Bulgaria pre-research tips

[pablo27]

Plovdiv - don't leave out the huge volcanic rock masses(called plutons) in the central city-it was called trimontium -3 mountains by the Romans.They stand out prominently from the surrounding plains when heading into the city.Driving in from the south you can see some reconstructed Roman aquaducts.Also lots of new construction going on.

[jackalnxt]

Yes, they are constructing a new speedway from Plovdiv to Asenovgrad. Two sides with two lanes each. They are also adding more roundabouts to the crossroads.

[jackalnxt]

I would like to direct your attention to the railings you see on the side of the road.

Often times you will notice that they have these little red triangles on them: https://www.google.bg/maps/@42.6376664, ... 6656?hl=en

These are light reflection triangles and are designed to make the railings easier to spot at night. You can find them all over the country, though the shade of red can sometimes differ.
The amount of broken railings and cars flying off the road may lead some to question their effectiveness, though if someone is trying to do an overtake with 200 km/h on a sharp turn, it's probably not the railings' fault.

[jackalnxt]

Hey guys, just want to point a small detail that might need attention:

[ external image ]

The sign in the distance that reads "ПРОДАВА БУТИЛКА ГАЗ" has some grammar mistakes. In literal translations it currently means "SELLING BOTTLE OF GAS".
A more correct way of spelling it would be "ПРОДАВАМ ГАЗОВИ БУТИЛКИ".
- The extra M at the end of PRODAVA basically means "I AM SELLING" rather than just "SELLING"
- БУТИЛКА ГАЗ, literally means a bottle of gas. Changing it to ГАЗОВА БУТИЛКА means Bottle that contains gas. It's a small change, but that is the correct way to call these things on the image.

BTW, this is Pomorie, I knew it right away.

Also, now that Bulgaria has been double confirmed for the DLC, I feel free to ask: is there anything specific you are looking for at this time? Maybe some obscure road or research on a city I keep ignoring?

[krmarci]

Use the table in this Wikipedia article to convert Bulgarian city names into Hungarian: https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikip%C3% ... Dr%C3%A1sa

Exceptions:
Варна = Várna
София = Szófia
Плевен = Plevna

[Dirk]

Hey Jackalnxt,
thank you for pointing that out and we fixed it right away. If there is anything like this in the future, feel free to correct it as well
To answer you question, nothing specific at the moment. We got most of the major stuff covered, but anything interesting (be it place, idea or detail we might miss) is still welcomed, because there is never enough of that

[jackalnxt]

Hmm... since the topic of signs is pretty relevant these days, I can point out a little oddity which I have only seen in one place: the E83 near Pleven.

- Whereas sign design in the rest of the country is pretty consistent, around Pleven you have this very strange sign design: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.4351786, ... 6656?hl=en
= cities on sign: Ruse | Varna | Gulyantsi
- They are also unique in that it shows city names on both sides. Opposite end: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.435298,2 ... 6656?hl=en
= cities on sign: Teteven | Sofia | Vratsa

These are visibly older than pretty much all other signs, evident by the fact that they don't even have the names written in English. They might even be a carryover from the pre-1989 days. Having one of these around Pleven might make for a neat little detail.

[jackalnxt]

'Look' signs:
- One thing that may be difficult to notice in Bulgaria is the 'ПОГЛЕДНИ' ('Look') signs on pedestrian crossings. Specifically, the zebra style crossings. These are found everywhere in the country. 'ПОГЛЕДНИ' is usually placed between the first and second white lines of the Zebra crossing. They also come with 1 to 2 arrows.
= 1 arrow is for one-way streets.
= 2 arrows for two-way streets.
= There are also rare version with 3 arrows, one pointing forwards.

- Example with 1 arrow: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.83945,25 ... 6656?hl=en
- Example with 2 arrows: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.2124728, ... 6656?hl=en
- Example with 3 arrows: https://www.google.bg/maps/@42.231025,2 ... 6656?hl=en
- Faded example with 2 arrows: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.8314264, ... 6656?hl=en

Smaller directional signs:
- The majority of signs look like the ones from image 10 of the teasers (https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q_WT9TNT0oA/ ... 8b2_15.jpg). Problem is that without the kilometers spelled, it leaves a lot of empty space. HOWEVER, there is an alternative.

- These types of signs actually have a smaller (compact) version of them that don't have kilometers written on them. Their font is also centered, so they visually seem more appealing. Maybe these can appear in the urban areas?
= Sofia sign: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.8360624, ... 6656?hl=en
= Bucharest and Silistra: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.8351925, ... 6656?hl=en
= Sofia and Varna (there are more signs for Bucharest on the opposite end): https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.8500377, ... 6656?hl=en

[dahaka]

There is something i randomly remembered, from the time i used to drive through bulgaria, keep in mind that was about 2 years ago, so it might be "fixed" now.
There used to be a roadwork section, on the highway from Botevgrad to Sofia. They were conducting roadworks, so all the trucks, over a certain amount of tons had to take a detour, which was a tight curvy mountain road, obviously present since way before the highway was built, it was a nice scenic road, complete with a (sadly abandoned) old soviet styled gas station/truck stop.

You had to get out of the highway just before the "tunnel vitinya", and onto national road number one. You had to get off at the last chance you had before entering the tunnels, and you could get back on the highway on your first chance after the tunnels. If you type "Vitinya pass" on google earth, the route you had to take is clearly visible, and even on the map its littered with a LOT of trucks.
You could also choose to drive though the tunnels, but at the other side, sometimes the police was waiting to give you a fine.

This would add a nice and ultra realistic detour to the game, if the player had detours enabled, there would be a high chance they had to avoid driving into the tunnel. (although in reality there was nothing blocking trucks, there was only a prohibiting sign, so cars could drive into the tunnel).

[jackalnxt]

Pleven

Pleven has a rather key geographical location and it's probably a good idea to give some more info on it.
- The main entrance to the city (from the East) is this crazy intersection: https://www.google.bg/maps/dir/43.42406 ... !3e0?hl=en
- It's important to note that the city of Pleven (seemingly) doesn't spend a lot of money on road maintenance. As such, the main E83 road is not the best of shape. Route 35 (the Eastern entrance) is better maintained but there are still problems such as the overgrown foliage around the road. A perfect example of this can be found here: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.4154392, ... 6656?hl=en
= Sometimes the foliage will even obstruct road signs. Policemen will still fine you though if you don't obey the rules of the barely visible signs: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.4125487, ... 6656?hl=en

- Upon entering the city, you will be greeted with this Haiduti statue: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.4129902, ... 6656?hl=en

- The south entrance to the Northern Industrial zone features a really nice area which also doubles as a transport center for the whole city: https://www.google.bg/maps/dir/43.42073 ... !3e0?hl=en
= Here you will find both the main train station: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.4204254, ... 6656?hl=en
== The symbol represents BDZh(БДЖ) the Bulgarian Railway Department.
= The bus station is also here (for Euro Coach Simulator and just in general): https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.4201739, ... 6656?hl=en
!Note: It would be a good idea to include the road that goes around the little park as it is the only way to turn around.
= The largest building in the vicinity however is the Pleven Office Center: https://www.google.bg/maps/@43.4193792, ... 6656?hl=en
== On the windows it says: Offices for Rent and Sale.