August Expenses

Not a bad month.

Considering we had pricey summertime flights from Germany back to Canada, and paid for an expensive 10 day car rental, our expenses were only slightly higher than we expected them to be.

We spent a total of $2,836 CAD ($2,255 USD) for the month. Here's how it all broke down...

Note, the following prices are in $CAD.

Fuel: A little higher than originally expected. We ended up filling Max right before we left Germany, so he is sitting there with a fairly full tank for when we arrive back there October 1st. And then we always end up doing a lot of driving whenever we visit Ottawa, and with the activity at Ruth's dad's house we have been back and forth from there quite a lot. We spent $237 for the month.

Groceries: Slightly lower than expected. We do notice higher prices here in Canada, and yet when we add it all up it's lower than expected. Of course the first half of the month was spent in Germany, and we did have a few meals out. September should be a better judge of things as we will spend the entire month in Canada. We spent a total of $517.

Meals out: We kind of splurged in this category in August. We don't often eat out in expensive countries. $209 for four meals out. Two of those were meals at the pub where our daughter works. 

Alcohol: We've been on the wagon pretty much while in Canada. After being in countries where beer and wine are reasonably priced, alcohol prices are a bit shocking here. It's hard to justify. We spent $90 in total, and much of that was while we were still in Germany.

Miscellaneous: Not bad, at $169. Most of that was for travel medical insurance, but I also bought myself a fairly expensive $56 pair of sandals.

Entertainment: Only $36, for when we visited the cruise ship building factory.

Overnight: We overnighted for free in Max while in Germany, then we had a one night hotel stay near the airport for $80. We have been house sitting in Canada, so no further overnight expenses. Total $80.

Travel: Flying across the pond during July and August is the most expensive time of year to do that. I simply couldn't find a great deal, so our roundtrip tickets for the two of us was $1,814. Yikes. So one way was $907, plus a ridiculously expensive 10 day car rental at $520, plus a train ride to the airport in German was $72 for a total for the month of $1,499.

So, a grand total of $2,836 CAD ($2,255 USD).

September should be better, but only slightly. We will have the return trip to Germany at the end of the month. And we're going to take the grandkids to the Toronto Zoo on the 19th. The zoo itself isn't that expensive, but accommodation in the Toronto area is approaching Singapore prices. And of course my guys weekend away.

Thanks to those of you who are regular visitors here and are putting up with the advertisements on this site. You helped contribute a record $887 CAD ($705 USD) towards our expenses for the month, and we appreciate that.

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