What do you want from Spain.
 

What do you want from Spain,so your leaving your own country,because you think life is crap, so lets go to the sun and the sea,where things are cheaper and life is better.Have you dun your HOMEWORK,and if not why not ,moving house is hard enough,moving country must be very stressfull ,they wont speak your language.If you dont do your homework you can be out of pocket buy a lot of money ,if you want to go back house prices may well have increased,how do you get back on the ladder,things allways feel better on holiday,and everybody loves a holiday,but lots of people do move and adjust,but why do so many people get it wrong,is it HOMEWORK

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

Well first of all I'd like big Peter to stop telling me I'm mad to have bought off plan :) , but apart from that:

Well we moved here basically because we like the way of life here, but also importantly we could afford to retire early here with the lower cost of living.

Obviously we considered the possibility of having to move back, but I don't subscribe fully to the thought that we could never afford to. 1. When we are older we won't need the same sized house we have been used to in the past & 2. Our property here will go up in value also.

I'm looking forward to learning the language and therefore being able to communicate with people here more. I'm already seeing the benefits of making the effort to speak the language, even if people struggle to understand what I am saying.

We did our homework for over two years, and therefore I knew what to expect when we came here. I think its very important ... If you come out here on a whim then it might just end up biting you in the @rse!

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

Mitzy,I am surprised you cant speak fluent Spanish yet,Get of the internet and start trying.

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

Yes sir :D

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

Good night and I hope live is GREAT down there.

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

Now where do we start with this one ?

All i ask from Spain is to remain its lovely Sunny , gorgeous coastlined , cheap place to live.
Aim to have as little stress as possible , some is unavoidable i know but aim to reduce it as much as possible.
Homework i agree is most important ! And i also think a heck of a lot go on a quick whim , do not think it all through , do not have enough funds to weather a storm !!
Correctly chosen properties in Spain purchased at the right price mind you !!! Will stay in line with UK or not be to far behind so thats not a big issue in my case . could go back anytime and simply rent the Spanish property out IF and i say IF the Spanish market should go sour !

But Homework + Research as Mitz has said top priority !!

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

We didn't leave the UK because we had a crap life; but because we wanted to experience a different type of lifestyle while we are young enough to enjoy it.
We've both worked hard for 25/30 years. Although I LOVED my job, my O/H was finding that work within Social Sevices was becoming increasingly frustrating!!
We were fortunate enough to own our home outright, and are also fortunate that O/H now has a way of working from home using the PC - so the world was our oyster ;)
We thought why wait until we're of actual retirement age, when we may not even make it to that age!? Who knows what the future will bring?
My attitude to life is "live each day as if it's your last, and make the most of it".

We have no children, and no "ties" other than our dog, and my parents - who thankfully are in reasonable enough health not to need us.........yet.
When they do, I'll be there.

We put an enormous amount of thought and effort into our planning - that's in our natures!
We never expected the grass to be greener; just a different shade!

As to what we hope to gain from our life here:
to experience a new culture
to learn a new language
to make new friends
to offer something to our new community
to widen our life experiences
to travel around this diverse country
to be close enough to the UK to be able to help my parents
to enjoy the sunshine and warmth that always makes life more enjoyable
to offer my Mum a chance for some respite from her arthritis (warm weather)
to spend more time together - rather than on opposite shifts!
to not just be working to pay the Council Tax!!

..............and we chose to learn Spanish, because one day I would like to go and work with street kids in South America.

Yes, at the moment, we're being "selfish". We're creating something new for ourselves - but we'll put something back before we're too old to be able to.

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

Why dont you go to South America then,why go to Spain learn the language and then move on THANKS,good European

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

You asked the question, so I gave my thoughts on the subject.

Who says you have to stay in Europe for the rest of your life!?
It's a big world out there - as the conquistadors from our village (and many parts of Spain discovered!)

Going to South America will be another different life and cultural experience.
Now isn't the most practical time for us - but I don't see why I should have to justify our decisions to anyone. :confused:

Surely the most important thing in life is that you try to be a decent human being; and that you find a balance between work and play.

Aren't you being a bit judgemental??

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

:blink: Now now Douglas jack! Where would the pilgrims have been had they stayed at home to do their "homework"? Where would the American pioneers have been? Vasco de Gama, Christopher Comumbus? :blink: etc etc. It's in our nature this sense of adventure. To each his own.
For my part, I want to be able to know the sun WILL shine and not that it MAY shine interupted by scattered showers. :D
To be able to afford to live in retirement and not just exist.
To de-technologise
To re-humanise
To be able to swim in the sea without suffering hypothermia
And why Spain? Why not? My husband and I have travelled to many countries over the years, but Spain is the only one we have ever wanted to live in. Don't spoil our dream.
Chris XXX :)

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

I think this is a very good question and one that any prospective ex pat should ask themselves before going.

As someone who is going in 4 and a half weeks, i did ask myself these questions "Why do i want to leave the UK?". And the primary reason is.. Im bored of it. I can drive 200 miles and its the same old same old stuff. I know the culture, i know the way of life. The fact that eastern europeans are coming in, taking all our jobs for less money, its expensive to live, the weathers crap, the kids are out of control, nhs is squeezed, motorists and smokers seem to be the blame for everything, etc etc is just superficial.

I just want to expand my mind, I want to achieve something, I'm already enjoying learning spanish though im finding it hard. I want a new place to live, I want to come back with stories of a further away land. I want a new experience and I want to learn a new way of life. I want excitement. The fact that Spain provides bright sunny weather all year round, has friendly people, treats children equally, has a better standard of living, has lower living costs etc is just superficial.

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

On the internet??? Hell, get out to some local Tapas Bars where Brits have never set foot, order drinks for the house and 'enrollate' con los locals. Fastest way to learn the lingo...

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

I think he meant "get off" the Internet (i.e off this site!) and do some more practise ;)

However, I don't really think Mr Jack is too interested in what people have to say anyway - it seems he just wants to pick holes in snippets of what people are saying :blink:

I notice he doesn't say whether he even lives in Spain himself, nor why he may have chosen Spain??

Mitzyboy, I don't think for a minute that you need anyone to defend you ;) but I think I'm right in saying you've only been in Spain for a few months??
Would anyone seriously expect a foreigner to be fluent in any new language within a few months!? :eek:

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

You are correct... I mis-read it.:curse:

Re: What do you want from Spain.
 

We've not yet set our minds as to where exactly we intend to relocate. We've just bought a villa in Cyprus (or rather, are in the process of buying it) and are considering Spain for a number of reasons. But really, these reasons - for the most part - could equaly be met in Cyprus, Portugal, Italy, France, Greece, Turkey etc.

1. Fed up with Britain for soo many reasons.
2. Wish for a slower paced lifestyle with added sunshine.
3. Better standard of living.
4. Less tax.
5. Less crime.
6. No requirement to work.

Oh, an before he gets back from Hondon later tonight.. another reason for considering Spain is because that's where me bezzy mate is most likley going to be and I don't want to think of never seeing him again.:thumbup: