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I actually like the glass spire-shaped building but the rest of post-50s buidlings in Andorra make the place look drab. I bet they're not that poor, why do they build those ugly apartment flats and hotels that look so drab? We have better new-builts in Bulgaria and we're much poorer. Don't believe me?
I did drive through few times on my way to Spain and Portugal, and I agree.
Lots of malls, hotels and apartment buildings - all butt ugly. Fast food & gas stations especially in the border town El Pas de la Casa.
La Vella is a bit nicer, but still pretty ugly - crammed into a long valley so narrow that they have to build high to accommodate everyone. Rocks and concrete. Neon lights and graffiti.
I guess they don't care to be pretty. Even driving is a PITA with their narrow, curvy streets.
Tourists come anyway and they seem to like to do the duty free shopping, buy cheap stuff, liquor and smokes.
The country is surprisingly rich with no unemployment. Almost all from tourism,
as there is no agriculture and very little manufacturing.
Nothing impressed me there, although the natural landscape is quite nice.
I did drive through few times on my way to Spain and Portugal, and I agree.
Lots of malls, hotels and apartment buildings - all butt ugly. Fast food & gas stations especially in the border town El Pas de la Casa.
La Vella is a bit nicer, but still pretty ugly - crammed into a long valley so narrow that they have to build high to accommodate everyone. Rocks and concrete. Neon lights and graffiti.
I guess they don't care to be pretty. Even driving is a PITA with their narrow, curvy streets.
Tourists come anyway and they seem to like to do the duty free shopping, buy cheap stuff, liquor and smokes.
The country is surprisingly rich with no unemployment. Almost all from tourism,
as there is no agriculture and very little manufacturing.
Nothing impressed me there, although the natural landscape is quite nice.
Well, maybe the bolded is the answer. Service sector jobs don't pay well, and those workers need housing, so cheap, affordable housing is built for them. The rich people live elsewhere, obviously. A country with no agriculture has to import everything, though. Ditto re: very little manufacturing. The cost of living must be higher than in neighboring countries, because of that. It must be tough for all those tourism workers.
Well, maybe the bolded is the answer. Service sector jobs don't pay well, and those workers need housing, so cheap, affordable housing is built for them. The rich people live elsewhere, obviously. A country with no agriculture has to import everything, though. Ditto re: very little manufacturing. The cost of living must be higher than in neighboring countries, because of that. It must be tough for all those tourism workers.
YEt the average wage is better than someone from Romania, Albania, Morrocco and Turkey. .I am sure there are plenty of migrants from there living there, to do the jobs what locals don't desire to do.
Well, maybe the bolded is the answer. Service sector jobs don't pay well, and those workers need housing, so cheap, affordable housing is built for them. The rich people live elsewhere, obviously. A country with no agriculture has to import everything, though. Ditto re: very little manufacturing. The cost of living must be higher than in neighboring countries, because of that. It must be tough for all those tourism workers.
It’s missing the reality that it’s a tax haven so there are a lot of really wealthy people in addition to the tourists. It’s pretty easy to get a visa if you have passive income. I’ve skied Grandvalira a couple of times. It looks similar to a French Alps ski resort. You can buy a 2/2 slope side condo there for €250.000 to €300.000. We talked about retirement there with a city apartment 2 1/2 hours away in Barcelona. For a couple, you need to show €81.000 in passive income and you only need to spend 90 nights per year there. It’s one of the easier ways to retire in the EU from the US.
Well, maybe the bolded is the answer. Service sector jobs don't pay well, and those workers need housing, so cheap, affordable housing is built for them. The rich people live elsewhere, obviously. A country with no agriculture has to import everything, though. Ditto re: very little manufacturing. The cost of living must be higher than in neighboring countries, because of that. It must be tough for all those tourism workers.
Until little more than a generation ago, Andorra was an impoverished and isolated backwater.
But now? Well, you would be surprised. It's not a poor country. In fact, Andorra has a developed economy and a free market, with per capita income above the European average and above the level of its neighbors, Spain and France.
According to the World Bank, Andorra is among top 15 countries with the highest GDP per capita.
And cost of living?
The cost of living in Andorra is on par with affordable Spanish cities like Barcelona and Madrid. Especially for things like accommodation, transportation, food and utilities.
Cost of living in Andorra is cheaper than in 50% of countries in Western Europe. https://myspainvisa.com/living-andorra-pros-cons/
By contrast, anyone been to Malta lately? In the 60's I thought everything had uniform period look. Then I started noticing scaffolding, and buildings then under construction looked just like old ones, just not finished yet.
But you can well bet those buildings are the not like the matchstick apartment buildings being built in the U.S.! Solid construction, is beautiful to me, no matter how unattractive the building may be.
It’s missing the reality that it’s a tax haven so there are a lot of really wealthy people in addition to the tourists. It’s pretty easy to get a visa if you have passive income. I’ve skied Grandvalira a couple of times. It looks similar to a French Alps ski resort. You can buy a 2/2 slope side condo there for €250.000 to €300.000. We talked about retirement there with a city apartment 2 1/2 hours away in Barcelona. For a couple, you need to show €81.000 in passive income and you only need to spend 90 nights per year there. It’s one of the easier ways to retire in the EU from the US.
That was actually my point. All the low-income service workers need affordable housing, so that's what the photo was showing. Meanwhile, the wealthy, attracted to the tax haven, live very differently.
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