Plovdiv

     Here it is, another European Championship- this time in Plovdiv.
     Somehow, I think that I fully understand the time passing only by another Europeans coming... Last year-Belgrad, 2012-Turkey and so on. What is it different about this European Ch? I am not sure that there is anything new about any of them at all. I mean- you just play chess and the best ones qualify to the World Cup and that's all.
     I like playing in Plovdiv, have been here another 2 times and really enjoyed my time :) It is a very pleasant city to take walks in and also for shopping :D These Bulgarian manufactured shoes and bags are just wallet killers :P
     As about the tournament itself, here is the official page: http://www.eiwcc2014.eu/  and here you can follow the results: http://chess-results.com/tnr136442.aspx?lan=1&art=2&rd=2&flag=30&wi=821
     Some photos from my yesterday's walk:

xoxo from Plovdiv ;)

Zen

     Here I am in Bulgaria, engjoying the last 2 days of my vacation.

     It's been an amazing week with a lot of sun, relaxation and good mood!

With my dear sister-Elena

     I haven't been very active with the posts, but from now on it's going to change. There are 2 tournaments ahead- the Romanian Club Championship and the World Junior Championship. The first one is going to start on the 31st of August. You can find the list of participants here: http://chess-results.com/tnr109534.aspx?art=8&lan=11&wi=821 The second tournament will start on the 13th of September, in Turkey.

    

     Will keep you posted!

     

Sweet critique

     My vacation continues in Bulgaria, where I am with my family. I missed them a lot, so I really enjoy the time we spend together.
     Being away from home is generally a good thing- you make your own choices, you decide what's good for you and what's not, freedom starts to make another sense when you're on your own.
    Inspite of this, it's good to return home from time to time, you get some good dose of critique, you get a point of view that only the people who really care about you and who don't mind telling you the bitter truth can say.
     It's really good  to know that there's no hypocrisy in anything- it's pure human nature and real personality and character.
     Thanks God, I've got such an amazing family!
     Here are some photos from my vacation:

xoxo from Albena! ;)

Grand Europe Open Albena

     This week has been a very busy one- with a lot of exams and pretty much worrying. I didn't have much time neither for chess nor for posting. I am really happy that I've survived until the weekend! :)))
     So, let's go directly to news ;)
     I've got my ticket for the Turkish League, which will start on the 1st of July. It's going to be my next tournament. Despite all the unstable situation in Istanbul, it seems that chess isn't affected. I haven't played for like 2 weeks and it already feels like an eternity! Can't wait for the 1st July to come quicker!
     The "Grand Europe Open- Albena" is coming to an end. The 8th round will be disputed today. There are 3 players with 6p/7 leading: Vladislav Nevednichy, Hrant Melkumyan and Tigran Petrosian and another 6 players with 5,5p/7 :  Boris Chatalbashev, Krikor Mekhitarian, Levente Vajda, Mircea Parligras, Evgeny Sveshnikov and Vitaliy Bernadskiy.
     You can see the pairings for today's 8th round here:

1	8	GM	Nevednichy Vladislav	2580	6		6	GM	Melkumyan Hrant	2635	3
2	2	GM	Petrosian Tigran L.	2649	6		5½	GM	Chatalbashev Boris	2560	13
3	15	GM	Mekhitarian Krikor Sevag	2544	5½		5½	GM	Vajda Levente	2617	4
4	10	GM	Parligras Mircea-Emilian	2565	5½		5½	GM	Sveshnikov Evgeny	2512	17
5	5	GM	Grigoryan Avetik	2605	5		5½	IM	Bernadskiy Vitaliy	2475	23
6	25	IM	Ashwin Jayaram	2472	5		5	GM	Solak Dragan	2598	7
7	33	IM	Javakhadze Zurab	2450	5		5	GM	Nabaty Tamir	2579	9
8	45	FM	Anurag Mhamal	2401	5		5	GM	Spasov Vasil	2565	12
9	57	WGM	Sukandar Irine Kharisma	2364	5		5	GM	Mareco Sandro	2557	14
10	24	IM	Enchev Ivajlo	2473	5		5	IM	Erturan Yakup	2374	55
11	39	IM	Molina Roberto Junio Brito	2423	4½		4½	GM	Lupulescu Constantin	2655	1

     My friend (and room-mate in Thailand)- Irene Sukandar is having a very good tournament, with a 2486 performance and a +23 Elo points.

     Another "long not seen" friend- Diana Baciu, who hasn't played for almost a year has a 2457 Performance and a +26 Elo points!

     It is an interesting phenomenon- it's not the first time when I notice a player who hasn't played for a very long time and he makes incredible performances when he starts to play again. I wonder what is it about? Maybe I should take a year break from chess in order to become a 2500+ GM?! :D

     Another player who surprises with his very good recent results is Vladislav Nevednichy, who's leading the tournament with a 2757 Performance and a +14 Elo points.

     "The Wolf" is having not such a good tournament, with only 4,5 points, being the 1st rating favourite. I guess that the European's Individual has been a too tough event that needed a longer recovery.

     Here are some photos I've found on the facebook page of the Bulgarian Federation:

The Trophy waiting for it's winner

     I wish everyone the best of luck and may the strongest win!