foreigners

When I first got to Bulgaria I remember someone, I can't remember who right now, told me that Bulgarians really like foreigners.  I'm not sure exactly what I thought about that at that time.  Whatever I thought couldn't have compared to what I know now!  Everywhere I go people are very eager to help me or to talk to me.  A lot or times this involves using their English, letting me know that "I know English!"  Sometimes this is not the case.  But I have to say for the most part everyone I have had contact with here has been friendly.  People like Leo who saved my Xmas trip to Italy.  He had no idea who I was and had no reason to help me.  But he did out of the kindness of his heart.  Or like the lady sitting in front of me on the bus back here.  She heard me talking, in English on the phone to Nargis, and figured out that I wasn't sure about where the bus was or when I would be home.  She leaned back and told me where we were.  She had no reason to help a complete stranger and yet she did.  People here are always looking to help me out and have been nothing but helpful!  They have no reason to help me and yet they do!  Maybe I notice this because I need to start doing a better job in the states at looking to help people from other countries, however I kind of think that this would not happen in the states.  Now of course it depends on where a person is in the states, small town or big city, and this might also be true here in B, but I have to say on the whole I don't think people in the states go out of their way to help people from other countries.  This includes me.  Of course there are exceptions and I may be totally off base in this thinking!  I will ssay that my experience here would be different had it not been for some strangers helping a foreigner!  And yes, I kind of scream "I'm not from here" so it's fairly easy to tell I'm a foreigner!  Love and hugs!