A new chapter in Bulgaria

I’m nearly forty-two, and the part of me who wants a place to hang his hat is yelling at me.

He’s been a lot louder recently.

If you’ve been following me for a while (some of you have been with me since my ‘Red Lemon Club’ days in 2010), and you haven’t called it quits yet, thanks to my often frequent email sending, you’ll know I’ve lived in quite a few places.

When I tell people I’m in Thailand, Vietnam or Georgia, for example, many assume I’m there to sit around on a beach all day and see the sights and just chill.

But these trips are never holidays.

I go to new countries because I’m creatively stimulated, and…well….because I’ve made it so that I can.

I like to live in places that offer a fresh environment every few months or years. But it’s still business. I still work in these places.

But I’ve been doing the semi-nomadic thing for over thirteen years now.

I want a base. Even if I don’t spend the whole year in this base (I’m not stopping travel).

I want a place I can grow stuff, conduct wacky experiments, have dogs, an animal sanctuary and store huge sacks of rice that I’ll likely never touch.

I want more than a few acres without busting the bank.

I don’t need luxury. But I do want some space for some eventual sheep, and some trees I can chop down.

But where to have such a base?

No one country is perfect. They all come with a laundry list of issues.

I’ve spent the last few years whittling down the long list to a few. I recently spent time exploring Poland, Estonia, Finland, and Bulgaria.

I could have done more, but I’m sort of done with the holding back, not making a decision part now.

Bulgaria ticks more boxes than any other, so Bulgaria it is. I don’t know if I’ll be here forever, but sometimes you just need to make a move.

Land is affordable here, the temperate weather suits me, cold winters, lower taxes, nice people.

And forests.

Must have forests.

And mountains and plentiful quality yoghurt are a superb bonus.

So I landed here (for the fourth time) two days ago, and I think I’ll just move fast.

I’m going to buy a 4x4, and then I may just get a lawyer and go ahead and buy land here this year if I can.

If not, no big deal either.

It’s exciting to not be planning so much and just doing.

Boots on the ground.

My life as a fiction-writing farmer starts here.

I might have ruminated on this decision for another decade had I not become WAY better at managing my thoughts so they don’t weigh me down in making bigger decisions.

And yes, dear friend, you know exactly where this is going.

My course, Untethered Mind, shows you, step by step, what I did to stop being so damn affected by the relentlessness of negative thinking.

It really helps when you go through it calmly, and let the insights rewire your brain to how it was before you took on all the usual weight.

If you overthink and want to make bolder life moves, this is for you.

Get the course here, joining 300+ happy untethered minds.

if you’re interested in my story of building a farm sanctuary in rural Bulgaria, follow along for more.

Much love,

Alex