Geri - Kamila's Monkey Friend

Kamila had been on the farm for a few weeks and found herself back in Yambol this weekend. She will be there fore a few weeks then the work really begins on the farm once April and the growing season starts. Kamila is keen that we don't go hungry this year and will be helping wherever she can.

There was a new friend waiting to meet her in Yambol, Geri the monkey who was also from London, she had arrived a few weeks ago as she was fed up with UK life. the price of bananas had doubled in the last year and you are not allowed to say monkey business as it offends minority communities living there. She had read about what happens here in Bulgaria and even though there isn't much much to live on we were always happy and free.

Kamila took to Geri straight away and before long they were bonded friends alongside Eli Kamila's best friend. It may be that Geri might get a taste of village life with Kamila in a few weeks as she had heard from Kamila that there are sliva (plum) apple and pear trees that she can swing from as long as we took a supply of bananas with us.

Kamila also has been in deep though recently as she has seen her family struggle a bit with their health. We think that she has something up her sleeve, but she won't let on yet. We'll just have to find out what it is in due course.

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Chickens Had A Good Life

Village life is now a reality for Kamila as the way of living here in Bulgaria has got a hold of her. Survival is all-important here and no time for sentiment.

It wasn’t long ago that Kamila made friends with many chickens on the farm last year on her holiday, they were subsequently slaughtered and frozen for winter feed. This is normal and part of village farm life. They had a good life free range and the kill was quick an painless. Kamila knows all about this even though she is a vegetarian. She is wise for her years and understanding to a great decree.

Kamila know that villagers are poor and survival is based upon practical living. Vegetarian practices are extremely rare if not non-existent in Bulgarian villages. Livestock breeding and killing is a normal way of life here, perhaps more normal and natural than town and city living in the western world.

Today we had one of the chickens for the pot in a stew. Kamila helped with the cooking and felt no qualms about how this chicken ended up. It is a case of knowing that this is the way of Bulgaria and village farm ways. Kamila knows that supermarket chickens have had no life at all before slaughter and are full of chemicals. At least her old chicken friends had a good and natural life considering that chickens have been bred away from being wild.

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