- I lived in Rota, Spain, for a time on assignment with the Navy. My little apartment taught me a lot.
- I grew up in Texas and was used to driving everywhere and turning on the air conditioning, but that changed in Spain.
- I walked, biked, and carpooled to save money, ate locally, and learned how to stay cool on the cheap.
I wish I could say that I didn’t have to move to another continent on a Navy overseas assignment in my 20s to be okay with my money mindset. But he did.
Now that I’m back in the United States, I’ve taken the lessons I learned while deployed to Rota, Spain, and used them to save thousands by employing a few simple lifestyle adjustments.
1. I started spending less on food
In Rota, I spent significantly less money on food than in the US. This was in part because he lived on the southern coast of the peninsula, where there is plenty of fresh fish, olives, olive oil, and other reasonably priced staples that are typically more expensive in the United States.
Many common southern Spanish dishes, such as gazpacho and tortilla de patata, are made with inexpensive ingredients that are about to go bad (e.g., tomatoes for gazpacho are best once they’re overripe, soft and almost spoiled).
Gazpacho isn’t for everyone, but anyone can benefit from shopping for local, seasonal foods and planning meals around recipes that make grocery shopping last as long as possible. I save hundreds of dollars a month this way.
2. Discover cheap alternatives to air conditioning
I’ve lived in Texas most of my life, so I kept my AC on full blast almost 24/7 in the summer. When I moved to Spain, I had a small air conditioning unit in my apartment that stopped working a month after my first night there.
Central air conditioning is a rare luxury in southern Spain, and it was August, so I improvised by leaving the windows of my third-floor apartment open during the day to let in the breeze, and keeping cold towels and water in the fridge for the especially hot days. .
I spent very little on my energy bill there and am now much more conscious of my energy use in the US despite living in Florida. These days the air conditioner is only on in the evenings when I’m home, saving me about $37 a month.
3. I switched to walking, biking, and carpooling
In the US, I was used to having my own car and the freedom to go anywhere, anytime, without a break. This led me to burn a ton of unnecessary gas money. In Rota, I used a variety of methods to get around, as there is very little public transportation there. I biked, carpooled, and walked as much as I could.
After meeting my husband, we drove his 2000 “thumper” Honda CRV infrequently because we were used to walking and biking everywhere. Now that we’re back in the US, we’re much more conservative about using gas and carpooling to work as often as possible, saving $116-$230 a week.
4. I learned to drive standard
My husband’s Honda was a standard transmission. I had no idea how to drive standard, but I had to learn if I wanted to pay less for rental cars when we went on a trip, as automatic cars are not the norm in Europe. Once I learned, we were able to rent cars for much less and save hundreds of dollars on travel.
Now I love stick shifting, and in the US I saved over $1,000 by buying the standard version of my car. In the long run, taking the time to learn that relatively simple skill has been worth it and has propelled me (pun intended) to be more resourceful when it comes to managing my finances.
5. I stopped spending on things and opted for experiences
In that small Spanish apartment, she had very little space for things. I had very few clothes, some books, my uniforms and my bicycle. He was constantly working on the ship, so he didn’t have time to accumulate things, even if he wanted to fit them into that small space.
I also found that the experience of being on a mission abroad cultivated a sense of being “restless” or detached from a place. I didn’t buy the things I wanted simply because I knew I would have to return them to the US in a matter of time. Instead I opted for spend my money on travelwhich was (in my experience) more satisfying than housing a collection of things.
Although I only lived abroad for a short time, the experience changed my approach to money and still influences my spending and saving habits. I’ve learned that saving a ton of money doesn’t have to be complicated—sometimes it’s as easy as incorporating a little frugality and ingenuity into the budget plan.