Looking for a
place to stay in Venezuela is not easy especially if you are a student from
abroad wanting to live alone and have a crazy/interesting/rewarding/remarkable
experience.
When I came
here for the first time, I had to do some getting used to the fact that I
wouldn't be able to live on my own but with a family with old women or kids.
Speaking from my experience in Barquisimeto,
I had to search through the newspaper for people renting. You can do it through
the El Impulso, El Informador or La Prensa.
But you can also access the local newspapers depending on the region you are in
the nearest kioscos. Go through it and find the ones you want and make phone
calls. If you don’t speak Spanish, a Venezuelan friend might help you.
Some rooms come with internet, and hot
water but many will come with cable TV. But it depends on your luck. If you are
renting from an old lady the chances are that she won't have internet compared
to renting from a middle aged who has an access to a computer.
Another way to search for a place is to go around the blocks in the area you want to rent a place and ask the vigilantes (guards) whether there is anyone renting a place. It might take a whole day and you might not find anything but you can be lucky. Some vigilantes are more helpful than others so it depends on your luck.
In the first place, I stayed with an old
lady who had a big house and she was renting the back part of her house. They
were like 3 tenants. We had an access to our own shared kitchen and also to
cable in our rooms. But there was no internet, washing machine or funny enough
a place to hang the clothes.
The second place I rented was a room in
the house of a woman with an 8 year old kid and a grandma. I had internet,
washing machine, access to the kitchen, my own bathroom and hot water. Also I
had cable TV.
Some few other facts
1. Most of people renting are women, old ladies to be precise.
2. It is easier to get a place if you are
a female since most landladies are looking for girls/women.
3. More often than not you will be
restricted from bringing anyone into the house. Your girlfriend/boyfriend can
be allowed depending on the agreement. But in short most landladies/lords don't
like tenants to bring guests purely for security reasons.
4. You might be restricted to come home
late. There are places you will be told you have to be in the house no later
than 12 midnight.
5. You might also be restricted from using
the kitchen pass certain hours.
6. Mind your key. If you lose it you might
be in big trouble and might need to pay a lot of money. Some apartments will
have a special sensory device for opening doors and loosing this might cost
you.
7. Places for rent will mostly be houses
or apartments.
8. You will need to pay the deposit plus
the first month's payment.
9. 99% you will live with a family and not
alone. You might share a kitchen and washing machine with them. The family can
have kids or other members. So there is less privacy and if you were thinking
to have a raunchy experience, think again.
10. According to my experience and those
of friends, landladies tend to be very mean and irksome. You will be lucky to
find one that won't push you to the edge. They will correct everything you do
and they will remind you constantly things you need to do even before doing
them.
11. In certain parts you might be asked to
sign a contract and so be careful what you are signing because more often than
not you will hand over all the rights to landlords. The only thing they care
(most of them) is money.
12. Also be
prepared to be asked some silly demands. I was told I needed to put my cooking
utensils plus food in my room and not the space in the kitchen. Why? Because of
rats. You might be even asked to do some things that the landlady herself doesn't do.
So have a blast !!!
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