When Bulgaria ran away with the topsy-turvy capitalist circus, no-one told its people they were swinging without a safety net. Consider that citizens resorted to digging up the streets to pull copper from the telephone wires and you'll realise the act wasn't exactly an overwhelming success. But what the visitor encounters now is a country struggling valiantly to adapt and people who remain remarkably hospitable in the face of social and economic chaos. Urban Bulgaria, especially Sofia, is much changed. In the villages though, you can still find folk who drive the donkey to work, eat homegrown potatoes and make their own cheese. The difference is that they settle down for an evening in front of the satellite TV.

Of course, what high inflation means for visitors with stronger currencies (that's most of you), is that the ski and beach resorts are ridiculously cheap. And you don't need wads of cash to appreciate Bulgaria's dramatic mountains, haven-like monasteries, churches, mosques, Roman and Byzantine ruins, and the excellent coffee you'll be offered wherever you go.

Full country name: Republic of Bulgaria
Area: 110,912 sq km
Population: 8.3 million
Capital city: Sofia (pop 1.1 million)
People: 85% Bulgarian, 8.5% Turkish, 2.6% Roma, 2.5% Macedonian
Language: Bulgarian. Turkish and Romany are spoken by minorities.
Religion: 85% Bulgarian Orthodox, 13% Muslim
Government: Democracy
President: Georgi Parvanov
Prime Minister: Simeon Saxe-Coburgotski

GDP: US$34.9 billion
GDP per head: US$1510
Annual growth: 2.5%
Inflation: 11.4%
Major industries: Food processing, machine and metal building, electronics, chemicals, textiles, ferrous and nonferrous metals
Major trading partners: Italy, Germany, Turkey, Greece, Russia, USA
Member of EU: no

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