Hi everybody,

I'm contemplating a move to either Italy or Spain.

Well, actually, I would be more attracted to Italy, but would appreciate some feedback from people who have lived in both countries, regarding cultural differences/mentality, friendliness of people, cost of living, healthcare, infrastructures, bureaucracy, crime, corruption,... Economy is of less concern as I won't be seeking employment for some time.

My understanding is that e.g. the overall cost of living is cheaper in Spain, but corruption is more rampant in Italy.

Any insight welcome!
Thanks in advance!

Hello and welcome.
Without appearing to be dismissive I think any time spent trawling through expat forums plus the internet will give you loads of opinions from differing points of view. I live in farming country in the hills of Abruzzo and it's no more "corrupt" than where I used to live in North Wales- friendlier and warmer though Depends where you choose to live and how.
You have to do your own research then maybe you can be more specific with your questions. Italy's a big place and Spain more so.
Have fun whatever you do.

That seems doubtful seeing the number of Spanish politicians either in Jail or under investigation. Certainly there is a lot of corruption in Spain, but it is being sorted, somewhat.

It really depends on what you would feel comfortable with in terms of culture, I think.
I am Italian (from the North) but I have many Spanish friends. Spaniards overall seem a more open and noisier bunch. They love to party and they show it. Italians tend to be more reserved, and especially if you move to a village, you could be a foreigner forever.
My family moved from Milan to a small village not far from Parma 40 years ago and we are still viewed by some as "forestieri", that is, someone who is not local.
Said so, we have so many immigrants now that people's mentality is changing in this respect too, even in small villages.
Also, especially in Northern Italy, working life and relationships are not what you would expect from a Mediterranean country: if you don't want to be rude you do things on time. People work very hard and life can be quite hectic. A delay of 10-15 minutes is ok, but one hour is not.
They are both beautiful countries in my opinion, and it is difficult to choose as they both have a lot to offer.
Just try not to fall into the usual stereotypes. As said in the post above, Italy is a bureaucratic country but in a lot of areas things work very well and you don't need to bribe anyone to do the things people normally need to do on an everyday basis.
I lived 16 years in the UK and several things in my area of Italy work better - others work better in the UK and I assume it will be the same in Spain.

Noisier than Italians? Cripes!

Not criticising your interesting post Laura but this struck me.
Does it possibly depend on the age of the individuals, area they are from?

Is it possible that as an Italian you are filtering out Italian noise the way folks accustomed to urban traffic noise filter it out?

I should add that I know very little about Spain though did have a Spanish friend in London.

Two bits of Italian London experience:

1: An Italian visitor doing a fair few trips on London buses reckoned that "black people" were noisy - though that maybe said as much about some Italians perceptions of race and I think they picked up my wry/twisted smile when they said it.

2: a young Italian in London on returning home for a visit commented on how loud everyone seemed!

Sards can be somewhat reserved - some have compared them to Brits.

Your stuff on villagers and foreigners was interesting - thanks.

[QUOTE=Laura69;11618860] Italians tend to be more reserved, and especially if you move to a village, you could be a foreigner forever.

What you say is true for our village Laura.

My partner has lived here fro 45 years but she is not recognized as a villager because her parents are from the Marche.
We bought a small garden from an 80 year old man. The villagers called him the Genovese because he came from Genoa 60 years ago.

There are many Romanians and Albanians here now because Italians don't want to live in the old houses with steep stairs and no parking.

Some village populations are very insular. We live in a hamlet of about 6 max houses inhabited by "true blue" Italians and have been accepted wholeheartedly by everyone even though our Italian lingo is not too good-yet!

Thanks very much conniewalker, mikelincs, Laura69, sunnysider and philat98 for your replies!

Yes of course, I will do my homework to get as much info as possible about Spain and Italy. I just wanted to inquire if there were by any chance people on this forum who had extensive first-hand experience of both countries and get their feedback.

I assume every country has its bright and dark sides. My natural inclination would rather be towards Italy because I am somewhat more familiar with its culture, though I must do my research and weigh in other factors...

Sunnisider: yes, I agree, Spaniards are more noisy than Italians. Maybe more lively also.
Italy is very different from North to South. Many things change: not only climate and landscape and food and language, but mentality of the people, habits and culture. So it difficult to say what is living in italy. It depends where. The same applies to Spain.
On the whole I agree with what Laura writes about Italy. This is my experience too.

Hi Sunnysider,
It probably depends on the area people are from. We have been going on holiday to the same village in Liguria for donkey's years and we find people very loud and noisy. Are they looking for their friend or neighbour? They won't use the building's "citofono"system, they will simply shout the name of the person until she/he comes out and then the conversation will continue with the friend on the balcony and everyone shouting.
This is common occurrence, you will rarely find this in the North.

If you board a bus in the North, people will be talking but they will not be shouting. Board a bus when a couple of Nigerian ladies are present and you will notice the difference and how annoyed Italians are at the racket they make. There have been many complaints about Nigerian ladies shouting on buses and disturbing the peace

(PS I need to add that it is not racism, nor was your friend's comment. They really are that noisy, something that they don't do in the UK where probably they understood more quickly that people did not appreciate it.)

Of course, we are not Brits, we are Italians so we are bound to be more talkative, but I think the Spaniards are just that little bit more than us. If you have ever been to Portugal you will understand what I mean: the Portuguese are more reserved, more quiet. I don't mean unfriendly, but they are not like the Spaniards who would not think twice about talking to you if you just look a little bit in need of help or information or company or whatever.

Don't get me wrong, this is not a criticism of the Spaniards and their ways, which I love and greatly appreciate. I'd rather be surrounded by friendly and chatty people who love life than by miserable people.

Thank you Primularossa and Laura69 for this further insight!