Expat Living 101.com Blog » Living in Spain

Living Abroad: An Epiphany

Paul Allen — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 15:19:35 +0000

One of the great things about living abroad is the exposure it gives to different cultures, the countries’ traditions and their way of thinking.

Festivals and public holidays are a prime example.

For instance, in Spain – and many other Christian places around the world – the major gift-giving ceremonies associated with Christmas do not happen on December 25. Instead, they are reserved for today, the Feast of the Epiphany.

The Epiphany celebrates the revelation of Jesus Christ as the son of God, when the Magi – the wise men from the East – present their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. For this reason, in Spain it is called El Día de los Reyes (The Day of the Kings).

In towns across the country, the evening of January 5 sees the three kings – Melchior, Caspar (or Gaspar) and Balthasar – parade through the streets, the children flanking their route straining to see and touch them. As with Santa Claus, the Magi then deliver presents during the night while the children sleep.

And when they awake the festivities begin!

Celebrating the Holiday Season Abroad

Paul Allen — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 14:16:48 +0000

The Holiday Season is well upon us. But if you live abroad you’ll need to get used to a whole different category of celebrations.

Take today, December 6. For many of us it may be another dreary Monday at work. But not everywhere …

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

December 6 is a special festival for children in many European countries, as well as some American cities – for it marks Saint Nicholas Day.

In the Netherlands in particular, Saint Nicholas’ Eve is the equivalent of Christmas Eve, when Sinterklaas (the original Santa Claus) brings gifts for all the good boys and girls. Similarly, in Germany children traditionally put a boot out for St Nicholas to fill with small presents and sweets.

Advent of Democracy

December 6 is a special holiday in Spain too, albeit for different reasons. This is Constitution Day, marking the Spanish public’s vote in 1978 to approve the Constitution of Spain, and thus the country’s formal transition to a democratic state.

As a citizen of the UK, with its long democratic history, it is easy to forget how recent the establishment of such political rights was in Spain. If I was a Spaniard, however, I would have been born in a dictatorship.

In the developed world it is easy to see democracy as a right, one we take for granted. But days like today remind me how blessed we are.

What Quality of Life Can You Expect Abroad?

Paul Allen — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 16:44:58 +0000

We’ve long suspected it, and now it appears to be true – the French, those lucky blighters, have the best quality of life in Europe.

Or, at least, so says a new study by consumer comparison service uSwitch.com[1].

Its research examined 16 quality of life factors – such as net income, food and fuel costs, life expectancy and working conditions – across 10 European countries to see how they stacked up.

France emerged with the best overall score, followed by Spain. The UK came ninth, with Ireland propping up the bottom of the table.

The reason for the UK’s poor score, said uSwitch, included its high living costs, below average government spending on health and education, shortage of holiday entitlements, high retirement age and lack of sunshine.

France, by contrast, was found to have the lowest retirement age, the longest life expectancy and the highest healthcare spend.

Meanwhile, Spain benefited from low living costs (especially for alcohol and cigarettes!), the highest number of holidays (at 43 days per year) and most sunshine hours.

The firm went on to note that three in ten people in the UK believe now is a good time to emigrate[2]. Given the low quality of life it seems they can expect to enjoy, is it any wonder?

The Full Picture

Yet before everyone starts packing their bags for France and Spain, it is important to remember that while such surveys make for attention-grabbing headlines, they don’t show the full picture.

For instance, the uSwitch report gives no consideration to the countries’ current or expected economic growth rates. Or what about the 20% unemployment rate afflicting Spain?

It gives no weighting either to the burdensome red tape that is so often cited as a feature of life in France and Italy.

The percentage of GDP spent on health is a blunt tool too by which to measure and compare the efficacy of countries’ systems. The United States, for one, spends a considerably higher percentage of its GDP on health, yet millions of its citizens remain without adequate, or indeed any, health cover.

The uSwitch survey also takes it as given that the greater the hours of sunshine the better. Yet the impressive sunshine quota seen in southern Europe – as well as places such as California and parts of Australia – bring with it high summer temperatures that frequently provoke raging forest fires, water shortages, pest infestations and crop failures.

In addition, the summer heat may force residents, especially the elderly, to spend weeks of the year trapped indoors, and can even lead to spiking death rates (as seen in Europe during the 2003 heatwave).

In short, these types of reports and surveys – a plethora of which are produced around the world each year – can give some helpful indication of the life you can expect to find when moving abroad. But to get a real picture, don’t forget to consider all the elements, the pros and the cons, and what they mean specifically to you.

[1] UK and Ireland Trailing the Rest of Europe for Quality of Life, uSwitch.com, 22 September 2010, http://www.uswitch.com/press-room/press-releases/uk-and-ireland-trailing-the-rest-of-europe-for-quality-of-life-1769.pdf.

[2] uSwitch.com Consumer Opinion Panel, May 2010, amongst a sample of 3,640 adults.

Buying Property Abroad

Paul Allen — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 12:36:00 +0000

Buying a property in your home country can be a time-consuming, expensive and stressful experience. So think what it’s like trying to do it in another country.

Abroad you may face unfamiliar market conditions, uncertainty around how to arrange a mortgage or how they are calculated, what legal processes are necessary and the fees you will have to pay. To complicate matters further you may not even speak the language.

Those are the sorts of obstacles my wife and I had to navigate when buying our house in Spain. It is not an experience I am eager to repeat.

Much better, I now realise, to get an expert who knows the market intimately to take the strain.

Professional Help

So I was intrigued when I heard recently about a Spanish-based company called Shortcuts Property Search (www.shortcutspropertysearch.com).

Their service is tailored to make both the searching for a property, and the actual buying process through to the signing of the escritura de compra/venta, as easy as possible. This is especially useful for people who don’t speak Spanish, and/or don’t have the time or money to make various trips to Spain before making up their minds.

Crucially, the service comes at no cost to the client either, as normally Shortcuts finds properties through agents who then pay it part of their commission. In situations where Shortcuts finds a property from a private seller the firm charges a 2% commission.

For the moment, Shortcuts Property Search only operates in Spain. But if you are buying property elsewhere in the world I would advise looking for a company that can provide a similar sort of service.

It will make the purchase process much easier and more enjoyable, saving you the stress and bitter aftertaste that can otherwise result. In the long run it will probably save you cash too, by helping you avoid all those ill-suited places, and instead finding you the best deal for your money.

Catalan Ban Spells the End of Bullfighting?

Paul Allen — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 12:24:19 +0000

Bullfighting divides opinion, even in its Spanish heartland. Some see it as a majestic cultural tradition that pays homage to the courage and skill of both man and mighty beast. Others regard it as unacceptable animal cruelty.

In Spain, bullfighting evokes a bygone era, a traditionalist view of the country – for either right or wrong.

But now Catalunya – that independent-minded region in the north-east of the peninsula – has broken ranks and banned it (although it won’t take effect until January 2012).

The Canary Islands had banned bullfighting way back in 1991, but given the lack of fights that took place there anyway the move was of limited impact nationwide. Catalunya, by contrast, is a much bigger and more culturally, politically and economically important region.

So is this a major step towards the wholesale end of bullfighting in Spain? Or just another example of Catalunya’s gradual cleaving from the rest of the country, an expression of its separate identity and autonomy?

A bit of both, I think.

Bullfighting is a minority interest among the general public in any case, and particularly among the younger generation. Unless they suddenly get a taste for it in later life, that decline will only continue.

Meanwhile, Spanish state TV’s decision to stop live bullfight coverage back in 2007 is one indication of how opinions are changing. Catalunya’s decision may then serve to mobilise nationwide opposition further.

The Joys of Spanish Weather

Paul Allen — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 18:05:08 +0000

Mid October and it was already down to -2 degrees centigrade this morning. Daytime highs at the moment are struggling to reach 5C.

Not in my balmy corner of Spain, I hasten to add. In Norway.

I was conducting a phone interview with a banking executive in Oslo this morning, and this is the weather report she gave me.

By contrast, I was sitting with my office balcony door open, with the sunshine pouring through. It must have been about 20 degrees here today, and that’s much cooler than it has been the rest of the month. Last weekend I saw people still swimming in the sea (although I must confess it’s a bit chilly for me now).

Norway consistently rates well in various quality of life measures such as its work/life balance, income levels and environmental performance. And for years it has dominated top spot in the United Nations Development Programme’s Human Development Index (HDI) table.

Evidently the country has a lot going for it. Except its geography. Spain’s sunshine seems much more appealing.

Catalan Christmas

Paul Allen — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 19:31:52 +0000

We went shopping in the local mall over the weekend, trying to sort some final presents before Christmas creeps up on us. The decorations have been up everywhere for a good month already in our corner of Spain, the trees decorated, baubles glinting in the fairy lights, tinsel sparkling, Santa Claus figures dangling from the ceilings. It’s almost like being in the States, or back in the UK.

Yet Catalunya has its idiosyncratic traditions too. One – less common in Barcelona but found across the rest of the region, especially in rural areas – is tió de Nadal (the Christmas log).

They can be bought in various sizes, but essentially it is a hollow tree log, commonly raised on one end by short stick legs, and with a painted face and stuck-on nose on the front (I know, but bear with me on this). The tió is ‘fed’ every night in the run up to Christmas, and then on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, depending on your preference, it is beaten with a stick to a special accompanying song and ordered to poo out its treats of sweets or nuts and the like.

It may sound somewhat bizarre, but is – or so I am told by the teachers at my daughter’s school – magical for the children.

Meanwhile, across Spain the big present-giving celebration is not December 25 as in North America and some other parts of Europe, but Epiphany (January 6). For this is the day when the Three Kings (los Reyes) came to see Jesus in the stable, bringing their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

Nevertheless, Santa Claus and Christmas Day gifts are slowly encroaching into the Spanish calendar – the power, I guess, of Disney and Coca Cola!

Financial Pages in Spain

Paul Allen — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 14:36:35 +0000

I received an email last week from a guy called David Jennings, a financial services expert who offers the benefits of his years of experience to expatriates in Spain. Given the benefits that sound financial management can bring to your expat experience (especially given the current squeeze!) I thought I’d pass on his details, in the hope it may be of use to some of you …

Financial Pages in Spain – David Jennings http://financialpagesinspain.blogspot.com/

I was involved in UK financial services for over 30 years, with experience in banking, insurance and pension planning. When I first bought a property in Spain 10 years ago I was astonished at the sheer bureaucracy of home ownership here. I am resourceful and I use Google extensively, but yet again I found frustration as I researched all things Spanish. Everything I ‘Googled’ was effectively an advertisement.

Ten years later, more grey hairs and full of personal experience, it’s my time to fight back.

My blog contains financial information, but does not give personal financial advice and does NOT include a single financial services advertisement. I guarantee that I will never advertise those financial institutions who wrap up information in biased adverts. Please check me out. Just like Paul Allen, if you bring forward a subject I can post, I will make my blog available to you. I am also pleased to answer your questions. Happy blogging.

Biography

I am David Jennings and generally known as DJ. I have been battling with Spanish bureaucracy for 10 years. Fortunately, I have over 30 years experience of banking, insurance and pensions in the UK and was not going to let them stand in my way. I still hear ‘urban myths’ from British people in Spain. So I want to bring together, without advertising, my experiences that I can pass to others. I am 59 years old and my financial services experiences are available to you all.

Immaculate Conception

Paul Allen — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 18:46:42 +0000

It’s a fiesta today here in Spain, the feast of the Immaculate Conception (Día de la Inmaculada Concepción). It’s a Roman Catholic holy day, which marks the conception of the Virgin Mary, a point from which she started and remained throughout her life free of the Original Sin that stains the rest of us. Or so the Catholic doctrine says.

Having been brought up in England in a Protestant household – albeit with a Roman Catholic father (although that is another topic in itself) – it’s not a holiday I was familiar with until moving to Spain. But then so much of Roman Catholic theology and practice remains something of a mystery to me, despite it’s communality with the UK’s ‘national’ religion. Which I suppose is what makes living in Spain – or for that matter any other country – so interesting.

And I have to say, I quite like the idea of squeezing another public holiday in before Christmas too …

Window On Another World

Paul Allen — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:46:37 +0000

The blind man came yesterday. Or should I say the man to fix the security blind that covers our patio door.

We’re on first name terms, José and I. Not surprising, given the number of times he’s had to come to our house in the four years we’ve been living here.

He must have fixed that blind at least half a dozen times. This time it had come off the roller on one side and jammed half up. Lucky really, as on previous occasions it’s got stuck when all the way down, leaving the lounge shrouded in gloom and forcing us to climb through the window if we want to get out onto the patio. Fortunately we only had to wait three days for José to show up this time around too.

While he was here he mended the kitchen window as well, as it keeps sagging on its hinges, making it almost impossible to open. It’s only about the fourth time he’s had to sort that one out though, so I shouldn’t complain.

As for the window in our daughters’ bedroom … well, that’s another story.

We’d asked about it while the house was still under construction. One day, while visiting the site to check on progress, we found the builders about to install the windows. There would be a tilt-and-turn one in the kitchen, and another in the downstairs bathroom.

“Could we have the same mechanism in the second bedroom?” we asked.

The architect, developer and the head of the building firm consulted. “No, it’s not possible,” we were told. The frame was too small to support its weight, they said. Being ignorant of such matters, we shrugged our shoulders.

Eventually the house was finished – two months late, so six months early by Spanish standards – and we moved in. But the sliding patio door locks kept breaking (too much weight on the door for too flimsy a lock it turned out), so we called José back in … six times.

During the course of one of his visits I pointed to the kitchen window. “Is it possible to have the same mechanism in the bedroom upstairs?” I asked.

“Of course,” he replied. “I just need to add a piece to the top of the frame.”

I explained to him what I’d been told about the frame being too small. He shook his head. Nope, complete rubbish. It would cost me about 50 euros to get it changed though. Ah, that explained why the developer had said no.

So José said he’d come round and sort it out. Which he did, several weeks later. He took the window off its hinges and returned to his workshop to add the necessary pieces. A couple of hours later he was back, as promised. Unfortunately, he could only put on one piece of the necessary mechanism, he explained. They were missing the other bit, but he’d order that and return to install it as soon as it arrived. It would take ten minutes to do.

We waited. I called and left a message with his secretary. A few weeks later I ran into José in a local shopping mall. “Yes, of course,” he said. “I’ll give you a call and come round in a couple of weeks.”

We waited.

I called again and left another message.

A little while after I bumped into José in town. “I’ll come one day this week,” he told me. “I’m not sure which, but I’ll call and let you know.”

We waited.

I called and left a message. I went up to the factory. José had popped out but would be back in five minutes. Could I come back then?

I returned half an hour later. José was still out. I talked to his dad, who owns the business. He’d speak with José when he returned and get him to come see me.

We waited. I called and left a message with the secretary. Nothing.

It’s now two years since José first came to change the window. So I took the opportunity while he was fixing the blind to ask him if there was any progress on the missing part for the bedroom window. I should have known better.

José shook his head sorrowfully. Unfortunately, he told me, the guy who manufactured the pieces has gone out of business (which hardly came as a shock).

The good news though is that over the last decade José has installed the same style of window in many other houses around town. So all we have to do now is wait for one of them to be knocked down or have their windows changed and he can nab the missing piece we require.

Shouldn’t take too long, I figure. Another five years or so and I’m sure we’ll have it sorted.

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