Britain v Spain!

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As I approach my six month anniversary, living in Spain, I thought I would, as part of my personal review, discuss the pro's and con's of living here, compared to The UK.  I have written about this before, but, like everything in life, views change! Had we moved to the Costa Blanca, under normal circumstances, I would of course be more objective with my findings. One should bare in mind, that my feelings are in large part due to previous experience.  For other people embarking on a new life, their thoughts and emotions could be very different. Six months is also not a long time to assess how well, or not one has done, compared to the potential in Britain.  When I blog about my experiences, a year down the line, things may well be very different. For now, I will try and be as non biased as I can.

The biggest, noticeable difference between Spain and Britain, is the pace of life, which is completely at odds to what I am used too.  Britain was fast paced in every respect. One of the reasons for moving was to remove the stress and pressure, I was under, living and working back home in The UK.  The duress I felt as an individual was immense in comparison.  Of course for me, the biggest burden came from work. During my final year, the physical and mental strain I was under was unmeasurable. Pressure from family to live up to expectations, friends to conform to their way of thinking and the huge cost of living, had also taken its toll, leaving not only myself, but others close, shattered by our experiences.  It order to survive on a monthly basis, we had to pay out at least 3000€ a month in bills before we even started living.  This is a huge sum and another one of the reasons we decided to move.

There is less pressure in Spain, that is a fact.  I have never felt so relaxed and free in my life, although I still haven't adapted fully to Spanish life, due to the vast differences.  The pace of life is much, much slower here and I still rush around on occasion, like I am living back in Southampton.  Over time, as I am assured, I will become less manic and eventually chill out, as the Spanish do so well.  A good example of this is Siesta.  I will probably never get used to a three hour period of inactivity in the afternoon.  In fact, as I recently read in The Euro News, The Spanish Government, want to abolish the siesta period, due to the huge amount of income lost during the three hours, each day.  Personally I feel there is a need for a siesta, during the summer months in Spain.  It gets terribly hot and temperatures can reach 40 degrees plus.  In the winter however, things should indeed change.  Like most things here, change will come slowly.  Spain has an unstable Government and has a General Election next week, just after The UK Referendum, that could be the time, change comes!

Access to health care can be hard for many people of foreign descent, living in Spain. In order to claim anything, you have to prove you are contributing to the Spanish system.  For most, like me, that is about proving you are working and paying your social security.  For others, it may be that you have access to sufficient funds, to pay for your own health care.  For many more there is no access to care, unless you are from Europe, when you gain access through the EHIC Card, but only for a three month period, after which time, you have to apply for Residencia in Spain.  The UK is very different.  As a fellow European you would have immediate access to a GP and treatment, no matter whether you work or not.  I tend to agree with the Spanish system, that does prevent misuse of public funds. By allowing foreign nationals to gain free access, to The NHS in Britain, we are failing in our duty to protect our citizens, funds and tax revenue! 

This is also the same for benefits.  It is very difficult for me to claim any benefits in Spain.  I have to work for at least a year continuously, before I am entitled to anything, and then it is only paid on a pro rata basis.  What you pay in, you can get out and no more.  A better system compared to Britain? Well, maybe!  There is less of a safety net here, but to be honest, families do tend to take on the role of the State in certain circumstances, that Britain, due to the nature of the family there, has to provide.  On balance, once again the Spanish system wins.  This is more about cultural differences and attitudes towards employment, which are completely different in Spain.  Changing a whole culture is difficult, if not impossible!

Pensions are also determined very differently in Spain.  I will have to work for fifteen years here, to be entitled to a pension of about 400€ a month.  Of course the longer you work, the higher the State pension.  From what I believe, this can rise to a maximum of 1000€ per month.  Again this is worked out on a pro rata basis.  I am in two minds about the pension aspect here.  I believe the 1000€ pension is not sustainable, especially with wages being that much lower  and unemployment running at around 25 percent.  Who actually pays for this?  A higher retirement age and less income, is sadly going to be the norm, across Europe.  It will have to change here eventually!

Now here is my bug bare.  This is one of the things that lets Spain down, the paperwork.  Since arriving in Spain, I have never had to fill in so many forms, do so much paperwork and employ so many people to complete, what essentially should be an easy process.  Every step of the way we have had to pay approximately 100€ to someone who knows the system and can get us the outcome we need.  Becoming official is a complete nightmare, from beginning to end and the costs involved can be expensive.  The paperwork and documents you have to carry around with you on a daily basis are huge, but like anything in Spain, if you follow the rules and abide by the law, you will not have any problem.  To give you an example of just how bureaucratic the Spanish system is, I will refer to 'The Padron'.  The Padron, is like our Electoral Roll.  When you sign on to the roll, you are given a printed certificate, which you need as part of anything you do, from applying to Residencia to obtaining a credit card. This document expires every month, and has to be renewed.  The process of waiting in a queue once again can be lengthy, but as one Spaniard told me recently, it keeps people in a job, a rare thing here!

This brings me nicely onto the subject of employment.  The biggest single downside to life in Spain is employment.  In every respect, obtaining a job in Spain has been the hardest thing to do.  The wages are much lower for a start, although the cost of living is much lower still.  We have a three story townhouse, with views to die for, at a cost of 450€ a month, approximately 375 pounds.  I have just paid my water bill for three months, at a cost of 92€.  The cost of electricity, is supposed to be higher than The UK, in fact about three times as much, although our bill for the last two months, with four people sharing was only 300€.  We paid more than that in The UK.  We pay no Council Tax and about 20€ a month for Broadband, and that is it!  So the cost of living is far cheaper!  Going back to the work situation, one has to understand that employment law is geared to the employee here, not as it is in Britain.  Employers have to pay for contracts each month, for each employee, and of course the major downside, is the seasonal nature of employment.  Saving in the summer months, for the winter is essential, in order to survive.  So for the first time, in my life, I am having to save, which is hard, when wages are lower, but I am managing.  Also, unless you speak Spanish fluently, you will not get a job paying a good income.  Spain does tend to keep the good jobs for themselves, which is completely different to the UK.  My personal view, is everyone should be treated equally, well, that isn't going to happen anytime soon!

As a homosexual man, coming to live in Catholic Spain, I had worries about acceptance.  In all honesty I need not have had concerns.  Gran Alacant, has been referred to as Gay Alacant, by those who live and work here.  There is a large gay population, one of the largest in Spain itself.  The Spanish, as a culture are less accepting than many others, due to reasons I have highlighted today, especially centred around family.  Public displays of affection are frowned upon and overt homosexuality is equally not accepted.  I have come across some anti gay feeling, but in the main I have had no problems.  The expat community have been totally accepting and instrumental in our settling in here!

Finally the cost of everyday essentials.  Most things are far cheaper in Spain.  A pint of strong beer is 2€, cigarettes are 4.35€ and bread is 89c.  In reality things are about half the cost they are in The UK.  You can live as cheap or expensive as you like. Eating out is also much cheaper.  We paid 30€ for two of us, at a local restaurant for a starter, main and alcohol.  Other places charge similar prices and the food is by and large good.

When you weigh up the pro's and con's of life between The UK and Spain, give me Spain anyday. From the weather, scenery, lifestyle and cost of living, it wins hands down.  There are more reasons to live here than not.  Spain does of course have its downsides, but I would never trade this, for The UK.  As a resident, I now have an element of protection, no matter what happens in The EU vote, that can not be taken away from me, so finally I can begin to live my life, as I would have liked, rather than how others wanted me to!

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