Your discussion on Barcelona is really interesting for me.

I am planning to move to BCN in July/August ‘08 with my 6 year old And now I have heard from a Spanish woman also moving with her family to Barcelona that the only good school area is Sarria/St. Gervasi.. and now I read here that it is a snobby area, and that you should preferably have a car if living there!
Well, that is no good news for me. As a young single mom without a driving licence I really would need to live in an area where I do not need to have a car, but still I would like it to be a kid friendly area.. Anybody have any suggestions?

Some time ago I read an article about the quality of public eduction in Catalunya, and that it is quite low, especially in the center of Barcelona. In the article there were some teachers that had worked in some public schools in BCN that said there were violence even towards the teachers in the classrooms at times. So I got quite scared..

Now I am wondering if anyone has views on this? I still want to put my child in a public school, so maybe I should try to move to an area where the schools have a good reputation after all. What about Garcia? Anyone know anything about the public primary schools there?

The Expatriator, do you know anything about the neighborhood called El putget i Farro, 08023?

tonia - 12 March 2008 11:05 PM

The Expatriator, do you know anything about the neighborhood called El putget i Farro, 08023?

Nope, sorry. Maybe someone else?

Tonia: El Putxet is right is near Sant Gervasi La Bonanova, which means you are still in a posh silent clean area of Barcelona where you will not be near the Metro.  Most likely, you will need a car.  The pluses of the Zona Alta (the term used to refer to Sant Gervasi, Sarrià) are: (a) silence, (b) silence, (c) silence (d) cleanliness (e) extreme cleanliness (f) silence (g) people have domestic help ... and yes, there are good private schools there.  But it is possible to live elsewhere in the City and send your child to a good private school, whether in Sarrià or elsewhere. 

About public schools, there are good public schools here but I’m not the person to answer your question. I know several public high school teachers here in Barcelona and I’ll ask them if they can suggest a place… are you looking for a primary school or a secondary school ?

Does your child already speak Spanish ?

Primary school education here is conducted almost exclusively in Catalan. Only castellano is taught in castellano.

I’ll get back if I hv more info

bye

oops, reread your post and saw your child is 6 years old.  I’ll ask my teacher friends and get back with you if I get any pointers..

Hi albaqaahuna!

That would be great if you could ask your teacher friends about schools!
I do want to put my son in a public school and not a private school. Possibly a semi private one.

I heard that for the public schools they are assigned to you in the area you live, and that’s why I thought it would be important to live in an area where there are a few good public schools..
So please ask your friends, maybe they have heard about some good one and I can start looking at apt’s in that area

So the neighbourhood I asked about is silent and clean.. But it is right on the border to Gracia though.. Is the part of Gracia close to the border of St. Gervasi also clean and silent?

Thanks!

Hi Tonia, I will ask my friends after Holy Week or Semana Santa Vacations finish. 

The semi-private school you refer to would be an escuela concertada, that is, a private school that receive some state funding and therefore obliged to accept some students that would otherwise go to a public school. 

If I had a choice, I would live in an area of St.. Gervasi as close as possible to Gràcia in order to have a more ‘normal’ neighbourhood closer at hand: one where people walk on the streets and walk to shops.

I’ll get back when I find out.
best

tonia - 18 March 2008 08:55 AM

Hi albaqaahuna!

That would be great if you could ask your teacher friends about schools!
I do want to put my son in a public school and not a private school. Possibly a semi private one.

I heard that for the public schools they are assigned to you in the area you live, and that’s why I thought it would be important to live in an area where there are a few good public schools..
So please ask your friends, maybe they have heard about some good one and I can start looking at apt’s in that area

So the neighbourhood I asked about is silent and clean.. But it is right on the border to Gracia though.. Is the part of Gracia close to the border of St. Gervasi also clean and silent?

Thanks!

hello all

thanks for all the info.  I’m new to the forum, but will be moving to Barcelona next month.

I was told by a friend, who lives in Raval, that it’s the place to be, seeing as I’ll be living on a budget.

Other than that, I have no idea what neigbhorhoods are desirable or why.

I’m a 25 yr old American, and i do like cleanliness (my friend says lots of flats will have roaches. no thanks!), but i wouldnt wanna live in a “silent” neighborhood, certainly.

I was lookin around the net for apartment listings and whatnot, and found a nice place in ALELLA-MASNOU.

I realize this is a town not in Barcelona proper, but about 15 km away, which to me, coming from LA, doesnt sound very far at all.

What is that area like?  would it be easy to get to and fro Barcelona without a car?

I don’t realistically think I would live there, but I am curious.

anyway, thanks a lot in advance.  any recommendations of areas to live in would be appreciated.

Best District for schools? Please help !!!

We are family of 3 making our move to Barcelona in Sept 2008. Our main concern is what district to live in that will have a good educational system for our 10yrs old daughter as well as a nice, good transporation system , hip and safe neighborhood. We are young professionals in our Mid 30 ‘s , we own and manage an IT Network Consulting Co(self employed) so we will be working from our home.

Do you have any info on Poble Nou ?  ...We are very interested in renting a Loft ( Warehouse style) .

Looking forward to hearing from you ... your input is GREATLY APPRECIATED !!!

Muchas Gracias

Aleida

Hi guys,

Very good thread regarding Barcelona.

Would it be possible though to get some information on surrounding areas that are outside the city of Barcelona itself. Perhaps a short train journey away?

I am not sure that with a young child we would want to live in an apartment in Barcelona city centre. Could someone advise as to what locations would be good to look at buying a house with a short commute?

Hey, been in Barcelona for just over a month now, slept in various parts and traveled the whole city on numerous occasions, finally settled in Gracia and i couldn’t imagine living anywhere else just yet, especially with the festival coming up, a roof top view of placa Diamont for me!! Gracia is by far the coolest and most chilled out place i’ve been, the people are great and friendly, it’s just brilliant!! all i need is a job now!

just thought i’d get my say in!!

thanks.

Hi all,
just been looking through all the info on here about where to live in Barcelona and it has been really helpful as well as a good laugh to read.  I have been thinking about moving to Barcelona for a while and have not really been able to get any good advice on places to live so finding this forum has been great! I have to say that The Expatriator needs to write for a living you are tops! Being a single mum with 2 boys moving over there has seemed like a nightmare to find where i need to be but think that I will start looking for apartments soon so that can be there in the New Year.  The info on schools has been great but wondered if anyone has more info on any schools in San Cugat and also what the rent is like for that area?
Another thing, being 39ish i have felt a bit old to be moving abroad please tell me there is life for a new 40 year old over there?  I am not ready for my slippers and fluffy nighties yet!!!  Is babysitting available or can that be a problem like it is here in the Uk? I dont want to leave my kids with just anyone so any help on that subject would be great too.
Thanks