Where is the Best Place to Live.?....I see this question asked so often...
And it's a really difficult question to answer as it really has so many different possibilities.
I've lived and worked in Spain for over 30 years and I've spent approx.half of my time in each of 2 different areas, both suiting my needs and requirements at that time.
I first lived in La Nucia near Benidorm ,where I was running my business ( shops ), then after a few years moved to Alfaz del Pi, also near Benidorm, both great places for us at the time.
Then following a tragic family event we 'sold up' and my wife and I moved to Granada Province, inland and very different to our previous homes in Alicante Province.
So we have gained much experience about different styles of Spanish living, and we also have ,over the years, visited many other areas in Spain, all different in one way or the other.
I actually visited Spain for the first time in early 1960's, it really was very different then and I also in 1964 walked solo from Gibraltar to Lisbon, experiencing Spain as it was during the Franco regime, a real education for me and it was that time that influenced my decision to move to Spain permanently.
Ok that's a brief look at my time in Spain, and how did it affect my choices about where to live, well....because of my many previous visits I'd decided that the Benidorm area was probably the best place to establish my business, I was selling mainly clothing sourced from UK and Northern Europe.
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Being in my 40's when I arrived I knew that I would have to work, so decided to use my previous knowledge and experience, and did I make any mistakes, I hear you ask......Yes of course, loads, some really stupid and others not my fault.
When we decided to move from the Costa Blanca to Granada Province we wanted to immerse ourselves deeper into the Spanish culture, and we certainly did that !
Although I'm far from a perfect Spanish speaker, I have a reasonable working knowledge and can 'get by', however I wasn't prepared for the really heavy dialect spoken in my village, but no problem, as I immediately set too and tried to teach the locals to speak basic English, so if you ever visit my village you will understand why they speak English with a slight Scouse accent.!!!!
We chose our house carefully, a modern house...no work to do.......the village has everything that we need and we are only 10 minutes by car to a big city, and we are situated at the edge of the village where we can enjoy everchanging views of the surrounding hills and mountains.
Probably as near perfect for our situation when we first arrived, but now I'm 75 ( next week ), I'm considering our next adventure and would probably prefer to move to an area at the coast where there are more English speaking communities, I really don't want to return to the UK, even though I'm a proud Brit....
OK, I've given a few details about our time in Spain and now I would be quite happy to try to answer any questions from anyone who may be able to benefit from our experience.
Please remember that it's very important to think 'outside the box' when planning a move, take into consideration what could happen and how circumstances can and do change for most people.
And now may I wish everyone a pleasant weekend wherever you are ,and try to make the most of whatever situation you are in.
Saludos,
Gordon
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