I have been to Bulgaria once before, in transit  from Belgrade to Istanbul, when Yugoslavia was one nation, when Sofia was ‘uncarred’, everything was grey or green with nothing in-between and one pair of Levi jeans seemed to represent untold riches or dreams. In an old junior schoolbook which is gathering dust, all it has to say about this part of the world is: “CAUSES OF THE LACK OF UNITY AMONG THE BALKAN STATES 1. Relief: the isolated ‘city states’ and the ‘cross-grained’ folds of the mountain ranges make land communication very difficult. 2. In the thirteenth century the Christian Church was split into two parts: Constantinople was the headquarters of the Eastern Orthodox, and Rome the headquarters of the Western or Roman Catholic.” There are three illustrative photographs, showing the gathering of rosebuds which are taken by bullock to a distillery to be made into the perfume, attar of roses.

We fly from Warsaw to Sofia and the next day are driven up into the winding mountain roads north of the capital to the village of Bela Rechka. This is the western periphery of Stara Planini, the old mountain range that bisects the country. We are near to near to the Serbian border and the Danube is straight ahead. We participate in the Goatmilk Festival organised by members of the New Culture Foundation. We set up a games area - with chess, darts, chinese chequers, backgammon, cards, noughts and crosses, twister - as a way to engage with local people, as well as guest and visitors, and we talk them them about their favourite places in the village. We are then using these conversations to make a short film for presentation at an event in September in Bela Rechka and an event in Birmingham in October.

I am told by friends who are members of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds that Bulgaria is an ornithological paradise. I find it difficult to distinguish between a Rock Bunting, a Nutcracker or Calandra Lark,  but late at night, with Mars low on the horizon, we can hear the nightingale sing.

Gallery of images from Goatmilk posted at the project (temporary) web site.