Senryu : grubby

rent prices soaring
sofa six hundred dollars
grubby place to sleep

senryu by M. Nakazato LaFreniere

This caught my eye.  Apparently people on social networks were outraged that three roommates were looking for a hard-working quiet fourth roommate who would get the sofa, not a bed or room, for the cheap price of $600 a month on the island of Ibiza.

So many homeowners now rent out rooms on AirBnb to tourists that it has created a trickle down effect with single room flats now going for $800 a month.  Unfortunately wages have been traditionally low creating a gap between pay and the cost of accommodations. Ironic that the same hospitality workers who work hard daily to make the stay of tourists so comfortable find their own lifestyle severely cramped and uncomfortable as a consequence of the same tourists. Now some people with jobs are forced to share tents, caravans and apparently sleep out on balconies and sofas.

Ibiza, a great place to visit but I wouldn’t want to live there.

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