The Sense Of Summer

Here is a little post submitted by Dave Bull about what it is like actually living in Spain. Enjoy

 

Its Sunday morning and from my balcony I take in the view of Alicante bay while the kettle boils and the toaster begins its (painfully slow) relatively simple job of turning some bread brown in readiness for my very British tradition, on what is a very Spanish morning, of slapping marmite all over it but that can wait as I breathe in the salt-scented air..

Stretching along the coastline I can see the beaches are starting to fill with locals and tourists all planning on enjoying the day before it reaches full temperature in the middle of the afternoon. A speedboat cuts a white scar through the Mediterranean on its way to who knows where and the while white sails of yachts and the seagulls contrast with the beautiful blue backdrop.

San Juan at the other end of the bay juts out into the sea blocking my view of El Campello where the mountains meet the sea as they do all the way up the coast and past Calpe. In the distance I can see the rock of Benidorm stationed like a huge aircraft carrier protecting Spain’s tourism crown jewels while Brits in vets (I don’t need to be able to see them) will have enjoyed yet another evening in the town that never sleeps and all that is uniquely Benidorm.

Further on the mountains again intrude into the sea to form the pretty fishing town of Calpe but the best I can hope for today is to see Calpe’s own battleship of a rock standing proud.

Driving past me the 4x4’s and VW’s of the hang-gliders who will jump off of the top of the cliff at Gran Alacant and eventually make their descent down to the Carabasi beach, landing (conveniently) next to a Chiringuito where cool refreshment is readily supplied.  

Not a bad soundtrack to the morning either as my neighbour has just put on some pretty good jazz that compliments the percussion of the crickets below me very nicely and add to that the odd splash in the pool and the rare bark of a dog and we have an orchestra playing the sound of summer.

Soon mums, dads, kids and young lovers will be making the colourful trek across the sands and claiming their pitch for the day – the Spanish within an inch of each other, and us North Europeans wanting at least a football pitch distance to next towel and umbrella combination.

The gypsies below the cliff have already set up ‘camp’ with converted market-stalls used as sunshades and lined up in such numbers you can imagine what the wild west frontier camps  probably looked like. And boy do they eat well too, I’ve walked past before and a medieval banquet is made to look like a ‘Happy Meal’ buffet compared to what these families put on the table, and it looks delicious.

Talking of delicious, the smell of frying bacon and warm croissants is now reaching my balcony from somewhere below me, and the aroma of freshly brewed coffee is wafting around in the air reminding me that my own, somewhat less Spanish, breakfast awaits – toaster permitting.

Lunch is with some Spanish friends in the campo today where I have no doubt that some poor animal will be served up that I wouldn’t have thought (or heard) of eating before or they’ll dish up that part of the animal that you’d prefer to look at (living) than to share its final moments on the planet on a fork, with a Brussel sprout. So I always take along a jar of marmite just in case – touché! I think is the correct term…?

This article was written by Dave Bull for MASA International who are experts in the sale of property in Spain.

You can follow the adventures of Dave Bull in Spain by following @DavejBull on Twitter

Huge surge in enquiries for the Valencia region according to RightMove

What Happens When An Inheritance Goes Wrong

I have recently placed a property for sale in Spain on the website which just goes to show the folly that can happen when buying in a market that had overheated. The current owners inherited a tidy sum of money at the start of 2008 and bought a shack. They then added a double garage, swimming pool, renovated everything, put in a fantastic garden by buying already mature trees and landscaped everything using the pressed concrete method which looks really nice and for the price it should be.

Anyway the total cost after rounding up or down a bit is around 300k and the pool and garage are ever so slightly illegal, something they are trying to sort out right now. Remember this is a BMV Property for sale in Spain with an ultra modern solar system for light but it is still solar and not on mains.

They haven’t got a mortgage but they have got a problem. They have run out of money and there is a health issue. Therefore they want to sell. Meanwhile the bottom has fallen out of the market and when I went to see the property last week I gave them an estimated market value of 180k to which they should accept offers. They have intimated they will. Have a look at the photos and if you can handle the fact that a couple of the elements are ever so slightly illegal then think about whether this is a place that you may want to buy. It is on a plot of over 2000m2 comes fully furnished and of course is key ready as new.

Five minutes from the motor racing circuit at Cheste, ten from the airport and 15 from Valencia. Nice.

Check out the video too.

Lotteries in Spain

Are a huge business. ONCE which is the national organisation for the blind and has a daily lottery, you see their sellers strategically positioned all over Spain every day, is the second biggest company in the country I think. There are a proliferation of them and it is best to know exacly what you are buying and where to find the results.

Here is a guide to all of the Spanish lotteries that you may find useful, very long but it will help you sort out where your money goes.

Sometimes of course your money doesn't go. On the Euromillones two weeks ago the two winners of the biggest prize were in Spain getting 15 million Euros each, and one of them lives in Lliria just up the road from here. The big question now of course is who is it and who is conspiculously consuming in Lliria during "La Crisis"?

Meanwhile here is a great story from a few months ago about a lottery salesman I wanted to find the story about the blind lottery seller who drove 40 miles to his position every day for about ten years as he knew the route like the back of his hand (Not very well as he was blind!) until he was suspended but that was pre Google I think so I cannot find it.

Budget Blues

So after the budget in the UK when are you moving abroad? It seems that the news channels this morning only have comments from people who have already left the country or now plan to leave the country. So is Spain one of the destinations for you and why?

If you are thinking of moving to Spain looking for work then unless you have specialist knowledge or can work from anywhere then forget it. Unemployment is due to hit over 20%, 1 in 5 people by the end of this year and already in the Andalucia unemployment is 21.2%. If you are one of the high earners targetted by the budget yesterday and you want to look at possibilities think about the following.

1) Is it possible to retire early to a country where the cost of living is less?
2) Can you work remotely? (If you don't know what this is then look at this book which may well be a revelation for you)

3) What plans do you need to make before your move to Spain?
4) How do you plan to fund yourself once you get here?
5) What do you want from your life? (Does the daily grind really depress you and is it possible to spend a couple of years out of that rat race before getting back on the treadmill?)

Spain is an option if you come with your eyes wide open. Nobody is going to promise you that it will be easy and that you will get a massive salary working just three hours in the morning while you sunbathe away the afternoon unless you already have a life that allows you that 3 hour day. However you have to realise that life can be different. How different do you want your life to be?

How can you do this. Well there are many ways. You need to start creating different streams of income now. If you can build up your residual income before you move then the pressure to quickly find your niche in Spain can be reduced. There are various ways of doing this.

a) Learn a new skill. Earning on the internet is a possibility. Try this course for starters
b) You Must begin to learn Spanish. "The best online beginner's course is probably this "
c) You might want to try out Network Marketing of a product. Try this one. They give you leads and it is very low cost

If you come well prepared then you may well be able to live a comfortable lifestyle in Spain. Join the others asking for information here who are all starting to look at alternatives to live a better life.

Is Spain Different? Discuss

Latest video about Spain. Do you think Spain is different? This vid highlights the stereotypical views