Bulgaria and Vincent Dupuy

"I started working as a teacher in France, but I was bored. I started looking around – where could I go as a history and geography teacher? A vacancy appeared in Bulgaria."

And so in 2007, Vincent Dupuy, a recent university graduate, set off for a country he knew almost nothing about, to teach children, for half of whom French was not their mother tongue, to eat the "terrible" Bulgarian white cheese and to learn the Bulgarian language, in which the Cyrillic alphabet turned out to be one of the easiest things.

18 years passed in a flash, not like half a life. Monsieur Dupuy is now almost Bulgarian. Here he not only has a job - he has friends, favourite places, hobbies. He likes everything about Bulgaria. The climate and natural terrain in Sofia are similar to those of his birthplace.

"There is a mountain here, like in Auvergne, where I grew up," the Frenchman tells Radio Bulgaria. "The Puy de Dome mountain is a bit like Vitosha. There is also a lake. And the temperature and climate are the same as in my region. Bulgaria is not a very big country, but it has mountains, seaside and many different landscapes, and I like that a lot."

Mr. Dupuy is enthusiastically exploring his new "homeland". He is almost certain that he has visited more places in Bulgaria than some Bulgarians. He has been to all the cities and towns on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, and his favorite region is the Northeast.

"I really like the northern coast close to the border with Romania - Balchik, Cape Kaliakra and especially Durankulak. It is quiet there, there are not many people and there are huge beaches. Of the cities, I really like Plovdiv and Veliko Tarnovo, and especially Arbanassi, where there is a magnificent church - The Nativity of Christ, which has incredible frescoes."

Since he has been in Bulgaria – for 18 years – Vincent has been a history and geography teacher at the French Lycée Victor Hugo in Sofia. Unlike teaching in his homeland, he finds the work here interesting, his colleagues wonderful, and he says about the children that he sometimes forgets that they are not French and that French is a foreign language to them.

He does not approve of overly friendly relationships between teachers and students. According to Monsieur Dupuy, distance is necessary for the work to go well.

"I really do not like it when teachers are very, very close to the students. I maintain a distance and I believe that we get along well with the children. I am convinced that they prefer it that way too."

But Vincent's distant behavior cannot fool his students, who know that their teacher has a big heart. Monsieur Dupuy gets involved in charity events, especially those in support of disadvantaged children. In his free time, he reads books, travels – he has visited all of Bulgaria's neighbouring countries, goes horseback riding and practises martial arts – karate, kung fu and aikido. He has been practicing judo since he was 6 years old.

If you are French, then you must be a connoisseur of wine and cheese, what do you think about Bulgarian ones? - we jokingly ask him.

Dupuy talks about his father, who lives in Bordeaux and is firmly convinced that no one else, except the French, can make good wine. "Those Spaniards, Italians – their wines are worthless!" Vincent laughs. That is why he cannot believe his ears when his father tasted Bulgarian wine during his visit to Bulgaria and said: "Hmm, it's not bad at all". Of the white wines, both father and son like Traminer, and of the red wines – Syrah.

As for cheeses, his native Auvergne is a region where cheese is produced. And – no! Vincent Dupuy doesn't like the Bulgarian white cheese we're so proud of. Bulgarian yellow cheese - maybe, he adds in a hesitant voice.

With the world-famous cartoonist Plantu who opened an exhibition in Bulgaria in 2022

Since our guest is a historian and can deeply understand the processes in politics, we ask him this question as well. What does he think about the current situation in the country?

"I don't like to give advice when it's not my country. There are problems with corruption in Bulgaria, but there are similar problems in France, too. Bulgaria is a Balkan country and the most important thing for it, in my opinion, is to have good relations with its neighbours. I know that there are small problems with North Macedonia and there is a history with Turkey that is not particularly cheerful," says Vincent Dupuy, referring to the five centuries of Ottoman rule. And he shifts his thoughts to the present:

"My friends ask me how politics is in Bulgaria. I tell them: in 6 years there have been what – 8 elections? But why? Every time fewer and fewer people vote and this is a big problem. Forming a coalition is also very difficult. And Bulgaria has important decisions to make in relation to Schengen and the eurozone. For these things, the country needs stability. Also, let's not forget the war between Russia and Ukraine, and you are not very far from the conflict. The Black Sea is not very big. So - Bulgaria needs stability, but I don't know how it can be achieved."

Several times in this conversation Vincent refuses to give his opinion. "I don't like the fact that France likes to advise other countries so much. I don't like this arrogance", he says. "I'm not Bulgarian, so I don't think it's right for me to give advice about Bulgaria".

But you are also somewhat Bulgarian, we remind him of the 18 years, almost half of his life, spent in our country.

Horse riding is one of Vincent's favourite sports

Vincent is about to say goodbye to his second homeland, as personal matters call him to return to France. What will he miss most about Bulgaria?

"Many things, of course friends, security. For example, when I was with my friends and their wives – this is so valuable that in Bulgaria at night you can walk around safely. I will miss the landscapes. As a geography teacher I can appreciate how, for example, between Plovdiv and Sofia – only a hundred kilometers, an hour's drive, the landscape is completely different. This is extremely interesting and I like it very much.

As a historian, I will remember for the rest of my life how I was in Nessebar for the first time – when I saw for the first time the Byzantine churches and the sea – so close to each other. We don't have anything like that in France – it was so beautiful, so different!

I will also miss school. But I know that I will return soon. This is not the end of my story with Bulgaria."

Photos: Private archive

English publication: Rositsa Petkova