love the sun and being by the sea

Hate the rudeness of the Spanish!

Love: the beauty that Spain has to offer, especially the Picos, Lakes, Rivers and wonderful beaches in the North (the best in Spain)

Hate: the fact that so many people here are racist, sexist, zenophobic, cruel to animals and damn right rude. That on top of poor quality service, lack of decent restaurants and being ripped off for not being Spanish.

The atmosphere within expatshire and ENVY thats exists in Spain in general

Loving the sun out here today, pottering around the garden for once and enjoying an icy cold cuba libre on the porch.

Hating going round the supermarket at the moment, with all the poor pigs heads dressed up in fancy dress for the traditional Galician festival of "Entroido". Being a lapsed vegetarian, never used to contemplate eating anything with a face. Now, can't stand the thought of eating the actual face!

Hating my next door neighbour spreading manure on his vegetable patch - the smell is interfering with my enjoyment of my cuba libre.

Loving : my second cuba libre. Sigh. All's right with the world once more!

Tallulah.

Like: The food.

Hate: The drivers. God they're dangerous.

Absolutely with you guys on this one!!!

So what part of Galicia are you in? Big shout out to us oop north - there's not too many of us on this forum! (Or maybe we're just shy!)

There's a lot more than you think. One of our local beach towns (Sada) has an awful lot of English & Americans living there. They enjoy the fantastic service, great restaurants, sense of community as it used to be in the UK many years ago (in the days of Hovis on a bike up a hill) - you know, when BT were crap because they had a monopoly and if the coffe machine was broken at work, someone had written a sign on it which read "British Telecommed".

Also see a lot of Brit activity near Monforte de Lemos and around the Pontevedra coast.

Great to see some more Homes/Mulleres in the forum

Adeus

Boas Xose,

Been to Sada - great place/atmosphere - know just what you mean. As the wife of a Gallego retornado, sure we've had a few hiccups in the last few years we've been here, but wouldn't swap it for anything we've left behind in the UK. As Edith Piaff sang so eloquently, "non, je ne regrette rien". Best thing we ever did. But, we are surrounded by family here (hubby's side) so that has been a huge plus. The kids have settled in great in the last few years, in fact by the time we'd been here a few months, they were fluent in Castellano and Gallego. Love Monforte too, got some friends up there and the sights are fabulous.

Sure, we had a few probs with Telefonica during the recent storms, but hey ho, with the countless thousands out of service with phone and electrickery, we counted ourselves lucky. Could have been a lot worse - tree came down and wrecked our telephone line, but a week and a bit later, all was well. Just huddled down, lit the fire and candles, few drinks and hey presto! The kids loved it, especially being off school for a couple of days. OK, so couldnt catch up on the Expat Forum, but by the sounds of it, everyone was having a miserable old time anyway!!

Sorte,

Tally.xx

I love my time away from work when I can enjoy the chiringuitos, the coffee, the people watching, the relaxing afternoons with friends (all of course are dependant on the weather being kind to us!)
I hate .... the bad weather days, particularly sundays when nothing is open and Im confined to looking at the four walls of the apartment .... the winters which to me seem to be getting longer and longer ... which means more time in the apartment wrapped up in fleeces and wooly socks! (not a particular glamorous look - but necessary given how bl***y cold the apartments are) ...

Love the weather (even though it rains more often than they tell you on Living in the Sun or A Place in the Sun) - I haven't been warm once this winter in UK but in Spain you can look forward to a summer whereas in Blighty summer remains a confused rumour - love the Manana culture (did the Brits invent the term?) because it reminds me of Charlie Brown "Why do it today if you can do it tomorrow"; love the fresh fruits and vegetables; love the countryside.

Hate the Spanish drivers (but love the roads) and hate Spanish TV - don't know why I even said that because I never watch it (just have it on over here to try and learn a few words).

LOVE THE ROADS?????????????????????? They're bloody awful!! full of potholes and those ridiculous metal speed bump things, road markings faded and hard to see, confusing road signs, very slippery when wet, unforgiving verges.... and of course they're full of spanish drivers LOL!!!

Jo x