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jamallo
Joined: 18 Aug 2012 Posts: 12
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Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 8:09 am Post subject: Romania |
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Hi
I haven't seen any posts on Romania, but I'm giving serious thought to moving there or Bulgaria in the very near future. My main source of income is as a freelance translator and teaching English is not really a financial necessary, but it would be nice to earn a little extra cash and force myself to leave the computer screen and interact with people.
I'd appreciate learning from anyone who has been to or is in Romania about the possibilities of teaching English - I wouldn't want to do more than 10 hours a week.
I've done some research on the cost of living and it seems very feasible to live on a budget of around 1,000 euros. I would be grateful for input on this point as well.
I should note that I'm 55 and will need to get health insurance - both as a requirement for my visa as well being something wise to have.
Essentially what I'm looking for is somewhere in Europe that is reasonably pleasant,, has a low cost of living and is a country where non-EU citizens (I'm an American) can get a residence permit.
TIA |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343
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Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 10:05 am Post subject: |
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Ask Bebsi. He is our man in Bucharest. |
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CAPIVARA
Joined: 23 Jan 2011 Posts: 32
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Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 4:03 pm Post subject: that's interesting |
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and north of the border |
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ReachingOut
Joined: 12 Aug 2011 Posts: 8
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Posted: Wed Aug 29, 2012 8:00 am Post subject: |
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You can easily find more informal cash-in-hand work at private schools and kindergartens, but I don't know how easy it would be to arrange something more official - if you are officially employed you will be able to get a residence permit, otherwise you would probably have to set up and register your own business. You can easily live on 1000 euros in Romania, the cost of living in Bulgaria is even lower, but I don't know about employment prospects there. |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 15343
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Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2012 4:24 pm Post subject: |
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Bulgaria ? Jobs are few and pay is poor. |
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PsuDadd
Joined: 25 Nov 2012 Posts: 5 Location: Pittsburg, Kansas
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Posted: Wed Dec 05, 2012 3:57 pm Post subject: Romania |
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I know there are teaching opportunities in Bucharest but since I am not an English teacher I can't say where. There are also opportunities in Cluj Napoca which is a great city--much better than Buch. But my experience has been in Iasi where I studied Romanian at a language school that primarily teaches English and Italian. Your post is from August and it is now December so maybe you have found something already. But if interested I can give you more information.
Nice thing about Iasi---northeast Romania, near Moldova border---is that it is not a tourist destination. Everybody wants to be in Transylvania near Brasov it seems, but that part of Romania is the most well off section. Iasi is a safe city and easy to get around in. I almost always walk but taxis are cheap and trams, maxi-taxis are plentiful too. Good rail service to other places and easy access to Moldova. Romanians are great people and I have witnessed a steady progression out of communism. Still many problems but every time I am there I see positive changes. |
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Qaaolchoura
Joined: 10 Oct 2008 Posts: 539 Location: 21 miles from the Syrian border
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Posted: Wed Dec 05, 2012 10:50 pm Post subject: Re: Romania |
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jamallo wrote: |
Hi
I should note that I'm 55 and will need to get health insurance - both as a requirement for my visa as well being something wise to have.
Essentially what I'm looking for is somewhere in Europe that is reasonably pleasant,, has a low cost of living and is a country where non-EU citizens (I'm an American) can get a residence permit.
TIA |
May I suggest either Turkey or Georgia?
Both have costs of living lower than the cheapest EU countries, friendly people, nice weather, and delicious food.
Turkey it's very easy to get a residency permit even without a guaranteed source of income. You won't find anyone who will sponsor you for a work visa for ten hours a week, but I doubt you will in Romania or Bulgaria either, and at ten hours/week and nearing retirement, under the table probably makes the most sense. In much of the country you can live frugally for 1000 lira/month, and very comfortably for about 1.5k lira. Private medical insurance I'm not entirely sure about (medical care is so cheap that until my work visa kicked in and I got on the public plan I just paid out of pocket) but since everything here is cheaper than the EU I imagine that would be too.
Georgia is even cheaper than Turkey, the internet's better, and as an American you don't need any sort of visa to live or work there. Honestly, if I were in your situation, I'd set myself up in Georgia in a nice but cheap apartment (probably in Tblisi or Batumi, but I'd take time to look at a few of the smaller cities too) and just hang in Georgia. The only reason I'm not there now is that pay very low, but that doesn't seem to be your primary concern. I can't comment on medical insurance, but at worst you can cross back into Turkey, where even out of pocket medical is wicked cheap compared to back home.
Regards,
~Q |
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