Down and Out In Barcelona
by René Vega
If you haven’t read George Orwell’s Down and out in Paris and London you should. It might not be as well known as Homage to Catalunya or 1984, but it is a little gem of a book, short, perhaps under two hundred pages long. It tells of Orwell’s experiences in poverty first in Paris then in London.
In Paris he worked as a plonguer, French for dishwasher, although the hectic duties Orwell describes are rather those of an all-purpose restaurant employee; taking out trash, running food, washing dishes and pretty much anything else that needs to be done in those famous French eateries. He worked seventeen and a half hour days for a measly wage and slept in places that would make the worst Barcelona hostel look like The Ritz. Another plonguer he describes was so poor he would paint his ankles black so as to hide the obvious holes in his socks.
Orwell then spends time as a tramp in England, suffering the Draconian laws against pauperism that England was known for. He sleeps in inns for the homeless where tea is rationed out with toast and butter. The sleeping arrangements consist of church pews with a rope hung across where the homeless sit, and rolling up there jackets to use as pillows, inclined their heads on the ropes to sleep.
I mention this book because as you might know, the life of an English Teacher in Barcelona can be one of frustrating impecuniousness, especially when you’re a rookie still cutting your teeth. This is the reason many comrades of our trade decide to throw in the towel and go back home. Perhaps I’m being unfair but let me say that some of these people didn’t go back because they were broke, but because they didn’t know how to live well off of so little. For, there is an art to being thrifty, an art that must be learned.
You might think you’re in dire straights but the truth is you’re only relatively poor compared to the 50-dollar haircuts and expensive Sushi dinners back home. Back home you weren’t thrifty because there was little need to be. Here, you must learn to live and eat well for very little, and here’s the kicker; it’s not that hard.
Housing
You most likely will be sharing a flat with flat mates. The truth is, you can find a room for less than 300 with everything included, meaning utilities and Internet. Some people pay 400 and more for the same thing but you can find a better deal with good flat mates. They’re everywhere in Barcelona. But the point is you can find a decent place with agreeable flat mates and everything included for three hundred and sometimes less. Ask a friends, go on locuo! Ask other teachers!
Food
It goes without saying that if you want to save money you should probably not go out and eat Paella every night. Eating at home is much more economical. But what to eat at home?
To start, you can buy bulk food. Instead of a can of lentils for 1 euro you can by a kilo of them uncooked for a comparable price, the same goes for rice and things like oatmeal, beans, couscous etc. Pasta can be bought cheap and there are practically a million ways of cooking it, just ask Italy! The point is, buying things in bulk is dirt cheap and easy.
If you have nothing to cook the food in you can always go to the ridiculously cheap stores that the locals call by the un-PC name of “Chinos”(they are mostly owned by Chinese immigrants). These are stores specializing in miscellaneous household paraphernalia; they are the direct counterparts of “Dollar Stores” in the U.S. I bought plates, silverware and a space heater in one of these for fewer than 15 euros once. They have everything imaginable!
For used clothing there is the Spanish equivalent of the Good Will, HUMANA. These stores are spread all across the city and the deals are good, we’re talking five Euro pants or shirts, scarves and ties for sometimes 3 euros or less. You name it. Of course you have to make the rounds to find the really good stuff but, hey, you did that back home anyway.
Here’s a list of addresses for HUMANA
Provença, 500
Provença, 167
Viladomat, 51
Travessera de Gràcia, 85
Av. Paral·lel, 85
Ronda Universitat, 19
Roger de Llúria, 9
Av. Meridiana, 314
Av. Santa Coloma, 20 (Santa Coloma de Gramanet)
Santa Eulalia nº116 (L'Hospitalet de Lobregat)
Haircuts
If you’re a man with simple taste then the absolute cheapest haircuts are in Raval. The barber shops are mostly Pakistani owned and offer decent haircuts for sometimes as low as three euros and sometimes as high as five. They’re not going to style your hair like Justin Bieber but they will make you look decent (You don’t want to look like Justin Bieber anyway). As far as where to go exactly, if you just walk around Raval, the barbershops are as common as cafes.
Unfortunately it isn’t so easy to find decent quality haircuts for most women.
Be thrifty, be creative and learn to live on less. You’ll look back on these times and marvel at the creative ways you got by, and all that you learned because of them.
This is a great place to buy bulk food. Located next to Parc de la Cuitadella. Metro stop: Arc de Triomf. Cheap!
Jaime J. Renobell Soler
Paseo Picasso 34
93.319.76.36
Open 9:15-1:30pm and 4:15-7:30pm
Saturday 9:15-1:30pm
What you can get there: Bulk beans, rice, chocolate chips, flavor extracts, popcorn, craisins and every other dried fruit, nuts (including pecans), spices, coconut milk, tahini, homeopathic drugs, tomato paste, sugars and flours, coco powder, bags of candy.
Back to blog
If you haven’t read George Orwell’s Down and out in Paris and London you should. It might not be as well known as Homage to Catalunya or 1984, but it is a little gem of a book, short, perhaps under two hundred pages long. It tells of Orwell’s experiences in poverty first in Paris then in London.
In Paris he worked as a plonguer, French for dishwasher, although the hectic duties Orwell describes are rather those of an all-purpose restaurant employee; taking out trash, running food, washing dishes and pretty much anything else that needs to be done in those famous French eateries. He worked seventeen and a half hour days for a measly wage and slept in places that would make the worst Barcelona hostel look like The Ritz. Another plonguer he describes was so poor he would paint his ankles black so as to hide the obvious holes in his socks.
Orwell then spends time as a tramp in England, suffering the Draconian laws against pauperism that England was known for. He sleeps in inns for the homeless where tea is rationed out with toast and butter. The sleeping arrangements consist of church pews with a rope hung across where the homeless sit, and rolling up there jackets to use as pillows, inclined their heads on the ropes to sleep.
I mention this book because as you might know, the life of an English Teacher in Barcelona can be one of frustrating impecuniousness, especially when you’re a rookie still cutting your teeth. This is the reason many comrades of our trade decide to throw in the towel and go back home. Perhaps I’m being unfair but let me say that some of these people didn’t go back because they were broke, but because they didn’t know how to live well off of so little. For, there is an art to being thrifty, an art that must be learned.
You might think you’re in dire straights but the truth is you’re only relatively poor compared to the 50-dollar haircuts and expensive Sushi dinners back home. Back home you weren’t thrifty because there was little need to be. Here, you must learn to live and eat well for very little, and here’s the kicker; it’s not that hard.
Housing
You most likely will be sharing a flat with flat mates. The truth is, you can find a room for less than 300 with everything included, meaning utilities and Internet. Some people pay 400 and more for the same thing but you can find a better deal with good flat mates. They’re everywhere in Barcelona. But the point is you can find a decent place with agreeable flat mates and everything included for three hundred and sometimes less. Ask a friends, go on locuo! Ask other teachers!
Food
It goes without saying that if you want to save money you should probably not go out and eat Paella every night. Eating at home is much more economical. But what to eat at home?
To start, you can buy bulk food. Instead of a can of lentils for 1 euro you can by a kilo of them uncooked for a comparable price, the same goes for rice and things like oatmeal, beans, couscous etc. Pasta can be bought cheap and there are practically a million ways of cooking it, just ask Italy! The point is, buying things in bulk is dirt cheap and easy.
If you have nothing to cook the food in you can always go to the ridiculously cheap stores that the locals call by the un-PC name of “Chinos”(they are mostly owned by Chinese immigrants). These are stores specializing in miscellaneous household paraphernalia; they are the direct counterparts of “Dollar Stores” in the U.S. I bought plates, silverware and a space heater in one of these for fewer than 15 euros once. They have everything imaginable!
For used clothing there is the Spanish equivalent of the Good Will, HUMANA. These stores are spread all across the city and the deals are good, we’re talking five Euro pants or shirts, scarves and ties for sometimes 3 euros or less. You name it. Of course you have to make the rounds to find the really good stuff but, hey, you did that back home anyway.
Here’s a list of addresses for HUMANA
Provença, 500
Provença, 167
Viladomat, 51
Travessera de Gràcia, 85
Av. Paral·lel, 85
Ronda Universitat, 19
Roger de Llúria, 9
Av. Meridiana, 314
Av. Santa Coloma, 20 (Santa Coloma de Gramanet)
Santa Eulalia nº116 (L'Hospitalet de Lobregat)
Haircuts
If you’re a man with simple taste then the absolute cheapest haircuts are in Raval. The barber shops are mostly Pakistani owned and offer decent haircuts for sometimes as low as three euros and sometimes as high as five. They’re not going to style your hair like Justin Bieber but they will make you look decent (You don’t want to look like Justin Bieber anyway). As far as where to go exactly, if you just walk around Raval, the barbershops are as common as cafes.
Unfortunately it isn’t so easy to find decent quality haircuts for most women.
Be thrifty, be creative and learn to live on less. You’ll look back on these times and marvel at the creative ways you got by, and all that you learned because of them.
This is a great place to buy bulk food. Located next to Parc de la Cuitadella. Metro stop: Arc de Triomf. Cheap!
Jaime J. Renobell Soler
Paseo Picasso 34
93.319.76.36
Open 9:15-1:30pm and 4:15-7:30pm
Saturday 9:15-1:30pm
What you can get there: Bulk beans, rice, chocolate chips, flavor extracts, popcorn, craisins and every other dried fruit, nuts (including pecans), spices, coconut milk, tahini, homeopathic drugs, tomato paste, sugars and flours, coco powder, bags of candy.
Back to blog
0 Comments
