A Distinctive Yambol Sportswear Shop

Ever since I came to Yambol this sportwear shop in Yambol was so distintive with the kangaroo motive in place on the signboard on the street. It reminded me of kickboxing and intially I thought this was a kickboxing training centre. We sportwear is alwasy fashionable and this is one shop that continues to trade well, mind you it is in a prominent position in Yambol city centre. I've never bought from there by the way -far too expensive with designer labels.

Lanterns Out All Year Round

One a mid-winter day in Yambol the summer lanterns are still out swaying in the unusually mild winter wind in Yambol. These are left out all year round in a high profile public area and are untouched by vandalism in Yambol. I see graffiti all around, but respect remains for property and public utilities theses lanterns included. They will be in use again very soon once spring arrives and evening crowds fill the street cafes again.

A New Yambol Snack Bar

This snack bar opened in November in Yambol. Before then the place was another food place but out of business. This is a prime spot for people walking past in the Borovets area. The success I sure will be down to good cheap Bulgarian snack food, I really don't know why it closed down before. There are aften groups of teenagers hanging around there in the early evening after college and I always see them eating from the place.

Yambol's Mall and Business Centre

Having now established itself as a popular meeting place for Yambol folk the Yambol Mall and Business Centre feels as if it has been there for ages. A bit of a white elephant when it first went up but now part of the Yambol infrustructure. If there is one thing I like about it it is the green space and seating area that is often filled up with people socialising. Not too keen of all the fashion shops that dominate the halls of the Mall though.

A Simple Christmas Stand In Yambol

Well they've been here for a while these Yambol public Christmas Decorations, but I've not had the chance to see them until recently. They are exactly the same as last year, simple effective and create excitement from children and adults alike. I love the idea of reusing the same decorations rather than spending gross amounts of money of new designs etc. The number of Yambol public that take pictures of them with their kids is enormous. There is sometimes a queue to get to take pictures. They also light up an night to create an even better effect.

Christmas Puppet Show On In Yambol's Theatre

The Yambol Cinema/Theatre in the town is currently showing a Christmas puppet show with poetry as the dialogue. The picture on the poster to me is not too disimilar to Pinnochio. It's not Pinnochio though and is performed by Bulgarian puppetiers and actors. It is purely geared towards the children of Yambol and is the equvilant of pantomime I suppose.

Another Paid Car Park In Yambol

A new trend in Yambol is t he introduction of paid car parks. The first was introduced about three years ago and now they are growing all over town. Inevitable from two points. Firstly easy money from land owners and secondly the gross rise in cars owned and driven in Yambol. this one has been around but as you can see, Bulgarians don't like being charged for parking so they park 100 metres away on the public roads. The car you can see there is the car park attendants!

The New GERB Offices In Yambol

Opssote the Yambol Roman Catholic Church there are the new GERB political party's offices. They used to be in a chinese owned restaurant which now is again a restaurant but Bulagrian since they relocated. The leader of the GERB party is Boyko Borisov the current Prime Minister of Bulgaria. He's doing a good job to date and a popular figure as he stopped the tax increase on homemade Rakia.

A Simple Metal Post - Cars Are In Fear Ot It

It is just a simple metal post I come across quite often in Yambol, but it does a superb job! This simple post stops cars using this little track as a short cut to the main road. Such an easy solution to stop cars in their tracks in a place where they are not wanted. Imagine what damage this could do to a car it it decided to take this road. The little alley is totally dark without any street lights, but drivers know it is there so no impaled engines to date.

Yambol's St Nikolai's Church Ready For Christmas

Another angle in December of St Nikolai's Church and just before the busiest time of the year which is very good for church business. Like may Bulgarians I speak to, the church is a business and always does well and enhanced in a recession as more people pray for better times ahead. We will be there on Christmas Day along with thousands of others who still have a great respect for the religious calander whilst not being fanatical about it.

A New Yambol Restaurant Opens

This used to be a Chinese styled restaurant sitaution in the middle of an area called Borovets. It closed down to be become the nerve centre for the Bulgarian political party GERB, which subsequently won the National elections earlier this year. It now has returened to being a restauarant again albeit 100% Bulagrian with no chinese menus now. The GERB party had moved to new offices 200 metres down the road. We tried it out a few weeks ago, good but expensive, not our choice next time round!

Mushrooms Growing Unoticed In Yambol

I don't know how many tens of thousands of people walk past this tree and didn't notice the mushrooms that were growing there at the base of the trunk. I think the species is Ganoderma applanatum but a very old one. Not edible I might add, but there are many other varieities of mushrooms growing wild here in Yambol that are. The gypsies usually are the first out to pick them and sell on the street.

A Yambol Version Of Argos

I often used to shop in the catalogue store Argos in the UK, it is a massive company selling everything under the sun as bargain prices. I used to hate these shopping occasions. This little Yambol shop we recently bought from in Yambol is also called Argos and also sells cheap electric and other goods as well as secondhand reconditioned goods. I must admit my shopping experience in this Yambol shop was ten times more pleasant that the UK Argos for so many reasons I've lost count.

A Yambol Business Hit By Recession

This is a business that has closed down and now stands in a real state. With recession in full swing here this is not an isolated sight you will see here. The finacial forecast is that finanail melt down will continue until March next year in Bulgaria. Hopefully may well be another up and running 'small' business once the economy picks up. I just love small businesses, so much better for most than the big ones!

A Yambol Signposted Tree

If there is something that really does make me feel happy about Yambol it is the hand painted signs that are put up giving directions to shops and other complexes. This one is pointing to a shoe shop that also gives a repair service situated in apartment block 15. Somehow it just feels right nailed to a tree.

A Yambol Trunk Road

A trunk raod in Yambol but not as you know it. This tree stump has been left standed after teh tree has been felled. It just sits there, I suppose they woudl have to dig quite a few metres down to uproot it and get it removed. It is a shame the tree was cut in the first case although it still has its own parking space instead of cars.

A Small Yambol TicTac Shop

This small TicTac shop is in the Borovits area of Yambol and I pass it everytime I walk into the centre. It never used to have graffiti, but that is the new face of Yambol coming out nowdays. I have never seen anyone shopping there in all the years I've been here so I wonder how much money they make each week. It must be enough the running of the shop, but then I know many who are running at a loss and just trying to get throgh the recession.

A Typical Yambol Bus Shelter

This is typical of many bus shelters you will see in Yambol. Rough and ready but keep the weather elements at bay wether in summer or winter. It may look empty right now, but a bus just took everyone away! It is a well used bus shelter and I am glad to report that buses are a popular way of getting around in Yambol and still relatively cheap.

Memories Of A Top Bulgarian Star In Yambol

Even though Veselin Marinov, one of Bulgaria's top singing artists had performed back in November, the poster advertising his concert remain intact below the newspaper stand. Like the election posters, it will not be removed but just have another one pasted on top when the next big event comes along in Yambol. And why not, it is more insulation to the newspaper seller's hut!

Yambol Children's Play Train Carriages

In Yambol there are many play apparatus for children and most of these are old but still in use. I see some modern play equipment made out of hard brightly coloured plastic materials and find these quite unattractive. These carriages are far more left to the imagination of children and encourages social interaction with the seating that invite children to sit together and share the imaginary train ride. It may be old and rusty but is far more stimulating than any other modern plastic apparatus that I have seen in recent years here. Long may this set of train play carriages remain.

Yambol Chemist's Rain Pipe

This is our local chemist and I had noticed for some time that a rain pipe had become part of the facade. The way it is obscured mostly by the chemist sign (apteka) then just appears at the bottom is typically Bulgarian style. Most down pipe that take the rain away are just emptied into the pavements, this is also no exception. Beside, the number of day of rain in Yambol are far apart and few during the year, but heavy when it happens.

Yambol Playground Apparatus Or A Car Park?

This again is a common sight where children's playground apparatus had been made and then the cars take over the space that was allocated for it. Cars are increasing faster than I ever thought they could here and many other communities including children lose out even though they still play in these areas unabated. Such a pity cars spoil many things in this world.

Our Local Yambol Dentist

I just love this sign showing the way to our local dentist. The telephone number has a an implant of 6, I just hope the teeth are implanted more professionally - I'm sure they are. Dentists in Bulagria form my experience are as good as any UK dentists and of course a damn site cheaper. It worth making a trip to Bulgaria to get dental treatment and you will still be quids in!

A Smoking Wheelie Bin In Yambol

Well a digital camera has finally arrived bought on a Bulgaria 'Ebay' type online auction and was delivered within 24 hours at a bargain price of 104 BGN leva. The first picture I took was just 100 metres from our Yambol home as I immediately saw a wheelie bin that had been set on fire. This is quite a common here and no need for any fire brigade to extinguish it as it keeps the scavenging cats, dogs rats and mice away.

A Camera At Last!

What a turn up this weekend. I did a favour for a reader of my blog, namely to go to the Yambol cemetery and look up a relative who had passed away in recent year and give feedback. It was something that I would have done as a favour as that’s the sort of people we are here and we did. We got information of the burial site, dates, addresses and pictures (ironically from a borrowed camera) and gave this back.

Soon after the person who asked for out help send a donation of $50 for out troubles. This was a total surprise and of course adds to the $20 that has already been donated toward a digital camera. With $70 in the pot I now can afford a digital camera and am on the point of buying one. It will be at the cheapest end of the market but as long as it does the job that’s all that matters.

So now time ticks away for more pictures to be taken, not just on Yambol Daily Pictures blog, but for all my blogs that have recently lacked original pictures as their source

I would like to thank the donors that have made this possible http://dfoolonthehill.com (who has said farewell for some reason – see the link) for the $20 and Sergei Bazhgin (location unknown) for the $50!

I hate shopping, but now have to for the best budget camera deals around.

A Busy Day At The Yambol Cemetery

I borrowed a friend's camera on Saturday for our yearly trip to the Yambol cemetery. It was Galia's father 13th year to the day of passing away. We tided up the grave, laid flowers lit a few candles and watered it with a cross pattern before reflecting on his life and moving on. Not a solemn day but a celebration of his life. The flower stall and candle shop were doing very good business today on this mild December day.

Yambol Coach Accident - Charges Made

This tragic accident is still very much a vivid memory for many in Yambol.

The official charges against the two defendants in the May bus accident in the "Bakadzhik" area near the city of Yambol are ready and will enter the court by December 10. The information was announced Wednesday by the Yambol Regional Prosecutor. The trial in the case, involving the death of 18 people caused by a bus careering down a mountainside called Bakadzhik Peak and plowing through a crowd of pedestrians heading to a religious festival, will, most likely, begin in January. According to earlier reports, the trial was scheduled to begin in October.

The two defendants are the owner of the carrier company, Slavi Slavov and the driver, Gospodin Gospodinov. Slavov is charged with causing death due to recklessness while Gospodinov -with violating traffic laws. The technical probe found that the bus breaks did not work properly and failed. The driver had a 0,66 blood alcohol level and had been driving too fast for the steep terrain. About 50 people are expected to take the witness stand.

Source: www.novinite.com

Yambol In Fog

This is a picture of Yambol at 7:30 this morning on the way to work. As you can see (or can't), it was a foggy start to the morning. With the warm weather in late November this is bound to happen this time of year. It was a clear sunny day by midday by the way. I cheated here with this picture by the way it is a library picture that I deleted to show a white background, but that's exactly what I saw this morning.

150,000 Entrecard Credit Sale Cancelled

I have withdrawn the offer of 150,000 Entrecard credits due to it being against Entrecard's TOS. Sorry for any inconvenience caused and from my point embarrassment.