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Azores relies mostly on services and agriculture. A lot of people grow their own crops, vegetables, fruits, such as corn, bananas, pineapples (ananas), citrus fruits such as oranges and lemons, watermelons etc. I've been to Pico island, which is twice as large as Malta and several times larger than Bermuda. Most salaries are around €500 per month, with more advanced office jobs are around €800 a month. Current construction worker (electrician, plumber, mason, regular help) gets €6 to €10 an hour. Pico has more jobs per capita than São Miguel, the main island, as I was told by the workers around the island. Well, so labour is not very expensive and if you own immovable property the property taxes are affordable and vary from €30 to €200 per year. Water is cheap and usual water bill is €5 to €10 per month. Electricity is not cheap, but since the climate requires NO a/c and almost no heating, except for the very spoiled people, the average electric bill is usually €50 per month or less. Yet on very well insulated homes electric bill is close to zero. Certain stuff such can be very expensive such as fish oil, understandably enough, because fish is plenty on Pico and gel tab fish oil is produced overseas. Cars are expensive, so bring your car from the mainland Portugal, but do not import it as that may cost you a fortune. Doctor visits are €2 per visit, but used to be free. Food prices are reasonable and win can be had at around €1 per litre for cheap wine. There is a bus transport around the island and plenty of taxis. Taxi taking you around chores for an hour or so may cost you about €15-€20. So, overall it is a very affordable place, and you can grow your own food year round. During cooler period (winter) it is advised to grow certain kinds of plants in an unheated greenhouse exposed to sun, as protection from wind. It gets windy a couple times per month and thunderstorms are very rare with 1 or 2 per year. No tornadoes, no predators, no snakes and no mosquitoes. Petrol and diesel are just a bit over a €1 per litre and with a small economy car a full tank can take you for almost 600-700 miles if not more. Rentals are about 200-300€ a month for both flats and houses. Oh, and people, who are afraid or tsunami or earthquakes can relax, those are very rare events and do not happens as bad as in California, Italy or Turkey. Never felt claustrophobic as the island is not very small, it is 46 km by 15km which is 9 miles to 29 miles and it has a lot to offer. 4 miles or 7 km away is another large island called Faial, with slightly more shopping. Pico has 3 majour shopping centres supermarkets and the rest are smaller stores and shops. Right there is also São Jorge island which is 11 mi. or 19 km away from Pico. 30 minutes to an hour by ferry. It's very quiet, modernised and no claustrophobia at all. It's Europe's last paradise, right?
Azores relies mostly on services and agriculture. A lot of people grow their own crops, vegetables, fruits, such as corn, bananas, pineapples (ananas), citrus fruits such as oranges and lemons, watermelons etc. I've been to Pico island, which is twice as large as Malta and several times larger than Bermuda. Most salaries are around €500 per month, with more advanced office jobs are around €800 a month. Current construction worker (electrician, plumber, mason, regular help) gets €6 to €10 an hour. Pico has more jobs per capita than São Miguel, the main island, as I was told by the workers around the island. Well, so labour is not very expensive and if you own immovable property the property taxes are affordable and vary from €30 to €200 per year. Water is cheap and usual water bill is €5 to €10 per month. Electricity is not cheap, but since the climate requires NO a/c and almost no heating, except for the very spoiled people, the average electric bill is usually €50 per month or less. Yet on very well insulated homes electric bill is close to zero. Certain stuff such can be very expensive such as fish oil, understandably enough, because fish is plenty on Pico and gel tab fish oil is produced overseas. Cars are expensive, so bring your car from the mainland Portugal, but do not import it as that may cost you a fortune. Doctor visits are €2 per visit, but used to be free. Food prices are reasonable and win can be had at around €1 per litre for cheap wine. There is a bus transport around the island and plenty of taxis. Taxi taking you around chores for an hour or so may cost you about €15-€20. So, overall it is a very affordable place, and you can grow your own food year round. During cooler period (winter) it is advised to grow certain kinds of plants in an unheated greenhouse exposed to sun, as protection from wind. It gets windy a couple times per month and thunderstorms are very rare with 1 or 2 per year. No tornadoes, no predators, no snakes and no mosquitoes. Petrol and diesel are just a bit over a €1 per litre and with a small economy car a full tank can take you for almost 600-700 miles if not more. Rentals are about 200-300€ a month for both flats and houses. Oh, and people, who are afraid or tsunami or earthquakes can relax, those are very rare events and do not happens as bad as in California, Italy or Turkey. Never felt claustrophobic as the island is not very small, it is 46 km by 15km which is 9 miles to 29 miles and it has a lot to offer. 4 miles or 7 km away is another large island called Faial, with slightly more shopping. Pico has 3 majour shopping centres supermarkets and the rest are smaller stores and shops. Right there is also São Jorge island which is 11 mi. or 19 km away from Pico. 30 minutes to an hour by ferry. It's very quiet, modernised and no claustrophobia at all. It's Europe's last paradise, right?
If water is scarce in the Canary Islands, why are bananas, which need a lot of water, grown there? Wouldn't it be cheaper to import them from South America?
Azores relies mostly on services and agriculture. A lot of people grow their own crops, vegetables, fruits, such as corn, bananas, pineapples (ananas), citrus fruits such as oranges and lemons, watermelons etc. I've been to Pico island, which is twice as large as Malta and several times larger than Bermuda. Most salaries are around €500 per month, with more advanced office jobs are around €800 a month. Current construction worker (electrician, plumber, mason, regular help) gets €6 to €10 an hour. Pico has more jobs per capita than São Miguel, the main island, as I was told by the workers around the island. Well, so labour is not very expensive and if you own immovable property the property taxes are affordable and vary from €30 to €200 per year. Water is cheap and usual water bill is €5 to €10 per month. Electricity is not cheap, but since the climate requires NO a/c and almost no heating, except for the very spoiled people, the average electric bill is usually €50 per month or less. Yet on very well insulated homes electric bill is close to zero. Certain stuff such can be very expensive such as fish oil, understandably enough, because fish is plenty on Pico and gel tab fish oil is produced overseas. Cars are expensive, so bring your car from the mainland Portugal, but do not import it as that may cost you a fortune. Doctor visits are €2 per visit, but used to be free. Food prices are reasonable and win can be had at around €1 per litre for cheap wine. There is a bus transport around the island and plenty of taxis. Taxi taking you around chores for an hour or so may cost you about €15-€20. So, overall it is a very affordable place, and you can grow your own food year round. During cooler period (winter) it is advised to grow certain kinds of plants in an unheated greenhouse exposed to sun, as protection from wind. It gets windy a couple times per month and thunderstorms are very rare with 1 or 2 per year. No tornadoes, no predators, no snakes and no mosquitoes. Petrol and diesel are just a bit over a €1 per litre and with a small economy car a full tank can take you for almost 600-700 miles if not more. Rentals are about 200-300€ a month for both flats and houses. Oh, and people, who are afraid or tsunami or earthquakes can relax, those are very rare events and do not happens as bad as in California, Italy or Turkey. Never felt claustrophobic as the island is not very small, it is 46 km by 15km which is 9 miles to 29 miles and it has a lot to offer. 4 miles or 7 km away is another large island called Faial, with slightly more shopping. Pico has 3 majour shopping centres supermarkets and the rest are smaller stores and shops. Right there is also São Jorge island which is 11 mi. or 19 km away from Pico. 30 minutes to an hour by ferry. It's very quiet, modernised and no claustrophobia at all. It's Europe's last paradise, right?
Sounds a bit low but probably not far off for unskilled labor I rarely see jobs posted online for Pico island but did see one recently offering 700 per month to take care of two bedridden older people, night shift
If water is scarce in the Canary Islands, why are bananas, which need a lot of water, grown there? Wouldn't it be cheaper to import them from South America?
No. Bananas are widely grown in Tenerife Island. The northern part called La Valle de La Orotava (La Orotava Valley), is the wettest part of Tenerife. The northern coasts of the islands are generally pretty wet, except the desert island Lanzarote
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mouldy Old Schmo
Where are you from?
Puerto Rico. I speak Spanish 90% like the Canary Islanders.
There's a Fodor's Travel Guide for Spain at the local public library. It includes the Balearic Islands and Gibraltar but not the Canary Islands.
That's bizarre, but it must be the American viewpoint. While the Canaries are a top beach holiday destination for Europeans, Americans "doing" Europe tend to country-hop watching monuments and so on, so the Canaries might be out of their focus, even though its cities are also interesting to visit.
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