It has taken us a week to get the house cleared out, but it’s finally done, or as near to done as it’s likely to get this year!
The contents of the house were amazing; loads of old clothes, thick woolly stuff for winter, blankets, thick mattresses and duvets. More furniture than you could shake a stick at, including five beds and god only knows how many chairs. We’re still finding chairs. We’ve got enough pans to open a restaurant, three pechkas and jars. We’ve got jars. And we’re still getting jars. I don’t know where we’re going to put them all, but for now they’re cleaned and stacked in crates (did I mention all the crates?), ready for use. Not that I think we’ll ever manage to use them all, but we’ll keep them, you know, just in case. Village Bulgarians seem to keep everything, just in case. which is just as well, because lots of it has been really useful. but how many sheets does one household need??
We’ve also found more personal things; hand-embroidered wall-hangings and surface covers, old photos and knick-knacks, a couple of old medals, some from the Soviet era, prized handbags and purses, lovingly stored under mattresses and in hidden corners. It’s been a lovely look into someone’s life, the things they kept that were important to them, but have now just been discarded as so much rubbish.
Julie’s prize finds have been the huge glass bottles, covered with rattan, used for storing rakia and wine. I enjoyed moving a hessian sack hanging from a wall in the outhouse to find three lovely little glass oil-lamps, with hangings so they can be hung off an outside wall.
OMG! Wish I was there. Love rooting though ‘stuff’. Sounds like your both having great fun x
Hi Jane, we’ve been in heaven, We both enjoy a good ratch, as you can probably tell.
How sad to think someone thought the world of all those possessions, only for them to be left as rubbish. I’m sure you will find a use for some of it though? Shame there isn’t a charity nearby to take them?
All the decent clothes have been donated to a local charity for reuse. They have a stall once a month where people can just come and help themselves to clothes. Most of the rest that is usable we’ve either kept or reused ourselves. We’ve put a few things outside and they’ve been gone by morning, so someone’s got some use out of them!
Hi guys! I really enjoyed chatting to you on Friday night. If we are ever lucky/crazy enough to buy a property there I will certainly be seeking you out for advice! I hope you have a prosperous summer and a cozy winter.
Sincerely
Tim ( the South African who was talking to you and rudely forgot to shake your hands when he left). My apologies😬
It was great to meet you both, hope you can make it back over some time. All the very best!