WELCOME TO HOW I Spend My Money, a series on The Journal that looks at how people in Ireland really handle their finances.

We’re asking readers to keep a record of how much they earn, what they save if anything, and what they’re spending their money on over the course of one week.

Are you a spender, a saver or a splurger? We’re looking for readers who will keep a money diary for a week. If you’re interested send a mail to money@thejournal.ie. We would love to hear from you.

Each money diary is submitted by readers just like you. When reading and commenting, bear in mind that their situation will not be relatable for everyone, it is simply an account of a week in their shoes, so let’s be kind.

Last time around, we heard from a data centre IT technician on €55K living in Dublin. This week, an Irish man living in Shanghai during the recent lockdown.

I am a 33-year-old living in Shanghai but paying income tax as an Irish resident for reasons which will become clear in this diary. I’m sure many readers would advise me to declare non-residency in Ireland, but I’m not against paying back to the system that I relied on growing up. As I am working in China, I need a Chinese employment visa. Therefore I am paying the income tax due on a minimum wage in China, which enables me to live here.

Unfortunately, I am a spender, not a saver which is becoming a problem as I get older. I usually have about €1,000 left at the end of the month, though it should be more considering I have no mortgage and no kids. I have been advised to put the maximum tax-free amount of my salary into a pension, but my current spending habits won’t allow it.

This diary has been a work in progress for some time because I always have more urgent tasks. As such I am only submitting the diary now, despite having written it before the start of this suffocating Covid lockdown in Shanghai. Just something to note as you read it. Daily life is a lot different at the moment, but we’re getting through it.

It does feel from this side that this lockdown is feeding into a growing anti-China sentiment around the world. Just how it appears from here. To this criticism, I say that almost half of China’s population survives on less than $35 a week. I cannot overstate how simple the lives of these people are. If they see the older people in their villages keel over from Covid, their only conclusion will be one of poor government in Beijing. Keep in mind that China has a government without an opposition party for historical reasons that go way beyond this Money Diary.

Overall, trying to accept a life away from home has not been easy. I started on €15,000 p/a in 2012, though I am certainly not the first Irish person to endure cultural and financial hardship. I live alone and sometimes feel peripheral here, which I blame on a Chinese culture clash, but I’ve also come to appreciate this ancient and misunderstood country. Finally, I am reluctant to base my Money Diary on the current lockdown as it is not reflective of my typical expenditure.

Occupation: Financial services employee
Age: 33
Location: Shanghai
Salary: €100K
Monthly pay (net): About €4,800
Pension: €300/month goes to our company pension scheme.

Rent: €1400
Chinese income taxes: €500 (depending on the current exchange rate)
Phone: €20
Internet: €15
Health Insurance: Paid by my employer.
Groceries: €800
Homeless Dog Shelter: €30
Metro card: €20

Monday

5.30 am: I’m a light sleeper and easily woken by the Shanghai metro passing my window. A semi-sleep is all I can hope for now.

7:45 am: My alarm goes and I’m up to the usual routine. I fix some cereal and open the laptop. My company is still operating a ‘work from home’ policy so I usually read the Irish news at this time.

9:00 am: Work starts but I’m distracted by arrangements for a trip this weekend. Travel is harder nowadays but I’m not wasting the weekend. I book the train to Manchuria and get back to work. (€150 return).

1:00 pm: It’s lunchtime but my options are limited. My usual lunch place is closed and I don’t like Chinese food, so I end up ordering lasagne from an online delivery service. (€20)

4:00 pm: The afternoon passes quickly. I try to keep my meetings to a minimum because I can’t work while sitting on calls.

6:30 pm: Finish up work and head out to pick up dinner. Right now I’m grateful to live close to a metro line, but I know I’ll be cursing it again tomorrow morning. (€23)

8:30 pm: My girlfriend calls me to check-in. She is still living at home here with her family in Shanghai, has recently lost her job, and has no savings. Therefore I pay all of our joint expenses and she also needs about €500 (or more) every month to survive.

10:00 pm: My evening is interrupted by a call from my boss. I often have late calls but I feel lucky in my job so I don’t complain.

12:00 – 12:30 am: I use this time every night to read. I understand that Netflix is universally approved by Money Diarists, but I rarely find something I like. Instead, I browse the internet or read. I usually have a few books on the go.

                                     Today’s total: €193.00

Tuesday

7:45 am: My alarm goes and I’m up to the usual routine.

9:00 am: It’s my first meeting and I work steadily knowing my weekend trip is fully organised.

1:00 pm: It’s lunchtime and thank god my usual place is open. Again I take the metro and it means I don’t need a car, that’s probably my only financial grace. (€15)

6:00 pm: I finish work a bit early and head to a local restaurant for takeaway. Of course, they know me there too and I’m in and out quickly. (€22)

12:30 am: Bedtime.

                              Today’s total: €37.00

Wednesday

9:00 am: Work begins. I’m a bit lethargic this morning but I get it done. My title is typical of the corporate world but I am basically an assistant to my boss and consider myself overpaid.

1:00 pm: Lunch. The usual place. The staff know me well. Generally, the locals here have been friendly and welcoming towards me, many have personally helped me, and it’s sad to see so much anti-China commentary in the west. (€15)

3:00 pm: Time for a quick break. I grab my hurley and go for a puck around which I know is unwanted by my neighbours but I don’t care. I usually have at least 10 minutes before somebody calls the security guard and he makes his way over to where I puck. He knows me well at his stage, and I always enjoy the arm flapping when he arrives.

6:00 pm: Finish up work and I’m in the kitchen to cook my other default dinner – salmon and broccoli. I spend at least €200 per week on groceries which is a lot.
12:00 am: It’s almost bedtime but not before I pay the bills. Thankfully it can all be done on the ubiquitous WeChat messaging app. I usually pay the bills every two months. (€124)

                           Today’s total: €139.00

Thursday

9:00 am: Work starts. The usual.

11:00 am: A quick meeting is over early so I take a minute to catch up on generic emails from the HR manager about our company’s pension plan. As I mentioned, I voluntarily pay income tax in Ireland but I am sometimes shocked to see what it is spent on.

1:00 pm: It’s lunchtime. I switch it up with a Sushi place close to my building. (€20)

6:00 pm: I finish work, stick a wash on, and order a takeaway. It’s lashing rain outside so I take it easy and laze about. My biggest financial realisation this year has been to bet against some of the Chinese IPOs. I’ve yet to turn this into profit but I hope to eventually. (€18)

10:00 pm: Now it’s the weekly call with my boss and the extended team. My boss is very easy going but I have been in trouble for joining calls late, and I can see he’s not happy when I crash land on the call, but he also looks resigned to it, and says nothing.

12:00 am: Lights out.

                              Today’s total: €38.00

Friday

9:00 am: I’m working as normal but I take a moment to book a Covid test which I will need to travel tomorrow.

Related Reads

Money Diaries: A project manager on €35K living in Dublin with her boyfriend and their baby

Money Diaries: A data centre IT technician on €55K living in Dublin

Money Diaries: A 23-year-old legal secretary on €36K living and working in Dublin

1:00 pm: Lunch. The same. I grab a 6 pack of bottled water on the way home as the tap water isn’t drinkable. (€15 + €12)

4:00 pm: It’s only 4 pm but I finish up early and make my way to the PCR test centre – all part of the government’s ‘zero Covid’ stance. Of course, the pain of a lockdown is well understood in Ireland, and the current Shanghai lockdown is even more oppressive. However, the Chinese also have a sister concept; the lock-in. This involves a magnetic lock being placed on your front door during the night and any attempt to open it will attract unpleasantries in the form of a phone call from the relevant Covid department in your district. (Covid test: €22)

6:00 pm: Dinner. Take-out. (€25)

12:00 am: Bedtime.

                                Today’s total: €74.00

Saturday

7:30 am: I’m up early to catch the train. I skip breakfast and head for the station.

9:00 am: As the train leaves Shanghai the landscape changes from urban sprawl to a snow-covered expanse typical of Northern China. I can see farmers working the fields in extreme temperatures and remind myself how lucky I am.

1:00 pm: I’ve arrived. I skip lunch too and jump in a taxi for my first port of call; a memorial museum to the Japanese invasion of China. I realise this is probably not on everyone’s bucket list, and my girlfriend baulked at it, but I’m a history fan and this part of China is bursting with history.

2:00 pm: I’m here. I look for the ticket office but it’s free to go in. I spend the next two hours with the horrors of Japanese nationalism almost a century ago. The place is almost empty which doesn’t surprise me, and all I can say is the reality of Japanese cruelty during the war is beyond grim.

4:00 pm: I’m in the taxi back and by now I’m starving. I find a local restaurant and book a nearby hotel. (€15 + €17 + €30)

7:00 pm: I walk to the hotel, check in, and then WhatsApp a school friend who has recently bought a house. I haven’t saved enough to draw down a mortgage but the more I see my school friends with houses, the less I care. There is also societal pressure in Ireland to buy a house which I reject.

10:00 pm: I hit the hay early. It’s been a long day.

                              Today’s total: €62.00

Sunday

9:00 am: I’m up and definitely not skipping breakfast today. I book a taxi and mentally check that I can catch the train home in time. This morning I plan to visit another historic site; the tombs of the Ming Dynasty. (€22)

11:00 am: Another Covid test awaits me as I run from the taxi to the entrance. The security guards are shocked to see someone brave the cold and even more so a foreigner. I pay €10 to go in and brace myself again for the weather outside. As I wander around, I learn the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty came here in 1503 and knew he’d found the ideal place for himself and his successors to see out the ages. I stay as long as I can and money is the last thing on my mind as I examine the relics. (€10)

1:00 pm: I find a local place for lunch but it’s disgusting. The taxi waits outside but he doesn’t need to wait for long. (€10 + €25)

7:00 pm: I’m on the train home and facing the work week ahead. Of course, travelling is expensive, and it might sound exciting, but I generally lead a quiet life. Months can pass with my only outing being football or a local restaurant.

10:00 pm: I’m back. I walk from the station to my apartment to stretch my legs and I order a takeaway as I approach my place. This week has definitely been expensive. (€22)

                                Today’s total: €89.00

Weekly subtotal: €632.00

What I learned -

• Reflecting on my monthly expenditure, food choices, and decision to live in China, it’s obvious that I could improve my finances by just leaving. But if I do jump ship, will I really be better off in the company of record inflation and a housing crisis? I wonder.