Buzludzha: A crumbling remnant of Bulgarian communism

The struggle of some post-communist states to preserve the communist-era monuments is a symbol of communism itself. The unsustainable grandiosity, the hypocrisy inherent in the “classless” societies, and the impoverishment of the masses get captured in the decay of communist relics. It’s the social commentary of time and economics. Across Bulgaria, it can be seen …

Plovdiv: Glimpses of central Bulgaria and the oldest city in Europe

I recall Bulgaria as a mosaic of snapshots. Old men in parks betting 1 lev on each chess game. A pimp walking through the cafe at 11 p.m. to drum up business. Protests on the first day parliament sits. Glimpses of horse-drawn carts on a long bus ride across the country. The middle-aged couple on the …

Wild Europe: Perceptions of the Balkans and the East

Travel writing appeals to me because it’s possible to be honest and sincere, yet write something ignorant and vapid. That tension, and the problems it reveals, makes travel writing a sociological lens for perceptions and assumptions about foreign countries. London, Paris, and Rome, for example, have mythical qualities and romantic notions associated with them. For post-communist …