For better, for worse ...

These words from the marriage vows will ring bells with people who have been together long enough to know that everything in life has positives and negatives. But this week my focus is on freedom, not marriage. The grass seems often to be greener on the other side of the fence, and for Bulgaria that is part of the national psyche. As we give our new Government time to see if real change is on the way, let me say that as an outsider with a good inside track, there are a surprising number of things here that are better than most other places. But quite a lot of things are still awful, and need radical attention.

First the good things. The shopping malls are better than everywhere else except Dubai, and Bulgarians not only dress well to visit them but seem happy there--even if they are just window shopping! Fuel stations are bright, sociable places to park and waste sometime, drink coffee and treat yourself to a naughty but nice banichka The mobile networks have far superior coverage to anywhere in Western Europe, leap-frogging out-dated technology. Internet access is almost universal (children would go on strike if it wasn't) and computer literacy is widely distributed. Cable TV with extensive international programme options is widely accessible at low cost, compared with an astonishing proportion of British families whose island mentality is content with just a few domestic channels. The cafe society is relaxing and good for planning or closing business deals. The ready-cooked take-home food culture has caught on with families from all income groups. Binge drinking is uncommon here.

A big proportion of Bulgarians own their own apartments or houses, without crippling indebtedness. We are more cautious about credit cards leading to bills we can't afford to settle. Newly-built accommodation is left for you, not the developer, to choose and supervise the finishes you want. The mend-it (not scrapit) culture here is healthy, practical and economical. The notary profession since it was privatised is excellent, bringing low-cost legal services to everyone including ordinary people. Supermarkets clone the best from the West without the awful pressure you get in many countries to buy more than you want or need with offers of two for the price of one or three for the price of two. Fresh fruit and vegetables are sold in markets by people as close as you can get to the producers, not as in other countries from chemically induced production lines and polluted with pesticides. Car washes are mostly done by nice customer-friendly guys, not monster revolving brushes that beat the lustre out of your paint-work; an added bonus is time for a coffee and to read the paper while you wait.

Lastly on the good things, the climate is very alluring, the Black Sea beaches beat anything you'll find around the Mediterranean, and thanks to a reluctance to adopt fast-food as a national malaise there is far less obesity in Bulgaria than in America or other countries that follow its bad example. Hence the people (and especially the women!) look good.

Sorry to say it, but I can't finish without short mention of the nasties! Roads especially in and around the capital, potholes all over the country, smoking everywhere all the time, corrupt politicians (till now), administrative bureaucracy to a bizarre extent, constant tea-breaks by customer-facing state employees, nightmare traffic jams and parking chaos, annual 'MOT' (technical checks on vehicles) of reckless and negligent superficiality, poorly maintained buses and trams, slow and dirty trains, unhealthy city pollution, inadequate discipline/ systems/disposal of household and industrial waste, abuse of animals, unauthorised intrusion by developers into green space, and a meat-eating culture that works against the growing trend towards vegetarian diets. Finally, the on-going scandal of widespread maladministration and corruption in the criminal and civil courts.

The balance for me is definitely on the positive side. That's why my inclination is to spend more, not less, of my future in Bulgaria