Welcome to GilesWalker Property for sale in Javea and Benitachell
WHERE YOUR DREAMS BECOME REALITY
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Moving to Spain
There is undoubtedly no argument that the weather around the Mediterranean, even in mid-winter, is probably better than you might expect in Scarborough in high season. This in itself may be reason enough to leave, especially for older bones less comfortable with the winter chill.
OK, so you might need to wear a coat or jumper in the cooler months, even on the southern coast. And it’s prudent to keep an umbrella and raincoat in the cupboard just in case. But in all honesty even at Christmas and New Year, chances are you’ll still sit outside for lunch.
Welcome to the great outdoors
Most people in Spain live their lives outdoors most of the time. When you look at Spanish property you’ll find a lot more space is given to the patio or terrace than to the indoors dining area. And for one simple reason – you can eat breakfast outside, lunch outside, dine outside and sit out late enjoying a coffee or nightcap.
In actual fact, when you come and live here as part of a community, the comparative cool of the evening is a time for socialising. If you’re living in an Urbanizacione someone somewhere will be having a barbeque – and if not, have one yourself and invite a few people round. Inland, the villagers bring their chairs out into the streets for a glass of wine and a chat. On the coast the Spanish flock to the seafront for a stroll along the waterfront in a ‘see-and-be-seen’ ritual where the young and eligible get glammed-up and practise looking haughty.
Beware of the time warp
In many ways large parts of Spain seem to be in something of a time warp. While on the surface it all looks quite modern, underneath it still really is a quaint, charming and old-fashioned. The world of ‘mañana‘- why do it today, if you can put it off until tomorrow – still exists. However, if you’ve been used to the hustle and bustle of the nine-to-five workaday world, the sudden change to life in the slow lane can take some getting used to.
In the first place don’t expect to get anything done between one-thirty and four in the afternoon – especially on the Costa Blanca. Traditionally this is siesta time, and at the very least the locals will head for the nearest watering hole to lunch long and catch up on the gossip.
Tradesmen will not deliver, so if your washing machine is promised for the ‘afternoon’ you need not bother to wait around during siesta time. You will however have to be there between three-thirty and half past seven, which is the usual knocking off time!
Eat before nine and you dine with the tourists
If you’re not careful, all this time shift tends to play havoc with a digestive system used to eating at regular hours. The Spanish don’t lunch until two, and generally don’t sit down to dinner until nine at the earliest, often still munching well after midnight. There is a wonderful Spanish saying that if you ‘eat before nine you dine with the tourists’!
This, of course, is exactly why the Spanish invented tapas – small savoury snacks taken with a beer or glass of wine, at lunchtime or on the way home from work, to take the edge off their appetite. The tapas tradition is still strong, a sort of grazing habit that in health and nutrition terms, is a very good way to eat. Don’t be intimidated by the fact you might not know what to ask for, just about everything on the tapas menu will be on display and all you have to do is point.
Habla español?
You need not be worried too much if you don’t ‘habla español’ (speak Spanish). More and more Spanish speak or at least understand, English. In the tourist resorts English language and English staff are very common.
Restaurant and shopping Spanish is very easy to pick up. Better still, unlike other countries, most Spanish people are really sympathetic with our fumbling attempts to be understood. Even if they speak good English, they will patiently hear you out and encourage you.
In most parts of the peninsula Castillian – ‘proper Spanish – is about as common as BBC English in downtown Newcastle. The best advice is to take language lessons when you arrive. Lots of British ‘ex pats’ have set up as teachers and have not only been through the same process themselves, they’re full of local knowledge into the bargain. Within a few quick weeks you’ll be fine to go out and about and do the shopping.
Perhaps best of all, the Spanish are an amazingly easy-going nation, genuinely welcoming without being too inquisitive. They’re also incredibly helpful and, as the pace of life here is not exactly electrifying, they always have plenty of time for you.
Most ‘ex pat’ Brits quickly adopt to the time warp and learn to live the Spanish pace. The trick is to forget that you’ve ever been a tourist. So slow down and enjoy life. If you don’t get around to it today, you can always do it ‘mañana’!
Cost of Living
For a two-bed two bath house reckon on around £20 per week for rates, community charges and general housing expenses and you will comfortably come within budget. Mains gas is getting more common in the newer urbanizaciones, and bottled gas is plentiful. So your kitchen may have gas and or electricity. Fuel charges and heating are about the same price as they are in the UK, but you’ll hardly ever use the heating so overall there’s a cost saving. Probably the hardest cost to estimate is how much charcoal you’ll use on the barbecue, as apart from breakfast 90% of your meals may be eaten on the terrace.
Expect food to be at least 30% cheaper overall. Nothing here is more expensive than at home and in season. Oranges, lemons and local produce are as cheap as the proverbial chips. Shop in the markets for best value and what’s fresh, and the plentiful supermarkets for essential household goods. If, like most of us, you have a few vices, you are in for substantial savings on wines, beers and cigarettes. English newspapers are available on the day (normally from 8 or 9 in the morning).
Petrol costs about the same in cents as it does in pence in the UK, and Diesel is even cheaper! Watch out for speed limits on the motorways. And don’t forget the most common problem we Brits face is going round the roundabouts the correct way!
We look forward to meeting you.
