Bulgaria Ski discussion board

Sam ...my boots fit me fine ..the panty liners were for the blokes i was with who had hired their boots and when one is learning and told to lean , lean , lean into ones boots they were all suffering from rubbed shins!!!! panty liners work a treat and many people use them!!!! they are so thin they dont interfere with how your boots fit but they do provide something to mop up the sweat and stop the skin being rubbed off......my ski instructers have said in the past that men usually end up with no hair left on their shins as the contact with the boots rubs them bald!!!

Random fact of the morning ... a lot of guys on sci-fi shows, in heavy prosthetic make up, wear panty liners on their foreheads to stop sweat ruining the make up job. Will never look at a Klingon the same way again.


What to take -

Not as much as you'd think ... decent ski gear and a few pairs of jeans, t-shirts for nights out. I tend to use last night's t-shirt as this mornings base layer, as long as there's no kebab down it! Other things you'll need,

Good boots for night time, trainers or plimsoles for kicking around the hotel and the room.

Kettle for the room.

Sunblock/lipbalm/sunglasses.

Painkillers.

Helmet.

Hipflask.

mp3 player and charger/spare batteries.

Don't forget travel insurance!

Pantyliners - now why didn't I think of using them? Before I bought my own boots that is.

Basic kit - decent ski jacket and trousers. Ski socks - 2/3 pairs - rinse out after each use, and dry overnight. Thermal longjohns and vest. Lightweight fleece. Scarf/neckwarmer. A good pair of ski gloves - If your hands are wet and cold you will be miserable. Goggles if it's snowing and sunglasses otherwise. Helmet.

Good basic gear will last for several years so regard it as an investment - and hope you like skiing!

Essentials we always take are paracetamol and ibuprofen (gel as well as pills) - but you can get a very effective Bulgarian powder sachet in the pharmacy in the Rila - it's called Aulin (pronounced Owlin) and it is magic stuff - well worth a couple of lev if you are suffering. Tastes delicious as well. Arnica bruise cream is always packed, along with teabags and Marmite (which you need to replace the B vitamins the alcohol removes from your body!). Take your jar down to breakfast with you every morning and you will be surprised by the envious looks and comments you get as you spread on your toast! Unless you are a Marmite Hater of course...

Oh, and lots of Mars Bars or Snickers - a couple of those in your pocket and you don't need to eat so much expensive mountain food at lunchtime.

The other essential item we take is a portable DVD player - because with my family there's almost always one who injures themselves and has to have time off the slopes, and the DVD player comes in most useful. We take our own DVDs, but there are many pirate DVDs for sale in Borovets.

Have a wonderful time and do post back to let us know how you all get on!

Snowsyparker,

that post was the best, unfortunatly I am not a Marmite fan

I have packed everything (I think). got the usual ski bottoms, jacket, lots of socks, jumpers, t-shirts, some paracetimal, plasters, suncream and Lip balm. Got INSURANCE docs, camera, plug adaptors, PASSPORT!!!

Think thats the lot..... oh and the misses is taking the pantyliners hahaha will stop off on the way up and stock up on the chocolate

Cant wait, only 22 hours till we set off whooooooooooooo

Dave