Englishman In Blagoevgrad
“You should never be afraid to change your life.” That is what Daniel Phillips or also “Chicho Dancho” as he is known among his friends, says after going through one major life change himself. You will probably get deceived by his nearly great command of Bulgarian language and his catchy nickname but he is actually a pure Englishman. But do not ask him about Brexit - he is more than sick of this question.
Despite being a foreigner in Bulgaria, he feels truly accustomed to the culture and accepted among the natives. “Whenever I travel to England to visit my grandmother, I don’t feel at home but when I go back to Bulgaria, I do. The things are reversed.”
Daniel moved to Bulgaria 10 years ago with his mother when he was just 13 years old. He was thrown at a completely unknown country without being familiar with the language or the culture. But after the initial shock, he felt that Bulgaria has something special to offer him — a warm feeling of family and hospitality. “When we moved to the house after, less than half an hour passed and the neighbours knocked on our door bringing us homemade food -buns and such stuff. We don’t have this in England,” he says.
Dancho is a senior at AUBG majoring in POS and JMC. His four years at AUBG are marked by many adventures and teambuildings, JMC projects and club activities. One of his friends, Nikola Smilenov who is also a senior, remembers their adventures from their freshman year packed up with a lot of alcohol, sleepless nights and jokes. To Nikola, Daniel is not only a person you can have a lot of fun with but also a friend who is going to be there to offer support.
Daniel is that type of person who will always greet you with a wide smile on his face and a clever joke at the ready. But besides that, he gave much more to the community of AUBG - he dedicated his time and effort to the people around him. “I think what I left behind at AUBG is love. I gave love to the people around me by believing in them and helping them grow up, the same thing that my friends did for me,” he says.
Last academic year, Daniel was the president of More Honors — one of the biggest student clubs on campus. His experience in this position taught him a lot about how to manage people, how to inspire them to keep the spirit up in a team. “I think that being the president of MH It was one of the most meaningful things that happened to me. It helped me see my weaknesses and overcome them,” he says.
“I don’t like going back to the same place over and over again. Even if I go for a walk, I prefer to take another way back,” Daniel says. Having a variety in his life is something very important to him - staying at one place and doing the same things over and over again is just not for him. Even if this means having a chaotic lifestyle.
His plan after graduation? “Whatever happens, happens”. Dancho doesn’t have a specific plan - he prefers to go with the flow. He is sure for one thing -he wants to experience many different things - to face new challenges, explore unknown places and feelings and to enjoy everything happening to him.
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Lina Chakarova is sophomore studying journalism at the American University in Bulgaria. She is sick of Brexit too.
