About Vivian
Growing up
across places.
Vivian’s story moves through countries, languages, schools, landscapes and creative interests.
Growing up between Bulgaria, Saudi Arabia and Spain did not mean leaving one life behind and beginning another. The same curiosity, friendships, love of water, connection with animals and appetite for movement travelled with her.
2008–2014 · Bulgaria
Early years.
Water, animals, winters in Varna, neighborhood friendships and the Bulgarian mountains formed some of Vivian’s earliest memories.
In the water from the beginning
At six months old, water was already becoming part of Vivian’s life.
Always drawn to water
Bath time was another opportunity to be in the water.
Chico and the mountains
The summer before the move to Saudi Arabia, Vivian explored the Bulgarian mountains with Chico, the first dog in her childhood.
Winter at home
Snow, sleds and the dogs outside the family home in Varna before Christmas.
Winters in Varna
Neighborhood friends gathered on the snowy hills near home.
Kaliakra
A favorite ship and a place Vivian would return to years later.
Childhood friendship
With Magi, one of Vivian’s closest childhood friends.
2014–2016 · Saudi Arabia
A childhood in Jeddah.
International school, the Red Sea, swimming, trusted teachers and new friendships made Saudi Arabia another important chapter.
Carrying Bulgaria with her
For an international day at school, everyone wore national clothing. Without a traditional Bulgarian costume, Vivian brought the Bulgarian flag.
A first graduation
Graduating from preschool at the American school in Jeddah.
A teacher who mattered
Vivian admired her teacher Lory so deeply that, when asked what she wanted to become, the answer was a teacher.
Friendships far from home
With a close friend at the American school in Jeddah.
Never far from the water
The Red Sea and a favorite beach resort became part of life in Saudi Arabia.
Hours by the pool
The Olympic swimming pool in Jeddah was a regular destination with her father.
A favorite character
A SpongeBob prize won during a game at a mall in Jeddah.
Halloween as a princess
For Halloween, Vivian knew exactly who she wanted to be.
Beyond the city
An encounter with baboons in the mountains near Mecca.
2016–2018 · Bulgaria
Back to Bulgaria.
Another first school day, new routines in Varna and a continuing connection with family places.
A new school, another beginning
The first day at a Bulgarian school after returning to Varna.
First day in Varna
A second photograph from the beginning of the Bulgarian school chapter.
Friends in Bulgaria
A candid memory from the years back in Bulgaria.
A quiet portrait
Lake Batak
A place tied to family memory and to her grandfather Dimitar.
Movement
Sport as a constant.
From water and tennis to competitive swimming, running, golf and the mountains, sport became a recurring source of discipline, confidence and friendship.
Tennis in Jeddah
Her coach quickly noticed how easily Vivian understood and applied new instructions.
Golf in Argentina
One more activity approached with curiosity and concentration.
Competing together
Competitive swimming became one of the defining sports of Vivian’s childhood.
On the podium
Training, teamwork and the experience of competition.
A team result
A championship moment shared with the wider team.
Medals and friendship
The results mattered, but so did the friendships formed through sport.
Kamchiyski Pyasatsi
Taking part in a running event across the sands near the Black Sea.
Across the finish
The final stretch of the Kamchiyski Pyasatsi run.
Creativity
Making things.
Imagining things.
Writing, drawing, painting, photography, costume and acting became different expressions of the same creative curiosity.
Making things, imagining things
Creative expression kept changing form through writing, painting, photography, costume and performance.
Paris on canvas
A finished Eiffel Tower painting during a drawing class.
In the studio
Proudly showing work created in class.
The finished portrait
A closer view of the signed drawing.
Dumbo
A vivid interpretation of a favorite character.
Writing in Bulgarian from Spain
First place in the 2019 competition “I Love the Black Sea.”
Literary recognition
Recognition in the prose category of the Stoyan Mihaylovski national student competition in 2019.
Costume and character
Imagination also found expression through costume and performance.
Transformation
Another experiment with character, costume and theatrical makeup.
2018–present
Spain and
the wider world.
Spain became home, while travel, photography, skiing, friendships, animals and university life continued expanding the story.
Growing up in Spain
Friendships and Mediterranean life became part of the Spain years.
Aloha
Animals remained an important part of home and childhood.
In the mountains
Skiing became another place for confidence, concentration and movement.
Behind the camera
Travel also became a way of noticing places and perspectives worth keeping.
A wider world
A trip to the United States with her mother.
Life by the Mediterranean
A quiet moment by the sea in Marbella.
A candid moment
The present chapter
Bulgaria through the years
Always returning.
The Black Sea, Kaliakra, family summers, mountain paths and shared memories made returning to Bulgaria part of every later chapter.
A mermaid by the Black Sea
A summer memory from the beach at Sts. Constantine and Helena.
Summer with Magi
A childhood beach game at Sts. Constantine and Helena.
Buried in the sand
A second photograph from the same beach memory.
Elizabeth
The connection with animals continued through the years.
Kaliakra, 2025
Returning to the same ship photographed during childhood.
Albena, 2025
Another summer adventure shared with Magi.
Morenite
A rest among the boulder fields of Vitosha.
The Marathon of the Bright-Eyed, 2026
Finishing a marathon created as part of a family tradition.
In the mountains with Hrisanta
A summer climb through Bulgaria’s green mountain landscapes.
At the summit
One of many mountain climbs shared with grandfather Hristo Milkov.
A shared summit
The same mountain day, captured in a more personal moment.
Near Aladzha Monastery
A family barbecue in the woods near Varna.
In the waves
A Black Sea memory from Sts. Constantine and Helena.
At the waterfall
One of the many hikes shared across Bulgaria.
Baba Vida
A playful memory from the medieval castle beside the Danube.
Leading the way
Across broad mountain slopes during one of many family hikes.
Another view of the waterfall
A second photograph from the same hike.
Family by the sea
Several generations together in the water at Sts. Constantine and Helena.
Family time in Varna
A quiet day together near the Sea Garden.
Swimming together
In the outdoor Aquahouse pool before Christmas Eve.
Following the trail
One of many paths through the Bulgarian mountains.
Summer meadows
Walking through wildflowers high in the mountains.
A short break
On the way to Cherni Vrah in 2026.
Laguna Beach, 2018
A family summer memory marked in the sand.
Learning together
Roller skating along the Sea Garden in Varna.
Along the Sea Garden
A second moment from the same roller-skating lesson.
Three sisters
Climbing Lyulin Mountain toward the Saints Cyril and Methodius monastery.
Wildflowers on Vitosha
A mountain portrait from the 2026 climb toward Cherni Vrah.
Across generations
A story still
being written.
Vivian’s grandfather, Bulgarian author Hristo Milkov, dedicated the book “Through Time” to his granddaughter. Watching Vivian grow brought back memories of his own childhood and created a connection between two generations moving through different times. The book is available to read in full and free of charge in Bulgarian.