Train buffs may find themselves at a loss at certain railway stations in Bulgaria. Given that the British had built the first railway line from Rousse to Varna in 1866, along with Germany providing the lion's share of tourists, in this age of globalisation (which some see as a euphemism for Americanisation), why is it that many station signs are spelled out in Cyrillic and Latin - French Latin?

"That's because it was a Belgian tour operator, Georges Nagelmackers, who had launched the Orient Express in 1883," said Bozhidar Bazhkov, a manager at the Varna Railway Station. Europe's first international luxury train, with sleeping berths and dining cars, ran from Paris to Varna, and later to Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey).

"And, besides, French was in vogue back then, and even today travellers find French signs quite chic."

Though Franco-Bulgarian relations go back centuries, it wasn't until the late 1800s that French culture - as part of an overall expansion of the Great European Powers - became pronounced. As the most convenient mode of transport was by water vessel, their impact was felt the strongest along the shores of the Black Sea and the banks of the Danube River, notably Bourgas, Rousse and Varna. Karine Calcat of the French Institute in Sofia says that one of the most famous travellers to Bulgaria at this time was Alphonse de Lamartine. He was also a key figure in French romantic literature.

The landmark year was 1878. Finally casting off 500 years of Oriental Turkish domination, leaders of the new Bulgaria, headed by German Prince Alexander of Battenberg, subjected the country to a crash programme of Westernisation to make up for lost time. Foreign experts were invited in, while Bulgarians went abroad to study, particularly to Austria, France and Germany.

The Museum of the History of Varna chronicles the economic and cultural development that took place in the city between 1878 and 1939. The building itself was originally built in 1851 to house the Belgian Consulate. Later, it served as a hotel and then a prison. Since 1969, it has displayed clothing, furniture, documents and equipment illustrating how Bulgarian and foreign capital financed new banks, shipping, industrial crafts, food processing, wineries and textiles mills. In just one example, Alain Gerard, a French engineer, designed the new port of Varna, which was completed in 1906.

Local fashion designers followed the latest trends from Paris, then as now a fashion centre. "French tourists are surprised to see that our old Marie Claire magazines, fashion books, shoes and Art Nouveau furniture were imported from France or were inspired by French styles," Kuncho Grigorov, the museum's curator, says. "To urban dwellers in the early 1900s, France symbolised elegance and high-class living. Many of the well-to-do furnished their homes with French decor, and to some extent adopted their mannerisms and language." Life in the countryside, however, where the masses resided, largely continued as it had for centuries. In many respects it still does.

Paradoxically, the one noticeable article of French clothing these days - the quintessential beret - may be seen more often in villages. "This could be Gascony," Regis Prat, a French expatriate, says, alluding to an elderly gentleman with a black beret, riding an antique bicycle with a bag full of vegetables on its back rack in the town of Volchi Dol, not far from Varna.

Inevitably, a significant amount of French words, minus their nonphonetic spelling made their way into everyday Bulgarian (see box): asansyor (lift), biblioteka (library), konfityur (marmalade), kamion (lorry), trotoar (pavement), kafe, mersi.

In some cases these words have taken unusual routes. City centres worldwide have adopted vibrant scenes of Viennese and Parisian style patisseries, cafes and coffee houses. Olga Georgiadi, director of the HRC Culinary Academy, Dobrich, and a native of Russia, explained that it was in such places that occupying Russian Cossack soldiers sat in Paris in 1815 and ordered food and drink. Impatient by what they perceived as foot dragging, they commanded "Brstra! Brstra! (Quick! Quick!)", a word similar to the Bulgarian brzo. An enterprising proprietor then displayed the word on his establishment. It caught on as the bistro.

French cuisine per se has had less impact here. "Our grandmothers' cooking is the best; we don't need anything else," insists 19-year-old Bulgarian Momchil Hristov. He may be right. In this arena, however, Turkey triumphs. The Ottomans introduced or influenced numerous dishes, among them sarmi (stuffed vegetables), shkembe chorba (tripe soup), kebabche (grilled minced meat), moussaka (layered potato and minced meat) and coffee. French food, however, has found a niche in delicatessens, wine shops and fine dining. And, as elsewhere, champagne is quite popular.

There are, however, many seeming cognates. Both French and Bulgarians indulge in thin pancakes (crepes, palachinki), snails (escargots, ohlyuv), and frog legs (cuisses de grenouille, zhabeski buchata). Jean Roumieux, a visiting French teacher from Pau, made an interesting discovery one evening. "The Bulgarian mishmash (scrambled eggs with vegetables) tastes exactly like la piperade, a Basque dish." The same went for a chicken dish. He sees this as evidence that the homeland of the Basques may be Bulgaria. To add to the confusion, Bulgarians say mishmash comes from Romania, where the French language and culture is more popular due to their common Romance heritage.

The most famous French food has its origins in a manner Bulgaria can relate to. According to legend, during the Ottoman siege of Vienna in 1683, a city baker, wanting to contribute to the war effort, came up with a novel idea. He began baking pastries in the shape of the emblem on the adversary's flag, a crescent. Prior to their engagements, the Austrian, German and Polish defenders would raise their new pastries in full view of their opponents - and proceeded to devour them. The siege was eventually lifted. Believed to have been introduced by Austrian-born Marie Antoinette in 1770, croissants and other puff-pastries are collectively known in France as Viennoiserie.

These days, however, it is American culture that is making waves everywhere, including France. This has not gone unchallenged. The actions of French farmer Jose Bove, in the eyes of many, elevated him to that of an international hero. It also landed him in jail. In 1999, he and nine other farmers in the town of Millau, in a region renowned for its pungent Roquefort cheese, drove their tractors through a McDonald's restaurant, trashing it. For Bove, the golden arches represent the industrialisation and dumbing down of traditional cuisine, and pretty much everything else. This is one battle that will be drawn out far longer.

French word - Bulgaria word - meaning in Bulgarian

ananas - ананас - pineapple
anchois - аншоа - anchovy
applaudissement - аплодисмент - applause
argot - арго - slang

ballottage - балотаж - runoff elections
bas-relief - басрелеф - bas-relief
bon - фискален бон - "fiskalen bon" is what is written at the bottom of receipts to show that a company will pay taxes on your purchase. In any case, "bon" means "good".
bonbon - бонбон - candy
boxeur - боксьор - boxer
bulletin - бюлетин - (news) bulletin, report

cafe - кафе - coffee
carroussel - карусел - carousel
carreau - каро - the diamond playing card
cartouche - картуш - cartouche
chauffeur - шофьор - chauffeur
chaussee - шосе - highway
confiture - конфитюр - jam
coupage - купаж - blend (usually refers to wine)
couverture - кувертюр - bedspread
creme - крема - cream
croissant - кроасан - croissant

fauteuille - фотьойл - armchair
four - фурна - oven

denoncer - денонсирам - to denounce
deranger -деранжирам - to bother
dessert - десерт - dessert
defile - дефиле - parade
degustation - дегустация - specialised tasting of a certain type of food product
designation - дезигнация - designation
diplomate - дипломат - diplomat
dossier - досие - file
doublage - дублаж - voice over
douche -  душ - shower
doyen - доайен - doyen, senior member, usually used in the sense of a patron
draper - драпирам - to drape
drage - драже - Jordan almond

ecran - екран - screen
etape - етап - stage, leg, phase
equipe - екип - team
equipage - екипаж - equipage, crew

galant - галантен - gallant, attentive (to)
galop - галоп - gallop
gare - гара - train station
gilet - жилетка - cardigan
gelee - желе - jelly
genre - жанр - genre

jury - жури - jury
journal - журнал - journal, newspaper
jongleur - жонгльор - juggler
jargon - жаргон - jargon

magasin - магазин - store, shop
marmelade - мармалад - marmalade
mis en scene - мизенсцен - staged

operateur - оператор - cameraman, phone network operator

paysage - пейзаж - landscape
portier - портиер - porter
porte-monnaie - портмоне - change purse
portrait - портрет - portrait
presse - прес - press
pretendant - претендент - claimant, pretender
pretentieux - претенциозен - pretentious

regisseur - режисьор - film director
roman - роман - novel

sabotage - саботаж - sabotage
stage - стаж - internship
sechoir - сешоар - hairdryer

tirage - тираж - print run, circulation
trefle - трефа - spades playing card
tricotage - трикотаж - knitting
trottoir - тротоар - pavement, sidewalk