Spain Forum

Best shipping company to move from US to Spain (Barcelona)

2008-07-20T05:11:51+01:00

Hello,

Wondering if anyone can recommend (or warn against) an particular shippers to get our stuff from Massachusetts to Barcelona.
..There’s lots of good info on http://www.movingscam.com but want to know if anyone has any first hand experience.
Thanks!

Americans moving to Spain

2008-07-19T20:26:31+01:00

My girlfriend and I are planning on moving to Spain within the next 2-3 years. We want to be fully prepared and have things go as smoothly as possible. My friend is a Pharmacist and is worried about pay-cut and lifestyle change. I am a photographer and fluent in German. Does anyone have any helpful information about either of these to scenarios?

Thank you!

-Emily

Buying a car without permanent address…?

2008-07-18T06:19:22+01:00

Hola, we are a young couple from New Zealand moving to Spain in about 6 months.
We want to buy a car or van immediately and travel around for possibly several months before
choosing somewhere to settle.

Is it possible to obtain an NIE number without a permanent address?
And can you then buy a car (probably from a dealer) without having an address..?

Any help is much appreciated!

Any advice on which makes & models of cars are the best also much appreciated!

Childcare issues…need some assistance

2008-03-09T20:44:07+01:00

Hi everyone!

Me and my partner Luke have decided that we want to move to Spain, having three children and needing to work there is ofcourse the issue of childcare to consider. After searching for ages on Google I decided it was probably a better idea to ask the pro’s.
I’m full of questions and can’t seem to get the right answers lol, so here we go:

1. Nanny vs Creche, what would you lot recommend?

2. Estimation of cost per week per child for both of the above?

3. What’s the deal with Au pairs over there, obv with us being English the au pair isn’t going to gain the Spanish that they would through living with Spanish residents, would this be an issue?

4. Do the Spanish have the equivalent to an English childminder?

5. What qualifications are people in these positions expected to hold?

6. Do I have to go through an agency for a nanny and will there be the dreaded ‘finders fees’? These are like 800 quid over here!
7. What can I expect from my childcare provider?

8. Do the Spanish have an equivalent to a CRB check?

There, think I’m done if anyone thinks of anything else I might need to be aware of I’d appreciate any suggestions.
Thanks in advance for any responses received.

Emma and Luke

Renting a van Uk-Spain

2008-03-16T15:03:13+01:00

Hello everyone! Im new to this forum! first post! Its quite an interesting forum to be honest, because Im actually from Spain, and its quite nice to see my country from a completely different perspective! through your eyes!
So, yeah Im from Spain but Ive lived in England for 7 years, but this summer Im finally moving back to Spain! So I just wanted some advice from you experts!
I would like to take some of my belongings, I dont have a lot at all, so I was thinking about hiring a van. But do you know of any place where I could hire a van in the Uk but leave it Spain?? Ive called a couple of places and havent had any luck so far!! Do you have any advice, suggestion??
Thanks a lot!
Elena

Plurilinguismo Development Plan.

2008-07-15T16:11:51+01:00

Anybody who is planning to move/or already in Andalucia hoping to teach English has been dealt another blow.

The Plurilinguismo Plan is now operational, its basically a development program setting up Bilingual centres for Primary and Secondary schools.

There are currently 80 centres in operation, with a further 115 opening this year in Andalucia.

For Expats earning a living teaching English this will seriously reduce the amount of clients, as children struggling with English lesson`s has always been the biggest paying.

To be able to gain employment in the centres you first need to sit the Oposiciones Exams, and then the top percentage of marks will then be able to apply for teaching jobs.

bringing left hand drive cars to spain

2008-05-05T22:00:23+01:00

Hey all

Any advice or info would be greatly appreciated on this.

We are moving to Spain in August for 9/10 months to teach English in Galicia.

We thought we could purchase a left hand drive vehicle here in the UK and transport what stuff we need to our new home and use it while we are there.

However a friend of mine said this is not a good way to do it as there are legal problems with purchasing a car in the UK and using it for that length of time in spain.

We could buy a car there or in france to use for our time there but that defeats the object of driving our belongings over from the North East of England.

We could of course stick with a right hand drive but would prefer a left.

Does any one know what the issues are surrounding this issue legally as of course we would like to be on the right path so to speak!!
cheers

Another driving directions question! Best route from Bilbao to Costa Blanca anyone?

2008-07-07T14:31:35+01:00

Hi Folks,

We’re doing a long drive too but planning to get the ferry down to Bilbao -

From the maps it looks like sticking with motorways is a long route, heading due east and joining the coast high up in Catalonia. Does anyone have experience of this journey via the more minor roads via Teruel, we just want to minimise journey time and I was wondering whether its best to go longer/faster or shorter/slower! We will be in a heavily laden car with trailer and don’t want to end up on windy little roads if possible!

All suggestions welcome and thanks in advance

Irresponsible to move teenagers

2008-07-11T20:30:39+01:00

The Expatriator - 09 July 2008 07:29 PM

To say it’s “very irresponsible” to relocate children at that age is clearly an unwarranted generalization.

Sorry, but i find any person who believes in putting there own needs before the education and welfare of there children irresponsible.

Simply assuming your child at say 11, will benefit moving to a non English school, learning a complicated language and expect them to shoulder the responsibility in coping with exams, is frankly far beyond irresponsible.

For a start although Spain is an EU country, there teaching methods etc etc are different to UK schools and relocating a child at a time that its essential to support, educate and motivate is also irresponsible.

What if you moved them at 11, then needed to return at 15, would you expect good GCSE`s considering the difference in teaching.

A friend of ours returned to UK with children who had grown up in Spain from around 8 yrs, they moved back after 5 yrs, the boy of 13 was diagnosed Dyslexic after 3 weeks in a UK school, the Spanish teachers put it down to poor understanding of Spanish, although one parent spoke Spanish fluently.

Any parent of a child, in that age group should understand its an important time and a challenge to children in there own country, to plonk them into an alien culture at such an important time is ridiculous and I`d say bordered on neglect.

Younger children can cope, especially as they develop emotional ties slower at a young age, over the age I stated they maybe mature enough to cope with the loss of friends and change.

Anybody who has children at that age should seriously consider delaying the move.

Is It Safe for a Woman moving to Spain on her own?

2008-04-02T15:35:45+01:00

Hi, I am hoping to move to Southern Spain within a few months as i’ve sold my house in London. I was originally going with a friend to rent for a few months then to buy something between us either inland Murcia or Granada but now unfortunately my friend can not go for another year!! As I am now renting in London which is very expensive, I was going to go on my own but my family & friends say it’s not safe for a woman on her own in another country! I have already been advised to consider a urbanisation but i have a little dog and thought this may be a problem. Any advice from singletons who have made the break alone would be really appreciated.

Susannah