Originally Posted by spainboy

I can only talk about where im living in Spain and my experiences. I live just outside Benidorm and work in Benidorm so really I work in the tourist trade part of Spain. Ive met so many friends and people here who have simply returned back to the UK. Some of them who have been here a while. Ive been here for 12 years and Im finally moving back home in the Spring.
People who are on holiday or havent been living here for long will question my move. All I get it 'why do you want to move back there for'?
Its a pity that they only see this through holiday eyes and if they lived here as long as I did then they will realise the weather is the only big thing going for the place. My Wages in the time ive been here have never gone up but shopping,rent and petrol has, dramatically. Im 37 now and this is as far as im ever going to go. Incidentally people who have returned have found jobs. One couple who were in their 50s went home 3 months ago and both are back in full time employment.

I guess its what you make of it. Maybe if you dont have too many money worries and you dont need to rely on work too much then Spain is fantastic but other than that I would go to another Country,maybe an english speaking one as this will be comforting not having to learn the langauge to get by. The wages are poor here and generally dont get anywhere near the uk's minimum wage.
Having said that I have had many happy times here. Your call but you need to plan and be realistic.

Originally Posted by Lionda

You have it spot on

Originally Posted by Val001

I think that when I say "real Spain" I mean I don't want to live in Torremolinos for example surrounded by drunken Brits. Everywhere will have its visitors of course but its the type of people a place attracts that makes it a better place to live for us.

Originally Posted by fionamw

for kids it offers a way of life, an enjoyable sort of freedom that I enjoyed as a youngster but I was no longer able to offer to my son in the UK because of traffic, loss of social community, etc etc.

Originally Posted by agoreira

Yes, I can see that, but did you move from a built up area in UK. There are huge swathes of countryside in UK which could do all you say. I'm out with my camera all the time, and I see kids fishing, yachting, on the beaches, surfing, kite surfing (yes even in the winter, they all wear suits, of course) coasteering (you might have to look that one up!). Kids in the country, near the coast, lead quite a different life than their urban cousins. I imagine urban kids both in Spain and UK lead a similar existence.

Originally Posted by agoreira

I'm not a huge fan of Almuñecar, but friends of ours have a village house in Ótivar (plus an apartment in Almuñecar) so we often meet them there. Now Ótivar really is quite the "real Spain" not sure if there are any other Brits there, as all their friends are Spanish. Only about 20 minutes off the coast but very different. As she says "I love this village, dog s--t and all". And there's lots of that, it seems to be everywhere! Spanish friends of ours think it's an awful place, they can't understand why they moved there, but each to their own.

Originally Posted by fionamw

I read Li's comment, re-read Spainboy's & thought well hang on is it just the weather? It's certainly an appealing factor. However is that all? Much of what's in that post is indeed spot on but our decision to move me & 7yo here with OH plying to & fro was largely for 7yo... so no, the weather's not the only thing. For kids - and to avoid generalisations I'd have to say kids around here, living in the campo with relatively careful parents, transport & a keen eye on education - for kids it offers a way of life, an enjoyable sort of freedom that I enjoyed as a youngster but I was no longer able to offer to my son in the UK because of traffic, loss of social community, etc etc. Here I can let him roam within a (let's say) 500m radius with only an occasional yell up the hill to check he's not causing mayhem at a neighbour's, or more likely ignoring my calls to come home for supper. You could say the laid back pace/way of life also factors in for adults, but not everyone gets used to that! So I'd say Spainboy has it very nearly right except what the country(side) offers kids.

Originally Posted by manamama

This is a great life for a 7 year old....

My only thought on this is that when kids in the campo become teenagers..will they love being out in the campo then?

Originally Posted by chulo

Can I mention the child abductions that happen in Spain or will it get closed (the last one did) as some members feel it better to ignore the subject, slagg off the UK and live in a bubble of bliss.

Originally Posted by chulo

I would suggest you spend just as much time as we do.

The Spanish have a website for them here,

http://es.missingkids.com/missingkid...Country=es_ES&

The news reports there are currently 200 missing children in Spain.

http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news...le_14665.shtml

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008...in.paulhamilos

The number of 200 is the number of open cases currently to be found in the archives of the National Police, Civil Guard, and the regional police forces La Ertzaintza and Los Mossos. When adults are included there are currently 11,936 people reported missing.
Each year some 8,000 disappearances are reported to the police but most of these turn out to be temporary cases, often of children running away.

Originally Posted by Veleta

I'll wager that the "runaways" account for over 99% of these statistics, just like in the UK.

I wish they would make a distinction when recording "missing people" whether they are genuinly "missing" or if they are just absonders and runaways. It's hardly the same thing, is it?

Originally Posted by jjh

After being here for almoast 6 years I would say PLEASE take your rose tinted spectacles off.