Moving to Pocicas Jan 2022

take it you are EU passport holders if you intend to work have you thought about the children's schooling do they speak any Spanish?

Yep, you are right, I'm from Dublin so no issues there and run my own business which I'll continue to once I've transferred to autonomo in Spain. 

I am about B1/2 level in spanish (still having lessons though) and kids and wife are now about A2 level and have been having lessons for a number of months which we will continue to do when we arrive :) 

Did you already speak Spanish too before you arrived? Did/have you found any good teachers locally? Our current teacher are in Seville and Cadiz and we do it remotely but would be nice to take extra ones face to face, locally if possible. 

Hello,

Great adventure!

Had to laugh when you asked if people speak Spanish here.... I am self taught and probably have the vocabulary of A1 and am streets ahead of most people here. However, many have made the effort and do communicate well. At B2, Spanish people speaking English already begin to speak better than lots of Brits here. However, the dialects can be awful in rural areas. Even my Spanish friends couldn't get many words from my locals? If you speak too well you might get labelled as Castillian and appear to be from Madrid but I guess your Irish friendliness will tell them otherwise and people here will love that you can speak Spanish and are willing to speak to them.

Life here is very different here despite the superficial similarities of European countries, so try asking lots of questions - even the most 'stupid' things - because the differences may seem small but can be massive in their problems. There is a reason for so many gestoria and asesorias here -even local people require help with all sorts of small officialdoms?

I am not looking for an answer but you say you are registering autonamo? If the work is in Ireland did you consider that still being a citizen in Ireland allows you to be taxed for work in Ireland? Only the work in Spain has to be taxed here and can not be double taxed despite Spain having a global tax system?

Anyway, lots of homework to do and when you do arrive, take the time to go through things properly here - it can take forever to do some things and the fulcrum of the new adventure often falls on mum. I have three family groups who emigrated and after a year or so of transition all three of the women were suffering because they were constantly looking after everyone else. They weren't weak individuals either, business women, entrepreneur and head of school. Give yourself time to adjust and the rewards can be great. I wish you all the luck in the world!

Hi Ste & Mags, I see you mention having issues finding a removal company.  There’s a really good one in Albox, Almeria, called UK Direct Removals.  They’ve got a website and are on Facebook under Gary Smith.  It’s a beautiful part of the world and am sure you and the family will have lots of fun exploring.

Wishing you all the best

i did o level at school in the dark ages and some college classes before we came but most we have picked up here as the Andalucian spanish is different to main stream.  Most townhalls offer free lessons from basic to better enquire when you get here. of course the only way is to immerse yourself in the language in the area the children will do that from day one in school as they rarely speak any english there unless it's the private one of course. they will pick it up fast.  

Welcome to Spain, delighted to hear there's another Dub besides me here! 🤣. I'm guessing there may be more Dubs around, but I haven't found any, someone mentioned the fact that your Irish being friendly will help with Spanish people understanding you. 

I'm afraid Spanish people have a problem with my dialect, ( of course masks don't help) it might be just me! But just a heads up. Myself and hubby had no Spanish when we arrived 3 years ago, but we've managed partly as my husband being london/ Italian, and speaks 3 other languages. I am getting better slowly a work in progress as they say. As you have youngsters it will be easiar for you all, children are brilliant at learning new languages. 

This forum is great for finding out information so wishing you all the best, enjoy the journey. 

Patricia 

Hi all,

Thanks for all your responses. We are really looking forward to the move now. 

In terms of autonomo, we live in Liverpool now, I moved to Lpool when I was 11 met my wife in school there ( we were in the same class throughout school!) So, ill be providing services from Spain but mainly to UK customers. I'm an interpreter (not Spanish) and lecturer in interpreting which I'll continue to do remotely when we arrive so will need to register as autonomo and pay Spanish taxes rather than UK taxes. 

I might have lost any trace of an accent but not the friendliness (hopefully!) and I reckon 'Scousers' are pretty friendly anyway so hopefully that will shine through. 

Thanks for the tips about moving companies I'll have a look at them for sure. It is nice to know though that I'll be able to ask those 'stupid' questions on here, I know I'm going to have plenty over the next few months!!! 

Ste

Congratulations. You sound excited and so you should be... Its a good life out here...

I'm perhaps not the best person to ask advice of as I moved here in July 2021 so I'm a newbie! It appears I'm 10 min away and were on the same side of Albox... Winters, especially now are cold...Yesterday we climbed from 7º to 11º. I hope your rental property has some form of heating? Dont throw away good Duvets and warm clothes !!

July / August were really Hot but... the Humidity here is lower than many other parts of Spain &.having moved from similar Temps and 80+% humidity...the lower Humidity really is a life changer. The coast isn't that far away and that's always fun.

I'm sure you'll love the actual "Space" you have here & the wonderful sunsets. No issues with general shopping...& you'll soon you'll find a lot more places around with specialist shops...Albox ...(once you get to know it) has pretty much everything anyone could need for day to day living & Murcia and Almeria are not that far for fun shopping days out and McDonalds !!!.I'm so sad! 

Anyway... This site has been great for all kinds of information so, I'd say get here ASAP.

For removals: On another topic found on this forum...

Try to get a quote from 

Wiseguys details [email protected]     

phone number is; +34 677632960

Also worth comparing their quote with one from Pickfords.

If you play golf let me know, I help with a local Society, we play every Thursday at a variety of local courses.