Well ladies and gentlemen, remember that $400 mark that I wasn’t supposed to pass in personal spending? It’s been passed. Guess what else? Remember that job I was supposed to have? Yeah, I don’t have that either… I am having a pretty horrible week or so in Saigon. Despite the awesomeness of Ratatat (which unfortunately dragged me further into a financial abyss), money is not flowing in, only out. I’ve been rejected from just about every reputable English school here, so I have to now go to try to find the most reputable of the unreputable schools in Ho Chi Minh.
I’ve continued to cut down my spending a bit, but when there’s absolutely no money coming in, it doesn’t really matter how much you cut down. I am beginning to feel like all those poor folks back home suffering from lapsing mortgages, layoffs, and repossessions. Luckily, I have not much as far as possessions go so we’re doing okay.
I’m sure you’re sitting there and wondering, “Well what happened with your job?” Unfortunately, I have no answer for you because I don’t really know. I got a schedule for about 10 hours a week of work (which sucks, but it was at least a start), then proceeded to have my schedule yanked because of an insufficient number of enrolled students, followed by a lack of communication from the school the following week as to whether I had been scheduled again. I called, got no answer, and sent e-mails, also to get no answer. So I’m jobless again in Saigon…
Anyways, spending is down to about $15/day. Here are some of the smart and not so smart financial moves I’ve made.
Loretofest (RATATAT!)- $27 (well, $24, they gave you vouchers for a whopping $3 in food and beer)
Lodging- $6/day soon to be increased to $7/day (sonofabitch)
Food- $6/day
Cigarettes: $1/day - I’m making my annual attempt to quit again on January 10th (a little birthday present for mom).
Beer: I’m doing much better on this, no more club beer. Sticking to bia hoi (serves four) and if I’m splurging, Saigon Green (serves one) for 11,000 dong ($0.60).
Total spent since beginning of Vietnam: $455.00
Currently “in the red”: $55.00
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Yo Serene,
I was basically jobless in Tokyo, the most expensive city in the world, for about 6 months. It was incredibly difficult to deal with being unable to do stuff and always worrying, and I definately considered returning home a few times when I hit rock bottom, but I am glad I stuck it out. Good luck in your job hunt and keep you your chin up! You are bound to lock something down there soon, not to mention having three great connections to the job market through your allies. I found the toughest part to be the days spent with nothing to do and feeling incredibly bored. Its a quick method to insanity or alcoholism. Good luck!