by Patty Sanchez

By now most expat families have settled into a new apartment and neighborhood in Barcelona after arriving in September to begin new jobs. I recently met a mother who moved from Illinois to Barcelona and wanted to find a store where she could find it all: groceries, domestic appliances, clothing, etc. Obviously, she wanted to save time by shopping at one location rather than running from one shop to another to cover basic needs.

“Is there a store similar to Target where I can find it all?” she asked.

My initial response was “Yes,” there is a store similar to Target that has many departments to accommodate consumer needs all in one stop, albeit somewhat pricey.   more ...

by Patty Sanchez

If you just arrived to Spain and decide it is time to go grocery shopping, hold that thought! Do not be a new inexperienced expat and think you can walk home carrying three bags of groceries loaded with fruit, meats, dairy products and a five liter bottle of water. After five minutes of walking towards your new apartment two or three blocks away, you will stop to continuously shift the weight of the plastic bags to keep them from digging into the crooks of your fingers. You will instantly lament those past days of yonder when you once drove to the supermarket and leisurely loaded groceries onto the trunk of your car.

The solution to this problem is to purchase as soon as possible a shopping trolley/cart. You can load the shopping trolley/cart with bottled water, milk tetra bricks, one kilo of apples, or any other heavy food item that once crunched your spinal discs. You will walk out the store in relief that the trolley was the best expat investment ever.   more ...

by Rob Innis

It is no secret that the Spanish economy, along with most of Europe, has taken a battering with the current financial downturn referred to here as the ‘crisis.’ Unemployment is running at record high levels – so does that mean job opportunities are zero?

Here on the Costa Blanca the boom years of mass construction are over and immigration levels are down. During that period work was easy for not only the locals but many foreigners came and setup all different types of business including bars, restaurants, supermarkets, car sales etc to serve the new arrivals. Unfortunately many of those have now closed and vacant commercial property is in abundance.

However the economy here is different to the major cities where there tends to be a high concentration of white collar jobs in the large government and corporate headquarters offices of Spain’s big companies. But beware the large organisations are cost cutting.   more ...

by Rob Innis

Spain’s financial downturn, known locally as el crisis, has meant that apart from the government increasing taxation and making severe budget cuts the rules regarding both taking out Spanish residency and obtaining healthcare have recently been revised.

All EU citizens are entitled to live and work in Spain as part of the overall EU Freedom of Movement regulations. All other persons should check their status with their appropriate authorities as they might require a visa for legal entry to Spain.

It is a requirement for everyone to hold and maintain a valid passport from their country of origin as a form of identification in Spain.

Spanish Residency – Revised Rules

The new stricter rules for Spanish residency, introduced in July 2012, state that within 90 days of arriving in the country with the intent of taking up permanent residence persons must register at the local Oficina de Extranjeros (literally meaning Office for Foreigners) for a residencia.   more ...

We were internet marketers that needed a break...so we started a tapas restaurant in Spain! Some said we were crazy, some said we were brave. We say we are a little bit of both. Read our story, the lessons we learned and our tips...

It has been almost three years since we moved to Spain and finding our way around has been fun and sometimes a struggle. When you move abroad you realize that you are giving up your career, your house, the lease car and all. But in return, there is a romantic future lying ahead of you; a future without stress, traffic jams, thousands of emails a day, dark clouds, rain. An exiting future with new possibilities, new people and new habits.

Our romantic and exciting idea of the future was setting up a tapas restaurant in a pretty little village on the Costa Blanca. We would only open for a few hours per day, run it together, and cook all kinds of delicious tapas for our guests.   more ...