The Cost of Au Pairing

Getting closer & closer to the date of my departure, I'm kind of curious (& scared) to figure out the actual cost of my decision to au pair once again, this time in Ireland. I'll compare the cost with that of when I au paired in France, but to be honest my memory is pretty horrid & it will more or less just be educated guesses. This will hopefully help some of you who are thinking about au pairing yourselves! Especially because when I googled the subject, it was incredibly difficult to find any sort of information on the topic.

 

Ireland
Visa: $425 + $2,500 in Support Funds
Flight: Originally $600 one way, but I had to change the date so ended up being closer to $900.
Essentials: Unfortunately I destroyed my laptop, so I will be buying a new one, as well as a backpack for travelling within Europe & new travel adapters. Say $1000.
Savings: Will be bringing around $3,000 (which includes my Support Funds).
Total: $5,325

France
Visa: I believe it was around $200.
Flight: $700 (2-Way, family reimbursed me)
Essentials: I probably spent around $300, but on new clothing rather than actual essentials.
Savings: Maybe $500
Total: $1,000

Pretty massive different between countries, but then again the Ireland Working Holiday Visa does require Support Funds, which the Au Pair Visa for France did not. Also I will be buying practical equipment this round as well as of course bringing more in savings. I will definitely be more prepared this trip, happy to say!

Also, bare in mind that although this does seem pricey, just think of the cost of moving abroad without a job lined up, having to pay first & last month's rent right off the bat, putting down deposits on utilities, worrying about your spending until you actually can find a job, etc...

In all, au pairing is a great way to move abroad for those with less funds or with the urge to leave NOW. I will also be finding myself a weekend job to fund my travels even further, which will ultimately allow me to live on my own! Any au pairs out there?! Would love to hear your thoughts. 
xxx

Before the Adventure!

With my upcoming move to Ireland, you could say I'm overwhelmed to say the least... & somehow when I moved to France 3 years ago I don't ever quite remember feeling this stressed. I s'pose it's because this time I really have no idea if I'll ever be returning to Canada! So I figured I would try to just create a quick (hopefully!) checklist of all the things I need to do & most likely a few of them will apply to others, possibly even helping?! These can of course apply to moves, round the world trips & even just short vacations. Anyway, my list...
xxx

Oktoberfest in Canada

 

1. Passport, Visa, Driver's License, etc.
I'd suggest making sure you have at least 6 months left on your passport after the date you plan on returning home. I actually have a friend who's living in Australia (back in Canada at the moment though!) who planned a trip to Bali with a couple of her friends. Needless to say one of them's passport was to expire in 3 or 4 months & even though their trip was only a week long, they refused her entry into the country... Enough said!

Also with visas, be sure that you have all the requirements before applying, such as support funds, etc. Coming from personal experience, leaving it all to the last minute will have you ripping your hair out before you've even left! & depending on your trip you may not even need a visa, in which case, I hate you. Haha, but no in all honesty, I may do a post on my Au Pair Visa that I obtained in France & I'll definitely do a Youth Mobility Scheme post as well!

Driver's licenses, health cards, etc. are pretty self-explanatory! & be sure to make photocopies, send an e-mail with these copies & even keep them on a usb incase anything should happen during your trip.

2. The Dreaded Appointments
Visit your doctor for a physical & stock up on meds for the duration of your trip or until you can get health insurance sorted in your new home country. Research any vaccinations required & get those as well. Lastly, visit your eye doctor, dentist, dermatologist, gyno & whoever else you may be going to to make sure everything's in line before you leave.

3. Banks, Bills, etc.
Call your credit company, let them know when & where you're going! Call your bank as well if you plan on using your account, or of course there's the option of closing it. If you aren't planning on closing your account & have pre-authorized bill payments that will be coming out, make sure you have enough money in your account! NSF fees can kill you, almost literally.

 

4. Belongings
Sell EVERYTHING. Yes, I am going to quote Fight Club, but... 'The things you used to own, now they own you.' Kijiji, Craigslist, Facebook Yard Sale, eBay, there is no excuse to be owning the amount of things that we do in this society. Even have a garage sale! If you really feel the need to, or are returning after a short time (a few months to a year or two), put some items in storage. It can be costly though so I do advise against it of course. Owning as little as possible will make your travels that much better, I can promise you that.

This goes with cars & homes as well... I recently sold my baby (the Speed Demon), but I have to say I have zero regrets. If you have a lease, find someone to take it over for you & if you're a homeowner & are serious about long-term travel, I'd just suggest selling. There will always be cars & homes when you return, do not forget that.

5. Quit Your Job
Leave on good terms if at all possible & give as much notice as you can (or want to)!

& just a few other quick suggestions...

❤ Plan your trip, but don't overplan.
❤ Look into travel insurance.
❤ Bring makeup, clothing items, even food that you know you will not find in your destination...
❤ Start a travel blog to document your trip. It's also a great way of keeping your friends & fam up to date!
❤ Stop stressing! Drink a glass (or bottle) of wine while you're planning, save your money, but don't make yourself miserable by not going out with friends before leaving & let go of any worries!

Au Pairing, We Meet Again

As I mentioned in my very first blog post, I already have my next adventure planned & in the making... Now, if you read that post, you'll already know that I have already been an au pair before, in Paris, France to be exact. Through all of the ups & downs during that year in Europe, I can already think of a few people who think I am utterly crazy for deciding to au pair again. But what can I say really, I s'pose I'm probably already on the downward spiral to becoming mentally insane.

In all seriousness though, what better way to kickstart my journey into full-time nomad than by au pairing? I have a job lined up in a country I am already familiar with & a lovely family willing to take me in. Not to mention the visa is probably one of the easiest to possibly obtain with the Youth Mobility Scheme (more on that later) & the fact that I love kids helps, obviously!... It almost seems like a no brainer to me, after already having attempted the settle down at home & go to college route I decided that that will definitely not be the path I take in life.



I guess I should probably tell you where I am au pairing then? Well, Belfast, Northern Ireland to be exact! I was lucky enough to be able to spend 2 weeks of Spring whilst in Paris touring the whole of Ireland & I absolutely fell in love... I am probably most stoked on the fact that I never actually went to Northern Ireland (technically part of the U.K.), so I'm incredibly excited to find out what the city has to offer! I will be leaving in mid September, 6 weeks from Monday actually.

 Cliffs of Moher

So if you've been to Belfast (or any of Northern Ireland), I'd love to hear your input! Also any other fellow au pairs out there, would be brilliant to hear from you. In the upcoming weeks I'm thinking I'll probably do a couple photo essays, some how tos that I wish I had had my first time leaving & maybe a few story tellings? We shall see anyway. Until then... Bisous.

 xxx