Originally Posted by agoreira (Post 9875253)

Reading between the lines, that's the last thing the OP wants, they want to mix with Brits, want a bit of Blighty with sun. ;) It's a question that cannot be answered realistically, even if you stick to the costas, to the Brit ghettos, they can be so different. For me Torrevieja is the last place in Spain I would ever consider, others love it, it's all about individual choice. No way would I move to anywhere simply based on a personal recommendation here, we're all different. The OP needs to get out there, spend some time travelling around, checking out the various ghettos, at all times of the year, that way they only have themselves to blame if they make the wrong choice.

Originally Posted by agoreira (Post 9875253)

For me Torrevieja is the last place in Spain I would ever consider, others love it, it's all about individual choice. .

Originally Posted by cricketman (Post 9875261)

My wife went to Torrevieja every year as a kid, she didnt know it was a Brit ghetto, she only met Spaniards

Originally Posted by JLFS (Post 9875259)

I often go to Torre, there are a lot of Spanish expats from Galicia, and Asturias and colder parts of Spain, that bought places there, they wanted sun after being in blighty and colder european counties.
I dont think it is as bad as people make out, a bit delapidated, and lowish but,it does tick many boxes for lots of people. The little old marina, is slowlydying a death, but is quite quaint.

Originally Posted by Library Ticket (Post 9875615)

El Campello hasn't been mentioned yet as a possibility for the OP. My SIL has been living there for the last 16 months or so. We've only visited for a day or two at a time so haven't seen a great deal but there seems to be a fair few Brits there.

I don't know what the proportion of nationalities is. Hoping JLFS or HBG might have an idea of this. (Where is HBG by the way?)

Originally Posted by JLFS (Post 9875830)

And I belive the price of spuds is reasonable............he he

Originally Posted by Library Ticket (Post 9876007)

That's always good to know as we have spuds for breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day. :D

Originally Posted by JLFS (Post 9875830)

I have no idea, but there a quite a few Brits around there, always seems to be plenty around the port, ithas a nice feel to the place.

I would imagine that most Britsh would be happy to live there.

And I belive the price of spuds is reasonable............he he

Originally Posted by Library Ticket (Post 9876007)

That's always good to know as we have spuds for breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day. :D

Originally Posted by fionamw (Post 9876109)

:blink:
What have I missed?

Originally Posted by Leper (Post 9874410)

The Real Spain is everywhere. Alicante, Malaga, Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao and any other place you may wish to mention.

Many associate the real Spain with mantilla wearing Spanish maidens controlled and over protected by their parents. Throw in a donkey laden with a dour coloured blanket with its owner wearing a poncho and sombrero. This is not the real Spain. Wake up; look around you . . .

The real Spain is modern. Its youth is vibrant and outgoing. Its old are colourful and relatively friendly. The Spanish population is not exactly pining for the return of the likes of Franco. Neither is anybody else.

Originally Posted by Cazzy1 (Post 9874392)

I really dont understand why expats want to live in little britain, insted of being part of the real Spain. Each to their own I suppose!

Originally Posted by JLFS (Post 9874516)

The reference to "real Spain" always make me laugh.

What real Spain do you mean, the barrios "marginados" of Barcelona, where the redients can watch the prozzies on their shift in view of the whole street. And being a jeweller in Madrid is a dangerous profession.

Or Sevilla where Marta del Castillo was murdered and a class mate was condemed for the crime recently.

The mining villages in the Asturias, where nearly everyone was/is connected to the mine in some way or other.

In the "sea of plastic"towns where there is/was racial tension and riots due to the bad feeling caused by foreign workers shipped in to pick the fruit and veg.

The posher subs of Madrid where the celebs, bankers, footballers and members of the royal family have homes.

The costal town that once had a thriving shipbuilding industy that now are running with skeleton staff.

The backward mountain villages where young single girls have had to hide a pregnancy from everbody through fear.

the small villages on the Galician coast where any stranger is unwelcome because most of the village are tied up with the drugs that land there and have been for nealy the last 30 years, as in the artice below-

http://www.cadenaser.com/espana/arti...rcsrnac_26/Tes

Los narcos históricos se rearman para que Galicia vuelva a ser la puerta de entrada a Europa de la cocaína colombiana
Las abruptas costas de Galicia, con multitud de playas, han sido durante casi tres décadas el punto de desembarco de fardos de cocaína que eran cargados a bordo de un viejo pesquero en aguas de Sudamérica


I am not saying that things like this dont happen in every country,it is just that I have never heard any Brits refer to "real England" as they refer to "real Spain", and it is very strange.

I have never heard a Spanish person say that they live in "real England".(as opposed to unreal England?)

the example I have given are all real Spain, so which real Spain do expats mean?

Originally Posted by tuk-tuk (Post 9874564)

I would imagine that most ex pats would prefer to live in our uk home towns if we had the southern Spain weather, after all, be honest, why did you come to Spain if it was`nt for the weather. At 76 I do`nt want to be "forced" to learn a new language. I would prefer to be in the uk where I could talk to the authorities in English. I have heard that more Spanish can speak English around Marbella than around Benidorm. I suspect this is what the O.P. is looking for?. Well that will put the cat amongst the pigeons???.
Tuk-tuk.