With €10k/y you can afford a house+food+bills in most of Europe and in many places it is way cheaper than that.
So... yeah, I find it incredibly stupid.
It’s pretty clear from the article he’s not doing this to save money, he’s doing because he loves travelling on trains and sees it as an opportunity for exploration and adventure. There’s nothing stupid about being curious, and brave enough to indulge that curiosity.
In your opinion. I think its pretty cool and would have loved to do this when I was 17.
He seems to live a relative "adventurous". Relative in relations to other German 17 year old.
> 2023 war einfach unglaublich! Ich habe so viele neue Erfahrungen gemacht, Freundschaften geschlossen, verschiedene Orte bereist und unterschiedliche Kulturen kennengelernt. Für mich persönlich war es das beste Jahr aller Zeiten.
Sounds rad.
Im in the UK so I work in pounds. 800 Euro = £684.29
I guarantee you that you cannot get house, bills, and food for this amount per month.
I actually think its a pretty smart and cheap way to live if you are young and can handle the requirements.
That is basically the minimum state pension, which some people do live on, but it is a pretty miserable existence.
But there are like 20 other countries in Europe where it is totally possible. Don't judge everything based only on you backyard.
Providing German healthcare can keep up with all the antibiotics he'll inevitably need it sounds like a good deal.
I live in one of the cheapest countries in EE.
I don’t see how that can be true if you want to live alone. Maybe in some of the poorer countries outside the EU.
[0] For one thing, сигурно ще трябва да научиш български, which doesn't sound like a great use of time.
Monthly rent €450: https://www.property.bg/property-67234-fully-furnished-house...
Both are enough for bills and food, or at least seem to be (I don't know how property taxes work in Bulgaria).
And given that figure I gave you was average salary and thus won't cover kids or pensioners, mostly of the people at or below that threshold will be supporting a family with that money, not just themselves, and that's the main reason they won't be living alone.
FWIW, I could manage on €10k/year even though I live in Berlin, but I'm (a) weird and (b) also living with someone in an apartment. Still more space each than if we were trying to live on a train, though.
Back in the UK, you can also find cheap actually-a-house houses despite the nonsense that is UK housing: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/144969266#/?channel=R... (£380 ~= €444 / month) — I think £332/month should just about cover one person's food and bills, including council tax, in the UK, so I'd be surprised if one couldn't do at least that well in Bulgaria, where 5% of the population have an income of €208/month or less.
But he is young and everyday another place. Try going skiing and visiting North See multiple times per year AND have a place to live.
I can't see how you could survive long-term on around 1/3 of a nation's average salary, even in the most rural of villages with hardly any amenities, rent alone is going to take up the majority of your budget.
You could probably get by reasonably well in Greece, and could live very well in the Balkans.
10k/12 is 833. Now let's say half or less of that to rent+etc. possible in certain not so desirable areas. Leaves you around 10€ a day for food and then 100€ for other stuff like used clothing and so on.
Realistically this living on a train thing isn’t a sustainable lifestyle, but it certainly is a fun adventure