I'm Back!

At last! It has taken me a week to get internet at my parents' house in Podgumer, which is where I'm staying. Podgumer is a very small village about 8 miles away from the capital Sofia, which is where I'm from. The village is tucked at the base of the longest mountain in BG, called Old Mountain. The view here is breath-taking and every time I drive to my parents house I can't help but admire the majestic hills. The weather has been nice, too. It's warm during the day but it really cools off after 6-7 pm. Everything is green right now but fall is already here and I can see the leafs starting to change ever so slightly.
My father is now at the house, in his own bed. He is recovering nicely and is able to feed himself. He still can not get up on his own and when someone helps him he can only stand for about a minute, or two, then his legs start to shake and he gets tired and has to lie down. I predict that he will be able to walk on his own within a week or two. The scary part is over, thank God, now comes the hard part. A strict diet, exercise, no smoking and no drinking--a hard bargain for someone who has lived a pretty sedated life with a drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other, but we'll do, somehow.
Bulgaria has shown me its true colors and I'm falling in love again with the people and the culture. I've gotten used to the traffic and the driving. (I want to take a second and thank Katia and Kosio who have generously given me their car for the time being. Free of charge, so far. It has made all the difference in the world. Thank you guys, you ROCK! While I'm at it, let me thank all the people who's generosity since my dad's illness has really touched me. I won't name names for the fear of leaving someone out, but you know who you are. Thank you very much!) I've gotten used to the smog and the horrible potholes that have overtaken the streets, I've even gotten used to the silence that envelopes my house and it is so utter that at times I think it's the loudest thing I've ever heard. There's no sound at all when I go to bed, or when I wake up. It's a little trippy but I like it, after the noise at 732 Broadway this shit is like balm for my bleeding ears. But enough about that.
The things that are still very hard for me are the hospitals. The situation is dire, to say the least. Most of all, the smoking has got to stop. It's really hard for me to believe that almost all of the medical workers smoke, especially inside the hospital and when it's done in the ICU, I am completely flabbergasted and at a loss for words.
Smoking is the national past time in BG. I'm not even kidding. Everyone smokes. All the time. Non stop. Anywhere you go there are people smoking around you. I've been to two bars, a piano bar with my sister and a club with Rudo and Bojo (hi guys). People here know how to have fun. There are a lot of young kids who love to party and smoke, obviously. The women are absolutely phenomenal. I swear to God, I have never seen so many beautiful girls in such high frequency. Everywhere you look there are hot girls dressed in short skirts, high heels and tight tops, big boobs, long legs and they are all smoking like trees in the forest after a massive wild fire. Nothing but a charred stump. Smoking!
The men however are the opposite. They seem to be meek and not all that good looking. It kind of sucks because after all, I am a BG boy and this is not a good description. There are some cool dudes who break the stereotype, but in general, you see a lot of really hot, smoking girls with not so hot, smoking guys. What can I say, we are a bunch of lucky bastards.