Moving to Spain Guide – Chapter 13 – Settling In
Contents
Introduction – welcome to Spain
What are you going to do in Spain?
Content
Welcome to Spain! It may well be that having visited the area where you will live permanently you already know your way around and have friends who will welcome you. If not, it is important that you familiarise yourself with the town and introduce yourself to your neighbours. We all need local support systems, friends to socialise with and people to call on for help when needed.
There are different ways of doing this:
Social media: many towns have Facebook Groups or groups where people living in a certain region of Spain chat with each other. These can be a great way of meeting people in advance of your move.
Local Town Hall: many ayuntamientos have classes in Spanish for foreigners and lists of events.
Churches: these are often welcoming to newcomers where you can meet local people and other foreigners who have moved to the area.
Local bars and restaurants: get out and about. Try out your Spanish. People will be very interested that you have moved to the area.
Meet the neighbours: generally, Spaniards are respectful of personal space and privacy. They may also appear to be standoffish if they think they’ll have to speak English with you. Think about making the first move by saying ‘Hola’ or, indeed, having the neighbours round for drinks. They’ll be curious!
What are you going to do in Spain?
If you have moved to Spain to work or study, you have the ready-made means of meeting locals and integrating into the community. If you have retired to Spain, we recommend you think about how you will spend your time. It can’t all be sunbathing!
You might think about:
- taking classes in Spanish to improve your language skills
- exploring further education opportunities or craft classes through your ayuntamiento
- offering to help a local person learn English through an intercambio
- volunteering with a local voluntary organisation – or a National one like ours! Click the Link below to see how you could get involved with Age in Spain
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