Re: how has the life style
 

Over the years, since we bought our house here, things didn't change that much until the last couple of years. Each time we come out here now we notice more shops have closed, less people are waiting to be picked up for work each morning, and our local market now seems to do the most sales in second hand clothes and shoes.
But what we have noticed most is the lack of expats. Their houses are nearly all still up for sale but they have long gone. The British Pub has closed down too as there are no longer any customers for it.
We used to walk around Carrefour and you would always hear English speakers but not any more. Only us. :(

Re: how has the life style
 

€35 all in? I suppose there is only so much 'vodka' you can drink a day, add the cost of post mix cola and or cheap local beer and the booze cost per day is perhaps €5, repetitive menu including lots of rice,pasta, chips, burgers etc much the same cost at a guess.

Not my cup of tea and not a lot of profit but better than nothing I suppose :(

Re: how has the life style
 

When I am over in Oliva the restaurants do not seem as busy but you are right overall there does not seem to be much change to me, although the bars/restaurant owners do complain that there is much less business.
I may be wrong but the bars that are closing appear to be foreign owned, whilst new bars are generally owned by the local Spanish.

Re: how has the life style
 

Watched Comando Actualidad a couple of nights ago, and that focused on businesses that are doing well in Spain during the crisis. The shoe repairer was doing a roaring trade, people having shoes repaired rather than buying new ones. The fishmonger behind him was selling absolutely nothing, people were going for the cheap chicken. As someone said, some of the restaurants were doing a roaring trade, and a business that was racing ahead was Turkish owned and they were selling fast food, especially kebabs (you know, all that good healthy Spanish food!) It featured an abogado doing good business, working with Indians with money to invest, as "Spain was cheap", indeed the luxury market had increased 25% in the last year. Also featured all the gold shops that have sprung up, people desperate for money flogging the family jewels! However, it did point out that 80% of employment is through small and medium companies and over the last three years over a million of those have closed.
http://www.rtve.es/television/comando-actualidad/

Re: how has the life style
 

Hmm... if I were to believe comments posted in other threads, I would have been led to believe that none of this exists in Spain; We have the best economy in the world, lowest unemployment, no poverty, the best environment to establish and operate a business, the most prosperity, lowest corruption, and Spain leads the world in almost everything...

Well, you learn something new every day.

Re: how has the life style
 

to the miserable........Talking about doom and gloom!! Get away from your computers and you'll find that life is continuing as normal in the real world.

For us, this "recession" or "crisis" has been fantastic news. Of course, it's all very much text book stuff as far as I'm concerned, so I adjusted my lifestyle 10 years ago as the "crisis" began.

The only difference between now and 2002, is that now people are more open and honest about having nothing. They had nothing back in 2002 also, but were too ashamed to mention it!!

Back to us, the current situation has enabled my OH to buy his dream property at a very good price. He has managed(under my guidance) to go from not being on the property ladder at all, to the very top rung. His house far exceeds the "ideal" property of the average Spaniard and is much better than anything his peers have achieved. All thanks to patience and sensibility and my mathematical genius, lol.

Eventhough his salary has taken a hit, with another one expected soon, we just adapt to changing circumstances without any whining.

Looking around....well not much has changed. The housung market in my area is bouyant for good properties. Mortgages are readily available to anyone with the means to repay it.

The locals are still the same, if not working legally, they just work in the black, life as normal.

Both locally and in Madrid, all the bars and cafes are full from dawn till dusk and later. what crisis? they still need to go somewhere to drink and whine about the "crisis" that really doesn't exist.

Our Cabildo is still helping (anyone that's willing), to prepare land for planting, all free of charge. They even give plants and trees free or at reduced cost should anyone be willing to get off their arses and plant them.

In my OH office, queues are as normal. He is getting more British coming in claiming to have no money to live, followed on by "I can't sell the house". We know that yes they can sell if they ask for a realistic price. Afterall, it took us 2 years of very hard work to get the deal we wanted.

So in a nutshell, the crisis has helped to consolidate our relationship and continue the simple existence that we live and promote.
The difference being that the rest are no longer laughing at us and are secretly jealous or envious of what we have achieved. (u wouldn't believe how p*ssed off Spanish relatives, "friends" and acquaintances are that we live in a nicer house, in a nicer area, with a lower mortgage and not a worry in the world).

Re: how has the life style
 

In some ways a recession can be good for ex-pats. As someone said, less/no building. Prices should drop. In those heady days when everyone and their mothers were coming, the Spanish automatically put up prices at least 10% every April. Most forgot how to smile and some didn't care if they served you or not. Lived in Spain through the 90's slump and it was nice then!

Re: how has the life style
 

Wow! I'm glad I'm not related to you! :eek:

Re: how has the life style
 

I'm all right Jack.

Re: how has the life style
 

I too lived through the early nineties slump, and hardly noticed it, perhaps because I was too busy running my business. But you can't compare it with this recession, it's already twice as long, twice as deep and there's no end in sight.

I suppose if you were the kind of person who thrives on Schadenfreude, (not you Jacky) then you could enjoy some aspects of this recession, but it's not something I could do.

I help out where I can through the various charity organisations and we are busier than usual. My wife works as an interpreter, (mostly medical stuff) and has reduced her charges.

But to get back to the original OP, I'm still happy living in Spain, because this recession is world wide and has nothing to do with Spain, specifically. It started because of foul play by the bankers, mainly in the US, but soon spread all over.

In a way, Spain was innocent, the Bank of Spain didn't allow any Spanish bank to invest in those daft bundled mortgage debts (I can't think of the name of them) from across the big pond.

Re: how has the life style
 

Ain't that the truth! ;) Until I come back out to see for myself, I read the Spanish press daily, and as you've observed, what's reported there is light years away from what we often read here. Mind you, they must have caught the Spanish habit of denying there ever was a crisis until it was several years under way. People on these forums were laughing at UK banks, telling us how well Spain and the Spanish banks had handled the crisis. :) As I said at the time, ¡Ya veremos!

Re: how has the life style
 

What caused the EU financial crisis?

the 5 reasons why Europe is sick

Re: how has the life style
 

You must visit a different forum to me. I can't remember anyone on here saying there is no crisis in Spain

As to whether it effects your lifestyle, well that depends mostly on your own income and a little bit on where you live

On a day to day basis the only thing you'd notice where I am is that the prices in the cafes and restaurants are lower than 5 years ago and every few hours you see vans stopping to rustle through the bins

Oh and you can rent a place much more cheaply than 5 years ago

Re: how has the life style
 

although the BH has lived here for the past 3 years I have only been resident for the past 4 months, but already I see an improvement in lifestyle compared with Rip Off Britain.
There is real value for money, when you spend even a couple of euros you are given a thank you, sometimes (but not always) in the Chinese shops. The prices are lower, the product i.e. food is of better quality, no added this added that.

Yes Spain has its problems - but then many countries including those not in the EU have problems.

But as a life style we both feel that our lifestyle has improved being in Spain and can see no reason to be unhappy here. Asking the same question about the UK would be another matter, where we were beginning to feel foreigners in our own country. At least here we know we are the foreigners and revel in it.

Re: how has the life style
 

I'd have to agree with that. Britain is in arguably deeper sh*t than Spain.

Unfortunately, Spain is subject to EU control (and the shackles of the Euro), and that's the main peeve I have with it. Without the EU, Spain could be a lot better off (provided we had decent leadership, which historically hasn't been so, and at the very least, is highly questionable at this point).