where to go
where to go
me annd my family want to leave spain after 10 years, things are really changing but not for the better. but where do we go, any suggestions, dont think the uk is the place, uk seems a very scary place, have looked at devon and cornwall as they always come across as safe places to live, do you know any better. what appeals is knowing whats going on and been able to understand everything, I think you would feel like you could take on the world after living here. is anybody there that has gone back, whats it like.
jan
Re: where to go
Asturias, I think there are less than 500 Brits, no problems at all apart from rain.scarlet wrote:me annd my family want to leave spain after 10 years, things are really changing but not for the better. but where do we go, .
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Campo Kenny
Re: where to go
Scarlet, I think I know exactly what you mean by that comment. We only have a holiday place there so I'm nowhere near as knowlegable as you and others re. living in Spain, but the red tape,mysterious and inexplicable bills, silly by laws and now the Junta playing silly beggars does wear thin.scarlet wrote: I think you would feel like you could take on the world after living here.
As a self confessed control freak I do feel as though I don't control my life out there the way I can here........If I have a problem here it gets sorted........end of, if I have a problem there it's "hello brick wall". and a few wasted days of the holiday queuing up to speak to people who won't bend over backwards to help you.
As for you thinking the UK is unsafe, again I can see why you may think this.......the press and others do like to paint a bleak picture.........pick a nice area of which there are many and it's hassle free, that's why I doubt I could ever leave the UK for good.
Similarly you hear about the bad places in Spain, it must just be where various people live, because once again our area and local villages are absolutely care free and beautiful............if only the powers that be, the utility companies and other beaurocrats would play ball and simplify things it may just be classed as Eutopia by some.
Hope you get a resolve to your problems very soon
All the very best,
Kenny
Scarlet, you sound exactly how I feel but I've only been here 2½ yrs 
Not understanding what's going on around you is a big problem for me. I have tried to learn Spanish and can cope on a day to day level but not much more and anyway we're not allowed to vote in regional or national elections so even if we could understand we're denied the vote while they happily accept our taxes!
Kenny's absolutely right about the UK, there are still lots of nice safe places. My sister lives in a small town where her kids can leave bikes on the front lawn overnight and they're still there in the morning! She doesn't even have window locks because she doesn't see a need and that's not in Devon or Cornwall but in Worcestershire.
We've just bought a small flat in Ayrshire, not made the decision to move back (yet) but wanted the security of having somewhere to go if needed, and did a lot of research before buying it. Which comes back to understanding what's going on. We were able to research it much more thoroughly than researching for Spain because we could access real information, not just opinions, in English. Details of council meetings, planning matters, employment initiatives, crime statistics and what a particular area is doing about it. There's all sorts of information out there from social inclusion initiatives to when the local boy scouts and women's institutes meet and much of it is at your fingertips so you can do your initial research with moving from your pc. I'll bet you knew all that anyway though so sorry to go on
The only thing I would add is don't rush the decision and make sure the whole family are happy with whatever you decide. Good luck
Not understanding what's going on around you is a big problem for me. I have tried to learn Spanish and can cope on a day to day level but not much more and anyway we're not allowed to vote in regional or national elections so even if we could understand we're denied the vote while they happily accept our taxes! Kenny's absolutely right about the UK, there are still lots of nice safe places. My sister lives in a small town where her kids can leave bikes on the front lawn overnight and they're still there in the morning! She doesn't even have window locks because she doesn't see a need and that's not in Devon or Cornwall but in Worcestershire.
We've just bought a small flat in Ayrshire, not made the decision to move back (yet) but wanted the security of having somewhere to go if needed, and did a lot of research before buying it. Which comes back to understanding what's going on. We were able to research it much more thoroughly than researching for Spain because we could access real information, not just opinions, in English. Details of council meetings, planning matters, employment initiatives, crime statistics and what a particular area is doing about it. There's all sorts of information out there from social inclusion initiatives to when the local boy scouts and women's institutes meet and much of it is at your fingertips so you can do your initial research with moving from your pc. I'll bet you knew all that anyway though so sorry to go on
The only thing I would add is don't rush the decision and make sure the whole family are happy with whatever you decide. Good luck
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Miro
- Andalucia Guru
- Posts: 3584
- Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 8:20 pm
- Location: Merseyside, formally Torremolinos
Good topic, Scarlet, one that will strike a chord with many, I think.
For example, one big issue for many people, especially as they get older, is healthcare. Do you really fancy facing a critical illness in a place where you're not entirely certain what's going on, or if others have understood you perfectly? Obviously, a level of fluency in Spanish helps enormously, but whatever anybody else says, there is also a cultural/mentality gap which can never fully be bridged.
Many die-hard ex-pat Spanofiles (?) will claim "it's more than just the weather", but truth is, if Europe was the other way up, I have little doubt, we would all be in Germany or Scandinavia. Apart from the fact they all speak pefect English (which is a huge help), most of us would find learning their language easier than Spanish, but more importantly, they think more like us. Come to think of it, if Europe was the other way up, probably most of us would have stayed put in the UK.
For cultural, linguistic and climatic reasons, Australia, New Zealand or (dare I say it) the States, particularly Florida, are hugely appealing. Unfortunately for most of us, these are not options, either for entry requirement reasons, or family commitments, meaning the distance is too great an obstacle.
Certainly, Spain has plenty of drawbacks, but returning to the UK just doesn't appeal to me at the moment. I will be watching this thread with interest. What will Scarlet do next?!
For example, one big issue for many people, especially as they get older, is healthcare. Do you really fancy facing a critical illness in a place where you're not entirely certain what's going on, or if others have understood you perfectly? Obviously, a level of fluency in Spanish helps enormously, but whatever anybody else says, there is also a cultural/mentality gap which can never fully be bridged.
Many die-hard ex-pat Spanofiles (?) will claim "it's more than just the weather", but truth is, if Europe was the other way up, I have little doubt, we would all be in Germany or Scandinavia. Apart from the fact they all speak pefect English (which is a huge help), most of us would find learning their language easier than Spanish, but more importantly, they think more like us. Come to think of it, if Europe was the other way up, probably most of us would have stayed put in the UK.
For cultural, linguistic and climatic reasons, Australia, New Zealand or (dare I say it) the States, particularly Florida, are hugely appealing. Unfortunately for most of us, these are not options, either for entry requirement reasons, or family commitments, meaning the distance is too great an obstacle.
Certainly, Spain has plenty of drawbacks, but returning to the UK just doesn't appeal to me at the moment. I will be watching this thread with interest. What will Scarlet do next?!
Don't worry about what people think, they don't do it very often
"Acquiring a dog may be the only opportunity a human ever has to choose a relative," Mordecai Siegal 1935-2010.
"Acquiring a dog may be the only opportunity a human ever has to choose a relative," Mordecai Siegal 1935-2010.
Good points Miro.
If I'm honest I don't think I would be here if I didn't still have a foot in both camps. I realise I am fortunate to have the home in both countries. I admire the courage of those that have had to really make that hard break, sell up, and start again in a Country that is vastly different from the UK even though just a 2.5 hr flight away. On top of that to come here and have to earn a living!!
Cassandra is right, there are so many lovely places in the UK. I wonder what is it that makes people decide to up sticks and move to Spain (particularly with small children, and the need to earn) rather than look at other areas of the UK, where yes wages etc may be lower, but a lot of what people say they have moved to Spain for, still exists. I'm not saying thats what they should do, I just wonder why Spain as opposed to a relatively safe, nice village somewhere in UK.
I moved here purely and simply, for the weather, being outside more etc.
If I had to do what a lot of people do, sell up to make that move, I just know I wouldn't have done it, do not have the courage I'm afraid
If I'm honest I don't think I would be here if I didn't still have a foot in both camps. I realise I am fortunate to have the home in both countries. I admire the courage of those that have had to really make that hard break, sell up, and start again in a Country that is vastly different from the UK even though just a 2.5 hr flight away. On top of that to come here and have to earn a living!!
Cassandra is right, there are so many lovely places in the UK. I wonder what is it that makes people decide to up sticks and move to Spain (particularly with small children, and the need to earn) rather than look at other areas of the UK, where yes wages etc may be lower, but a lot of what people say they have moved to Spain for, still exists. I'm not saying thats what they should do, I just wonder why Spain as opposed to a relatively safe, nice village somewhere in UK.
I moved here purely and simply, for the weather, being outside more etc.
If I had to do what a lot of people do, sell up to make that move, I just know I wouldn't have done it, do not have the courage I'm afraid
So now it'll be a foot in both camps and time will tell which we prefer long term.
Unsettled Brits
Scarlet am so glad you posted this because for the first time in 3 yrs today I thought have we done the right thing and also friends have been talking recently about not feeling accepted even though trying to speak Spanish and smile at the school gate etc., I do not want to go back to uk because even if you find a nice area the problems I think are government driven. I also think that coming under Europe has taken away a lot of charm from individual countries and maybe given people a bit of resentment.
Keep posting your thoughts because it seems like it is a hot topic but also never make a decision in gloomy January. (even though the sun shone today) it is still post xmas
Keep posting your thoughts because it seems like it is a hot topic but also never make a decision in gloomy January. (even though the sun shone today) it is still post xmas
going going
glad so many people think the same, I think I feel very insecure being here my husband was quite ill a year ago, hospital treatment was great not private but it terrified me, made me realise what would I do if he died, panic panic. I just wonder why so many elderly people are going to live in very remote villages vineula, etc, miles from a hospital. scary. Hubby wants to live on an island due to having horrible neighbours here, but I need to shop. 
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Miro
- Andalucia Guru
- Posts: 3584
- Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 8:20 pm
- Location: Merseyside, formally Torremolinos
Re: going going
They will never admit it, but it's probably because they can't afford the Costas! They will tell you it's the "real Spain", but the Costas are too, just as the English seaside towns are "real" England, albeit different from the "real" inland towns - and plenty of pensioners choose them!scarlet wrote: I just wonder why so many elderly people are going to live in very remote villages
Don't worry about what people think, they don't do it very often
"Acquiring a dog may be the only opportunity a human ever has to choose a relative," Mordecai Siegal 1935-2010.
"Acquiring a dog may be the only opportunity a human ever has to choose a relative," Mordecai Siegal 1935-2010.
life
is it not possible that those who used to live in the uk, and moan about life in the uk, and now live in spain and moan about life in spain, have an "internal" problem, rather than the uk or spain being at fault ???
Justin you are right, Dido you are on honeymoon enjoy 
I did my first 4 months.
But the real thoughts from me are I see people who came here 20 years ago, no sat, no forums, nada they had to get on with it or go back we have a choice which I think is not a good thing for example when I go shopping or when I went shopping in Uk had so much choice no time to think just want a product to do the job not spend 20 mins reading labels to observe which is best price doesn't have eeeez etc.
When I have to take the children to the supermarket it is all about can i have this let me check the label no sorry you cannot.
So to refer to my earlier post EUROPE
Anyone know any good jokes feel the need for one now!
I did my first 4 months.But the real thoughts from me are I see people who came here 20 years ago, no sat, no forums, nada they had to get on with it or go back we have a choice which I think is not a good thing for example when I go shopping or when I went shopping in Uk had so much choice no time to think just want a product to do the job not spend 20 mins reading labels to observe which is best price doesn't have eeeez etc.
When I have to take the children to the supermarket it is all about can i have this let me check the label no sorry you cannot.
So to refer to my earlier post EUROPE
Anyone know any good jokes feel the need for one now!
Dido don't worry, I don't think you are suddenly finding that everyone on here suddenly hates Spain. But there are a number of people who maybe question at times whether they still want to stay long term. Though probably more who are happy and settled. I still like Spain, I just feel more sure that this is not where I want to be full time and permanently. But I never really thought that I would!
You have only just arrived! It's great that you love it, would be more concerned if you didn't!
You have only just arrived! It's great that you love it, would be more concerned if you didn't!
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