Financial Friday 32

Locations: Tbilisi, Batumi [Republic of Georgia]

Week 32 on the road, and I’ve finally done something ‘interesting’. Here we go….

Transportation

On Saturday, I took the metro twice: $0.41. I went to visit some friends in a different part of town. We hung out for a while and took care of some ‘business’.

Also on Saturday, we took a cab: $1.22 for my portion. A friend was trying to get out of his rental contract that was way too high for თბილისი (Tbilisi). Another friend has been here for over a year, and knows a thing or two about Georgian law. He was able to scare them into not demanding an extra month of rent.

Quick tip: If you’re looking to rent an apartment in Tbilisi, you shouldn’t pay any more than $300 per month. Most likely, it should be around $200 per month. Don’t get ripped off.

On Monday, I took the metro to English Club: $0.20. It’s proven to be a fantastic way to meet people, and help them with their English. Afterwards, some of us went out to a bar, and it was later than the metro runs by the time we were finished. So no return trip (I walked home).

On Thursday, a friend and I decided to go to ბათუმი (Batumi). The train ticket was $9.00 which is a lot for Georgia. It must still be tourist season so it was far more expensive than when I went from Batumi to ქუთაისი (Kutaisi) to Tbilisi in early June. This city is a tourist trap, but a relatively cheap one.

We also took a taxi from the train station to the hostel: $1.17. Normally, I would have walked, but a more than 1 hour walk with bags didn’t sound appealing to my friend. The ride was cheap enough, and we even got some free chacha (Georgian liquor; it’s distilled from wine and is seldom lower than 60% alcohol)! The driver tried to give us his number so we could call him again whenever we needed a ride, but that’s not how we roll.

Travel tip: If you want to take taxis in Georgia, the Yandex app is going to be your best friend. It’s far cheaper than a normal cab fare.

Accommodation

There’s the house rental: $5.48 per day for August and $5.67 per day for September. Hello different number of days in a month.

We’re also staying in a hostel in Batumi: $10.83 per day. That’s why Friday looks so expensive under housing.

Food

On Saturday, I was hanging with friends so we went out to eat. That’s just what you do with friends.

On Tuesday, we (my roommates and I) threw a barbecue and invited a bunch of people over. There were over 20 people crammed into our little yard. We ran out of chairs and tables, but it was still a good time. That’s also why Monday’s and Tuesday’s food bills are higher than ‘normal’.

On Thursday, we were in Batumi so we ‘had’ to visit a few restaurants.

Other

Travel insurance: $8.64 per day.

VPN service: $0.13 per day.

On Friday, my Amazon Prime service renewed itself: $0.33 per day. If I wanted to be cheap, I could drop it. But I still occasionally order things, and have friends forward them to me. Between that and the TV series, I still think it’s worth it.

Speaking of ordering and having things forwarded…. On Saturday (or was it Friday; it’s listed under Saturday anyway), the dog whistle I ordered off Amazon was dropped in the mail. The cost for shipping a dog whistle from the States to Georgia is $15.00 (if you send it via USPS that is). Now I just get to wait a few weeks for it to show up.

On Tuesday, we had a lady come by to clean the house. My portion came out to $10.00. It was well worth it for the common areas that always manage to get filthy.

Summary

Week 32
	Fri	Sat	Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Total
Travel	0	1.63	0	0.2	0	0	10.17	12
Lodging	5.48	5.67	5.67	5.67	5.67	5.67	16.5	50.33
Food	4.18	8.97	0.82	7.16	15.88	0.55	9.43	46.99
Other	14.1	14.1	9.1	9.1	19.1	9.1	9.1	83.7
Total	23.76	30.37	15.59	22.13	40.65	15.32	45.2	193.02

So you can see this week was still pretty good despite the barbecue and trip to Batumi. We also hit a new month this week so you know what that means….

Aug 18
	Week 27	Week 28	Week 29	Week 30	Week 31	Week 32	Total
Travel	0	0.41	2.25	0.82	0.2	0	3.68
Lodging	10.96	39.67	74.41	38.36	38.36	5.48	201.76
Food	5.87	25.23	33.74	15.44	10.31	4.18	90.59
Other	36.77	95.87	102.93	79.53	61.39	14.1	376.49
Total	53.6	161.18	213.33	134.15	110.26	23.76	696.28

August has been (by far) the cheapest month so far. If you settle somewhere, and live a ‘normal’ (at least for me) life, it’s really not that expensive to live a traveler life style. This is far less than I was spending at ‘home’ in the States. So if you’re from the West and you think travel is unobtainable, I have news for you: you too can do this.

Until next week….

Financial Friday 31

Locations: Tbilisi, Mtskheta [Republic of Georgia]

This week, I discovered the ultimate hack: get someone else to pay for everything. It was made possible by virtue of my being a native English speaker (and a little luck). More on this later….

Transportation

On Monday, I took the metro to English club: $0.20. I’d started going the previous week to meet people, and that day it paid off. I met a Georgian who wants to improve his English, and we’ve been getting along well ever since. As demonstrated by….

On Wednesday evening, I went to მცხეთა (Mtskheta). We took my newfound friend’s car, and it cost me nothing! He’s been showing me around a few places, and describing everything in English. I correct him when he makes mistakes, and he’s been showering me with gifts. I’ve told him a few times he’s taking it a bit over the top, but he won’t listen.

Accommodation

This is pretty boring by now. The daily rate to rent a room in the house is $5.48 for this month.

Food

I’ve made a few trips to the grocery store, but far fewer than normal thanks to my new student. He’s taken me out to dinner a few times, and even cooked once or twice. Like I said, over the top….

Other

Travel insurance: $8.64 per day.

VPN service: $0.13 per day.

Strangely, nothing else came up this week. There’s usually something….

Summary

Week 31
	Fri	Sat	Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Total
Travel	0	0	0	0.2	0	0	0	0.2
Lodging	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	38.36
Food	1.98	4.34	0	0	0	3.99	0	10.31
Other	8.77	8.77	8.77	8.77	8.77	8.77	8.77	61.39
Total	16.23	18.59	14.25	14.45	14.25	18.24	14.25	110.26

So yeah…. It’s been a super cheap week. Is English your native language? Do you enjoy teaching? I know I do. It’s fun to see my new student’s progress. There are ways to get jobs teaching where they’ll even pay for your accommodation and give you a small salary too.

See you all next week….

Financial Friday 30

Location: Tbilisi [Republic of Georgia]

Week 30 here we go….

Transportation

On Monday, I took the metro twice to go to English club: $0.41 for there and back. I don’t need any help improving my English, but it was a chance to meet some people that do. Most of the people were cool, and I made a few friends to mission accomplished.

On Thursday, I took the metro twice again: $0.41. This time for Spanish club. I was a bit worried since my Spanish sucks, but it turns out it was unnecessary. I spent most of the time speaking English as all the native Spanish speakers hung out with themselves. I did get to meet some people though, and made a few new friends so mission sort-of accomplished?

Accommodation

Nothing new here. Monthly room rental comes out to $5.48 per day for this month. There were a couple that had a bad habit of not cleaning up after themselves very well that left today. Hopefully, that means we won’t need to have the cleaning lady drop by as often. I’m crossing my fingers….

Food

This has been almost all groceries. I’ve managed to make a ‘friend’ (sort of) of one of the vendors at a produce stand that’s a block away from the house. Yesterday, she was helping me with a few Georgian words. I was pretty happy about that as I’m finding it difficult to integrate. It’s probably just me….

Other

Travel insurance: $8.64 per day.

VPN service: $0.13 per day.

On Friday, I topped up my data on my local phone bill: $12.80 for 15G of data. It’s so much cheaper than my ‘travel’ carrier!

On Wednesday, I couldn’t help myself and bought a book: $5.34. It’s called Forever Nomad: The Ultimate Guide to World Travel, From a Weekend to a Lifetime. Maybe the author knows a few cool tricks I haven’t discovered. Also, it was on sale so…. Thanks e-reader technology; without you I wouldn’t be able to get all these books. There’s no room in my backpack for a bunch of physical books.

Summary

Week 30
	Fri	Sat	Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Total
Travel	0	0	0	0.41	0	0	0.41	0.82
Lodging	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	38.36
Food	0	0.61	3.04	5.59	1.02	2.77	2.41	15.44
Other	21.57	8.77	8.77	8.77	8.77	14.11	8.77	79.53
Total	27.05	14.86	17.29	20.25	15.27	22.36	17.07	134.15

This has been the cheapest week yet! I guess it helps when you don’t ‘do’ much, but still…. My wallet is very happy. Now if I could just get WiFi at the house…but that’s a topic for another time.

See you all next week.

Financial Friday 29

Location: Tbilisi [Republic of Georgia]

Week 29 is done. Let’s see where I spent my money….

Transportation

On Saturday, I used my metro card for 4 of us. Why did I do that you ask? Well, 2 of them were only in town for 3 days so they didn’t have cards. The other one…he really should have one by now. He’s been here longer than I have! Anyway….

On Monday, I went out with the two previously mentioned non-metro card holders, and covered their rides: $0.61 for 3 of us. We also took a taxi across town because we were really tired of walking: $0.82 for just my portion. Little did we know we’d do far more walking, but at least we cut some of it out.

Accommodation

There’s the standard rent for the month: $5.48 per day.

On Sunday, I paid the utility bill: $28.71 for my portion. This included electricity, water, and cleaning the water pipes. The really expensive part was the electricity since it’s been ridiculously hot, and we’re trying to use a window unit to cool the house. Seriously Georgia, you’re like a modern country in so many ways, but when it comes to temperature control….

On Thursday, we had a cleaning person give everything a good scrubbing: $7.34 for my portion. It took her about 4 hours. Multiply what I payed times 5, and that’s what she got. So…really cheap.

Food

Nothing much to report here. On Sunday, I made a large grocery purchase.

On Thursday, I had to go out and find some food to be out of the cleaning lady’s way. I would have preferred to sleep during that time, but she did a really nice job on my room. I’m a little proud to say my room was not the worst place in the house. that honor goes to the kitchen. Such messy, messy people…myself included.

Other

Obligatory travel insurance: $8.64 per day.

On Sunday, I purchased The Handmaid’s Tale in Kindle format: $10.69. It was on sale, and I’ve heard a lot about it so I had to purchase it. It’ll be a while before I get to it, but….

Also on Sunday, I purchased a year’s subscription to a VPN service: $0.13 per day. Because internet security is a good thing. All those ‘free’ WiFi places I’ve been using…yeah, I really should encrypt that data. Not to mention, when we finally get WiFi at the house, I can stream TV over the internet!

On Thursday, I topped up my ‘travel’ carrier’s data plan: $25.00. We’ll see how long I want to maintain this before the price gets to me….

Summary

Week 29
	Fri	Sat	Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Total
Travel	0	0.82	0	1.43	0	0	0	2.25
Lodging	5.48	5.48	34.19	5.48	5.48	5.48	12.82	74.41
Food	0	5.33	8.33	4.9	3.71	3.93	7.54	33.74
Other	8.64	8.64	19.46	8.77	8.77	8.77	33.77	96.82
Total	14.12	20.27	61.98	20.58	17.96	18.18	54.13	207.22

So as you can see, it’s been a little more expensive than last week. A few bills hit that likely won’t be there next week. In any case, it’s still a good deal under budget so…win!

Catch you all next week.

Financial Friday 28

Location: Tbilisi [Republic of Georgia]

Week 28, here we go….

Transportation

On Saturday, I rode the metro twice. So exciting right? And that’s it.

Accommodation

So there’s the pretty steady rent.

Also on Saturday, the gas bill (for the oven/stove) was due. After splitting 4 ways, it came to a whopping $1.31. Ah Georgia, how do I love thee; let me count the ways….

Food

Pretty standard. Buy groceries, cook groceries, don’t spend a lot of money on food. I did go out Saturday though so the bill was a little higher.

Other

Travel insurance: $8.64 per day.

On Saturday, I topped up my plan with my ‘travel’ carrier: $25. I’m sure I’ll be glad I have this once I start moving around again. For now though….

Also on Saturday, I bought a dog whistle off Amazon (because they seem to be impossible to find here): $9.98. Having it shipped to Georgia will probably cost more than the whistle, but sometimes you just have to bite the bullet. There are a couple dogs owned by neighbors that don’t care how loud they are. The idea is going to be to eventually train them to stop barking so much. If all goes well, the owners won’t know what happened.

On Monday, my Georgian phone plan came due: $0.41. It’s a pay-as-you-go plan that I’ll probably never use, but it’s there if I need it. What I do use is the additional data plan which is very affordable; I think I’ve mentioned it in a previous Financial Friday post.

Summary

Week 28
	Fri	Sat	Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Total
Travel	0	0.41	0	0	0	0	0	0.41
Lodging	5.48	6.79	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	39.67
Food	0	9.92	0	0	5.5	6.36	3.45	25.23
Other	8.64	43.62	8.64	9.05	8.64	8.64	8.64	95.87
Total	14.12	60.74	14.12	14.53	19.62	20.48	17.57	161.18

And that’s it. It’s been a relatively boring week, but also a cheap one. Write you all next Friday….

Financial Friday 27

Location: Tbilisi [Republic of Georgia]

Now, we say goodbye to July, and another week. Let’s see what I was up to, shall we?

Transportation

On Sunday and Monday, I took the metro. The prices are slightly different due to exchange rate variance. So cheap….

Accommodation

As you can see, this is a flat rate. It costs me the same every month, and August has the same number of days as July. So, no change.

Food

On Monday, I went out because the water was turned off. This happens occasionally when the city needs to clean the pipes (no, that’s not a euphemism). I don’t know how they keep the time down in the States when they do this, but here, it takes at least a few hours…which makes cooking rather difficult.

Tuesday, was barbecue day! Yours truly was on the grill for most of it, because the ‘American’ knows how to do this right? Well…I do in the States, but things are a little different here. Anyway, everything was pre-purchased to no food bill that day.

Other

Of course, travel insurance: $8.64 per day.

On Friday, we bought a ‘grill’ for the BBQ: $9.42 after splitting it 3 ways (because roommates). This is a very generous term for what was purchased. It’s basically a metal bucket with legs that’s about a foot across, half a foot wide, and sits a foot off the ground (at the top). So there was a lot of hunching over it to flip the meat.

The ‘grill’ didn’t come with a grating. We ended up buying one that was designed to be closed around meat, and held over a fire. We opened it and laid it across the top of the glorified bucket to turn it into an almost proper grill.

Also, the charcoal here is very weird. They’re basically blackened wood chips, and won’t stay lit without prompting from some sort of kindling or accelerant. Oh how I miss the round, pre-soaked coal in the States. Anyway, I included all this in the price.

What I didn’t include was the diesel we bought to get the stupid charcoal to burn: $1.97 after being split 2 ways. This is a must if you’re going to use what I guess the rest of the world would call ‘real’ charcoal. And now we have some left over for the next BBQ. Win…sort of.

For all my Instagram followers, I posted a few pictures of BBQ day. It turned out all right, but it was such a pain in the ass to set up, and get going. This is what happens when you try to bring your country’s food to place where they don’t do things like that.

On Thursday, Steam was having a sale on a couple games, and I couldn’t help myself: $19.49. I probably shouldn’t play so many games, but when it’s insanely hot outside, and I don’t want to sweat my ass off….

Summary

Week 27
	Fri	Sat	Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Total
Travel	0	0	0.2	0.21	0	0	0	0.41
Lodging	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	5.48	38.36
Food	4.69	3.28	0	11.73	0	5.87	0	25.57
Other	20.03	9.77	8.64	8.64	8.64	8.64	28.13	92.49
Total	30.2	18.53	14.32	26.06	14.12	19.99	33.61	156.83

As you can see, this week went back down to a normal price level for where I’m staying. At least, it’s normal for me; your average may vary.

And for the month of July….

Jul 18
	Week 23	Week 24	Week 25	Week 26	Week 27	Total
Travel	0.6	1.15	0.63	1.42	0.41	4.21
Lodging	27.4	38.36	38.36	41.61	27.4	173.13
Food	35.66	36.54	36.1	31.1	19.7	159.1
Other	105.96	124.59	289.09	144.76	55.72	720.12
Total	169.62	200.64	364.18	218.89	103.23	1056.56

This is pretty good. It’s about $200 more than the month of June because that’s what having no WiFi in the house cost me. Constantly purchasing more data from my ‘travel’ carrier is not cheap. Fortunately, I’ve solved this problem now so August will probably be a lot lower.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this little peak under my financial hood. See you all next week.