Just Your Average 69-Year-Old College Freshman.
Friends have asked if it’s possible for an older person to enjoy Barcelona on a tight student budget. Not only is it possible, it’s easy. My two-month stay, for example, came in just under $400,000.
Right from the start you can save $392,000* by skipping the pre-departure, hip-replacement option. I needed it but maybe you don’t. Ask your doctor if titanium body parts are right for you.
Lying in an orthopedic post-op unit under the influence of an anesthesia drip (cheap at $5000* per operation), I had this epiphany — I’d like to go for a walk and why not Barcelona?
Food and entertainment aren’t included in my budget because they were about the same as if I had stayed home. I didn’t do tourist stuff and the tap water is free (it’s safe but my hair stopped growing the second month).
You can find a nice enough apartment that costs much less than a hotel and just a little more than student housing, a place where you wouldn’t mind having the flu. Most nights I’d fix something to eat and take my laptop out on the porch.
The dollar started strong and got even stronger. When you’re on a tight student budget, every one one/thousandth of a euro helps.
