sunny side

Hi,

I may have an opportunity to go there for employment. I would like to know some details about this area.

1) Is this a good area for a family with teens?
2) Are there good Primary and High Schools for non Spanish speaking kids in this area? Or do they have to go to International schools? If so what would be the fees like?
3) Housing prices in this area? Any idea? Other facilities available in the area.
4) How far is Barcelona from this area?

Many thanks

Mari

Dick Dasterdly

Last I heard Barcelona was the capital of the area known as Catalonia.

You need to bring with you "mucho dinero".

There are a good selection of schools.

I think some of the locals will be along soon to give you more detailed info.

johnnycakes

I just wrote a pretty lengthy reply in this thread: http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=613304

I'll reply with Barcelona in mind:
1) Yes, if you like big cities and your teens are able to adapt
2) Not state schools, if you want education in English you need to go for international schools, which go from quite to very pricey. The American School was 100,000 pesetas per month 7 or 8 years ago. That's 600 Euros/month.
3) Barcelona prices are very expensive for the locals and there is a huge issue among youngsters here worried they'll never be able to buy an aparment. Lots of youngsters also make approx 1,000 euros a month so depending on where you're coming from, it might not be as much of an issue.
4) Barcelona is, as Dick mentioned, the capital of Catalonia and is smack in the middle of the coast of Catalonia.

5) In Catalonia Catalan is also spoken, in addition to Spanish. The background is basically that the two languages came to be at roughly the same time, and there is a very rich literary history to Catalan. Catalan people can be extremely proud of their heritage and also very sensitive to the fact that Catalan has often been repressed over the centuries. Most recently under Franco; it was illegal to teach Catalan or speak it on the street.

Number 5 can be an issue to consider. All signs and street names in Barcelona are in Catalan, as well as other things like bureaucratic documents (these always have a Spanish equivalent though). You can certainly live in Barcelona and never speak Catalan but I find it a disrespectful attitude to have. I personally love the language but some people's first impression is it's ugly and use that as an excuse to not bother trying to learn it.

The weather is really nice here vOv