Richard
Working in Mandalay
Monthly Earnings 85,000
Q1. How much do you earn from teaching per month?
I work at an international school and my salary is $2,500 US dollars, which equates to about 85,000 baht.
Q2. How much of that can you realistically save per month?
60,000 baht.
Q3. How much do you pay for your accommodation and what do you live in exactly (house, apartment, condo)?
Zero. The school provides me with a large apartment that I share with another teacher.
Q4. What do you spend a month on the following things?
Transportation
2,000 baht.
Utility bills
This question was not answered but we'll assume the school also pays for the utility bills as well as the apartment.
Food - both restaurants and supermarket shopping
15,000 baht. I don't do street food so I either eat at mid-range places or cook at home.
Nightlife and drinking
Mandalay is a sleepy place so maybe 3,000 baht a month. I'm not really into partying these days.
Books, computers
This question was not answered.
Q5. How would you summarize your standard of living in one sentence?
Excellent. I don't ever worry about money and I am able to save for a nice nest egg. I will be taking a year off at some stage just to travel and chill.
Q6. What do you consider to be a real 'bargain' here?
Food, travel, beer and entertainment
Q7. In your opinion, how much money does anyone need to earn here in order to survive?
60,000 baht would probably be enough.
Phil's analysis and comment
Another cost of living survey from Myanmar. Come on you Thailand teachers, let's hear from you!
Anyway, back to Richard and his life in Mandalay. I was impressed by a man saving 60,000 out of his 85,000 salary but of course the school paying for the apartment is a huge benefit.
How do you find sharing an apartment with another teacher though Richard? I assume the apartment is big enough for the two of you to escape from each other when you need a bit of private time? Once upon a time, I shared a small apartment in Bangkok with another guy for 9 months. We started out as best friends and buddies since secondary school. We checked out of that apartment on the verge of killing each other. In fact we haven't seen each other since.
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