Telephones: Country Dialing Code 00359.

Local and international telephone services are covered through automatic street telephones operating with tokens and calling cards. Tokens for local calls (0.20 leva) and calling cards are available for purchase from any post office or places where newspapers are sold.

Mobile Telephones: In Bulgaria is active on the GSM cellular network, there are two main mobile operators, Mobiltel (which also offers access to the platform GPRS) and GloBul, while the operator Mobikom operates solely on the platform TACS (slightly used). The signal is present almost throughout the country, excluding some areas. It's possible also buy prepaid cards.

Internet: There are a lot of internet-cafes from which you may talk cheap or send e-mails (most of them work 24 hours).

Money and Banks: The Bulgarian Lev is pegged to the Euro. 1 EUR = 1.955 BGN. You may exchange money in banks and in any of the numerous exchange offices. Some of those offices are opened during the holidays. Euro-checks may be cashed on a lot of banks. Currency exchange at the airport on arrival or departure, and in the larger hotels, is also possible.

All major cards are accepted (Visa, MasterCard, American Express) as well as Traveler's Checks.

Banking Hours: Banks are open Monday through Friday, 9.00 am - 4.00 pm and are closed on Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays.  

Shopping Opening hours: Shops are open from Monday – Friday: 9 am – 7 pm. Saturday: 9 am - 1 pm. Mosts shops are closed on Sundays. Some supermarkets are open 24 hours a day. Fresh food products, fruit and vegetables can also be bought from market places open every day in the capital and the country.

Post Offices: Working time of post offices is from 8.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. Postage stamps and postcards may be bought from the desks in the post office or from pavilions selling newspapers.

Typical Products: The most recommended souvenirs include - Bulgarian wine, Rakia or brandy, sealed in ceramic urns, Bulgarian carpets, icons and also some of the famous Troyan pottery - especially the earthenware casserole dishes, which make great inexpensive oven to tablewear. Table cloths, jewelry, lace, Russian dolls, handmade toys, ceramics, wooden items, imitation icons and paintings.

Cuisine: The variety in Bulgarian cuisine is based on the long history of the country, as well as the close contact with Turkey and Greece cuisine. Bulgarian cuisine tends to be oriented toward meat and potatoes, several of the more popular dishes are cheese-based. Traditional food includes Bulgarian bread, pickled vegetables, salads, soups, stews, casseroles, stuffed vegetables, kebabs, spicy sausages and cheese dishes. Add to this, lots of garlic, onions, oil and spices. A salad and rakia (Bulgarian spirit/schnapps, usually made from grapes) are often an obligatory start to the meal. Bulgarian cuisine features also a variety of hot and cold soups, an example of a cold soup being tarator. Yoghurt is very popular. Banitza is one of the most popular and typical Bulgarian dishes, more of a breakfast or snack thing than a main course. Bulgarian wines are internationally renowned and one of the country’s prime exports. Bulgarian beer is also noteworthy, with several regional brands. The national spirit, rakia, is a fiery brandy ritually consumed with a variety of appetizers (meze). BULGARIAN CUISINE RECIPES.