Review rated by 46 Ciao members on average: very helpful
This review received a counterstatement by a party concernedRead Comment
I can never resist a challenge!
I am British but have lived in Spain for nearly three years. We lived on the Costa del Sol for two years, but now live in Granada, which is a beautiful city at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains.
So what’s it like to live here? Well living on the coast is very much like living in a slightly tatty city in Britain, but with sunshine. There are more foreigners there than there are Spaniards and most people speak English. You can buy everything from Lincolnshire sausages to baked beans and if you can’t find anything, Gibraltar is only an hour’s drive away. In “real” Spain (away from the coasts), it really is different. The Spanish have a whole different outlook on life – family is more important, weekends are sacred and religion plays a much greater part in life. And of course you can’t get good tea bags for love nor money.
There are also differences on the coasts. For one thing the official paperwork is a complete nightmare. By law in Spain you have to carry a residence permit and you have to be registered for Social Security etc. For some reason though, many British people here seem to feel that they don’t have to bother with this or with other Spanish laws. Possibly it’s some sort of being-on-holiday mentality, but more on that later.
More importantly for me, there are no proper British pubs here. Oh, you find many “Irish” pubs (of the kind you find in England), and many bars called things like The Red Lion, but they always seem to resemble community centres more than pubs. You might ask why I’d want to sit in a dingy, flock-wallpapered room smelling of beer and disinfectant when I’ve got all that sunshine, but I do miss English pubs. And Ale. It doesn’t travel well, apparently and you can’t get it at all here – the closest things are Guiness and Caffrey’s. You can however find the traditional English miserable Landlord and greasy tinned mushroom fry-up if you look hard!
Away from the coasts, you don’t get the Red Lions. But in Granada you do get traditional Spanish bars which serve free tapas (snacks. Or sometimes small meals!) with every round of drinks. That nearly makes up for it.
Other positive aspects of living in Spain are: - Fresh fruit and real orange juice straight from the tree. - Small shops with friendly shopkeepers. Well many of them are friendly anyway. - Space. Open countryside and mountains everywhere. - less traffic. - The siesta. It takes a bit of getting used to, but a three hour lunch break is really a good idea. Nobody gets much work done just after lunch anyway. - Festivals. Every town has at least one a year and they really can party! - cafe con leche. The milky coffee here is made with Columbia, rather than Arabica coffee beans and is very smooth.
On the down side: - Spanish tea. - It’s very hard to find anything of reasonable quality. Tools break, baby clothes (except the expensive ones) are too small in the body and even solder doesn’t work. - Spanish drivers - roads with potholes everywhere - It’s also very hard to make friends in a foreign language. This would be true of anywhere though. - You can’t buy fresh cream! - In the villages, some people are suspicious of foreigners as there aren’t very many. Others are extra friendly to make up for it though!
So that’s it really. The things I miss most are pubs (see above), fresh cream cakes, British newspapers and being able to chat in English. But I do like living here. In fact we’re developing a website on the subject right now – if you’re interested leave a message and I’ll let you know when it’s ready.
Viva España! (and for those who don’t speak Spanish, the title means the foreigner or the stranger which is of course what I am.)
************************************************APOLOGIES APOLOGIES APOLOGIES !!!!
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OH GOSH, IM SO SORRY. BELIEVE IT OR NOT I DID READ YOUR REVIEW AND I HAVE TO SAY IT DOES IN FACT CONTAIN SOME INFORMATION REGARDING DOCUMENTATION. FOR THIS IM SORRY. I ONLY HAPPENED TO SEE THIS AS I MADE THE DECISION TO READ IT AGAIN DUE TO MANALS BEHAVIOUR CAUSING ME TO FEEL I SHOULD DO.
MY DAUGHTER IS SCREAMING HER HEAD OFF AND I READ YOUR REVIEW WHILST TRYING TO PACIFY HER AND OVERLOOKED THIS PARAGRAPH. IM EVER SO SORRY.
I DO HOPE YOU FORGIVE ME AND THAT WE CAN REMAIN FRIENDS ?
ITS RIGHT THAT MANY BRITS COME TO SPAIN AND TOTALLY NEGLECT THE LEGALITIES OF RESIDING IN SPAIN.
IM TRULY SORRY ONCE MORE.
HEIDI XX
That was good but being someone who has been brought up in Tenerife for most of my life, Id have also included the fact that it isnt that easy to live abroad. I would have explained to potential emigrators all about the process of applying for the correct legal documentation and so on.
You dont just simply hop on a plane, rent a place and get a job. You have to obtain your Residencia after three months otherwise you are illegal and risk deportation and have to also pay your Seguridad Social each month too.
Most people think life abroad must be great but its not easy at first. Finding a good well paid position is virtually impossible unless you speak Spanish fluently. I know many people who clean apartments for a living and gain something like £10 per apartment and do just 2 or 3 per day.
Oh and did I mention the alcoholics who live on the Chateau De Shite !! ??
I was lucky to have been a Spanish Citizen for years due to the fact I was a child when we moved out to Tenerife.
Heidi xx
PS I adore Grenada and we often nip there.
by (2%):
28.11.2007 15:48
I would love to live abroad but don't think I could do it really, very helpful review
28.01.2005 21:17
************************************************APOLOGIES APOLOGIES APOLOGIES !!!! ***************************************************** OH GOSH, IM SO SORRY. BELIEVE IT OR NOT I DID READ YOUR REVIEW AND I HAVE TO SAY IT DOES IN FACT CONTAIN SOME INFORMATION REGARDING DOCUMENTATION. FOR THIS IM SORRY. I ONLY HAPPENED TO SEE THIS AS I MADE THE DECISION TO READ IT AGAIN DUE TO MANALS BEHAVIOUR CAUSING ME TO FEEL I SHOULD DO. MY DAUGHTER IS SCREAMING HER HEAD OFF AND I READ YOUR REVIEW WHILST TRYING TO PACIFY HER AND OVERLOOKED THIS PARAGRAPH. IM EVER SO SORRY. I DO HOPE YOU FORGIVE ME AND THAT WE CAN REMAIN FRIENDS ? ITS RIGHT THAT MANY BRITS COME TO SPAIN AND TOTALLY NEGLECT THE LEGALITIES OF RESIDING IN SPAIN. IM TRULY SORRY ONCE MORE. HEIDI XX
28.01.2005 21:12
That was good but being someone who has been brought up in Tenerife for most of my life, Id have also included the fact that it isnt that easy to live abroad. I would have explained to potential emigrators all about the process of applying for the correct legal documentation and so on. You dont just simply hop on a plane, rent a place and get a job. You have to obtain your Residencia after three months otherwise you are illegal and risk deportation and have to also pay your Seguridad Social each month too. Most people think life abroad must be great but its not easy at first. Finding a good well paid position is virtually impossible unless you speak Spanish fluently. I know many people who clean apartments for a living and gain something like £10 per apartment and do just 2 or 3 per day. Oh and did I mention the alcoholics who live on the Chateau De Shite !! ?? I was lucky to have been a Spanish Citizen for years due to the fact I was a child when we moved out to Tenerife. Heidi xx PS I adore Grenada and we often nip there.