johnnyone

[QUOTE=cricketman;9067535]It is more a state of mind than a specific geographic location

They are inhabited by strange characters such as the Middle aged man in shorts with the big beer belly, the hooded teenagers with caps who think they live in the Bronx, the bald and stocky golfers about to go on the p*ssup and end the evening in a fight, the diminuitive Spanish golfball seller, the 18 year old girls from Liverpool handing out flyers to cr*ppy bars with expensive drinks .[QUOTE]

I said Expat not Essex.

bil

[QUOTE=johnnyone;9068606][QUOTE=cricketman;9067535]It is more a state of mind than a specific geographic location

They are inhabited by strange characters such as the Middle aged man in shorts with the big beer belly, the hooded teenagers with caps who think they live in the Bronx, the bald and stocky golfers about to go on the p*ssup and end the evening in a fight, the diminuitive Spanish golfball seller, the 18 year old girls from Liverpool handing out flyers to cr*ppy bars with expensive drinks . I suppose you could say that your 'expat land' is actually 'Essex in the sun' ?

There are an awful lot of similarities.

cricketman

Yep pretty much

I think those kind of people in the SE of England were the ones who saw their house prices increase dramatically 10 years ago so either sold up or cashed in their equity and moved to Spain

I joke that most the expats in Spain have Thatcher to thank. She allowed them to buy their council houses dirt cheap then sell them for 100,000s of pounds 10-15 years later so they could move to Spain.

Yes I know, very classist of me

haydngj

CRICKETMAN YOU HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD.I am one of them and I'm not too proud of what I did,but the bandwagon was there and on I went not wanting to left behind. If Thatcher had not done that I would have had to buy a private property and sold that to live in the sun. I think I would have been better off if she had not done that.The money saved by buying the council house was not used wisely by me.I am now quite content with my lot though.

jojojojojo

Expat land can be found anywhere these days, it will eventually become an amalgam of the country its in. Where I live now in Benalmadena once upon a time was typically "expat land", but its now just part of the town, lots of nationalities all making their mark with things from their own country. Its no different in the UK. My home town in the UK has many different nationalities cohabiting together and turning the town into an "expat/international land". Its all part of the way life and the world is progressing, in fact it would be considered racist to object.

In Spain, the typical British businesses run alongside the typical German, Spanish, Chinese, Italian businesses and the successful ones survive and carry on to become part of their surroundings. Its certainly not something to criticize anymore cos its happening everywhere

Jo xxx

steviedeluxe

Good points. It's not just London, but is perhaps more pronounced here, you can walk along busy shopping streets (whether it be Kilburn, Notting Hill or Brixton High Street) without ever hearing a British accent. It does mean a greater variety of shops and eating establishments (except where for some bizarre reason hordes of fried chicken shops take over) and streets are always busy, but it's no longer England but this modern version "Expat land". On the whole I like it.

angiescarr

Hi Johnnyone
I think you might be asking because I've used this expression. Maybe a few others have too.
When I use it I mean areas where there is a higher percentage of expats than natives, and where, therefore, the shops etc cater specifically for expat clientele. As in "I don't live in expat land and so I don't have an Iceland close to me".
Hope that answers the question.

jackytoo

Really depends on each others perception of ex-pat land doesn't it. I would bet that the majority on here only socialise with other ex-pats. My view of ex-pat land is still taking tea at 6pm. Eating lunch at 1pm etc. Also urbanisations where the owners are almost all exculsively British, some having a British President (one I know even employs Brit gardeners!). Nothing wrong with it you pays your money etc............

As for London it has always seemed full of foreigners even when I was a youngster.

Just to add the typical british ex-pat on the coast can always be seen in shorts, even when it's cold!

jojojojojo

I think its time to stop banging on about this expat brit snobbery! Its not important. so what if there are brits in shorts? So what if people shop in Iceland? I shop in various places, Carrefour (french), Mercadona (Spanish) Lidls (German??), Iceland (British) my local independent supermarket - why on earth not, there are always lots of Spanish (and other nationalities) in all of them. When we were in the UK we used to go to Indian, Italian, French..... restaurants and shops! In fact the biggest influx in Spain at the moment from what I've seen are the Chinese Todos shops and restaurants.

Why do we see our own countrymen as inferior and peculiar just because they've chosen to set up a home and business in Spain? Other nationalities are in Spain (and other countries) doing just the same, but we dont seem bothered by that.

Jo xxx

jackytoo

Yes that's true. Lots of German shops and bars and some Dutch bars. Natural for people of the same language and cultural background to stick together. The Spanish in the UK do it too. Unfortunately this forum is very good at putting down anything British, even it's people. BTW my bit about shorts was only tongue in cheek, I don't mind if they have cold balls

Casa Santo Estevo

This is what the Aussies think it is.

cricketman

For me, it is because the British quite deliberately set out to distance themselves from other nationalities. Hence why they dont speak Spanish and there are British schools, shops and restaurants.

The difference is the Chinese, Morrocans or Romains DO speak Spanish and the businesses they set up are aimed at the whole population, not just other people from their countries.

agoreira

They've become trend setters though, it's fashionable now to wear socks with your sandals!
http://devilwearszara.vogue.es/2010/...l-entretiempo/

Dick Dasterdly

Fings aint what they used to be.

http://www.hackney.gov.uk/hackneys-r...crime-fall.htm

There was a TV news report a few weeks back which stated that the overall UK crime-rate has been steadily decreasing for the past thirty years, with a much more rapid decrease in the last two or three years.

Maybe the villains are all pooling their resources from crime and council house sales and moving down to the Costas.

cricketman

Do they?

We knew a few Spanish people in London and they all spoke fluent English, had jobs with British companies and had many British friends.

How many British people can say that in Spain?

There are only around 50,000-100,000 Spanish people in the UK though compared to the official 300,000 British (and unofficially 1 million) in Spain