NEWS FEATURE Look at tourism after country joined EU

• published: 21 Jul 2015
• views: 0

SHOTLIST 1. Various of old woman ringing church bell UPSOUND: bell ringing 2. Wide of women walking past an old man sitting in front of a traditional Bulgarian house rolling yarn 3. Man rolling yarn 4. Old Russian jet fighter in front of deserted bus stop 5. SOUNDBITE: (Bulgarian) Pencho Ciolakov, Zlataritsa Mayor: "I would like to do my best for the people here. I would like to renovate the infrastructure and attract tourism." 6. A British expatriate, Ken (no last name given), who is living in Zlataritsa, talking to Ciolakov 7. Various of house under renovation - with EU and Bulgarian flags 8. SOUNDBITE: (English) Ken, British expatriate living in Bulgaria: "You can wake up in the morning and you see a stork flying by our window. We just love the place, the food is so fresh, the people are so friendly and make you feel welcome, and we've decided that we are not going to go back to England." 9. Stork's nest near Ken's house 10. Close-up of hand hammering nails into roof 11. Various of British expatriate John (no last name given) and Bulgarian workman on roof of house 12. SOUNDBITE: (English) John, British expatriate living in Bulgaria: "I came to Bulgaria and discovered it was a beautiful country and the ecology is unspoilt, unlike a lot of the world, and we saw the house and loved it and decided that we'd like to preserve this way of life." 13. Horses in field as horse-drawn carriage passes by 14. Pull out from grape vines to wide of EU sign over vineyard 15. Various of man working in the vineyard 16. Close-up of red wine being poured into glasses 17. Vaselin Ivanov working at winery 18. SOUNDBITE: (Bulgarian) Vaselin Ivanov, Zlataritsa resident: "I have worked here for seven years already and my family and I are very happy." 19. Various of Vaselin checking new stainless steel equipment at vineyard 20. EU sign marking "Middle Yantra" Ecozone 21. Family riding by in mule and horse drawn carts STORYLINE Residents of a small town in northern Bulgaria are hoping the country's ascension to the European Union (EU) six months ago will generate tourist interest in their quiet and unspoilt town and reinvigorate the local economy. Bulgaria joined the European Union on January 1 2007 and, along with Romania, brought the total number of EU member states to 27. The Mayor of Zlataritsa - situated in northern Bulgaria, 300 kilometres (186 miles) west of the capital, Sofia - hopes to develop this sparsely populated town into a major destination for ecological tourism. "I would like to do my best for the people here. I would like to renovate the infrastructure and attract tourism," Mayor Pencho Ciolakov, told AP Television. Ciolakov feels that Zlataritsa is an ideal destination for rural and ecotourism (ecological tourism) holidays with its rich landscapes and various species of wildlife and birds. The municipality is currently in the process of establishing an eco-trail following the town's river through a plethora of beautiful unspoilt sights. Ciolakov says that once people visit Zlataritsa they will fall in love with the town and never want to leave. That was the case for Ken, a British citizen who decided to relocate to Zlataritsa after a short visit. "You can wake up in the morning and you see a stork flying by our window. We love the place, the food is so fresh, the people are so friendly and make you feel welcome, and we've decided that we are not going to go back to England," Ken said. "I came to Bulgaria and discovered it was a beautiful country and the ecology is unspoilt, unlike a lot of the world, and we saw the house and loved it and we decided we'd like to preserve this way of life," John, another British expatriate living in Zlataritsa told AP Television. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/61b4b3f387383633af150ad9a521c6f8 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork