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A Canadian coming to Galway, some help would be great!
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08-12-2008 2:19pm#1
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inisboffin wrote: »Can you play music? You can try busking too!
Ahh, sure it's Galway, no need to be able to actually play in order to busk
You'd be better to budget 350/month for a room: you might be lucky and find somewhere for less, but you might not too. Also budget 30/night for a hostel bed for a week or two while you find a room. Again, that figure is on the high side, but better safe than sorry.
Utilities: it depends what you have. I budget 50/month for electricity in summer. Telephone - don't need, get a pre-pay mobile. Internet - may cost you 25/month, or may not depending on what's in the neighbourhood. Oil - no idea, I don't have it. TV - no idea. Transport: if you live and work in town then you don't need it. If you live out a bit, bus is 1.45 each way ... so 60/month.
Food: this is the killer. I have friends who were seriously focussed on living on as little as possible, their menu was based on whatever was on special in Aldi/Lidl (German mega-cheap supermarkets). They fed the two of 'em for 35-week. I just cannot bring myself to do that ... we're spending 60-week for two. (Price for one to eat as well would probably be 40.)
Beer: if you want a social life, you gotta buy this stuff, or an equivalent. Sad but true fact of Irish society. Expect to pay 4-pint. It adds up.0 -
Would agree with justmary about skimping on the food - it can make you trés miserable. You can live yummily if you're into veggie stews and cooking from scratch, but to be honest, I would even budget more than justmary if you plan on the odd McDonagh's fish and chips!
If you spend a bit more on food, have folks over for dinner, and have them bring a bottle That way they eat, you drink!
If you're out socialisin' the pints can add up, unless you drink tea all night (have done it!).
Some utils you may have to contribute to even though you may not need them, if your housemates use them (like oil) - so check into those finepoints.
You could skimp on hostels by going to couchsurfing.com - some people have had a great time doing it!0 -
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Ahh, sure it's Galway, no need to be able to actually play in order to busk
You'd be better to budget 350/month for a room: you might be lucky and find somewhere for less, but you might not too. Also budget 30/night for a hostel bed for a week or two while you find a room. Again, that figure is on the high side, but better safe than sorry.
Utilities: it depends what you have. I budget 50/month for electricity in summer. Telephone - don't need, get a pre-pay mobile. Internet - may cost you 25/month, or may not depending on what's in the neighbourhood. Oil - no idea, I don't have it. TV - no idea. Transport: if you live and work in town then you don't need it. If you live out a bit, bus is 1.45 each way ... so 60/month.
Food: this is the killer. I have friends who were seriously focussed on living on as little as possible, their menu was based on whatever was on special in Aldi/Lidl (German mega-cheap supermarkets). They fed the two of 'em for 35-week. I just cannot bring myself to do that ... we're spending 60-week for two. (Price for one to eat as well would probably be 40.)
Beer: if you want a social life, you gotta buy this stuff, or an equivalent. Sad but true fact of Irish society. Expect to pay 4-pint. It adds up.
Thanks a ton for the info, I know what you mean on the food though, I'll probably put aside a little bit more than that for food. I'll be sure to keep the fridge full of beer, that's a no brainer. Although I'm more of a hard liquor type guy, I understadn that most out there are all beer drinkers.
And one thing, what the heck is the oil used for? heating or? It might be a stupid question but I've never had to budget for oil in Canada lol
As for instruments, I just started playing the guitar but I don't plan to do any busking while I'm there.
Oh and one more thing, what do you guys call Paramedics out there? I've been looking into possibly getting a job in the medical field since that's what I do in Canada but don't see any jobs listed in emergency services so wasn't sure if they went by a different name or what?
Thanks again for all the help guys!
Jay0 -
Yep, oil is for heating
Some houses, especially the old ones, can be really cold here. Generally our fireplaces are relatively small compared to the ones you may be used to in Canada. Also, solid fuel/wood costs way more.
Depending where you are from in Canada, you mightn't even find it cold here! If you plan on hanging out at home, like the food, you wanna be warm, and sometimes it is the last thing people on a budget actually *budget* for.0 -
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Oh and one more thing, what do you guys call Paramedics out there? I've been looking into possibly getting a job in the medical field since that's what I do in Canada but don't see any jobs listed in emergency services so wasn't sure if they went by a different name or what?
Ambulance Officers, I think.
There's an emergency services forum on boards.ie, maybe post there to see what anyone knows about temporary employment here. I'm not sure what the story is around registration. Oh - and the HSE has a hiring freeze on, so there genuinely might not be any jobs going!
Umm .. thinking how to say this without upsetting too many people ... come here with an open mind, you may find that Ireland is not as advanced as you're used to in the medical field. And make sure that you've got good health cover in your travel insurance 0 -
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Which band would this be?
Seeing as his name is "galwayrush" I'd hazard a guess there, buddy
Anyway - about finding it cold. I find it fcuking freezing, despite being from Montreal. Why? Because Ireland hasn't yet discovered the powers of effective insulation, so unless you've got the cash to have the heaters on 24/7, it's cold again in 30 minutes.
When you get here, just hit the pavement with your CV. It's really the only way to get a job in a pub here.
Also, if you're looking for a hostel in the city centre, I can recommend Kinlay House just off Eyre Square - cheap, clean, cheerful and they have free breakfast and wifi.0 -
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Every house/apartment I've lived in has looked like your normal house - 3/4 bedrooms, a sitting room and a kitchen. One or two of the bedrooms may have private bathroom/shower but it's quite common to share bathroom/shower with the others in the house. Also the kitchen is shared with fridge and freezer being jammed with all kinds of stuff.
When you first go to check on a house remember that it is the nicest it will probably look. It's downhill from there
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Seeing as his name is "galwayrush" I'd hazard a guess there, buddy
Anyway - about finding it cold. I find it fcuking freezing, despite being from Montreal. Why? Because Ireland hasn't yet discovered the powers of effective insulation, so unless you've got the cash to have the heaters on 24/7, it's cold again in 30 minutes.
When you get here, just hit the pavement with your CV. It's really the only way to get a job in a pub here.
Also, if you're looking for a hostel in the city centre, I can recommend Kinlay House just off Eyre Square - cheap, clean, cheerful and they have free breakfast and wifi.
Thanks for the info, I'll probably get myself a good blanket then.
I plan to hit the pavement hard when I get there, all this talk about the recession and the lack of jobs has got me a little worried about finding employment so I'm gonna try hitting as many pubs as I can with CV's and see what I can get.
Jay0 -
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