The 4 seasons

Bulgaria is a country of varying weather. Most of it good to be honest.

Spring is usually from 22nd March to 22nd June and can be warm, sunny and mild. The days start getting longer and everything starts growing again.

Summer runs from 23rd June to 22nd September, temperatures can vary and range from high 20's to high 40's, even night time can be well over 20 degrees and the ground gets that scorched, parched look. My poor garden needs frequent watering during the heat of the summer and I have to remind the kids constantly about wearing sun screen.

Autumn is a beautiful time of the year. From 23rd September to 22nd December, the sun is still present most days but the heat of the summer is waning. It's much easier to work in the cooler weather although this year autumn is pretty cold even for here. It's a time for cutting firewood, making sure your snow chains are ok and looking for things that can be done over the winter.

Winter can be like a wonderland, totally picture perfect. Bright sunshine, crisp, white snow and smoke coming from everyone's chimneys. But with temperatures sometimes as low as -25 degrees it can be very harsh. Keeping warm is an essential, boredom can be a problem too - heavy snowfall can knock entire village's electric supply off for days at a time and there's only so much you can do by candlelight!

Having a back up plan in winter is a great idea. What will you do if the electric supply is interrupted for any length of time? How will you cook and/or keep warm? What if you get snowed in.....Will you manage with the things you have already in your home?

Over the next few months I'll be answering some of these questions in this blog as we go into another Bulgarian winter. This will be our third winter here so lessons learned from the last 2 should help.