

you guys are great :D

^^

I told you last time. Bulgaria has much better GNI index than Turkey! :D

This is the most important index for the standard.

Everything else you can provide us will suck for sure! :D :D

Especially for my new Turkish friend:
/Turkey owes us 10s of billions euros/ No cash for Bulgaria, no EU! :D

Bulgarian PM Binds Turkey's EU Accession With the Thracian Properties


http://international.ibox.bg/news/id_1238559938


http://images.ibox.bg/2007/06/26/dds/519x390.jpg


Bulgaria will raise the issue of the compensation of the Thracian Bulgarians in the context of the Turkish accession to the European Union.

This claimed Bulgarian prime minister Stanishev answering a question of “Ataka”.

The PM emphasized that after 10 years freezing of the negotiations between the two countries, Bulgaria had again raised the issue in front of Turkey during the visit of the Turkish PM Erdogan in the country.

Specific terms for making a decision had not been discussed, they would be negotiated at a later stage, after the expert groups finish their work, explained Stanishev.

The prime minister reminded that since 1925 when the Angora contract had been signed, nothing had been done. Only now there is a specific political result, claimed Stanishev.

Sorry but I won't discuss with you who's GDP is higher, especially if you show me GNI numbers from 2003 and I won't compare Turkey to a country with the size of Istanbul's 3 neighbourhoods combined. Simply a different league.

And as if Bulgaria had the power to stop Turkey's membership negotiations! If big boss approve it there isn't anyone that can stop it.

BTW I just found GNI per capita in 2006:

Turkey:7200 USD
Bulgaria: 3900 USD

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GNI_per_capita

:cheers:

^^

Find the newest list for 2007 and you will see the big difference.

Don`t show me otdated shits and wiki stuff. :lol:

Turkey will never be part of the European civilization!

Turkey is in Asia and belongs to Asia. It will never pass into the EU.

Soon we will see the rise of the new 45 million country Kurdistan and after that Turkey will be devided between a few countries.

Very soon Turkey will pay everyone that Turkey used to robbed.

P.S. Bulgaria is a state of the EU which is many times larger than Turkey.

So, Turkey is the small dwarf now who has to obey Bulgaria if doesn`t want to be beaten. :D :D

Find the newest list for 2007 and you will see the big difference.

Don`t show me otdated shits and wiki stuff.

Turkey will never be part of the European civilization!

Turkey belongs to Asia.

Turkey will be devided between a few countries very soon. Sooner we will see the rise of the new 45 million country Kurdistan.

Very soon Turkey will pay everyone that Turkey used to robbed.

:lol: Thank you for representing the wet dreams of some extrimist Bulgarians! (Attention I am not generalizing) Btw it was you who sent GNI numbers from 2003 and said that Bulgaria's income is higher, now I posted numbers from 2006.
Turkey will stay always as it is now, only with a bigger economy, just another 250 billions USD needed in order to join the rich men's club. Btw you can keep your civilized europe, I see that civilazation as soon as I pass the Turkish border, Turkey may be asian but it's far more important to Europe than Bulgaria, now you can be proud of the title "european" that you gave to yourself. Quite sad that you are so proud of that title although Europe sees you as 3rd class EU member.

If Turkey is more important for the EU than Bulgaria why Turkey is not in there as Bulgaria does?

Stupid conclusion of non EU human. :D

Can we bet that Turkey will never be an EU member? :D :D

He edited his post, his dreams got even wetter. Do you think that Turkey or any EU country cares about Bulgaria in case of our membership talks? :lol: You just made my day, thanks! :cheers:

^^

Find the newest list for 2007 and you will see the big difference.

Don`t show me otdated shits and wiki stuff. :lol:

Turkey will never be part of the European civilization!

Turkey is in Asia and belongs to Asia. It will never pass into the EU.

Soon we will see the rise of the new 45 million country Kurdistan and after that Turkey will be devided between a few countries.

Very soon Turkey will pay everyone that Turkey used to robbed.

P.S. Bulgaria is part of the EU which is many times larger than Turkey.

So, Turkey is the small dwarf now who has to obey Bulgaria if doesn`t want to be beaten. :D :D

You cumed over your keyboard and monitor:lol:

If Turkey is more important for the EU than Bulgaria why Turkey is not in there as Bulgaria does?

Stupid conclusion of non EU human. :D


That's because Bulgaria is sooo important to EU, they had no other choise! :banana:

Btw are you Delyan, you talk like him.

No, I`m not your Delyan. :)

The time of EU is comming sooner than you expect and we will see what will be the rest of Turkey in 25 years. :D

10x for listening me so carefull.

I`m going to drink some red wine and to eat a fat pork steak.

Bye guys. :D

P.S.

2007 est. GDP - per capita (PPP)

87. Bulgaria - $10,700
93. Romania - $ 9,100
94. Turkey - $ 9,000

https://www.cia.gov/library/publicat.../2004rank.html

Dream on, dream on buddy! I mean it doesn't cost anything!

My dear friend, do you see this picture? This is Istanbul's CDB. The GDP of this small area is larger than Bulgaria's whole GDP
http://i29.tinypic.com/2z5qd6p.jpg

And if you add Istanbul's second CBD this will be equal to that what Bulgaria may achieve in 10 years.
http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/7062/img1263lxc8.jpg


Sorry for being ass again but we talked too much about dreams such as dividing Turkey in many parts etc.. time for some reality :D Ba bye!

So you are celebrating Rumen Petkov's resignation too :)

Yep, I`m going to have some fun. I really need it now. :)

Dream on, dream on buddy! I mean it doesn't cost anything!

My dear friend, do you see this picture? This is Istanbul's CDB. The GDP of this small area is larger than Bulgaria's whole GDP
http://i29.tinypic.com/2z5qd6p.jpg


Way to go...

(Panama city, pop. 1 million, GDP/capita for Panama 9.000$).

http://www.henleyglobal.com/pics/panama3.jpg

*Sad*.

Do you know that Istanbul has a gdp per capita of 25.000 $ and a total gdp of 200 billion US Dollar with a population of 12 million.In 2006 companies based in Istanbul made exports worth $60,397,000,000 and imports worth $89,883,000,000;

Do you know that Istanbul has a gdp per capita of 25.000 $ and a total gdp of 200 billion US Dollar with a population of 15 million.In 2006 companies based in Istanbul made exports worth $60,397,000,000 and imports worth $89,883,000,000;

And also has 362623,6 Ferraris.

Still prefer Panama City though, bcs it has more skyscrapers.

And also has 362623,6 Ferraris.

Still prefer Panama City though, bcs it has more skyscrapers.

ok if you want to live in a city with a gdp of 9000 $...it is your choose :)

A Greek guy prefering Panama to Istanbul :lol: Doesn't sound realistic to me ;)
Btw Panama doesn't have a nice skyline and that many skyscrapers. Simply 10 midsize commieblocks and 10 small commies. I had given Manila as an example! ;)

Don´t underestimate PANAMA CITY.I would also prefer to live there.Much better urban planning than some eastern european cities.

:cheers:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/DirkvdM_panama_pelicans.jpg/800px-DirkvdM_panama_pelicans.jpg

And it's a title of a cool Van Halen song :D

looks better than many EU cities ;) I am such an ass!! :D

Panama City is gorgeous... a friend of me tells everytime how great it is. probably very liveable and rich if you are whiter than the majority:)

It is a very nice city.But i don´t want spam this thread with Panama City pictures :)

When I was on trip to Kusadasi I saw a bunch of truck drivers washing their feet in the sink in the WC of a gas station - very EU I must say :)

When I was on trip to Kusadasi I saw a bunch of truck drivers washing their foots in the sink in the toilet - very EU I must say :)

and i heard that still more than 50% of the houses do not have bathroom and people use commune toilets at backyards of apartments in your country?

of corse i am bitcing just like you:)

there was a thread in the DLM forum with funny pictures of Bulgaria.Someone remember ??And this country is in the EU :lol:

don´t take my words serious

Interesting critics from the country with one of the lowest literate rates outside the 3rd world...
anyway who's bitchin Kafkas, this Bulgaria-Romania thread and some Turkish guys are tellin how cool is Turkey and how it belongs to the EU... but it doesn't just because of the first letter of EU which stands for European - simple and clear - France, Germany and Austria said that not me :)

I hope we all stop the insult eachother and act as civilized as members of civilized world;)

on the other hand what are we doing here is show that still we are not part of civilized world but part of deep shit;) Being part of EU do not make us better! Civilized world gives you a chance for make you part of real civilization. Do not waste this chance by nonsense national arguements ;)

When I was on trip to Kusadasi I saw a bunch of truck drivers washing their feet in the sink in the WC of a gas station - very EU I must say :)

Have you heard of the last eurostat statistics about Bulgaria and flush toilets in households?

I hope we all stop the insult eachother and act as civilized as members of civilized world;)

on the other hand what are we doing here is show that still we are not part of civilized world but part of deep shit;) Being part of EU do not make us better! Civilized world gives you a chance for make you part of real civilization. Do not waste this chance by nonsense national arguements ;)

Alright but it's Bulgaria - Romania money race or whatever thread ... not showing off cool Turkey or something...that's my point.

Hmm some Bulgarian guys mentioned Turkey in this topic first, that's why I answered him.

Alright but it's Bulgaria - Romania money race or whatever thread ... not showing off cool Turkey or something...that's my point.

It started with this;

Well, according to those guys:

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=19307079&postcount=137

Bulgaria has better regulatory framework, infrastructure and cultural/natural resources than Turkey :D

so you need to prove your point to your Bulgarian friend, Am I wrong?

Alright even if bgrs posted that first it's not the occasion for 5 pages offtopic.

Bulgaria - Although smaller and with less potential than Turkey, it has a bright future especially since its admission to the EU. The local Turkish minority party (DPS) is the reason why there has been a rise in Bulgarian ultra nationalism in recent years. Most Turks living in Bulgaria are villagers and uneducated, DPS was able to attract them in their ranks because they offer them jobs and free trips to Istanbul and Bursa to see their relatives...

Turkey - Istanbul is a great city and I have no doubt it has a great future ahead of it. As for the rest of the country a lot of improvement has to be done, and like said previously the problems with the rest of Turkey is the high number of illiterate (87.4%, with comparison to 98.6% in BG) and extremist people. I support M.K. Ataturk's dream of seeing a secular country (truly and entirely), before any accession to the EU is even thought of.

and here is data from IMF

Comparing Bulgaria - Turkey
* Gross domestic product based on purchasing-power-parity (PPP) per capita GDP
* Population

Turkey with so much more human potential should not compare itself with Bulgaria, even if Turkey's GDP per capita is a bit higher with a work force 10X greater it should be even higher

http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2008/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2006&ey=2013&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&pr1.x=53&pr1.y=14&c=918%2C186&s=PPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=

Alright even if bgrs posted that first it's not the occasion for 5 pages offtopic.

Well, you are right... but do not try to find someone else for blame.. look at yourself first! Do not get me wrong, same applies for me too!

If we really tired of offtopic discussion we can cut the crap... but I am sure we are all enjoying the crap instead of more informative subjects! That's why we are all backward bastards;)

Turkey - Istanbul is a great city and I have no doubt it has a great future ahead of it. As for the rest of the country a lot of improvement has to be done, and like said previously the problems with the rest of Turkey is the high number of illiterate (87.4%, with comparison to 98.6% in BG) and extremist people. I support M.K. Ataturk's dream of seeing a secular country (truly and entirely), before any accession to the EU is even thought of.


Just in order to inform you! Any big city, especially in the western part is far more developed than Bulgarian cities. Not only Istanbul but also Ankara, Izmir, Antalya, Kayseri, Eskisehir, Adana, Bursa, Kocaeli, Konya, Samsun etc..
Yes we have big problems in eastern rural areas in various fields such as economical problems, infrastructural probelms, minority and educational problems but the numbers given by IMF are average numbers so any region of Turkey calculated. You blame the Turkish minorty and I blame the Kurdish so what? It is still our country and we have to improve these regions! I can talk about such thing in a civilized way but as long as some forumers come and talk about dividing Turkey or some who have historical complexes I can't just control myself!

Turkey with so much more human potential should not compare itself with Bulgaria, even if Turkey's GDP per capita is a bit higher with a work force 10X greater it should be even higher

And I can say that Bulgaria needs just to feed 7 million people instead of 70.000.000! You don#t have to build thousands of kilometrs of motorways or railroads or airports, schools, hosptical whatever
So it's not an argument ;)

Blablabla...far more blablalba...ne mutlu turkum diyene....I'm getting bored, really :)

Just keep it for yourself, everything connected with Turkey is offtopic in a EE section, especially in a thread about Bulgaria and Romania.

As for my comment, that was a reply to a Turk about his remarks on Turkish and Bulgarian tourism.

Please redirect all this stuff to somewhere else (what about /dev/null?) and don't pollute the SSC's sql servers.

Just in order to inform you! Any big city, especially in the western part is far more developed than Bulgarian cities.

so you are very resolute for change this thread to a shit throwing contest:applause:

Kafkas ya lütfen kendi isine bak! Iki cingene bulgarin gözüne hos görüncem diye sirin rollerine mi girecem! Ben ezerim kardesim bana satasani! Kafalrina girsin bu!

adamlara cevap verecek nokta bırakmıyoruz, bi güzel susturuyoruz... böyle bi saat filan bişey yazılmayınca adeta dayanamayıp adamlar rahat rahat sana sataşabilsin diye hoop bişey yazıp fırsat veriyorsun... her topictede yapıyorsun bunu!

Ayrıca ezmek senin yaptığın şekilde olmaz keza her an ezilebilirsinde!

Sorry for Turkish, I'll not continue...

Holy shit...my sixth sense predicts trouble when Delyan comes out :D

Just in order to inform you! Any big city, especially in the western part is far more developed than Bulgarian cities. Not only Istanbul but also Ankara, Izmir, Antalya, Kayseri, Eskisehir, Adana, Bursa, Kocaeli, Konya, Samsun etc..
Yes we have big problems in eastern rural areas in various fields such as economical problems, infrastructural probelms, minority and educational problems but the numbers given by IMF are average numbers so any region of Turkey calculated. You blame the Turkish minorty and I blame the Kurdish so what? It is still our country and we have to improve these regions! I can talk about such thing in a civilized way but as long as some forumers come and talk about dividing Turkey or some who have historical complexes I can't just control myself!



And I can say that Bulgaria needs just to feed 7 million people instead of 70.000.000! You don#t have to build thousands of kilometrs of motorways or railroads or airports, schools, hosptical whatever
So it's not an argument ;)

I don't blame the Turkish minority, they are DPS's sheep (not saying they are not humans, but simply saying they do anything DPS tells them to do) and reason why DPS is imposing itself in the Bulgarian Parliament, you give them a shit job in the tobacco fields with minimum wage (with no future) or a free trip to Bursa and you got them rolled around your finger for the next 3 generations...That is one of the reasons why DPS is against Bulgartabak's privatisation, because they will not be able to use it as a tool to win electorate...DPS does the same with the gypsy minority pays their 2 year old 6-7 mln euros electricity bill (Stolipinovo case) and got their votes...which does not give them a lesson on how to be a responsible citizen, because in 4 years DPS will pay the bills once more...

True, Turkey is a bigger country with much more population big everyone with what they got...France has a population of 64mln but they still have managed to have a GDP per capita of 30 000...Every country deals with what they have...True, Bulgaria is smaller in both area and population than Turkey which means exactly less infrastructure, hospitals, schools...needed, but this also has it's bad sides since being smaller also makes it less attractive for investments, less people to employ, less ressources

gUIcHet fErMé

Population in 2007

Bulgaria -7.637.000
Turkey - 68.897.000


Don`t forget the earthquakes dear friends!

Everyone knows that the end of Istanbul is comming soon and it`s not funny but very sad thing! :ohno:

Don`t forget that Bulgaria is the country helped you during the time after the last quakes.




http://www.koeri.boun.edu.tr/jeofizik/broadband/Report_1_files/image002-b.png

What makes you think that a big quake in Istanbul will not harm Bulgaria?

It's about time to cut this crap

What makes you think that a big quake in Istanbul will not harm Bulgaria?

Of course it would harm partly Bulgaria too.

However, have a look at the seismology map of Turkey.

Istanbul is a really dagerouse place for the people and the money, thing that the investors realize much more every next day.

Kafkas ya lütfen kendi isine bak! Iki cingene bulgarin gözüne hos görüncem diye sirin rollerine mi girecem! Ben ezerim kardesim bana satasani! Kafalrina girsin bu!

Are you kidding? Is this what you tell yourself in order to feel better about your personal indentity? Here in Bulgaria the "cingene" are associated with your country, albeit in much the same biased way that you yourself have done. The fact that you are using this minority, which has been unfairly treated by just about everyone, as a way to try and uplift yourself is not only shameless and hateful but also hypocritcal. This is especially true when from a physical standpoint a dominant percentage of modern Ottoman Turks are similar to these people, atleast from the perspectives of many external observers. Did I ever tell you that I don't like those who use predujiced views when trying to make what they "believe" to be rational arguments, especially when they do it in their own language thinking others will not catch them doing so? I am now thinking of getting you banned. You'll find out what my choice is tomorrow when you try to log-in.

Of course it would harm partly Bulgaria too.

However, have a look at the seismology map of Turkey.

Istanbul is a really dagerouse place for the people and the money, thing that the investors realize much more every next day.

ВОДА, you must be such a sick person! You just post that Turkey gets divided into many parts, you just hope that the number of seperatist Kurds increases and you are waiting for an earthquake that destorys Turkey's heart and brain at the same time! I mean these things won't happen only because you wish them to happen, it is just unbelievable to see that someone can have such a mentality and hatred!

Are you kidding? Is this what you tell yourself in order to feel better about yourself? Here in Bulgaria the "cingene" are associated with your country. The fact that you are using this minority, which has been unfairly treated by just about everyone, as a way to try and uplift yourself is not only shameless and hateful but also hypocritcal. This is especially true when from a physical standpoint a dominant percentage of modern Ottoman Turks are similar to these people, atleast from the perspectives of many external observers.

Nice, you call us cingene and we call you cingene! :cheers: :lol: Btw I didn't call Bulgaria as cingene but this guy who is wishing earthquakes and civil wars for Turkey. Actually I had used another term but I was afraid of being brigged afterwards :D

Messi stop shitting the thread pls and the EE section, nobody here gives a crap how "cool" and "developed" is Turkey , furthermore nobody believes it..You left a very bad mark to the region anyway..bein' the most backward and undeveloped, uncultured and uneducated empire ever existed between 14-19 century...

ВОДА, you must be such a sick person! You just post that Turkey gets divided into many parts, you just hope that the number of seperatist Kurds increases and you are waiting for an earthquake that destorys Turkey's heart and brain at the same time! I mean these things won't happen only because you wish them to happen, it is just unbelievable to see that someone can have such a mentality and hatred!

I told you that the expected end of Istanbul as a result of an earthquake is not funny but sad! Where is my hatred here??

Of course I`ll be happy to see 40 mln. Kurdistan free and it will be very soon! :D


http://www.shalomjerusalem.com/kurdistan/kurdistan.gif


Freedom for Kurdistan


http://www.world-flags-symbols.com/_img_nations3/kurdistan_flag250w.png

Nice, you call us cingene and we call you cingene! :cheers: Btw I didn't call Bulgaria as cingene but this guy who is wishing earthquakes and civil wars for Turkey. Actually I had used another term but I was afraid of being brigged afterwards :lol:

Well you should read what I added to my last comment, because you're probably going to get brigged. I haven't decided yet. And no, in your country no one calls ethnic Bulgarians cingene. The last time I checked, people in your country were using Bulgarians as a way to prove their theory that Turkic tribes (by way of a proto-Bulgar theory) of the ancient past were white. Indeed Turks for the most part have very positive attitudes towards Bulgarians, appreciate the physical characteristics of Bulgarians and see them as Europeans who may share with them a small ethnic connection to the past and a possible door to the EU. And yes, I have Turkish friends in Turkey and abroad who have never said anything but good things about Bulgarians. In fact when I told people I was Bulgarian they were very nice and kept saying how Bulgarian men are strong and their women very beautiful. So I actually think you're not being honest and indeed misrepresenting your nation, whose vast majority is composed of good, intelligent, beautiful and kind people.

OMFG...Delyan is still not here. So is this Diarbekir slave owner, Doukan. I sense the clash of titans here, soon :)

Stop answering that Messi guy, it's obvious he's a nationalist. Someone has to be smarter and ignore the other.

And the arguments are not serious. Can we move on to tourism at least, quakes, armies and gypos are not interesting to discuss.

To get back on topic...



Dnevnik.bg
14/04/2008



The bridge spanning the Danube river at Vidin-Calafat should be commissioned into operation by the end of 2010, top European Commission officials told the Bulgarian side during a meeting on the project late last week.

The EC officials said the progress evident at the construction site is satisfactory but that the commission expects better results from the implementation of the project.

The bridge will be ready by April 2010, there is a new construction timetable that will make it possible to offset the four-month delay, said deputy transport minister Vesela Gospodinova.

The set-back was caused by the rejection of the technical project of Spain's FCC by the project engineer. Under Romanian legislation, all access to the site is barred unless the project is properly rubber-stamped.

The Bulgarian transport ministry said the Romanian side made an exception due to the significance of the project and had given the go-ahead to the geological study.

EU's ISPA program provides 70 mln euro for the bridge with as much coming from the EIB. Germany's KfW contributes 18 mln euro with local co-financing at 60 mln euro.(Dnevnik)


BTW, I didn't know that:

the Romanian side made an exception due to the significance of the project and had given the go-ahead to the geological study

Great news! :cheers:

Vidin-Calafat Bridge


http://www.mtc.government.bg/upload/photo/1_Danube_Bridge_Vidin_Calafat.jpg


http://infocenter.bnt.bg/var/plain/storage/images/media/images/1688/2007_5_13_purva_kopka_dunav_most_05_4_1/15541-1-eng-GB/2007_5_13_purva_kopka_dunav_most_05_4_1.jpg

http://www.roembus.org/english/news/international_media/2004/june/image001br.jpg

Well you should read what I added to my last comment, because you're probably going to get brigged. I haven't decided yet. And no, in your country no one calls ethnic Bulgarians cingene. The last time I checked, people in your country were using Bulgarians as a way to prove their theory that Turkic tribes (by way of a proto-Bulgar theory) of the ancient past were white. Indeed Turks for the most part have very positive attitudes towards Bulgarians, appreciate the physical characteristics of Bulgarians and see them as Europeans who may share with them a small ethnic connection to the past and a possible door to the EU. And yes, I have Turkish friends in Turkey and abroad who have never said anything but good things about Bulgarians. In fact when I told people I was Bulgarian they were very nice and kept saying how Bulgarian men are strong and their women very beautiful. So I actually think you're not being honest and indeed misrepresenting your nation, whose vast majority is composed of good, intelligent, beautiful and kind people.

I don't have anything against Bulgaria or Bulgarians either (only against some fanatics in this forum). I also drove once through Bulgaria and lived with a Bulgarian girl in Buenos Aires and we talked so much about similarities between both nations and cultures. Everytime she told me something about Bulgarian culture, music or food it was familiar to me and vice versa after a time we realized that we don't have to explain things since both sides knew what the other is talking about. :)

Btw that's her. And no, I am not the guy in pink but the in black :D You might think so because he has got black hairs :D He was our cha-cha-cha teacher.
http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/5577/argbulnc8.jpg

Actaully after I met her and saw the similarities I was intereseted more in Bulgaria and she invited me several times to her home. She was just 4-5 weeks ago in Istanbul, let's see when I'll visit her. The thing is until I met some Bulgarian forumers in this forum I didn't know that such a hatred in some people's mind exists there, I really didn't know! And yes nobody has bad feelings towards Bulgarians here, there is no reason why should have, even Bulgarians don't have such a reason since it's history and our generation isn't part of it but you can't explain that to anyone!
I know that I can be an ass, even you who seems to be quite objective (I know you from the first Turkish-Bulgarian flame war) can be an ass as soon as you feel attacked as well ;) I promise, I won't say bad things about Bulgaria anymore but you should also warn your own people in cases like this. :cheers:

OMFG...Delyan is still not here. So is this Diarbekir slave owner, Doukan. I sense the clash of titans here, soon :)

Stop answering that Messi guy, it's obvious he's a nationalist. Someone has to be smarter and ignore the other.

And the arguments are not serious. Can we move on to tourism at least, quakes, armies and gypos are not interesting to discuss.

Yes, I am a nationalist (nationalist = patriot for me) but here are some Bulgarian forumers who are racist. And you don't warn them simply because they have Bulgarian blood in their veins. This is a nationalist attitude as well!

I mean things like that! This is the most provocative thing that you can do to a Turk! I mean the same guy is also waiting for an earthquake in Istanbul so everything gets destroyed!

I told you that the expected end of Istanbul as a result of an earthquake is not funny but sad! Where is my hatred here??

Of course I`ll be happy to see 40 mln. Kurdistan free and it will be very soon! :D


http://www.shalomjerusalem.com/kurdistan/kurdistan.gif


Freedom for Kurdistan


http://www.world-flags-symbols.com/_img_nations3/kurdistan_flag250w.png

Amessi I congratulate you because at least you act like a Turk and ended the discussion in civilized way:okay:

No need to argue with any Bulgarian or someone else anymore... We are progressive people and live in 21st century. Everybody aware from their own country and work for brighter future... If we have some people who are not personally enough developed, this is their personal(or sometimes, racial, national, educational) illness.

Vidin-Calafat Bridge


Renders plus pics


http://www.mtc.government.bg/upload/photo/1_Danube_Bridge_Vidin_Calafat.jpg


http://infocenter.bnt.bg/var/plain/storage/images/media/images/1688/2007_5_13_purva_kopka_dunav_most_05_4_1/15541-1-eng-GB/2007_5_13_purva_kopka_dunav_most_05_4_1.jpg

http://www.roembus.org/english/news/international_media/2004/june/image001br.jpg

^^ So it finally started ?

^^

Seeing mr. Tsar shakin hands infront of the national flag makes me wanna .... :puke:

Let's hope they will finish it on schedule ...

^^

It supposed to be with 2x2 lanes for vehicles and to have 2 railways in the middle. It`s just cool! :)

I don't have anything against Bulgaria or Bulgarians either (only against some fanatics in this forum). I also drove once through Bulgaria and lived with a Bulgarian girl in Buenos Aires and we talked so much about similarities between both nations and cultures. Everytime she told me something about Bulgarian culture, music or food it was familiar to me and vice versa after a time we realized that we don't have to explain things since both sides knew what the other is talking about. :)

Btw that's her. And no, I am not the guy in pink but the in black :D You might think so because he has got black hairs :D He was our cha-cha-cha teacher.
http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/5577/argbulnc8.jpg

Actaully after I met her and saw the similarities I was intereseted more in Bulgaria and she invited me several times to her home. She was just 4-5 weeks ago in Istanbul, let's see when I'll visit her. The thing is until I met some Bulgarian forumers in this forum I didn't know that such a hatred in some people's mind exists there, I really didn't know! And yes nobody has bad feelings towards Bulgarians here, there is no reason why should have, even Bulgarians don't have such a reason since it's history and our generation isn't part of it but you can't explain that to anyone!
I know that I can be an ass, even you who seems to be quite objective (I know you from the first Turkish-Bulgarian flame war) can be an ass as soon as you feel attacked as well ;) I promise, I won't say bad things about Bulgaria anymore but you should also warn your own people in cases like this. :cheers:

OK, well then we'll continue our national development discussions some other time. If there is one thing I detest in this world, it's bigotry and I know that eventually our nations will learn to communicate in more cultured and frank manner. Maybe a Turkey-Bulgaria Relations thread should be opened. And for your information, I do actually tell my Bulgarian compatriots to chill and not spill our own version of nationalist crap. Probably more than half of them (if not all) don't like me. Well in fact I would guess that just about everybody on this forumn doesn't like me. After all one guy said he's flying on a DC-10 to Calgary to fight me and another guy apparently wanted me to die a horrific death. "Die Dulgeroff die" were his kind words. :) So there you have it, it's not just you... :cheers:

PS: Although some Russians were extremely greatful that I defended their new Federation Towers. This of course came at the supreme expense of me being black-listed in Polish social circles.

Probably more than half of them (if not all) don't like me. Well in fact I would guess that just about everybody on this forumn doesn't like me.


Who can forget those Cornelia vs Dulgerova posts...You tried with the most kind and intellectual way to say: "Fuck off". Some people here must take your posts as an example :lol:

romania will kick bulgaria!

^^ The times when we were kicking each other are gone!

romania will kick bulgaria!

How old are you exactly? You seem to be posting only very short sentences with little content.

romania will kick bulgaria!

Great, we have a new loser on SSC!

So where do you plan on kicking us?

A) the face (Sofia)
B) the stomack (Veliko Turnovo)
C) the balls (Sunny Beach)
D) secret death-touch spot (? - possibly Stara Zagora, but it's secret so I'm not sure)
E) all of the above

And why must Romania kick Bulgaria?

A) to disfigure Bulgaria's pretty face
B) tear up its ruggedly sexy six-pack stomack
C) shrink its hairy large balls into oblivion
D) finally prove that Bulgaria has a secret death spot
E) no reason, except that you are an idiot

Great, we have a new loser on SSC!

So where do you plan on kicking us?

A) the face (Sofia)
B) the stomack (Veliko Turnovo)
C) the balls (Sunny Beach)
D) secret death-touch spot (? - possibly Stara Zagora, but it's secret so I'm not sure)
E) all of the above

And why must Romania kick Bulgaria?

A) to disfigure Bulgaria's pretty face
B) tear up its ruggedly sexy six-pack stomack
C) shrink its hairy large balls into oblivion
D) finally prove that Bulgaria has a secret death spot
E) no reason, except that you are an idiot

This is the same kid that laughted at Macedonian for still using "the Russian alphabet". Just ignore him!!!

Great, we have a new loser on SSC!

So where do you plan on kicking us?

A) the face (Sofia)
B) the stomack (Veliko Turnovo)
C) the balls (Sunny Beach)
D) secret death-touch spot (? - possibly Stara Zagora, but it's secret so I'm not sure)
E) all of the above

And why must Romania kick Bulgaria?

A) to disfigure Bulgaria's pretty face
B) tear up its ruggedly sexy six-pack stomack
C) shrink its hairy large balls into oblivion
D) finally prove that Bulgaria has a secret death spot
E) no reason, except that you are an idiot

This is the same kid that laughted at Macedonia for still using "the Russian alphabet". Just ignore him!!!

^^ The times when we were kicking each other are gone!

That`s right. Nowadays we have better things to do :

ROMANIA, BULGARIA START MONITORING OF 262M EURO CROSS-BORDER CO-OPERATION PROGRAMME
http://www.sofiaecho.com/article/romania-bulgaria-start-monitoring-of-262m-euro-cross-border-co-operation-programme/id_28783/catid_66

The monitoring committee of the European Union's cross-border co-operation programme for Romania and Bulgaria held its first meeting in Rousse on April 15 2008, Bulgaria's Regional Development Ministry said in a statement.

Local authorities from the two countries are set to receive 262 million euro over the period 2007/13 under the programme approved by the European Commission in December 2007.

The bulk of the funding, 217.8 million euro, will come from the European Regional Development Fund, with the governments of the two countries providing another 42.6 million euro and the rest coming from private companies.

The main goals of the programme are improved access to transport infrastructure in the cross-border area; sustainable use and protection of natural resources and environment; economic development and social by identifying and enhancing the cross-border area's comparative advantages; and technical assistance for project preparation, programme management and implementation, as well as programme publicity and evaluation.

Potential beneficiaries include local authorities, associations of municipalities, non-governmental organisations and research institutions.

The cross-border co-operation programme covers nine Bulgarian regions - Vidin, Vratsa, Montana, Pleven, Veliko Turnovo, Rousse, Silistra, Dobrich and Razgrad - and seven Romanian counties - Mehedinti, Dolj, Olt, Teleorman, Giurgiu, Calarasi and Constanta. The area covered contains 15 per cent of Romania's population and 23.7 per cent of Bulgaria's population.

Bulgaria has similar EU-funded cross-border programmes with Greece, Turkey, Serbia and Macedonia.

^^Yeah, that's the key thing for both Romania and Bulgaria: take advantage of the Danube as a key transport route in the EU and foster increased economic development and cooperation of the riveran counties and regions. :cheers:

After all one guy said he's flying on a DC-10 to Calgary to fight me and another guy apparently wanted me to die a horrific death. "Die Dulgeroff die" were his kind words. :) So there you have it, it's not just you... :cheers:
It was a very special DC-10.:lol:

This is the same kid that laughted at Macedonian for still using "the Russian alphabet". Just ignore him!!!
What?:nuts: It seems I must visit this thread more often as it's very entertaining.:D

Good news for both countries :cheers:

Bulgaria, Romania Grain Yield Grows Thanks to Favorable Weather

The grain yield in Bulgaria and Romania in 2008 is expected to be significantly larger than the one in 2007 thanks to the more favorable meteorological conditions.

This predication was made by Bulgaria's Deputy Minister of Agriculture Svetla Buchvarova before the Bulgarian National Radio.

The 2008 grain yield in Bulgaria is expected to be 70% larger than last year's, which will lead to an increase in grain exports.

In 2007 Bulgaria grew a total of 2,4 million tons of grain (the world grain production was 603,5 million tons), whereas in 2008 the expectations are for some 3,5-4 million tons of grain.

Romania's wheat yield might increase twofold in 2008 by reaching 7 million tons. In 2007 Bulgaria's northern neighbor produced 3,5 million tons of wheat, which was 44% less than in 2006.

Romania's Agriculture Ministry has announced that the country might export 1 million tons of grain to Turkey, Egypt, and Middle East states in 2008.

The yield increase will result not only from good meteorological conditions but also from the increased quantity of cultivated land because the farmers are attracted by the higher grain prices.

The world grain production is expected to reach 635 million tons in 2008, which be a 5% increase.