Posted on 04/17/2017 7:12:37 AM PDT by Oshkalaboomboom
Because my wife wanted to be closer to her Grandchildren who live in England and we were looking to retire I decided to leave America and move to Spain in March 2016. Since I didn't know how busy it was going to be I left FR also but now that we are settled in I can afford to spend a bit more time on the site and share my impressions of the country. Spain has a lot of things conservatives would actually appreciate and I wish America would follow their lead.
The most admired thing there is no entitlement mentality here because there are no entitlements. If you work and are a citizen you get health care and a pension when you retire but if you don't work or get laid off you get a limited amount of unemployment then nothing. Immigrants get nothing unless they pay for it. Couple that with a high unemployment rate and the limited number of migrants who sneak in here from Africa keep right on going into France. If you don't speak Spanish or Catalan that's your problem. Because there are a lot of English speaking people here and they want them to understand the traffic laws they do have an English study manual for a driver's license (which you have to pay for) and the written exam is given in English but anything else you either have to know the language or pay for an interpreter. All government documents are in Spanish (or Catalan if you live around Barcelona). Of course you can find stores and services that operate in multiple languages but that is driven by Capitalism, not government.
It is fairly easy to emigrate to Spain if you either have a skill they need or the money to support yourself. People applying for a working visa must have a promise of employment in hand. Folks like myself and my wife must prove they have the funds to be self-sufficient and pay for a year's worth of health insurance in advance to be considered for residency. Deadbeats need not apply. There are some expats who bum their way around the country entertaining on the streets or begging in front of stores but the competition is fierce and it doesn't take long for them to figure out it isn't going to work. There are no jobs Spaniards won't do. Many of them work punishing hours at low wages. 15 hour days 6 days per week is not uncommon and they show pride in having any job at all.
Once you get past those hurdles you have a host of choices on where and how you want to live. They have everything from mountainous regions to the spectacular coastline to Europe's only desert, recognizable to any fan of Spaghetti westerns. We chose an area called the Costa Tropical because it is the only part of Spain where the mountains come right down to the sea. The mountains form a microclimate that keeps the area about 10 degrees cooler than inland in summer and 10 degrees warmer in winter. It averages 320 days of sunshine per year and never gets down to freezing. As an example of how much sun we get the area we moved from, Atlanta, gets 211 days of sunshine per year. For you gardeners it is similar to zones 9-10. The other big advantage is that because it is so hilly it is easy to find a place to live that has a fabulous view. From our terrace we can see the Mediterranean, the Sierra Nevada mountains and the whitewashed town. We even have a castle to look at. With all of that we are 600 meters from the beach but on a quiet street with no traffic. You've heard the expression "million dollar view?" Well you can get that view here for a fraction of the price. If you forsake the view and want to rent a decent 2 bedroom flat can be had for 300 Euros per month, even less if you move inland a few kilometers. The cost of living is low enough that you can easily afford to live well on nothing more than a Social Security check.
With all of those nice features, you still live in a Socialist country. The most obvious sign of that is gas stations. Where we moved from in Georgia there were half a dozen gas stations within a mile in any direction while here we have 2 stations for a town of 27000 people. Gas prices are set twice a day and it's scary expensive. The big workaround for that, ourselves included, is the motor scooter. We have 2 cars but they sit idle while our scooter is the workhorse. It costs 5 euros to fill the tank and we fill it once a week. There is no 2nd Amendment right to own a gun. Shotguns are fairly easy to come by but pistols are strictly regulated. They actually used to have a thriving gun manufacturing industry here but it died years ago, a victim not of regulations but a bad economy. There are still a small number of manufacturers but it is mostly custom shotguns. I had to sell my guns before I left the USA. The main weapon of self defense is pepper spray, which is legal. Tasers and stun guns are illegal. For me it took about an hour, a hacksaw, can of spray paint, a rubber tip and a handle from a broken umbrella to fashion a walking stick made from a piece of half-inch steel pipe I got out of a trash can. It's legal anywhere in the world and can break bones without scratching the paint. Not the best but better than nothing.
I did get to vote in the Presidential election. Registering was easy and I was told that even though I don't live in Georgia anymore if I (nod, wink) intend to come back some day I was also eligible to vote in local elections. Since I did register as a Republican I still have to be alive to vote. Nobody here talks about American politics. It's either local or Brits talking about Brexit. I prefer to stay out of it because it's disheartening to hear so many people willing to sell out their sovereignty in order to keep getting "free stuff."
My main source of news is Fox News, which is shown on our local cable channel. Because of the 6 hour time difference I watch reruns of Tucker Carlson, Hannity and Bret Bair while at noon Fox and Friends comes on live. Other than that I have BBC News and RT. Most days it's hard to tell which channel is more anti-American.
Anyway, now that we're settled in I'll have more time to pay attention. Even though I'm in another country I still want what's best for America.
Just for the record, I did not say that ALL in Spain hate DJT or Americans.
Yep. : )
That would be too safe. The guy has to be standing on the Freeway, bless his heart.
Thank-you and all the best to you and your wife.
Well that was an interesting read...always nice to hear about other countries when Americans go there. Your home view sounds awesome....and the weather, temps etc. ideal.
Wish you the best there.
CW
You might be interested in a British series that started 3 weeks ago, Spectacular Spain with Alex Polizzi. She goes all through Spain pointing out some must see places in each episode. Here is a link to episode 1, which covers Barcelona. I think you'll like it.
Episode 3 covers Granada, the capital of our province, and the Alhambra, one of the 12 treasures of Spain and a UNESCO world heritage site. The Alhambra started out as a Roman fort, was a spectacular Moorish palace and was used by Ferdinand and Isabella to sanction the voyage of Christopher Columbus.
Those are great photos ! Thanks. The first one reminds me of the central CA coast.
One of my first goals after moving here was to walk the Caminito del Rey. It used to be considered one of the most dangerous hikes in the world after 5 deaths in 2 years and it was closed by the government, with huge fines for trespassing that deterred nobody. Instead of fighting the government renovated the trail and it is now a popular tourist attraction. I walked it last April.
Wow I guess I was confused. I was thinking you walked the Camino de Santiago. We saw a special on tv on this caminito del rey. it looked so dangerous!
lajefa was the one who walked Camino de Santiago.
Thanks, so I’m NOT getting senile right? I went to the Caminito del Rey website and told hubby about it, he remembers watching that special with me.
That walk is on the opposite side of the country from me and takes weeks to do. Caminito del Rey is less than 90 minutes from us and can be done in a few hours by anyone with the stamina to walk about 10 kilometers. The only thing in common between the 2 is that you mentioned it as a dream hike while Caminito del Rey was my dream hike when I was living in America.
I guess I should add that not being afraid of heights is also useful :-)
That would be a problem for me, too treacherous. That is so great you got to realize that dream. The Camino Santiago would be more of a spiritual journey, just too old to do it.
Isn’t it awfully humid in the Philippines?
Difficult to start/run a business (socialist countries are usually not business friendly)? Probably high taxes (goes along with socialist countries and to that extent, the U.S. is socialist)?
We love Spain. On cruises we usually try the go at least a week early to Barcelona. Los Ramblas Blvd is a great tourist spot the start from.
Beautiful. As you said, a million-dollar view for a fraction of the price.
Looks like lots of Moorish-type architecture.
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