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7 years ago
Hello everyone

My name is Suzie. I am a 34 year old professional from the U.K. My Mother and Grandparents are from JA but my Mum has never been back since she came to England in 1970. I visit JA yearly for a month and stay with family near Morant bay in St Thomas. When I go to JA I live like my family not a foreigner. I am aware or how hard a lot of people have it in JA and my family are from a rural area not well off.

My motivation for moving away from the U.K. and a good job is simple I love JA. Yes it’s frustrating I am well aware of the downside to JA but still I miss it so much and I would take the frustrations of trying to get anything done in JA over my life in the U.K. any day.

I am only 34 but I’ve lived on my own since I was 16 I also have a 16 year old son, I’ve travelled and own my home. I have had struggles with my health and I have got as far as I wish to go in my career. I just want to live a very simple life in JA with my family.

My question is about money. I asked my cousin what an average wage would be for an admin person in JA a month would be. She said between 15 and 25 thousand JMD a month.

I have a friend who works at the Serge factory as a supervisor and he gets 32 thousand JMD a month for 40+ hours a week.

I don’t plan on working in JA. I want to volunteer at the local primary school and get involved with community projects. I won’t be paying rent but will contribute towards food/bills. I won’t be running a car for the first year but will be using route taxis.

My cousin who is in her mid 20’s says 8 thousand dollars a week is enough to live on in my circumstances. We are not flush people and live simply. Does this amount sound too low?

Many thanks for reading if you need any more details please ask.

Suzie x

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